JUDAISM

1. The religion of the Jewish or Hebrew people which may be tracedback to the Exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt.

a. It is closely bound up with a divine revelation, and withthe commitment of the people to obedience to God's will.

b. The connection between religion and peoplehood gives Judaisma unique character which is not shared by its daughter reli-gion, Christianity.

2. Over its history of 3,000 years, Judaism has changed both in theo-logy and in practice.

a. The Jewish People have been called the "People of the Book",which does not mean that their religion is determined liter-ally and exclusively by the contents of the Bible, but thatthe book has been the authority, guide, and inspiration ofall the many forms the religon has taken in different periodsand in different lands.

b. It has its roots in the Hebrew Bible (the Greek word for bookis Biblica) which was written over a period of nearly 1,000years and established in its full canonical form by the endof the First Century A.D.

3. The Hebrew Bible is divided according to Jewish Tradition intothree sections.

a. The Torah or the Pentateuch -------------- the first fivebooks:

1. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

2. These were believed to have been written by Moses fromdivine instruction on Mt. Sinai.

b. The Prophets were are subdivided into:

1. The Earlier Prophets: Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings.

2. The Later Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, andtwelve "minor" prophets.

c. The Writings:

* Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamenta- tions, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chonicles.

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4. The Bible is a record of the Hebrews' aspiration to understand Godand his way both in relation to the natural world and humanity.

a. The name Hebrew (Ivri) is derived perhaps from the root mean-ing "to cross", and refers to the people who came to Cannanfrom the eastern side of the Euphrates.

b. It is also asociated with the name Ever, grandson of Shem ---Shem is the root word meaning "Semite".

Common Assumptions

1. God's existence and power are taken for granted ------------------the question (delemma) for the Hebrews is to understand how he actsin the world, and what he requires of Man.

2. Genesis: the natural world is a manifestation of God's glory ------The fate of nations and the experience of individuals reflects thepower of God in the affairs of human beings.

3. The Bible moves from a restrictive view of God as a national deityto a more universal conception of him as a the God of all nationswhich are but instruments in his own hands.

4. There are several names of God found in the scriptures:

* Ranging from Shaddai, which seems to signify storm-god, or god of power, Elolah, Yah, and Adonai, to the more common Elohim, and Yaweh.

* Yaweh becoming the most sacred divine name (usually translated "Lord") which was not pronounced by the Jews.

* The name "Jehovah" is a medieval misreading and does not occur in the Hebrew Bible.

5. Dual (Paradoxial View of God:

a. God is both a remote and transcendant being, imposing his aweupon the universe, demanding absolute obedience under thesanctions of severe penalties.

b. God is also a loving and compassionate father, who has aclose and personal relationship with those who believe inHim.

c. This paradox is a reflection of the ambivalent attitude thatthe Hebrews had towards a world which appeared to be bothstern and bountiful.

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6. From a ritualistic point of view, the religion of the Hebrews wascentered around a sanctuary or a shrine.

a. At first is was movable, and then finally established inJerusalem ------------ first the Tabernacle and later theTemple.

b. Animal sacrifices and offerings wre made by the priests.

c. The Priests, a special hereditary class descended from Aaron,the first high priest and elder brother of Moses.

d. Offerings were made upon the alter daily, and specialofferings on Holy Days.

e. Offerings were made as atonements for sins or as thanksgivingon special occasions (such as childbirth).

The Prophets

1. Institutionalized Religion can become automatic losing its spiri-tual awareness among believers.

2. Among the Hebrews individuals arose who denounced the insincerepractice of Hebrew ritual ------------ these were the Prophets.

3. The prophet was a man who believed he was called by God to preachhis message.

a. The Hebrew word for prophet, navi, comes from a root meaning"to well up, to gush forth", as if the prophet was a passiveinstrument for the expression of God's Will.

b. The main purpose of their message concerned a righteous life,whether it was the life of an individual or the life of anation.

4. The Bible reflects an overriding consciousness of the religiouspurpose of the Hebrew People.

a. The early narratives of the Patriarchs (fathers) were to in-still the doctrine of the close relationship that existed be-tween God and the Hebrews.

b. This relationship was emphasized in the experience of theExodus which has been viewed as a necessary preliminary todivine relevation at Sinai.

c. The main burden of the prophetic exhortation was a specialresponsiblility to fulfill a divine mission.

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"Ye shall be untome a kingdom of priests, a holy nation." (Exodus XIX:6)

d. This special relationship was a covenant or agreement (brit)between God and the Hebrews.

From Hebraism to Judaism

1. The period from the completion of biblical writing (ca. 150 B.C.)to the compilation of the Mishnah (A.D. 200) was one of transitionin the history of Judaism.

a. A long and slow transformation took place, at the end ofwhich biblical Hebraism emerged as Rabbinic Judaism.

b. There are many unanswered questions about this period, but itis clear that the religon of the Jews was not yet thestable, codified system that it would later become.

2. Rabbinic Tradition maintains there were a number of sects duringthis period (some being beyond the scope of "normative" Judaism).

a. Disputes between the Sadducees and the Pharisees:

1. The Sadducees claimed to be descended from Zadock, thepriest and belonged to the priestly, aristocraticclass.

2. The Pharisees (meaning "separated ones") were devotedto the study and practice of the Torah.

3. These disputes concerned such questions as the resur-rection of the body and the date of the Festival ofPentecost.

* Shabuoth: seven weeks after Passover commemorating the giving of the Torah to Moses.

b. The Samaritans rejected rabbinic interpretation of Scriptureand confined themselves to the literal application of thePentateuch --------------- they became more removed fromthe center of Jewish tradition.

c. From the testimony of Josephus (b. A.D. 37/38) and archaelo-gical discovery provide evidence that during this periodthere existed organized Jewish Communities which shunnedurban life and constituted a more ascetic, almost monastic

society.

* Such were the Essenes and the community at Qumran (if these two are not in fact identical).

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3. The literature discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls especiallythat dealing withthe "Wars of the Sons of Light against the SonsDarkness" and the "Teacher of Righteousness", must be consideredalong with the Apocrypha and other literature as Pseudepigraphic(falsely inscribed) ------------- these did not become part ofthe Jewish cannon of Scripture.

* These writings deal with the "end of days". (Eschatological)

a. These eschatological ideas proliferated in this period(especially in the Hebrew Enoch) which was a reflection ofthe emotion released at a period of spiritual disorientationand political breakdown.

b. The influence of Persian and Hellenistic ideas and practiceshad its impact (although the attempt, in 168 B.C., byAntiochus Epiphanes to destroy the Jewish religion was pre-vented by the Maccabees.

c. The Hashomonean dynasty also fell victim to oriental influ-ence (conception of monarchy) with disasterous results on thefaith and people.

d. This was followed by the oppression of Roman Rule which re-sulted in a proliferation of new religious movements and con-cepts.

* Some of these were later to form the foundation of Jewish mysticism (Kabbalah), while others would find a

home in Christianity.

The Rise of Christianity

1. Messianic speculation in religious movements is usually at itsheight when anti-religious pressures are at their strongest.

2. The Jews looked forward to the coming of a Messiah (lit. "annoitedone") who would be descended from the House of David who wouldbring an end to political oppression, re-establish Jewish nationalsovereignty, and usher in a period of peace establishing the King-dom of God.

3. From the Gospels: Jesus of Nazareth considered himself, and by manyJews, to be the Jewsih Messiah.

a. From this point of view he was acting within Jewish Tradi-tion, and there is little in his teachings that contradictsthe established Jewish ideology of his time.

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b. He probably would not have thought of himself as belongingto any other religion but Judaism.

4. Jesus's Death

a. It was encouraged by those Jews (mainly Sadducees) who sawin his preaching a danger (threat) to the established Templepractice ------------ their position of power.

b. It was supported by Roman Authorities who considered him tobe a potential national leader (rebel).

ie. because of his messianic claims.

c. His execution marked the end of his influcence for the major-ity of Jews because his death proved he was not the Messiah.

5. Followers and Opponents of Jesus:

a. It became more than an internal Jewish struggle with thePauline Interpretation of the life of Jesus ----------------this interpretation became the basis of the new religion ofChristianity.

b. When large numbers of Gentiles became converted ------------new elements were introduced by St. Paul: divine incarnation,vicarious atonement (done for another), the abrogation of thelaw, and the doctrine of the basically sinful nature of Mancould not be accepted by one who wanted to remain a Jew.

6. The Expansion of Chritianity had a lasting impact on Jews andJudaism.

a. It assumed the role that Judaism had previously played inthe conversion of Gentiles.

b. In Christian (and later in Moslem) lands, Jewish proselytismbecame a capital offence.

c. For centuries Jews were considered, by Christians, to beguilty of deicide, and an accursed race (people), their veryexistence and the practice of their faith was a testimony totheir blindness for not recognizing the true Messiah.

The Pharisaic Achievement

1. The Tannaim (ca. 100 B.C. - A.D. 200) ------------ a period inwhich rabbis because of changing circumstances with spritual cre-ativity and sensitivity were able to reshape the biblical core,laying the foundations of Modern Judaism.

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2. The destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70was the single overriding factor that led to this transformation.

* DISCUSS: the Diaspora, the Chaldeans, 586 B.C., the role of Titus in the Jewish Revolt, and the significance of the Iudaicus Fiscus

a. The religion of the Jews had been based in matters of worshipand ritual on a sacrificial system, and the official repre-senatives of the people before God were the priestly caste,the cohanim.

b. The sacrificial system disappeared, since it was forbiddenaccording to priestly legislation to offer sacrifice in anyother place than the central sanctuary of the Temple --------with the end of the sacrificial system, the over all domina-tion of the priestly caste ended.

c. Jewish religious leadership became more open and democraticdepending for its worth on learning rather than birth.

d. The main place of worship for the Jews was no longer theTemple in Jerusalem but the synagogue of the locality.

* The priestly class continued, however, in traditional Judaism, to occupy a special place in synagogue ritual, marriage law, and some other fields.

3. This transformation was evolutionary ---------- the synagogue asan institution had been founded long before the Roman Era.

a. Jewish Scholars (of Jewish) of Law described in the tannaiticperiod as scribes or rabbis flourished side by side with theTemple Cult for many years.

b. The divinding line for practical purposes came in A.D. 70 ---the place for sacrifice would henceforth be taken by deeds ofcharity.

4. Rabbis were able to reconcile these changes with the eternal un-changing authority given by God at Mt. Sinai.

a. Moses was given the written law (torah she-bi-khtav) -------the Pentateuch.

b. An equally authoritative oral law was also given: (torah she-be-alpeh) which was an interpretation of the former.

c. This oral tradition was committed to writing by Rabbi Judahha-Nasi in the Mishnah (lit. repetition) ca. A.D. 200.

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5. Midrash, or biblical interpretaion, was origninally of two types.

a. halakhic - ie. legal.

b. aggadic - homiletic (moral, ethical, advising, urging) orancecdotal.* These two types existed side by side for centuries, so that Judaism possesses a rich anthology of biblical interpreta- tion.

The Mishnah

1. It was a systemazation of previous attempts to summarize the massof custom, concept and legislation which had grown up among theJews.

2. The Purpose: was to formulate Jewish law for posterity, and shieldit from the destruction threatend by political upheval and persecu-tion.

3. The Mishnah comprises six orders (sedarim) and each order is sub-divided into a number of tractates (massekhtot) on individual sub-jects.

4. The Six Orders

a. Zeraim (Seeds) - mainly agricultural legislation, but includ-ing an important tractate on the litury.

b. Moed (Festivals)

c. Nashim (Women)

d. Nezikin (Dangers) - ie. civil law, but containing also acollection of moral and theological statements.

e. Kodashim (Sacred Things) - legislation connected mainly withthe Temple.

f. Tohorot (Cleanness)

5. Besides the Mishnah there existed in this period other legal tradi-tions, called baraitot, which were taken into account by laterrabbis when they attempted to standarized Jewish tradition.

6. The Mishnah reflects many different opinions and often does notmake a firm decision in matters where rabbinic authorities are inconflict.

7. Because of the emergence of new traditions, it became necessary for

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the Mishnah to be subjected to intensive study and commentary.

* This examination formed the basis of the two versions of the Talmud ------------ the Palestinian (or Jersusalem) Talmud, and the Babylonian Talmud.

a. Each Talmud (lit. teaching) consists of the Mishnah togetherwith comments on it called the Gemara (lit. "completion")

b. The Babylonian Talmud (completed ca. A.D. 500) is more com-prehensive than the Palestinian and has served as the founda-tion for Jewish Law and practice since that time.

c. The Talmuds contain not only law but also a great deal oftheological and ethical discussion, as well as historical andanecdotal material

ie. Conflict between freedom and divine foreknowledge, thequestion of evil, immortality and life after death, the na-ture and destiny of man, the will of God.

Development of Law

1. After the completion of the Babylonian Talmud, Jewish Law continuedto develop in two major areas.

a. First, new legal decisions had to be made in those circum-stances which were not covered by earlier legislation.

b. Second, the unwieldly mass of rabbinic law needed to bearranged in a way which would enable a student to consult itwith comparative ease.

2. The first requirement was met by the growth of responsa (lit. re-plies) literature.

a. Questions on Jewish practice were addressed to the Geonim,as leaders of Babylonian Jewry, and to other acknowledgedrabbinic authorities.

b. The questions together with the replies have often beenpreserved ----------- the result was a body of legal de-cisions which were to act as a guide and a precedent forfuture discussion.

3. The second problem of unmangeable size of rabbinic law was solvedby the codification of law.

a. The Mishneh Torah (Repetition of Law) was the first systema-tic code produced by the Spainard Moses Maimonides (1135 -

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1204).

* Maimonides was accused of giving his own opinions unsup- ported by argument, of failure to quote sources, and also of introducing philosophical matters which were not part of the original legal system.

b. The Shulchan Arukh (Prepared Table): was written by RabbiJoseph Karo (1488-1575).

1. Karo was born in Toledo, but grew up in Asia Minor, andlater settled in Safed in Palestine.

2. After an exhaustive study of two earlier codes: Maimon-ides and the Arbaah Turim of Jacob ben Asher (1270 -1343), he published his own code.

3. It was criticized by the Ashkenazim (ie. Jews fromnorthern and eastern Europe) who claimed the code wasbased on Sefardim practice (Mediterranen Jews), andcould not be accepted by the totality of world Jewry.

4. After the Polish rabbi Moses Isserles (1525-1572) addedhis own comments to the code, which included referencesto Ashkenazi ritual and practice, the code was acceptedas authoritative (and has remained so for traditionalJews to the present day).

Karasites

1. While internal developments were taking place in the field ofhalakhah (Jewish Law), disputes with Jewish sects, as well as re-lationships with other peoples and faiths compelled rabbis to re-think their theology, and study thier tradtions from a new point ofview.

2. The Samaritans remained an ever-diminishing group whose links withJudaism became more tenuous.

3. A new sect emerged in 8th Century Persia, called the Karasites ----more exactly the benei mikra - adherents to (lit. children of) theScripture.

a. They denied the validity of the rabbinic oral tradition, andbased its ideas and its practices solely on the written wordof Scripture, as communicated by God to Moses.

b. They refused to allow any lighting during the Sabbath; theydid not observe the post-biblical feast of Chanukkah; andwere more restrictive in their dietary laws and marriage reg-ulations.

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4. The growth of the Karasites threatened to undermine the very unityof Jewish thought and practice wich the Geonim were endeavoring topreserve.

5. The Rabbanites (opponents of the Karasites) did all they could inpolemical writing (arguments against some opinion or doctrine) andin legal ordinances to counter this threat.

6. Rabbinite arguments had to be based on Scripture to counter theKarasites, so it entailed a new objective study of the Torah.

a. From the 9th - 13th Centuries, commentaries were written onthe Bible, and even comments on them.

b. The purpose was to clarify the word of God for successivegenerations of Jews.

7. The Karasites grew in numbers gradually throughout the Middle Ages,reaching as far West as Spain and as far North as Lithuania.

a. Their numbers were drastically reduced as a result of theNazi Persecution in World War II and only a few thousand re-main today.

b. Their direct influence on modern Judaism has been onlyminimal.

The Rise of Jewish Philosophy

1. Arguments with Christianity and Islam, caused the Jews to re-examine their theology, and to review it in light of comtemporaryphilosophy.

2. It was more than an argument over the interpretation of crucialscriptural verses.

3. The Issue: the validity of a revealed religion when challenged bythe revelations claimed by other Faiths.

4. Judaism saw itself threatened from three sources: Chirstianity,Islam and man-centered philosophy.

5. There was no systematic attempt to present a reasoned Jewish theo-logy until the Middle Ages.

6. Sefer Emunot ve Deot (Book of Beliefs and Opinions) by Sa'dia(882-942) was the first major Jewish philosophical treatise.

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a. Religious truths may be arrived at by reason alone ---------maintaining it is the religious duty to use one's reason toverify those truths.

b. It is the mark of God's love that he granted Man the immedi-ate awareness of those truths through revelation.

c. Sa'dia proceeds to discuss creation, the nature of God, di-vince justice and foreknowledge, repentence and immortality.

7. Moreh Nevukhim (Guide for the Perplexed) by Moses Maimonides.

a. This book had immense impact on subsequent Jewish thinkers(and on some Christians including Thomas Aquinas) ----------it is characterized by rationalism which was considered ex-treme by many of his contemporaries.

b. He attempted to show that Jewish Theology could be reconciledwith the prevailing Aristotelian philosophy of his day.

c. To do this-he reinterpreted both biblical and rabbinic textsin a rationalistic way, maintaining miracles were not aninterruption in the natural process

d. Prophecy could be accorded to anyone who prepared for it bothintellectually and morally ------------ maintaining thatthe human scriptural encounter with the divine took place ina vision or dream.

e. He went so far as to say that if it could be proved rational-ly that God created the world from pre-existent matter theBible would have to be reinterpreted.

8. Philosophy of the Middle Ages shows that Judaism was not concernedonly with the minutiate of the law (as has been commonly supposed).

9. This impression (of concern for only the law) has been given for anumber of factors.

a. The Jew was to perform the mitsvot (commandments) ----------ie. to fulfil the word of God as revealed in the Torah.

* This could be accomplished more tangibly, in practical matters, regulated by the law than by philosophical or dogmatic assertions.

b. Law regulated moral and ethical life, as well as ritual prac-tices --------------- though ritual has appeared to be thedominant feature.

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c. For the purpose of Jewish identity with the Community ------the practice of Judaism had a more objective basis than atheological state of mind.

10. Various attempts have been made to formulate a Jewish Creed ------

this (imposition of a system of beliefs as distinct from practice) has been resisted.

* This freedom of thought has existed until recent times.

Jewish Mysticism

1. Kabbalah (lit. tradition) is the word usually used for this aspectof Judaism -------------- it assumed many forms in differentcommunities of Europe and the Meditteranean.

2. Purpose of Mysticism

a. It seeks a personal union with God, achieved throughspiritual exercise, meditation and comtemplation.

b. There is also what might be called a social messianic purposebehind this desire for union ------------ the belief thatthe mystic can influence God in his way with the word, andthus hasten the time of redemption.

3. The origins of Jewish Mysticism can be found in the first chapterof Genesis and the first chapter of Ezekiel ----------- the cre-ation and the chariot.

4. The mystery of creation is based primarily on the problem of howa transcendent incorpal God can crete a temporal physical world.

a. This was resolved by the construction of a system of divineemanation (origin, source ------ to flow from) ------------by which the world emerges through successive stages, eachone further removed from the Godhead.

b. These stages or spheres (sefirot) were also accorded thestatus of divine attributes.

5. The mystery of the chariot was concerned with the nature of Godhimself, and human contemplaton of God.

a. The "ascent of the chariot" consisted of the journey of thesoul of the mystic through various celestial places to thethrone of God.

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b. Preparation for such a journey involved prayer and medita-tion, especially on the letters of the Torah as well asbodily exercise.

6. Literature of Jewish Mysticism: it is extensive but a few can besingled out.

a. Sefer Yetsirah (Book of Creation) ------------ written be-fore the sixth century describing how the world was createdby means of the twety-two letters and ten numbers of theHebrew language.

b. Sefer Hasidim (Book of the Pious) ------- written by Judahthe Pious (d. 1217) which is a compilation of mystiacalthought, legend, and homiletical material, reflecting theinner life of the Jews of the Rhineland which is marked by apenitential character.

c. Sefer ha-Zohar (Book of Splendor) ------- a collection ofwriting, the core of which is a mystical commentary of dif-ferent parts of the Bible composed mainly by Moses de Leonat the end of the 13th Century in Spain (but attributed tothe 2nd Century Rabbi, Simon ben Yohai.

1. The Zohar became the fundamental work of Kabbalah, andfuture mystical literary creativity was an extentionand interpretation of it.

2. A distant mystical shcool grew up in Safed in Palestinearound Joseph Caro, Moses Cordovero, and particularlyIsac Luria (1534-1572) and his pupil Hayyim Vital.

The Hasidim

1. The emergence of Hasidim of central Europe at the end of the 18thCentury was a result of this mystical tradition.

2. The founder of the hasidic movement was Israel ben Eliezer(d. 1760) known as Baal Shem Tov (or Besht).

3. Based on Lurianic Kabbalah, hasidism preaches the striving forcommunion with God through the cultivation and experience of joyfulfervor in prayer, study, and the natural world.

4. It emphasized the traditional Jewish cncept of simple delight inthe service of God.

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* It particulary appealed to those Jews in Eastern Europe who were unable to participate in the legal traditinal study of the Torah.

5. The leader of each hasidic community, known as the tsaddik (therighteous one) was credited with the possession of a special re-lationship to the divine spirit, and often with the power of work-ing miracles.

6. The movement was opposed by traditional rabbis who saw in it adanger of pantheism and the discouraging of learning in favor ofignorant piety.

7. This movement has flourished even with the destruction of countlesshasidic communities by the Nazis.

* It is particularly strong in the United States and Israel.

Jewish Belief: major beliefs and practices of Judaism which have remained (for the most part) unchanged since the codification of the Shulchan Arukh in the 16th Century.

1. Judaism holds that there is one eternal God, who created the Uni-verse, and who remains master of it.

a. God is both omnipotent and all-loving ----------------------he created man with free will, the ability to choose betweengood and evil.

b. God communicates with man through revelation, and Man cancommunicate with God through prayer and meditation.

2. God (through revelation) has given Man a divine law, the Torah ----the fullfilment of which will hasten the establishment of God'sKingdom on Earth.

a. This kingdom will be announced through and by the arrival ofa personal Messiah who will be human and descended from theHouse of David.

b. The Jewish People have a special role in this divine schemesince it was to them that God revealed the Torah throughMoses on Mount Sinai.

3. Obedience to the Torah is central to Judaism ------------ it isdone through the fulfillment of the commandments.

a. The Torah: traditionally there are 248 positive and 365negative commandments.

b. Attempts have been made to explain the reasons for, and pur-poses of the mitsvot (commandments).

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c. No rationalzation can equal in effect the original conceptionof the mitsvah as being simply the expression of God's Will.

4. Jews have a duty in the sight of both people and God to lead alife in accord with divine will ------------- to bear witness toGod and his purpose in the world.

5. Judaism believes in the equality of man --------------------------Rabbinic Tradition: "The first man was created alone, so that noneof his descendants would be able to say to another, my father wasgreater than your father.

a. Each human being is precious and has dignity simply becausehe or she was created by God in his image.

b. This points out the Jewish conception of each person's rela-tionship to his or her fellows ----------- it is a rela-tionship based on love, respect and understanding.

6. Free Will of Man: he has the ability to become the master over hisevil inclinations.

a. Man is born with the ability to do both good or evil, anddoes not inherit the burden of sin.

b. The world is good being created by God, and Judaism requiresthe Jews to enjoy the bounty of this world, and to use itsgifts for the betterment of mankind and the service of God.

c. Judaism is a world affirming, not a world denying faith -----salvation is achieved in this world and through this world.

7. Belief in the physical resurrection of the dead and the immortalityof the soul has been a cardinal tenent of Judaism.

a. Yet -------- far more emphasis is placed on the care of thebody and soul in this world than on the perparation foreternity.

b. One of the most frequent images of heaven, is that of therighteous sitting with crowns on thier heads, studying theTorah, with the Holy One as their master.

Summary of Moral Duties: from the Mishnah Peah, chapter onewhich is included for reading in the traditional morning ser-vice.

"These are the things, the fruits of which a man enjoys for the world to come: honoring father and mother, the practice

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of charity, timely attendance at the house of study, morn- ing and evening, dowering the bride, attending the dead to the grove, devotion to prayer, and making peace between man and his fellow; but the study of the Torah leads to them all."

The Life of the Jew

1. The welfare of society depends to a great extent on the welfare ofthe individual unit of the society - the family.

2. The family and home, even more than the synagogue, is the chiefcenter of Jewish religious life.

3. The festivals are celebrated mainly in the home, and the many dis-tive features of Jewish family life help to ensure its cohesive-ness.

4. Parents educate their children in the study of the Torah, aknowledge of which is indispensable for correct observance of themistvot.

5. Childhood:

a. Male children are circumcised at the age of eight days, arite which derives from the command given to Abraham(Genesis XVII) to circumcise himself and his son Ishmael.

1. The ritual is called the "covenant of circumcision"(brit milah), since the child is brought into thecovenant which God made with "Abraham, our father".

2. The operation is performed by a mohel (or circumciser),and the prayer is offered that the child "may committhimself to the Torah, to marriage, and to good deeds.

b. Formal education begins at the age of five or six, when theyare broubht to the religon school (chedar, lit. room) attach-ed to the local synagogue.

1. During the Middle Ages this would have been the focusof their entire education ---------- for most JewishChildren today the chedar is regarded as an adjunct totheir daily secular education.

2. Both in the United States and Europe, there is a grow-ing movement to establish Jewish-day schools, many ofwhich have already been founded.

c. The age of majority for girls, according to talmudic tradi-tion is twelve years and one day, and for boys it is thirteen

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years and one day.

1. The boy becomes bar-mitsvah (son of the commandment) --he is regarded as entirely responsible for his religi-ous acts and liable to fullfil all the commandments ofthe Torah.

2. In Talmudic Times the technical term that was used forhim was bar-onshin (son of punishment) meaning that hewas liable for punishment for any violation of acommandment.

d. The ceremony associated with Bar-Mitsvah (originated laterthan the talmudic period).

1. The boy is "called up" to read the Torah from theHebrew text, and sometimes the prophetic portions too(in the synagogue).

2. This symbolizes his graduation to adult status in theeyes of the Law and the congregation.

e. Since the study of the Torah is an essential, ongoing processfor the Jew, bar-mitsvah represents only one stage in Jewisheducation and not its culmination.

6. Marriage (kiddushin) is one of the most important of the practicalmitsvot.

a. Rabbis emphasized that the first commandment in the Torah was"bear fruit and multiphy" (Genesis I:28), and that it wasGod's will that the first man whould be provided with a help-mate.

b. Marriage is for the Jew the "natural state", and celibacyexisted only in sects which were on the periphery of Judaism,such as the Essenes.

c. A marriage may be contracted between two Jews (a Jew beingdefined as a child of a Jewish mother).

1. A marriage between a cohen (priest) and a divorcee ora convert is prohibited.

2. Blood relationships are also obstacles except --------that a marriage between cousins and uncle and niece arepermitted.

d. Jewish marriage is essentially a legal contract between twoconsenting individuals in the presence of valid witnesses.

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e. The main element of the marriage ceremony is the giving of anobject of value, usually a ring, to the bride by the bride-groom.

1. This is followed by the bridegroom declaring: "Behold,you are betrothed to me by this ring according to thelaw of Moses and Israel."

2. The bride and groom share a cup of wine, and the groombreaks a glass to symbolize the destruction of theTemple.

f. The marriage takes place under a canopy called a chuppah(this word has come to signify the ceremony as a whole) whichis a symbol of the couple's first home and God's spirit whichhovers over them.

* The groom gives the bride a marriage document (ketubah), duly witnessed, in which she is granted certain property rights should he die before her or divorce her.

g. Divorce: In the divorce procedure, the husband gives hiswife, in the presence of witnesses, a "bill of divorcement"(get), in which he states that she is free to be married toanother.

7. Mourning: these rites are detailed and specific.

a. The dead body is washed and clothed in a white burial shroud----------------- burial ocurrs as soon as possible afterdeath.

* cremation is prohibited.

b. Shivah is the prescribed seven day period of mourning whichbegins after the funeral.

c. The mourners remain at home, sit on low tools (a custom de-rived from the biblical rite of sitting on the ground as asign of mourning), and are comforted by visitors.

1. Evening prayers are said in the home on each eveningexcept the Sabbath when mourners attend the Synagogue.

2. During the prayers the mourners' Kaddish (Aramaic forsanctified) is recited.

d. Less rigorous periods of mourning follow up to eleven monthsafter the funeral.

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1. It is then customary to consecrate a head-stone in thecemetary in memory of the dead.

2. The anniversary of the death is marked each year, andrelatives visit the graves of the dead in the periodpreceeding the High Holy Days.

Festivals and Holy Days

1. Jewish festivals and holy days present a phenomenon that one mightcall "creative assimilation".

a. Their origins are often pre-Hebraic, being based on Canaaniteor Babylonian prototypes.

b. The Hebrews transformed them over a period of time intoindigenous Jewish celebrations with the removal of their for-mer pagan elements.

2. The Jewish calendar is lunar, consisting of twelve months, eachstarting with the new moon, of 29 or 30 days each.

* To ensure that the agricultural festivals are celebrated dur- ing the correct season of the year an additional month is added ------------ approximately every three years.

3. Traditional Jews outside of Israel observe the festivals (exceptthe Day of Atonement) for one day longer than the period prescribedby the Torah.

a. Because communities at a distance from Jerusalem could notbe sure that the messenger, who came from Jerusalem toannounce the advent of the new month, would arrive in time.

* The extra day has been discontinued by Reform Jews.

b. Every Festival (Yom Tov, lit. "a good day") and the sabbathbegins and ends at dusk, following the biblical pattern.

ie. "There was evening and there was morning, the first day."

4. The Sabbath

a. (Shabbat, day of rest) is the most important day in the Jew-ish calendar, it begins on Friday evening (the eve of theseventh day).

b. It commemorates God's completion of creation of the universe,and his rest after his labors (Exodus XXXI: 12-17).

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c. It is instituted in the home by the lighting of the sabbathcandles, and the saying of the Kiddush (sanctification), thebenediction over the wine and bread and the Sabbath Dayitself.

d. Parents customarily bless their children -------------------one does not work and it is a day to study the Torah.

e. The havadalah (division) is a ceremony that ends the Sabbath.It involves the dousing of a candle in the wine and thesmelling of sweet spices.

ie. This symbolizes the beauty of the Sabbath as it departs.

5. The Days of Awe (Yamin Noraim)

a. The first ten days of Tishri:

1. The first two days comprise the New Year (Rosh ha-Shanah) and the tenth day is the Day of Atonement(Yom Kippur).

2. The whole period is known as the Ten Days of Penitence(Aseret Yemei Teshuvah).

b. The new year festival was originally called "a memorial pro-claimed with the blast of horns" (Leviticus XXIII: 24).

1. Apparently it was connected with the new year itself---a designation that does not occur in the Pentateuch.

2. When it became known as Rosh ha-Shanah, the emphasiswas not on the new year but on the reaffirmation ofthe kingship of God and the inauguration of a period ofpenitence.

3. The day is distinguished by the blowing of a ram's hornin the synagogue (perhaps the idea of a trumpet fanfareaccompanying the coronation of God) ------------------later it is interpreted as a call to repentence.

ie. It is a recollection of the fidelity of Abraham who, during the episode of the binding of Issace, sacrificed a ram (Gnesis XXII: 13).

c. The Day of Atonement

1. It is the most solemn day in the Jewish calendar -----

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it is a day of fasting, this being the traditionalinterpretation of "affliction of the soul" (Leviticus:XVI:29, XXIII:27).

2. The Rabbis stress the importance of true contrition asan essential element with the fasting.

ie. fasting alone is insufficient to obtain atonement.

3. The service in the synagogue continues throughout theday, and it is characterized by a recital of the dutiesof the High Priest on the Day of Atonement in theTemple.

4. The blowing of the horn at the end of the service isaccompanied with the communal affirmation "The Lord, Heis God".

5. The priest asks for forgiveness both for himself andfor the community of Israel.

ie. It is an opportunity for both personal and communal repentance.

6. The Eve of the Day is called Kol Nidrei (lit. all vows)------------ a prayer that asks for the nullificationof all vows made under duress.

ie. It came to reflect those Jews who were forced to convert to other faiths by force.

6. Pilgrimage Festivals

a. On these festivals of Pesach, Shavot, and Sukkot, Jews werecommanded to go to Jerusalem to participate in the worshipat the Temple (Deuteronomy XVI:16).

* They have in common both agricultural and historical signi- ficance.

b. Pesach (Passover) is an eight-day festival beginning on the15th of Nisan, the first two days and the last two days beingfull festival days (Yamin Tovim).

1. To celebrate the Exodus from Egypt, when the Israelitesemerged from bondage to freedom.

ie. Another name in special kiddush is "the season of our freedom".

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2. Two Main Features: abstaining from eating leaven duringthe whole period of the festival ---------------------this being a reminder of the fact that the Israelitesleft Egypt so fast that the dough did not have time torise, and secondly, the celebration of the sedar (lit.order) in the home on the first two nights.

3. The sedar is a festive meal at which the story of theExodus is told by the head of the family to the child-ren.

4. A special prayer book (haggadash-lit., narration) isused ------------ the story is introduced by ques-tions from the children and illustraded by the use ofsymbolic foods.

5. The sedar meal emphasizes the role of God in history------------- Judaism attributes achievement to thepower of God and not of Man.

c. Shavuot (lit. weeks)

1. It is a two day festival beginning on the 6th of Sivan,seven weeks after the second day of Passover.

2. It is also known as Pentecost (fiftieth day) ----------observed as the anniversary of the revelation of theTorah to Moses at Mt. Sinai.ie. It is also known as the "Season of the giving of the Torah".

d. Sukkot (Tabernacles)

1. It is a nine-day festival beginning on the 15th ofTishri ------------ (like Passover) the first twodays are full festival days.

2. It commerorates the autumn harvest ------------ it isa memorial of the way in which the Hebrews in the wild-erness depended on the bounty of God.

3. It is observed in the home by the building of a sukkeh(a temporary structure) with a roof through which onecan observe the stars ----------- it is an attempt torecreate the conditions which the Hebrews experiencedin the desert.

4. The worshippers carry the arba' ah minim (four kinds).ie. specimens of palm, myrtle, willow, and citron in the synagogue.

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* In accordance with rabbinic interpretation of Leviti- cus.

5. The ninth day of the festival is designated SimchatTorah (Rejoicing in the Torah).

* The annual cycle of the reading from the Torah begins again.

* It is a time of rejoicing ----------- singing and dancing in procession with the scrolls of the Torah.

* Another name for the festival is "The season of our rejoicing".

7. Other Festivals

a. The festival of Purim:

1. It occurs on the 14th of Adar, and it is based on theBook of Esther.

2. It is a festival for thanksgiving for the salvation ofthe Jews from the persecution of Haman ----------------he is viewed as the representation of all persecutorsof the Jews through the ages.

b. Chanukkah (dedication) is post-biblical.

1. It is an eight day festiaval beginning on the 25th ofKislev ------------- since it is not designated inthe Torah and not a Yom Tov, one is not prevented fromworking.

2. It commerorates the victory of the Maccabees overAntiochus Epiphanes who is 168 B.C. attempted to des-troy the Jewish faith.

3. The observance of the festival is not based on themilitary victory, but on a legend which tells of howa one-day supply of consecrated oil which the Maccabeesused for the rededication of the desecrated Templelasted for eight days until more could be obtained.

4. In Jewish homes a candelabrum (menorah) is lit, con-sisting of eight candles (together with an an addition-al "servant" candle), one candle being lit on the firstnight of the festival, two on the second, and so on.

c. The Tishah b'Av (Ninth of Av) is the most important day be-sides the Day of Atonement.

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1. It commemorates the destruction of both the first andsecond Temples in 586 B.C. and A.D. 70.

2. The Book of Lamentations is read, and prayers are readfor the end of the Exile and the restoration of theTemple.

3. In later years there has been a tendency to commemorateon this day the death at the hands of the Nazis of sixmillion Jews during World War II.

Dietary Laws

1. To the traditional orthodox Jew, the ritual observance of Kashrut(lit. "that which is fitting" is the noun, kasher or kosher, fit -being the adjective) is of great importance.

2. Food that may be eaten:

a. Animals that both chew the cud and have cloven hooves.

b. Fish that have both fins and scales.

c. Birds that do not fall into the category of those prohibitedin Leviticus XII.

3. Animals and birds must be slaughtered in a presecribed manner(shechitah).

4. Meat derived from other sources is terefah (lit. - torn) and maynot be eaten.

5. Milk and meat products should be separated, and the utensils, etc.connected with them.

* Exodus XXIII: 19 - "You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk."

6. The hind quarters of animals may not be eaten unless the sciaticnerve is first removed.

* Genesis XXXII: 33 - "The blood must be thoroughly drained away."

The Synagogue

1. It is the center of public worship and social life for the JewishCommunity.

a. The word "synagogue" is of Greek origin meaning "a place of

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assembly".

b. This is paralleled by the Hebrew, bet ha-knesset.

c. It is also designated: bet ha-tefillah (house of prayer) andbet ha-midrash (house of study).

* These names indicate the purpose of the synagogue.

2. The chief feature of the synagogue is the ark (aron ha-kodesh)which is a cupboard in which are housed the scrolls of the Torah(sifrei torah).

a. Each scroll contains the Hebrew Pentateuch, hand-written onparchment.

b. The ark, since medieval times, has been located on the wallfacing Jerusalem.

3. In front of the ark is a perpetual light (ner tamid) which symbol-izes the eternal presence of God, and also continues the idea ofthe perpetual altar-fire in the Temple precincts.

4. The conduct of the service proceeds from the bimah or almemar, araised platform which apparently in earlier times was at the endof the synagogue, but which is now usually placed in the center.

5. A separation of the sexes is made either by a partition or by theconstruction of a "ladies gallery".

6. Prayer:

a. The original basis for Jewish prayer is found in the Bible,and a large part of the Jewish liturgy is composed of quota-tions from the Scriptures especially the Pslams.

b. There are three set times for prayer: morning (shacharit),afternoon (minchah) and evening (ma' ariv).

c. The basic Jewish prayer is the shema (hear - from its firstword - Deuteronomy VI: 4-9).

1. This confession of God's unity is recited twice daily -it is the first prayer taught to children and the lastto be said by a Jew in his or her lifetime.

2. It is the nearest formulation to a popular creed thatJudaism possesses.

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d. The amidah (lit. standing) also called tefillah (prayer),consisted originally of 18 benedictions, now nineteen saidtwice daily.

* It is a combination of praise and petition, and affords an opportunity of prayer of a private and personal nature.

e. The alenu ("it is our duty"), a third century prayer, saidat the end of the service, is a strong affirmation of mono-theism, and embodies the Jewish hope for the establishment onearth of God's Kingdom.

f. Private prayers may be said at any time and in any place ----communal prayers should be said traditionally in the presenceof ten adult males (minyan - lit. numbers).

1. Male worshippers wear the tallit (prayer shawl) duringmorning service ---------- a smaller version tsitsitor arba kanfot) is worn always under the outer gar-ments.

2. Tefillin, small boxes containing the paragraphs of theshema, are worn on the forehead and arms during morningweekday prayer to fulfill literally a command inDeuteronomy VI: 8.

3. For the same reason the shema is fastened to the door-posts of a Jewish home in a small receptacle calledmezuzah.

* The head is covered during prayer, and orthodox Jews rarely go without some head-covering.

g. The prayer book for Sabbath and weekdays is called thesiddur, and that for the festivals is called meachzor.

Modern Judaism

1. Traditional Judaism and the practice of it has exerted a greatdeal of influence on many Jews to this day ----------------- yet,Judaism as prescribed in the Shulchan Arukh had to face many pro-blems in the last two centuries and adapt to them.

2. These new circumstances had been caused by three main factors.

a. The emancipation of European Jewry and the Rise of ReformJudaism.

b. The resurgence of anit-semiticism culinateing in the Naziholocaust.

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c. The establishement of the State of Israel.

The Emancipation and the Rise of Reform

1. During the Middle Ages, Jews experienced political, social, andacademic discrimination.

2. In most Christian Countries:

a. Jews were baned from certain trades and professions.

b. They were prevented from participating in the normal educa-tional system.

c. They were also compelled to live in specific areas.

* The term, "Ghetto", was not used until 1517 in Venice.

3. One result was that Jews became inward-looking, more concernedwith their own religious traditions, and a deepening of their ownJewish spiritual awareness, than with the outside world.

4. The late 18th and early 19th Centuries saw liberal movements beginto emerge across Europe.

a. These movements brought about both poltical and social relieffor many oppressed groups.

b. Jews also benefited from these liberal ideas especially inGermany, France, Britain and the United States.

c. Jews were now free to mix both socially and intellectuallywith non-Jewish neighbors, and were given some voice inpolitical affairs.

d. Jews were also able, for the first time, to bring contempor-ary academic objective shcolarship to bear upon sources ofJewish Tradition.

5. Unchallenged assumptions were now challenged, among them theMosaic authorship of the Torah, the authenticity of the oral tradi-tion, and thus the validity of the Talmud and the Codes.

6. With this new scholarship, a greater awareness began to grow of aneed for a new expression of Judasim.

a. Early 19th Century Germany: there was a demand for the re-vision of the Jewish form of worship.

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b. Traditionally, prayer had been said in Hebrew, with a sermonin Yiddish, and without instrumental accompaniment.

c. Over time, in some congregations, a sermon in the vernacularwas introduced, the service was shortened, some prayers weresaid in German, and an organ was used.

d. This was the beginning of Reform Judaism (also called LiberalJudaism).

7. This movement led to more fundamental departures from tradition:

a. There was an emphasis on the more universal aspects of Juda-ism -------------- this involved an end to references inthe liturgy to the Election of Israel, and to the restorationof the Temple and sacrifical worship.

b. It also led to the rejection of the idea of physical resur-rection and the coming of a personal messiah, and an expres-sion of the belief in the progressive revelation of God.

8. Greater emphasis came to be placed on the prophetic elements inJudaism instead of the Rabbinic Elements.

a. This resulted in a emphasis on the ethical above the ritualrequirements of the Faith.

b. Equality of the sexes was also established in all aspects ofJewish life, including equal educational opportunities.

9. The Reform Movement did cause dissension, but it spread rapidlyparticularly in Germany and the United States.

a. There are now Reform or Liberal communities in nearly allcountries with Jewish populations except the Communist Bloc.

b. The strong Conservative Movement in the United States repre-sents a more moderate reform of Orthodox Judaism than Reform,while the newer Reconstructionist movement, theologicallyradical, emphasizes the wider aspects of Jewish culture andcivilization.

The New Anti-Semitism

1. The Reform Movement brought with it a hope of universal love andhuman brotherhood coupled with the fact that the Age of Englighten-ment was seeminly establishing a new era of haromony between Jewand non-Jew.

a. The Haskalah (Enlightenment) Movement had affected many Euro-pean Jews especially in Russia during the first half of the

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19th Century.

b. It proposed cultural assimilation where individuals lived,and encouraged the writing (in Hebrew) of works in imitationof contemporary literature of other peoples --------- it wasa hope for a revival of Hebrew as a living language.

2. The hopes of reformers and maskilim (intellectuals or rationalists)were soon qualified by the resurgence of anti-semitism especiallyin Germany, Russia, and France.

a. This new persecution was based on concepts of racial super-iority (and inferiority), supported by political and econom-ic propaganda than on religious ideas.

b. European Jewry had been subjected to physical humiliation,torture, and death many times in their history especiallyduring the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition.

c. 19th Century Persecution: resulted in large scale immigrationfrom Continental Europe to Britain and the United States.

3. This new rise of anti-semitism culminated in the Nazi Philosophyof Aryan Superiority, and of the concept of the Final Soultion.

a. Six million European Jews were exterminated, whole communi-ties vanished, academic and religious institutions weredestroyed.

b. It was the greatest tragedy that had ever happened to theJewish People.

The Growth of Zionism

1. One of the ideas of traditional Judaism which had been discarded byearly Reformers was that of the Return to Zion.

a. The idea of a return from Exile for the dispersed Jews wasvery deep-seated in the Jewish consciousness.

b. Promises made to the patriarchs during the Babylonian Capti-vity and renewed after the Roman destruction of the Templehad been reflected in Jewish literature and philosophy.

2. Renewal of persecution of European Jewry at the end of the 19thCentury brought a different focus to the hope for an end to exileand return to Zion.

a. In previous centuries the desire had been linked with a reli-

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gious orientation, expressed in the hope that God would re-deem his people by bringing them back to the Holy Lands.

b. 19th Century: this movement underwent a much more nationalis-tic and political transformation.

3. The Zionist movement was born at the First Zionist Congress of1897, with Theodor Herzl (1860-1904) as its main inspiration.

a. This movement culminated in the founding of the state ofIsrael in 1948 --------------- Yet, its fundamental nation-alistic direction aroused opposition among those Jews whosaw their distinctiveness primarily in religious terms.

b. In later years, though, there have been very few Jews whohave not supported their brother Jews in Israel.

4. In religious terms it would appear that a constructive tension isestablishing itself between the Judaism of the Diaspora, especial-ly in the United States, and the spiritual consciousness of theIsraelis.

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