Main Principles of the Jewish
Ethical System
The main principles of the Jewish ethical
system are derived from:
the Tenach
the
on-going
rabbinical
tradition
the Talmud

1. The need for justice should be tempered
by mercy and compassion. “Just as God is
compassionate, be thou compassionate”
(Talmud).

2. Jews must act with piety that is beyond
the minimum standard expected of others.
Jews must bear witness to God’s desire for
man to work towards goodness. They have
a special assignment to act in such a way as
to turn people towards an acceptance of an
ethical God.

3. Jews must act in a way which brings
shalom – peace and well-being among all
people. The more important prayers all end
with a prayer for peace on earth.

4. All actions must be pervaded with
compassion, a merciful attitude that rules
out cruelty (to animals as well as humans).

5. Dietary laws: Jews believe that what
they eat is a moral decision, because food
has been organised for them by God. God
gave them manna from the heavens during
their forty year journey through the desert to
the Promised Land.

6. Shabbat observance.
7. Jews see themselves as responsible for
the community in which they live. The poor and
the needy must be cared for.

Jewish communities are expected to provide relief
organisations for the poor, suitable care for the
aged and infirm, proper conditions of employment
for workers, and so on

This applies primarily to Jews, but also extends to
Gentiles. Charity is almost compulsory and the
highest form of help is that which enables a poor
man to become free of the need of help.
8.. The mitzvot – good deeds
commanded by God.
Jewish ethics address the whole
community as well as individuals.

9.

10. Jews believe that divine retribution is a
consequence of God’s righteousness, but its
purpose is primarily not punitive but educative,
and its primary aim is the restoration of human
and divine relation.
Fundamental Jewish Beliefs

Halachah is the fleshing out of the essence
of ethical living, so that it can be understood
and actually lived by the follower. At its
core, though, the Halachah symbolises the
very ethical principles upon which Judaism
is based.

The basis of Jewish ethics is the belief that
every human is created in the image of
God, and is therefore worthy of respect
and dignity.

The Torah prohibits graven images. It has
been argued in modern Judaism that moral
human beings are the only image of God
that is appropriate. The religious ethic that
emerges from such a view is that humans
are the nearest thing to the divine. As such,
others should always be treated with respect
and generosity, and one should always act
with humility. In order to love one’s
neighbour, as the Torah teaches, one must
know the other’s pain.
In Judaism a person uses morality
and a system of ethics to reach in
two directions
 proper
conduct between an individual
and God
 proper
conduct between two or
more people
The Talmud speaks of three
principles in life:
 Torah
or “learning”.
Service of God – to be worshipped out of
love not fear.
Performance of good deeds or charity.
The mitzvot
 cover
every area of life.
conducting a trial
praying or observing festivals
industrial relations
food laws
divorce proceedings
Keeping the mitzvot
means leading a
disciplined life.
Reform (or Liberal) Jews try to adapt
their beliefs to modern life.
Variants
Conservative Jews try to adopt a position
somewhere between that of Orthodox Jews and
Reform Jews.
Orthodox Jews adheres strictly to the
Jewish tradition.
Within each of these groups there are
other groups, for example Hasidic
Jews (one of the Orthodox groups)
follow a very strict lifestyle and
observe the law closely.
Orthodox Jews insists that the Torah was revealed by God, and that the
laws are binding and unchangeable.
They view the Tenach and the Talmud as a record of the Israelite and
Jewish response to God over a period of some thousands of years.
The Tenach and the Talmud, then, are seen as guides to life, and aids to
inform modern day Jews about the teachings and insights they contain.
Orthodox Jews, therefore, strictly adhere to the law.
Reform Jews believe that, although the Torah contains the word of God,
it has been interpreted and written down by human beings. Revelation is
a continuous process, confined to no one group and to no one age. The
Tenach and the Talmud enshrine Israel’s ever-growing consciousness of
God and of the moral law. However, being products of historical
processes, certain laws have lost their binding force with the passing of
the conditions which called them forth. Each age, then, has the
obligation to adapt the teachings of the Tenach and the Talmud to is basic
needs. Reform Jews, then, modify the traditional interpretations of the
law. They place particular focus on the ethical teachings of the prophets.