Chapter 2
Judaism
Let Us Pray
Instill in me, O Lord, the wisdom
You gave the people of Israel:
I am your God; you are my people.
Grant me a steadfast heart
During my struggles.
Lead me in your ways.
May I abide in your house
Now and forever.
Amen.
Chapter Outline
• Judaism is the religion of a particular people—the Jewish
people, or “the people of Israel”
• Jewish beliefs, practices, and identity emerge out of
historical encounters with their God
• Jews celebrate their communal relationship with God in
weekly Sabbath and seasonal holy days
• Jews link major events in their life cycle with their
identity as a people in covenant with God
To Be a Jew Means . . .
•
•
To be born of a Jewish mother, or
To convert to Judaism
1.
What does this traditional definition say about
what it means to be Jewish?
Is this definition different from how someone
is identified with other religions?
What does this definition suggest about the
role of beliefs in Judaism?
2.
3.
Covenant: Finding God in History
Central to Judaism are the beliefs that:
•
•
God is present in history, and
God has established an agreement with the Jewish
people to be faithful to them forever.
Covenant: Finding God in History
1.
Do you find any indications that God continues to be
manifest today?
2.
A covenant is an agreement between God and people.
God laid out a framework for how people were to be
faithful to the covenant in the Ten Commandments.
What do you think God requires of people today?
3.
“Deism” is an understanding of God popular during the
Enlightenment period in Europe. It accepts that God
created the world but then stepped aside and has had no
involvement in human affairs since then. Are you a
deist? Why or why not?
Exodus Themes:
Liberation and Ethical Monotheism
1.
2.
3.
4.
What forms of “slavery” do people need to be liberated
from today?
What would you personally and the world community
do differently if you and it strove for liberation?
Does belief in one God by definition imply that people
try to live a moral life?
What are some moral principles that flow from belief in
one God?
Prophets of Israel
Characteristics of the biblical prophets:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
They confront the status quo and commonly accepted beliefs.
They are at first reluctant to speak.
They live outside of the establishment.
They suffer because of their message.
Their message is challenging.
They call people to do what God tells them, otherwise there will
be trouble.
They rebuke people for putting their faith in other things
(military might, wealth) besides God.
Prophets of Israel (Continued)
Characteristics of the biblical prophets:
• They proclaim that God demands justice, especially for
those who are poor, suffering, and outcast.
• They preach hope in the midst of darkness.
1. Name some people today who embody some of the
characteristics of a prophet. How do they?
2. What types of prophets do we need today?
3. Read about some of the biblical prophets. What issues do
you think they would address today?
The Books of the Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible contains thirty-nine books, the earliest
parts of which may date to the eleventh century B.C.E.
Around 100 C.E. Jewish scholars settled on the following
thirty-nine books as the Hebrew Bible.
• Torah (Five Books of Moses, Pentateuch)
Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Books of the Bible, cont’d
• Nevi’im (Prophets)
Joshua
Judges
I Samuel
II Samuel
I Kings
II Kings
• Latter Prophets
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Ezekiel
•
The Twelve Minor
Prophets
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachai
•
Ketuvim (The Writings)
Psalms
Proverbs
Job
Five Scrolls
Song of Songs
Ruth
Lamentations
Ecclesiastes
Esther
Daniel
Ezra
Nehemiah
I Chronicles
II Chronicles
History of Israel during
the Biblical Era
• Age of the Patriarchs (c.1800-1500B.C.E.)
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and the Twelve
Tribes of Israel
• The Exodus (c.1250 B.C.E.)
Moses
• Period of the Judges (1200-1000 B.C.E.)
Joshua, Gideon, Samson, and others
• United Kingdom; first temple built (1000 B.C.E.)
Saul, David, Solomon
History of Israel during
the Biblical Era (Continued)
• Divided Kingdoms (Judah and Israel); Age of the
Prophets (c.925-586 B.C.E.)
Jeremiah, Micah, Joel, and other prophets
• Babylonian Captivity (586-537 B.C.E.)
• Beginning of Second Jewish Commonwealth (536 B.C.E.)
• Maccabean/Hasmonean Revolt against Greeks (167
B.C.E)
• Rome destroys Temple; end of Jewish nation until 1948
C.E. (70 C.E.)
Talmud:
The Rabbis Interpret the Scriptures
The Talmud contains commentary about biblical passages
made by the great rabbis of Jewish tradition. For
instance, one rabbi discussing Deuteronomy 32:20 might
say that the Jewish people are God’s children only when
they obey the commandments. Another rabbi appeals to
the same passage to claim that God loves his children
even when they lack faith. Another debate would center
around whether or not there was rejoicing in heaven
when the Egyptians perished in the Red Sea. (According
to one rabbi, God forbade the angels to rejoice in the
deaths of any of his creatures.)
1. Look through the Hebrew Bible. Choose one brief passage
and describe three or four different ways it could be
interpreted.
Anti-Semitism
Anti-semitism has come to mean specifically anti-Jewish
attitudes and practices. Anti-semitism has been either explicit
or implicit in some Christian-dominated communities since
the fourth century. Write an essay about anti-semitism using
the following terms:
•
•
•
•
Ghetto
Pogroms
Crusades
Inquisition
• Zenophobia
• Holocaust
• Shoah
Branches of Judaism
Read about the following expressions of Judaism:
•
Orthodox
•
Hasidic
•
Conservative
•
Reform
•
Reconstructionist
1.
2.
3.
Describe basic differences among them.
What do you think is the appeal of each of these
branches of Judaism?
If you were to choose, which branch would you join?
Judaism Study Sheet
According to traditional Jewish law, a Jew is anyone born of
a Jewish mother or anyone who converts to Judaism. This
reflects key concepts of the Judaism:
• Peoplehood: To be Jewish means to identify with the
Jewish people—past, present, and future. Specific beliefs
are secondary to identification with the community.
• History/Tradition: For Jews, God is found less in nature
(as in religions of India and Southeast Asia) and more in
human history—in particular the story of the people of
Israel beginning with Abraham.
• Covenant: Jews view themselves as a people with whom
God made an agreement or covenant. God promises
always to remain faithful to the covenant; Jews struggle to
be faithful as well.
Judaism Study Sheet (Continued)
• Scripture: Sacred writings tell the story of the making the
covenant, occasions of breaking it and struggles to keep it,
and God’s fidelity to it. The Hebrew Bible (TANAKH)
consists of three sections:
--Torah (first five books or the Penteteuch)
--Prophets (books about preachers who called the people
to covenantal fidelity, morality, and justice)
--Writings (150 psalms, wisdom literature, and additional
stories)
Judaism Study Sheet (Continued)
Key Figures in Early Jewish History
• Abraham: patriarchal ancestor of the Jews; monotheism
and the covenant
• Moses: the leading prophet, or spokesperson for God; the
Exodus and ethical monotheism
• David: the Greatest Jewish king, despite his faults;
nationhood and Messiah
• Rabbis: When the Temple and the nation were destroyed
in 70 CE, kept Judaism alive; synagogues and Talmud
Judaism Study Sheet (Continued)
Modern Jewish Movements
In the late 1700s European Jews could leave the ghettoes,
giving rise to three movements:
• Reform (hold onto essentials only)
• Orthodox (hold onto traditional ways as much as possible)
• Conservative (“conserve” more than the Reform
movement)
• (early 1900s, Reconstructionist movement began)
Judaism Study Sheet (Continued)
Major Jewish Holy days
• Sabbath: a weekly remind of God’s sovereignty;
celebrated as much in the home as in the synagogue
• Rosh Hashana: in autumn, Jewish new year and
beginning of the high holy days
• Yom Kippur: Day of Atonement; ten days after Rosh
Hashanah
• Sukkoth: soon after the high holy days; a harvest
festival when tents are erected and traditionally lived
in
• Hanukah: feast of rededication of the temple when the
Maccabees drove out the Greeks
• Passover: a spring festival commemorating the
Exodus
Judaism Study Sheet (Continued)
Celebrating the lifecycle
Jews have ceremonies celebrating key events of
the life cycle, such as:
• Circumcision
• Bar and Bat/Bas Mitsvah
• Marriage
• Death
Concluding Prayer
Let us pray:
You are my life and my salvation,
O Lord.
Create in me a temple
Where your holy presence abides.
Help me to welcome the stranger.
May I find joy in your commandments.
Let me walk in your ways
All the days of my life.
Amen.