Judaism vs. Imitation Religions – Why Torah Stands on Truth, Not Belief Alone

There are people for whom the knowledge of God’s existence is as clear and solid as bedrock, and they sincerely desire with all their heart to do His will. However, they have doubts about which Torah was truly given by God, and which “religions” were fabricated by human beings seeking honor, inventing new faiths to glorify themselves. We will briefly explain the essential difference between the original religion of truth and the counterfeit, imitative religions.

Faith of Imagination — or of Knowledge?

The Hebrew word emunah (faith) comes from the root emun (trust). When a person lends money to his friend, it is because he places trust in him that the debt will be repaid. There are two kinds of trust: one built on imagination, and one built on knowledge.

If someone lends a large sum of money to a complete stranger, merely believing him based on his appearance and his own testimony that he is trustworthy, this is trust built on imagination. The lender only imagines that the man before him is reliable, but he may in fact lose all his money.

By contrast, trust built on knowledge is when the lender hears testimony from the borrower’s parents, relatives, and friends, who all confirm beyond doubt that this man is honest, careful with others’ money, and always repays what he owes on time. This kind of trust is grounded in verified knowledge.

The difference between the two is enormous. Every religion, whether true or false, uses the term “faith”. This shared terminology naturally confuses the casual observer: Which religion is the true one? After all, each claims to have the truth, and each speaks of faith. the deeper thinker examines the root and foundation of that faith, which is where the great difference emerges.

Christianity and Islam: Faith Without Witnesses

The founder of Christianity demanded of all, “Believe in my mission, for God spoke to me”. The glaring weakness of this claim is that no one ever saw God speak to him, and no testimony exists other than his own. If so, perhaps he lied? Perhaps he suffered from a mental illness that caused him to hear voices and imagine that God was speaking to him? Psychiatric hospitals are full of such cases.

Similarly, when Muhammad claimed to be God’s prophet, his own tribe — the Quraysh, mocked him: “If it is as you say, why does God not show us at least once that He is speaking with you?” Unable to provide evidence, Muhammad was forced to flee Mecca for Medina, from where he spread his religion by force of arms.

Judaism: Faith Based on National Testimony

Judaism, however, is the only faith that bases itself on the unified testimony of millions of people. The entire nation of Israel, who left Egypt, stood together at Mount Sinai and witnessed God’s revelation. They all heard Him declare the opening of the Ten Commandments: “I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of Egypt.” They all saw Moses ascend the mountain into the fire, remain forty days, and return with the Torah’s commandments.

This testimony was handed down, father to son, in countless Jewish families without interruption, generation after generation. It is reinforced annually by national commemorations of the Exodus on Passover, the giving of the Torah on Shavuot, and the booths of Sukkot. These aren’t vague memories, but structured, detailed reenactments built into Jewish life itself.

In addition, we have the unbroken chain of rabbinic transmission from Moses until today, with biographies, writings, dates, and places fully recorded. Historically, the Torah was given at Sinai in the year 1312 BCE, over 3,300 years ago. Christianity arose only 2,000 years ago; Islam, 1,400 years ago. When there is an original and much earlier source, and later imitations, it is obvious which is authentic.

The Eternal Torah

This explains why all religions acknowledge the truth of the Torah and the revelation at Sinai, while Judaism denies the legitimacy of the later imitations. As the Torah proclaims: “God will never exchange His Torah, nor will He alter it.” Indeed, reason demands that the all-powerful Creator, Who foresees all generations, would give His creatures an eternal Torah.

Even if external scientific or archaeological confirmation is unnecessary, it is notable that modern findings do indeed support the Torah’s account. Beyond that, the Torah contains its own internal proofs of prophecy fulfilled with astonishing accuracy, hidden codes, mystical knowledge of nature and creation, the Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Formation), and the secrets of the Hebrew letters — all testifying to its divine authorship.

The Clear Difference

This is the great distinction between Judaism and the imitative religions: our faith is founded upon knowledge and testimony, while theirs rests on imagination and unverified claims.

The Torah itself emphasizes this difference: “Ask now of the days past… has anything like this ever happened? Has any people heard the voice of the living God speaking from the fire, as you have heard, and survived?... You have been shown to know that the Lord is God; there is none else besides Him” (Deut. 4:32–39).

As Maimonides writes: “The Israelites did not believe in Moses because of the miracles he performed, but because they themselves witnessed the revelation at Sinai.”

This explains the historical mystery of Jewish resilience. Countless Jews have endured torture, fire, and death rather than abandon their faith. Meanwhile, countless adherents of other religions — though lacking nothing, have voluntarily abandoned their faiths to join the persecuted and suffering Jews, even under threat of death. Both groups declared, with clear mind and steady words, that they chose Judaism because of the undeniable truth of the Torah.

As the verse concludes: “You who cleave to the Lord your God are all alive today” (Deut. 4:4).