The Torah is a Hebrew word denoting the sacred texts of the first five books of the Bible. The term "Torah" is derived from the Hebrew linguistic root meaning to teach, or instruction. The Torah is the divinely-revealed book of instructions from God to the Jewish people on how to live an honorable life in accordance with His laws. It is the main teaching doctrine of Judaism. The Torah consists of the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. There is also a set of teaching stories handed down through the century known as the Oral Torah. These anecdotal stories help Jews to understand and incorporate the wisdom of the Torah into their own lives.

The Torah was said to be revealed by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai. This revelation was said to occur around 1300 BCE. Some Jews believe that the entire Torah was revealed to Moses at one time, and other Jews believe that the Torah was revealed to Moses over a period of years. Most religious scholars now believe that the Torah did not have one author and was composed over several centuries between 600 and 400 BCE. The Oral Torah is composed of many teaching stories and commentaries on the original five books of the Bible that compose the Torah itself. The Oral Torah is comprised of the Midrash and the Talmud.

The structure of the commentaries in the Talmud and the Midrash is very similar to our current legal system of case law. As each case is decided, the wisdom and logic of each case is incorporated into the general body of wisdom of the original set of laws. So too with the Torah, the commentaries and stories of the Oral Torah illuminate the underlying divine wisdom of God's recommendations to the Jewish people. Medieval mystical Jews believed that the Torah provided the blueprint for the very creation of the world. The Kabbalistic interpretation of the Torah is that it is actually one long name of God that is broken up into syllables and words for our own understanding. Portions of the Torah are ritualistically read during the celebration of holidays, the Sabbath and coming-of-age Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah ceremonies.