Judaism

===The Enlightenment and new religious movements===
{{Main|Haskalah|Jewish religious movements}}
In the late 18th century CE, Europe was swept by a group of intellectual, social and political movements known as the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]]. The Enlightenment led to reductions in the European laws that prohibited Jews to interact with the wider secular world, thus allowing Jews access to secular education and experience. A parallel Jewish movement, [[Haskalah]] or the "Jewish Enlightenment", began, especially in Central Europe and Western Europe, in response to both the Enlightenment and these new freedoms. It placed an emphasis on integration with secular society and a pursuit of non-religious knowledge through reason. With the promise of political emancipation, many Jews saw no reason to continue to observe ''halakha'' and increasing numbers of Jews assimilated into Christian Europe. Modern religious movements of Judaism all formed in reaction to this trend.

In Central Europe, followed by Great Britain and the United States, [[Reform Judaism|Reform (or Liberal) Judaism]] developed, relaxing legal obligations (especially those that limited Jewish relations with non-Jews), emulating [[Protestant]] decorum in prayer, and emphasizing the ethical values of Judaism's Prophetic tradition. [[Modern Orthodox Judaism]] developed in reaction to Reform Judaism, by leaders who argued that Jews could participate in public life as citizens equal to Christians while maintaining the observance of ''halakha''. Meanwhile, in the United States, wealthy Reform Jews helped European scholars, who were Orthodox in practice but critical (and skeptical) in their study of the Bible and Talmud, to establish a seminary to train rabbis for immigrants from Eastern Europe. These left-wing Orthodox rabbis were joined by right-wing Reform rabbis who felt that ''halakha'' should not be entirely abandoned, to form the [[Conservative Judaism|Conservative movement]]. Orthodox Jews who opposed the Haskalah formed [[Haredi Orthodox Judaism]]. After massive movements of Jews following [[The Holocaust]] and the creation of the state of Israel, these movements have competed for followers from among traditional Jews in or from other countries.