Judaism

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Judaism

• Unit Two

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The Beginning

• In the beginning God created the heavens and the
  earth. The earth was without form, and void and
  darkness was on the face of the deep. And the
  Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the
  waters.Then God said, Let there be light and
  there was light. And God saw the light, that it
  was good and God divided the light from the
  darkness. God called the light Day, and the
  darkness He called Night. So the evening and the
  morning were the first day.

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Some Facts

• Judaism is the smallest of the worlds major
  religions, with a worldwide population of about
  14 million.
• We study it, despite its small numbers, for two
  reasons
• It has made great contributions to Western
  religious thinking and philosophy.
• No other religious group has endured such
  persecution because of its beliefs.

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• Judaism is the oldest of the three great
  monotheistic religions, dating back approximately
  4000 years.
• From Adam and Eve to Abraham and Moses, Judaism
  gave roots to both Christianity and Islam.
• Many of the prophets revered in Hebrew Scriptures
  are also revered in the Christian and Muslim
  traditions.
• It has a tradition of scholarship, from the Bible
  to philosophy to science, and Jews have
  discoveries that have changed the way people see
  the world.
• From the Babylonian captivity, Egyptian slavery,
  the Spanish Inquisition to the Nazis, Jews have
  been subjected to great persecution.

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At the end of this unit you should be able to

• Identify the origins and beliefs of Judaism.
• Identify those who have contributed to the Jewish
  faith, such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses,
  Maimonides and Judah the Prince.
• Describe Jewish worship, beliefs, practices,
  rituals, symbols and festivals.
• Describe the sacred writings of Judaism
• Understand how Jews are represented in Canada.

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OriginsThe Patriarch of the Covenant Abraham

• According to Hebrew scriptures, around 2000 BCE,
  Abraham received a vision from God that
  instructed him to leave his home in UR, move to
  Haran and later, Canaan.
• The vision came from the one true God and thus
  the monotheistic tradition of the Hebrew faith.
• His instructions were to move to a special land
  and raise a nation. Eventually this special land
  came to be Canaan.

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Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to
him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. Then
God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac,
whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah.
Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of
the mountains I will tell you about."
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• From this two ideas emerged that would develop
  into Judaism.
• The Jews represented Gods chosen people. God
  chose Abraham and promised to make all of his
  descendants Gods chosen people.
• The idea of a promised land was established. It
  was Abraham, his son Isaac and his grandson
  Jacob, that sought to keep the covenant with God
  and develop a community in the promised land.
• A covenant is a solemn and binding agreement. The
  covenant between God and Abraham is the key to
  the Jewish faith.

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Moses and The Covenant

• The Hebrews had been enslaved by the Egyptians
  and they longed for liberty. Moses was raised in
  the Pharaohs court but fled when he had killed
  an Egyptian.
• Many years latter, while looking after his flock,
  he encountered a burning bush that was not being
  consumed by the flames. Gods voice came from the
  bush and ordered Moses to set the Hebrews free
  and bring them to the promised land.
• Through Moses God brought ten plagues on the
  Egyptians until Pharaoh finally agreed to let the
  Hebrews go.
• As the Hebrews, led by Moses, came to the Red
  Sea, Moses parted the sea so that they could
  cross. Pharaoh had changed his mind and sent his
  army to stop the Hebrews. As they came through
  the part of the Red Sea, Moses returned the sea
  to normal and Pharaohs army drowned.

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• This event is referred to as the Exodus.
• God appeared to Moses again on Mount Sinai,
  sharing with him the Ten commandants.
• Moses sinned with pride and died before he could
  see the promised land.
• The Hebrews continued on their journey and
  settled the area around where present day Israel
  is located today.

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Judges, Kings and Prophets

• After 40 years of wandering in the desert, the
  Israelites arrived in Canaan. This marked the
  beginning of the Biblical period of Judges and
  Kings.
• At first the Israelites were led by people
  referred to as Judges. They were like tribal
  leaders or chiefs who led the people through
  periods of crisis.
• Around 1000BCE, the period of Kings began,
  starting with Saul, then David (established
  Jerusalem as the capital), and finally Solomon
  (built the temple). His death ended the era of
  Kings.
• Around 921 BCE the kingdom divided into Israel in
  the North and Judah in the South.
• The Prophets predicted the end of this era. A
  Prophet refers to one who speaks on behalf of god
  or one who predicts the future. In Jewish
  tradition a prophet is one who receives a message
  from God and delivers that message to Gods
  people.

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The Exile

• In 586 BCE Babylonian invaders captured Judah and
  destroyed Solomons temple. Around 10,000 Jewish
  leaders were captured and sent into exile in
  Babylon.
• Known as The Babylonian Captivity, they were held
  there until Cyrus the great of Persia released
  them in 538 BCE.
• During the exile, places for worship were
  created, called Synagogues.
• The exile also marked the emergence of revered
  teachers known as Rabbis.
• Finally, during this period, the development of a
  belief in a divine kingship occurred. The
  Messiah, which means anointed one, came to mean
  hope for the Jews, a great king who would lead
  them out of oppression.
• After their release from captivity the people
  returned to their homeland. They built a new
  temple and from this point on they would be
  referred to as JEWS!

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The Diaspora

• Greek for sowing of seed or dispersal.
• Diaspora is the term used when referring to the
  Jewish population living outside of Israel.
• Jews were led by Rabbis and prayed in Synagogues.
• A process called Hellenization, the influence of
  Greek culture, affected the Diaspora Jews
  especially and the Bible was translated into
  Greek.
• Legend has it that 70 Jewish scholars all
  translated the Bible into Greek, independent of
  each other, and produced identical translations.
• This translation, known as the Septuagint, has
  books often not included in the Christian Bible.

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The Maccabean Revolt

• In 168 BCE the Jewish temple was converted into a
  shrine for the Greek god Zeus!
• A group of rebels called the Maccabees, started a
  revolt. By 164 they were back in control of
  Jerusalem and the temple was rededicated to God.
  The Maccabees would rule until the Roman
  conquest.
• The Jews celebrate the Maccabean revolt each year
  during Hanukkah.

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Menorah

• The Menorah is a seven branch candelabrum lit by
  olive oil.
• After the destruction of the Jewish temple their
  was only enough blessed oil for one day, to keep
  the eternal flame going.
• Miraculously, it burned for eight days, until
  new oil could be obtained and the temple rebuilt.

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The Jews and the Romans

• In 64 BCE, the Roman general Pompey entered
  Jerusalem.
• The harshness of Roman rule led to a renewed
  emphasis on the messiah, one anointed by God to
  lead the Jews out of oppression.
• Heavy taxation, unfair administration of justice
  and Roman control of the temple and the high
  priest, led the Jews to revolt.
• In 70 CE the Romans responded with force. They
  captured Jerusalem and destroyed the temple,
  which was never rebuilt.
• The only remaining was the Western Wall (wailing
  wall) where Jews today go to pray.

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• Rabbi Yohanan Ben Zakkai convinced the Romans to
  allow him to relocate the Sanhedrin (the supreme
  judicial body of the Jews) to the town of Yavneh.
• This moved preserved the Jewish way of life as
  they maintained their scriptures and developed a
  Jewish calendar.
• Rabbis replaced priests and Synagogues became the
  Jewish place of worship.
• The Rabbinic movement brought greater emphasis to
  Jewish law, including the Torah, the Mishnah
  (early Rabbinic teachings on how to live a life
  in accordance with the Torah, around 200 CE) and
  the Talmud (Rabbinic teachings from the Mishnah,
  main source of Jewish teaching from medieval
  times to present day)

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• By 100 CE the rabbis had compiled a substantial
  body of commentary on the Bible known as the
  Midrash. It looks at puzzling situations
  presented in the Bible and poses possible
  explanations for these problems.
• The Jewish experience from exile to Roman
  occupation is one of fortitude and unfailing
  faith.

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Jewish Beliefs

• Centered on one God and the covenant.
• A Jew is a person either born Jewish or
  converted. As long as one of a childs parents is
  Jewish, the child is considered Jewish.
• The process of conversion is called Gerut, where
  candidates must reveal knowledge of Judaism,
  confirm their Jewish beliefs, demonstrate a will
  to act ethically and show a connection with the
  Jewish people.
• Jews believe that God is the creator of
  everything! Their belief can be summarized as
  follows

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• Shema, the Jewish creed of faith. hear, O
  Israel, The Lord is our God, the Lord is one.
• Five Fundamental Concepts there is a God, there
  is only one God, God created the world but the
  world will not last forever, there is only one
  universe and god cares for the world and all its
  creatures.
• Thirteen Articles of Faith of the 13, 3 are
  considered absolute.there is one God, God is
  perfect unity, God is immaterial.

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• Further understanding of Jewish beliefs can be
  illustrated by their commitment to the covenant.
  This commitment can be summarized as follows
• Chosen people God chose them but they also
  chose God. Some anti-Semitism (hostility and
  prejudice towards Jews)
• Promised Land God promised a land to his
  people, the Jews believe this to be Israel.
• Messiah Jews believe that God will send a great
  leader to the world to bring peace and harmony.
• World to Come The belief that God will provide
  a future time of peace and prosperity for the
  Jewish people.

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Practices, Rituals, Symbols and Festivals

• A Synagogue is the communal place of worship for
  Jews. It is also referred to as Shul, which
  emphasizes it as a place of study.
• The Torah scroll, comprised of the five books of
  Moses, is the most sacred object of Jewish life.
• When the Jews received the ten commandments in
  the desert, they made an ark to place them in.
  Called the Ark of the Covenant, each Synagogue
  has a replica which contains the Torah scrolls.

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• A Rabbi is a trained scholar, a teacher, an
  interpreter of Jewish law, a counselor and
  presides over special ceremonies.
• Fulfilling the requirements of the Jewish dietary
  laws of Kashruth is called being Kosher. The idea
  of Kosher foods distinguishes Jews from others
  and speaks to their humanity and humility.
• Humanity refers to their method of killing
  animals as humanely as possible, humility refers
  to how grateful the Jews are for the food
  provided by God.

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Star of David

• Named after King David of ancient Israel

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• Yom Kippur the most solemn religious day of the
  Jewish year, marked by fasting and prayers of
  repentance.
• Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year, September or
  early October.
• Circumcision occurs eight days after birth,
  performed by a Mohel, it is done during a
  ceremony called a Bris Mulah. A boy is named
  during this ceremony.
• Shiva seven-day period of mourning following
  the death of a person.
• Bar Mitzvah occurs when a boy turns 13 (Bat
  Mitzvah for girls) and is now considered an adult
  in the Jewish community.

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Anti-Semitism

• Why did Jews become targets of hatred and
  prejudice.
• 1. Lacking a homeland and living in scattered
  communities, Jews were always the outsiders.
• 2. Different religious customs and clothing
  styles made them seem strange, different and
  untrustworthy.
• 3. Blamed for the death of Christ.
• 4. Jews moved a lot and therefore did not have an
  opportunity to establish themselves in
  communities.
• 5. Jews were blamed for societal problems.
• 6. In the middle ages, Jews who lent money and
  charged interest were accused of being cheats and
  thieves.
• 7. As Jews became successful they were viewed
  with jealously and suspicion.

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Judaism In Canada

• Judaism has a long history in Canada and thrives
  here today.
• The first Synagogue was built in Montreal in
  1768.
• In June, 1939, Canada refused entry to an ocean
  liner called St. Louis, carrying Jewish refuges
  from Europe. Later half of the 907 passengers
  were killed by the Nazis. After the war, when
  Hitlers atrocities became known, Canada accepted
  a huge post-war wave of Jewish immigrants.
• Seven Canadian provinces have made Holocaust
  Remembrance day (held in April) an official day
  on the Provincial calendar.