Introduction to Judaism

Dale Hathaway

hathawayd@winthrop.edu

Oct. 18, 2017

Winthrop University

Judaism 101

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What is Judaism?

Judaism has been described as a religion, a race, a culture, and a nation All of these descriptions have some validity The Jewish people are perhaps best described as an extended family

Are Jews a Race?

  • In the 1980s, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Jews are a race, at least for purposes of certain anti-discrimination laws.
  • Many Jews were deeply offended
  • it calls to mind the reasonings of Nazi Germany

Their reasoning: at the time these laws were passed, people routinely spoke of the "Jewish race" or the "Italian race" as well as the "Negro race," so that is what the legislators intended to protect.

Is It a Culture or Ethnic Group?

  • Most secular American Jews think of their Jewishness as a matter of culture or ethnicity.
  • When they think of Jewish culture, they think of the food, of the Yiddish language, of some limited holiday observances, and of cultural values like the emphasis on education.
  • Much of this is in fact just one kind of Jewish culture (Ashkenazi vs. Sephardic)

Are the Jews a Nation?

  • The traditional explanation, and the one given in the Torah, is that the Jews are a nation.
  • The Hebrew word is "goy."
  • The Torah and the rabbis used this term not in the modern sense meaning a territorial and political entity, but in the ancient sense meaning a group of people with a common history, a common destiny, and a sense that we are all connected to each other.

The Jewish People are a Family

  • Judaism as "religion", "race", or "ethnic group" each has merit, but each is inadequate
  • Jews are connected to other Jews throughout the world and throughout time
  • some have suggested the best metaphor is "family"

What do Jews believe? A Christian question

  • Question: "What is Judaism and what do Jews believe?"
  • Answer: What is Judaism, and who or what is a Jew? Is Judaism simply a religion? Is it a cultural identity or just an ethnic group? Are Jews a clan of people or are they a nation? What do Jews believe, and do they all believe the same things?

Definitions

Dictionary definitions of a “Jew” include

  • “a member of the tribe of Judah,”
  • “an Israelite,”
  • “a member of a nation existing in the land of Israel from the 6th century B.C. to the 1st century A.D.,”
  • “a person belonging to a continuation through descent or conversion of the ancient Jewish people,” and
  • “one whose religion is Judaism.”

Who Is a Jew?

  • A Jew is any person whose mother was a Jew or any person who has gone through the formal process of conversion to Judaism.
  • Most estimates suggest that there are about 13 million Jews in the world. The vast majority of these Jews live in either the United States (about 6 million) and Israel (about 5 million).
  • the differences between Sephardic (Spanish/Middle Eastern) and Ashkenazic (German/Eastern European) Jews, and other cultural subgroups of Judaism.
  • Judaism does not maintain that Jews are better than other people.

Belief

So, what is it that Jews believe, and what are the basic precepts of Judaism? There are five main forms or sects of Judaism in the world today. They are

  • Orthodox,
  • Conservative,
  • Reformed,
  • Reconstructionist, and
  • Humanistic.

Traditional beliefs

a short list of the traditional beliefs of Judaism would include the following:

  • God is the creator of all that exists;
  • He is one, incorporeal (without a body), and He alone is to be worshipped as absolute ruler of the universe.
  • The first five books of the Hebrew Bible were revealed to Moses by God. They will not be changed or augmented in the future.
  • God has communicated to the Jewish people through prophets.
  • God monitors the activities of humans; He rewards individuals for good deeds and punishes evil.

Scripture

Although Christians base much of their faith on the same Hebrew Scriptures as Jews do, there are major differences in belief:

  • Jews generally consider actions and behavior to be of primary importance;
  • beliefs come out of actions. This conflicts with conservative Christians for whom belief is of primary importance and actions are a result of that belief.
  • Jewish belief does not accept the Christian concept of original sin (the belief that all people have inherited Adam and Eve's sin when they disobeyed God's instructions in the Garden of Eden).
  • Judaism affirms the inherent goodness of the world and its people as creations of God.

Mitzvoth (Commandments)

  • Jewish believers are able to sanctify their lives and draw closer to God by fulfilling mitzvoth (divine commandments).
  • No savior is needed or is available as an intermediary.
  • The 613 commandments found in Leviticus and other books regulate all aspects of Jewish life. The Ten Commandments, as delineated in Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21, form a brief synopsis of the Law.
  • The Messiah (anointed one of God) will arrive in the future and gather Jews once more into the land of Israel. There will be a general resurrection of the dead at that time. The Jerusalem Temple, destroyed in A.D. 70 by the Romans, will be rebuilt.

Jesus and Judaism

  • Beliefs about Jesus vary considerably. Some view Him as a great moral teacher. Others see Him as a false prophet or as an idol of Christianity. Some sects of Judaism will not even say His name due to the prohibition against saying an idol's name.
  • The Jews are often referred to as God's chosen people. Meaning?

Patriarchs and women

  • The position of women under traditional Jewish law is not nearly as lowly as many modern people think.
  • The Patriarchs and the Origins of Judaism from Abraham to the Children of Israel, discussing the lives of the Patriarchs.
  • Moses, Aaron and Miriam (Exodus)
  • Prophets and Prophecy
  • Jewish sages and scholars, including Hillel, Shammai, Rabbi Akiba, Judah Ha-Nasi, Rashi, Maimonides and the Baal Shem Tov.

The Name of G-d

  • YHVH (“Yahweh”?)
  • Elohim "God"
  • El Shaddai "God Almighty"
  • YHVH Sabaoth "Lord of Hosts"
  • today often written G-d so that prohibition for defacing name of God won't be done inadvertently

Rambam's list Maimonides

The closest that anyone has ever come to creating a widely-accepted list of Jewish beliefs is Rambam's thirteen principles of faith. These principles, which Rambam thought were the minimum requirements of Jewish belief, are:

  1. G-d exists
  2. G-d is one and unique
  3. G-d is incorporeal
  4. G-d is eternal
  5. Prayer is to be directed to G-d alone and to no other
  6. The words of the prophets are true
  7. Moses' prophecies are true, and Moses was the greatest of the prophets
  8. The Written Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) and Oral Torah (teachings now contained in the Talmud and other writings) were given to - Moses
  9. There will be no other Torah
  10. G-d knows the thoughts and deeds of men
  11. G-d will reward the good and punish the wicked
  12. The Messiah will come
  13. The dead will be resurrected

Who knows one? (From Seder)

  • Who knows one? I know one! One is Hashem! In the Heaven and the Earth
  • Who knows two? I know two! Two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem, etc.
  • Who knows three? I know three! Three are the fathers, and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem, etc.
  • Who knows four? I know four! Four are the Mothers, and three are the fathers, and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem
  • Who knows five? I know five! Five are the books of the *[clap] Torah, Four are the mothers, and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who knows six? I know six! Six are the books of the *[clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the *[clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who knows seven? I know seven! Seven are the days of the week [clap, clap], Six are the books of the *[clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the *[clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem
  • Who knows eight? I know eight! Eight are the days til the *Brit Milah. Seven are the days of the week *[clap, clap], Six are the books of the *clap Mishnah, and five are the books of the *[clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who knows nine? I know nine! Nine are the months til the baby's born Eight are the days til the Brit Milah Seven are the days of the week *[clap, clap], Six are the books of the [clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the *[clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who know ten? I know ten! Ten are the Ten Commandments Nine are the months til the baby's born Eight are the days til the *Brit Milah Seven are the days of the week *[clap, clap], Six are the books of the [clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the [clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who knows eleven? I know eleven! Eleven are the stars in Joseph's dream Ten are the Ten Commandments Nine are the months til the baby's born Eight are the days til the *Brit Milah Seven are the days of the week [clap, clap], Six are the books of the [clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the [clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.
  • Who knows twelve? I know twelve! Twelve are the tribes of Israel Eleven are the stars in Joseph's dream Ten are the Ten Commandments Nine are the months til the baby's born Eight are the days til the *Brit Milah Seven are the days of the week [clap, clap], Six are the books of the [clap] Mishnah, and five are the books of the [clap] Torah, and four are the mothers and three are the fathers and two are the tablets that Moses brought, and one is Hashem.

Torah: multiple & rich meanings

  • the concept of Torah,
  • the books of Jewish scriptures and other sacred Jewish writings.
  • entire Jewish Bible
  • Whole body of Jewish law & teachings

Prayers and Blessings

  • the importance of prayer in Judaism and the form and content of prayers and blessings.
  • The Hebrew word for prayer is tefilah.
  • The Yiddish word meaning "pray" is "daven," which ultimately comes from the same Latin root as the English word "divine" and emphasizes the One to whom prayer is directed.
  • For an observant Jew, prayer is not simply something that happens in synagogue once a week (or even three times a day). Prayer an integral part of everyday life. In fact, one of the most important prayers in Judaism, the Birkat Ha-Mazon, is never recited in synagogue!

Jewish Liturgy

  • the history and structure of the traditional Jewish prayer service.

Central Prayers

Undoubtedly the oldest fixed daily prayer in Judaism is the Shema. This consists of Deut. 6:4-9, Deut. 11:13-21, and Num. 15:37-41. http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/705353/jewish/The-Shema.htm

The Land of Israel

  • the importance of the land of Israel to Judaism,
  • the rise of Zionism and
  • the formation of the state of Israel.

Synagogues, Shuls and Temples

  • Jewish places of worship,
  • modern synagogues and
  • the Temple of ancient times.

Shabbat

The Sabbath (or Shabbat, as it is called in Hebrew) is one of the best known and least understood of all Jewish observances. People who do not observe Shabbat think of it as a day filled with stifling restrictions, or as a day of prayer like the Christian Sabbath. But to those who observe Shabbat, it is a precious gift from G-d, a day of great joy eagerly awaited throughout the week, a time when we can set aside all of our weekday concerns and devote ourselves to higher pursuits.

Jewish Holidays

Jewish holidays generally. Includes a list of all Jewish holidays and their dates for the next five years. Provides links to pages about each specific holiday.

  • Passover
  • The Month of Tishri Tishri, the most holiday-intensive month of the Jewish year.
  • Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year
  • Days of Awe the period of introspection from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, known as the Days of Awe.
  • Yom Kippur the Jewish Day of Atonement
  • Sukkot the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles.

Created by Dale Hathaway.