Many elements of the modern democratic system can be found in the religious, cultural and national roots of the Jewish nation. The first shared principle is the recognition of the duties of a government to promote and apply principles of justice and to guarantee the existence of a civilized and just society. Early Judaic law, as reflected by the commandments found in the Torah, stresses the obligation of a government to institute legal norms and create mechanisms by which all members of society would benefit. "Judges and officials shall be placed in all thy gates which the Lord thy God has given you for your tribes and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment." (Deuteronomy 16:18).

Jewish tradition measures a government's right to exist and remain in power by its treatment of the weakest members of society. Accordingly, the prophets living in the times of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah were critical of any actions taken by the monarchs that had adverse affect on the rights of the people, particularly the weak. Prophecies describing future Jewish sovereignty were centered around the principles of law and justice: "Behold, the days come, says the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous shoot, and he shall reign as king and prosper, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land." (Jeremiah 23:5).

The second common thread shared by both democracy and Judaism is the subordination of an administration to the rule of a higher authority. Unlike other ancient cultures, Jewish tradition did not hold kings and rulers above the law. The law was not subject to a monarch's personal whims or desires. The book of Deuteronomy describes one of the first acts that a king must take upon assuming the throne: "And it shall be when he sits upon the throne of his kingdom that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book ... and it shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God to keep all the words of this law and these statutes and to do them."  (Deuteronomy 17: 18-19).

Tales in the Bible describing the lives of the kings of Judah and Israel are rife with examples of the importance of the rule of law. One of the more prominent incidents involves King Ahab, who upon the advice of his foreign wife, Queen Jezebel, confiscated the vineyard of his neighbor, Nevot, and had him killed. This act, which went against the very essence of the rule of law, is explained in the Book of Kings as the reason for the collapse of the House of Ahab and the overthrow of his heirs from power.

Another theme common to both democratic principles and Judaism is the exposure of the government and ruler to inspection and review. Unlike other ancient cultures, who glorified their kings and treated them as deities, the kings of the Bible are not portrayed as anything other than human and there are many references to the natural tendencies of these rulers to abuse their powers. The Bible and later Jewish thought made it clear that a ruler is not exempt from censure, examination and rebuke. Almost all of the great leaders of the Bible are described in their moments of weakness. A leader's ability to accept criticism and responsibility for his errors and omissions is the yardstick against which he is judged to be a great leader.

Fourthly, Judaic law recognized the importance of the decentralization of governmental power. Many Jewish sources acknowledge the corrupting influence of power and the importance of separating between the various branches of authority. In most ancient cultures the ruler was traditionally the head of the cult, the embodiment of a god or the chief religious figure. No distinction was made between the rulers and the religion or cult. In contrast, the Jewish king played almost no role in the religious and ritual life of the people. Even if in certain cases there was a merger of roles, it was solely to demonstrate that the king was bound by supreme law and obligated to comply with such law.

Early Jewish sources were suspicious of omnipotent regimes and rulers, and recognized the all too human tendency for the abuse of authority and power. Although the Jews of the Bible lived under a monarchal system of government, the underlying principles of the ideal regime, as described by the prophets, with respect for human rights and limitation of powers, were expressed for hundreds of years in Jewish liturgy, literature and thought. They became part of the roots of Jewish culture, and emerged later as elements of the modern democratic political system.

Rabbi Gilad Kariv is a reform rabbi and attorney who serves as Director of Public Policy for the Israel Religious Action Center (IRAC), a center for Jewish pluralism, and an arm of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism.