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The Roots of Christianity: Biblical Judaism
Christianity has its roots in the ancient religion of Biblical Judaism.' Ancient Judaism arose in Middle Eastern Asia.? For many centuries before the time of Jesus, the religious and political identities of the people of the Judaic tradition had been quite unsettled. The geographical basis of Judaism was originally the country that is today called Israel. This tiny sliver of land was located along major trade and travel routes connecting the empires of the continents that touch the Mediterranean Sea. As a result, the land of Israel was invaded and ruled by various foreign powers throughout history.
The inhabitants of this land also experienced cycles of famine, causing periodic migrations to other territories. The early generations of the people of Judaism were made into slaves during their sojourn in Egypt, had been taken into captivity by Babylonian conquerors, and had experienced the destruction of their holy temples and towns at the hands of the Assyrians, the Greeks, and the Roman empires. These people of ancient Judaism are commonly referred to as the Jews.
The Jews had been dispersed, partially re-gathered, re-combined and re-located several times. The people and their religious
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