The Emergence of Democracy in Jewish Thought

Modern western world considers democracy an ideal political system. The concept of democracy, however, is not the same across various cultures and religions. In particular, Jewish thought or historiography takes pride in claiming that Judaism is democratic.

This paper examined the emergence of the concept of democracy in the history of Jewish thought and its development. We began by exploring the appearance of the word “democracy” in Hebrew by analyzing materials from rabbinic Judaism and medieval literature. Subsequently, we investigated the source of Jewish Studies in the 19^th century in Germany. We also examined the usage of democracy in modern Jewish thought and journals.

This study aims to clarify the context of "democracy supremacist" in Jewish thought. We also try to analyze the concept of Jewish democracy. Our paper hopes to contribute towards a better understanding of Judaism for other cultures, like Japan.