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Tracing our Roots
Ancestors of our Faith
The desire for God is written in the
human heart.
• Since the beginning of time people have
sought something beyond themselves to
give meaning to life and to answer the
questions: Where did we come from?
Why are we here?
• Most early civilizations believed in many
gods. This is called POLYTHEISM
God calls Abraham
Adam and Eve disobeyed God and fractured the
relationship between God and people.
God wanted to repair that relationship.
There were many tribes of people in the world at
that time.
But God chose the Israelites through his call to
Abraham to be his chosen people.
Abraham is sometimes called the “Father of our
Faith.” He is also the father of the Jewish and
Islamic faiths.
Salvation History
• This is the story of God’s relationship with his
people and their responses over the ages is
called salvation history
• God made an agreement with his people that he
would be their God and they would be his
people.
• This agreement is called The Ten
Commandments
• Agreement: covenant: promise: testament
Judaism became the religion of the
Israelite people
• Because Jesus was first of all a Jew the
roots of the Catholic faith are in Judaism.
• The Jewish faith is the root of the Catholic
faith.
• And so there are many comparisons that
can be made between the two faiths
Beliefs
• Jews
• There is one God
• His name is Yahweh(Hebrew
letters yod-hei-vav-hei)
• Bible usues other words
Elohim, Adonai
• God gave the law to Moses
• God will send a
Messiah(anointed one) to save
the people
• Catholics
•
•
•
•
There is one God
His name is Yahweh
God gave the law to Moses
God sent His only Son Jesus
to save his people from sin and
death
• Jesus IS the Messiah
The Messiah means anointed one in Hebrew.
Jewish people anointed their kings…that is, they set them apart for the
special task of leading the people by pouring oil on their heads.
• Jews believe that
when the Messiah
comes the world will
be at peace….Jesus
came but the world is
not at peace.
Therefore Jesus must
not be the Messiah
• Christians believe that
Jesus is the
Messiah…the one
sent by God and
given the special
mission of bringing
God’s people back to
him. Christ means
anointed one in
Greek.
Worship Space
• Jews
• A temple (this is a
word associated with
the temple in
Jerusalem)
• A synagogue
• Catholics
•
•
•
•
Church
Chapel
Cathedral
Bascilica
Prayers
• Jews
• Catholics
• The Shema (means
• The Our Father
“listen”)
• The Nicene Creed
• Confession of faith
and the Apostles
found in Deuteronomy
Creed (profession of
4:6-9
faith in the Trinity)
• There is one God
• The Mass: greatest
prayer of the Church
Shema
the most important prayer for Jews; found in the book of
Deuteronomy
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aad0rYQ7p58
&feature=related
"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!
Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on
you today. Drill them into your children. Speak of
them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at
rest. Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be
as a pendant on your forehead. Write them on the
doorposts of your houses and on your gates.
Aids to remembering
• Jews
•
•
•
Use a mezuzah(plural is mezuzot) on
their doorposts.
Jews touch this and then kiss their
fingers on entering the house. "May
God protect my going out and coming
in, now and forever."
The mezuzah contains a scroll of the
Shema
• Catholics
•
•
Have traditionally used a holy water
font for a similar purpose
Catholics dip their fingers in the
blessed water and make the sign of
the cross
Holy, Holy, Holy
• Jews
•
Keep the Torah scrolls which are the
law which Jews hold sacred in a
special box called the Ark of the
Covenant
• Catholics
•
Catholics keep the Eucharist in a
special box called the tabernacle
Leaders
• Jews
•
•
Before the last destruction of the
temple, Jews had a priestly system in
which it was the priest who offered
sacrifices and communicated with
God
Then the Jewish faith became
centered on learned teachers or
“rabbis” who lead the congregation
• Catholics
•
Because Catholicism developed out of
the Jewish traditions, priests first
began leading the prayers…and
eventually the hierarchy of the Church
developed
Scriptures are believed to be the word of God by
both religions. Scriptures are sacred writings.
• Jews
•
•
The foundation of the Jewish religion is
the Torah. Torah scrolls must be
copied by hand by scribes.
Jews also read from the Talmud
• Catholics
•
Catholics read from the Holy Bible
which is divided into the Old
Testament (which contains the Torah)
and the New Testament.
Other Objects and symbols
• Jews
•
•
•
The Ten Commandments
The star of David
The tree of life
• Catholics
•
•
•
The crucifix
The ChiRho
A fish
Special clothing
• Jews
• Tallis
• Yarmulke
• Catholics
• Vestments primarily
the stole
• Bishops wear a
zuchetto (a beanie
like hat)
Sanctuary Lamp
•
•
• Jews
The eternal flame hangs above the
Torah scrolls
It is a sign of God’s continued
presence with His people
•
• Catholics
Sanctuary lamp…usually red, burns to
show the presence of the Eucharist in
the tabernacle.
And so people of the Jewish
faith are truly our ancestors in
faith. Their roots are our roots.