Judaism (The Thirteen Principles of Faith, Tefilat HaDerech - Jewish Wayfarer's Prayer, and Channukah Blessings in Sign)
Judaism is one of the oldest monotheistic (one God) religions, emerging many centuries BC in the area east of the Mediterranean. Early on, the Jews developed the beliefs that, ultimately, God would bring his kingdom to Earth and establish an era of peace and justice. In 568 BC, the destruction of the First Temple and subsequent Babylonian captivity brought new energy to the concept of a messiah, with public study of the Torah (central religious text) becoming more common. Alexander the Great's conquests brought both new ideologies and hardships, and from these conditions sprang both Christianity (see above) and Rabbinic, or classical, Judaism. Over the next five centuries, the synagogues replaced temples, priests were replaced by rabbis, and sacrificial ceremonies were eliminated in favor of prayer services.

Contemporary Judaism consists of several movements, including Hasidism and Zionism. Orthodox Jews hold that halakah (the law) is derived from God, and therefore absolute, while Conservative Jews observe many traditions but recognize the need for change. Reconstructionist Judaism, a relatively recent movement, accepts all forms, considering Judaism as primarily a cultural (rather than religious) system.

The Thirteen Principles of Faith describe some of the fundamental beliefs of Judaism, as written by Rambam in defense of traditional Rabbinical values. The Tefilat HaDarech is a traditional prayer for travelers, and is available in both Hebrew and English. Finally, while not a high holiday, Channukah prayers and the menorah lighting ceremony are available in text and image formats.

Taoism (Tao-te-Ching)
The founder of Taoism was Lao-Tse (604-531 BC), a contemporary of Confucius. Dismayed at the toll of constant feudal battles in his society, Lao-Tse was searching for a way that would avoid the waste of warfare and conflicts. The result was his book: Tao-te-Ching.

The Tao, or Way, which is the core of Taoism, has never been fully written in words; rather it is left for each practitioner to discover within. Lao-Tse wrote, "The Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao." Taoism is concerned with man's spiritual level of being, and in Tao-te-Ching, the awakened man is compared to bamboo: upright, simple but useful outside, while hollow inside. Luminous emptiness is the spirit of Tao. A uniquely Taoist concept is wu-wei, or non-action. Wu-wei does not imply lack of action, but rather not acting beyond the spontaneous action that conforms with needs as they naturally ensue. Wu-wei is a lack of calculated action and an embrace of action that does not exceed the very minimum required for effective results. Being still and listening to the inner prompting of the Tao results in effortless action.

Taoism started as a combination of psychology and philosophy but evolved into a religion in 440 BC when it was adopted as a state religion. At that time Lao-Tse became popularly venerated as a deity. Taoism, along with Buddhism and Confucianism, became the three great religions of China.

All of the above documents can be found at either MemoWare or The Lending Library. Or, take a tour around the PalmPilot E-text Web-Ring. You may be surprised to find exactly what you're looking for!

As a Ph.D. student in Business Administration, Craig Froehle has witnessed his fair share of praying, especially during midterms and final exams. When John Swain isn't working in the New York metropolitan area, he's passionately engaged in his pursuit to create the largest dryer lint collection on the planet.