Judaism is a monotheistic religion that is based on a strict belief in one single, indivisible, non-compound God. The most important teaching and tenet of Judaism is that there is one God, incorporeal and eternal, who wants all people to do what is just and merciful. Jewish people believe in the Torah, which was the whole of the laws given to the Israelites at Sinai. They believe they must follow Gods laws which govern all aspects of life.

Jewish identity is not solely based on religious belief and practice, but also on ethnicity and culture. Most Jews by religion identify with either Reform or Conservative Judaism, and fewer say they do not belong to a particular denomination. Most Jews of no religion do not identify with any institutional branch or stream of Judaism.

Three-quarters of U.S. Jews believe in God or some spiritual force in the universe, including 26% who say they believe in “God as described in the Bible” and about twice as many (50%) who believe in some other spiritual force. Belief in God is much more widespread among Jews by religion than among Jews of no religion. However, most Jews see no conflict between being Jewish and not believing in God.

Judaisms focus is more on how God defines man than one trying to define God. There is therefore a focus on what people are expected to be or do far more than on spelling out theological beliefs. People are born with both a tendency to do good and to do evil, and Jewish tradition mostly emphasizes free will. God chose the Jewish people to be in a unique covenant with God; the description of this covenant is the Torah itself.