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Running head: A SECOND LOOK AT JUDAISM
A Second Look at Judaism:
Breaking Through Societal Biases of Judaism
Matthew D. Negron
University of Kentucky
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Abstract
Research was conducted on topics of Judaism such as reasoning for historical persecutions,
different sects and beliefs, and falsified stereotypes. The historical misinterpretations of Judaism
have contributed to the ongoing resistances against the religion. This misunderstood religion has
been forced to adapt and evolve to the environments at hand. Historically, various cultures have
neglected to even attempt to understand this religion; this created complacency in regards to their
ignorance of Judaism, which lead to the widespread acceptance of their misconceptions. This
paper examines the different sects and misinterpretations of Judaism and poses various
viewpoints that are not bound by social biases.
Keywords: Historical Misinterpretations, Different Sects, Stereotypes
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A Second Look at Judaism:
Breaking Through Societal Biases of Judaism
What is the oldest monotheistic religion in the world that is still practiced today? There
are thousands of religions in the world and many of them have various ties to one another. The
largest religion in the world today, Christianity, is not the oldest religion, but it does have ties to
one of the oldest. Many scholars attribute the title of the oldest monotheistic religion to Judaism.
Judaism is said to be around 3,500 years old (“Judaism,” 2009). Throughout this long period of
time, Judaism has spread all over the world, which has caused variations in beliefs within the
religion, though the centralized belief in one god has not changed. Today, Israel holds the largest
population of Jewish people. Israel has a high importance within Judaism, as it is said to be
where the religion originated. The most acclaimed holy city in Judaism, Jerusalem, is located in
Israel. The significance of this city dates back to when a Jewish king by the name of Solomon
built it for the use of the Jewish people to make sacrifices and pray to their god (Telushkin, 1991,
p. 225). But Israel is not the only place where there is a massive population of Jewish people.
The United States has a large quantity of Jewish people (“Judaism,” 2009), and it is not
uncommon to find predominately Jewish communities within American cities. The Jewish
culture stresses community, which is exemplified by Jewish peoples’ way of life. Many Jewish
customs portray their emphasis on community; one of which being a meal, particularly on one of
their various holidays, with others within the religion. Also, their emphasis on social out reach is
seen by the array of Jewish social organizations and the involvement of these organizations
within their communities. Jewish culture today is the product of centuries of adapting to different
cultures and eras—a process that resulted not only in various beliefs and customs within
Judaism, but also in various views of the Jewish people held by the public. This paper will
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address the misinterpretations of this culture and how they lead to conflict, various stereotypes of
this culture throughout history, and the three main sects within this culture today.
Misinterpretation Leads to Conflict
The Jewish people have constantly been seen as victims of anti-Semitism more than other
people of the Semitic language, “The United States was the first country in which the Jews
received equal rights” (Telushkin, 1991, pp. 931-935). During the time period between the
creation of Judaism and the establishment of the United States, many cultures manifested antiSemitism. The misinterpretation of Judaism is a huge cause of the harsh persecutions of Jews.
From ancient time to today, the non-stop misinterpretation of Judaism causes much conflict
between the Jewish people and others. These conflicts are seen as far back as Egyptian rule over
the Jewish people and as recent as Palestinian attacks on the Israeli state. One of the worst
attacks on the Jewish people dates back to 722 B.C.E., when the Assyrian nation attempted to
wipe out the Israelites. The attempted genocide caused a scattering of Jewish people and it has
been attributed to the inability of Jewish people linking their ancestry back to origins of Judaism
(Telushkin, 1991, pp. 102, 203-205).
Roman Authority
Many non-Jewish people attribute the era of Roman rule over Israel as a time of extreme
peril for Jews. The reasoning for this thought is due to Judaism’s close association with
Christianity. Roman rule over the Jewish people was initially onerous due to Roman emperors
forcing their pagan worship onto the Jews. The Great Revolt from 66-70 B.C.E., which led to the
destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, was one of two rebellions against Roman authority by
the Jews. The Temple of Jerusalem was a very important aspect of Judaism (see Figure 1).
Jewish people saw this as the center point of their religion. Once the Romans understood that the
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refusal to worship and make
sacrifices to the Roman
emperor and state by Jewish
people was not an act of
rebellion, the Jewish people,
for the most part, were able to
establish themselves
Figure 1. Model of the Second Temple of Jerusalem. Note.
Photo © James Emery.
throughout the Roman state (Holle, 2014; González, 2010, pp.13-22).
The Chosen People
All of this conflict raises the question why are there so many instances of Jewish
persecution? When asked this question in an interview, Mark Ebner responded, “First of all,
Jews have been originally said to be the chosen people. So right there from the very beginning it
kind of set us apart from the others” (Personal Communication, 2014). Jewish understanding of
this is not that it makes them hold a stance of exacerbated worth, but that it establishes their
calling to spread the name of their god. This “Chosen People” notion has provoked antiSemitism retaliations against the Jews. Two of these provoked, anti-Semitism ideologies are seen
in World War II and the Nazi implemented ideals of Aryan superiority (Telushkin, 1991,
pp.1,188-1,188). Also, these allegations on Jewish assumptions aggrandized worth are
hyperbolized by Soviet Russia through their reasoning of support to Egypt and Syria during the
Yom Kippur War in 1973. If this has posed such a problem with relations between Jewish people
and others then why have Jews not attempted to change this teaching? History shows multiple
movements have been established to change the Jewish notion of being the “Chosen People.”
Other cultures and religions see this notion as “religious racism” and take offense to it (The Gale
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Group, 2008; Telushkin, 1991, p.1,188). But do these other cultures truly understand the Jewish
teaching of being the “Chosen People?” No, by no means do Jewish people gain a sense of
amplified worth from this notion. Mark Ebner states “God just chose the Jewish people to do
some of his work for him here on earth…” (Personal communication, 2014). The accusations
that the “Chosen People” notion is a racist ideology are completely ludicrous and lack
understanding of Jewish teachings. Who introduced to the world the notion of God? This
question should be addressed before accusing Jews of racist teaching. Jews see their title as
“God’s Chosen People” as a calling to make God known to the world (Telushkin, 1991, p.1,189).
In the Hebrew bible there is an excerpt from the book of Amos 3:2, which states, “You alone I
have singled out of all the families of the earth. That is why I call you to account for all of your
iniquities” (The Gal Group, 2008; Telushkin, 1991, p.1,189). Jewish people have embraced this
notion and put it into action, which has spread the Jewish ideals of their one god. There are said
to be many different break off religions whose origins trace back to Judaism, two of which are
two of the largest religions today: Islam and Christianity. Mark Ebner expanded his thoughts on
the Jewish notion of being the “Chosen People” and stated, “Its not because Jews are better, we
were just chosen to do a job, not chosen because we are better” (Personal communication, 2014).
Stereotypes of Judaism
The misinterpretations of Judaism led to the creation of stereotypes within the Jewish
culture. The spreading of Jews across the globe forced Jews into a minority category in many
cities in which they settled. Since in many cases they were the minority, stereotypes of this group
of people arose. Stereotypes of Judaism are a direct result of people’s misunderstanding of the
Jewish people. Many of the common stereotypes of Jewish people today come from historical
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common misconceptions of Jewish people. Even today, historical stereotypes of Jewish people
are prevalent, but many others have come to be throughout the ages.
Wealth
When asking a Jewish person or an everyday American, “what is the biggest stereotype
of Jewish people,” the most common answers revolve around the notion of wealth. When asked
this question in an interview, the first thing that came to mind to Mark Ebner was, “Some aspects
of finance” (Personal communication, 2014). Depending on the era and or the place, this
stereotype might derive from different bases in which a certain group of people creates.
Historically, the stereotype associating Jews with wealth is said to date back to the Middle Ages.
During that time period, the Church forbade Christians to lend money to people. Due to antiSemitic laws against Jews, they were restricted to occupations involving money lending
(Telushkin, 1991, pp. 1,141-1,143). Since these Jews were supposedly the only source to barrow
money from, they were able to charge high interest rates. This then created a societal “norm”
when thinking of Jewish people. The stereotype of wealth then came out of this because, “They
made a lot of money at it (moneylending) and they were kind of known as that (moneylenders)”
(Mark Ebner, Personal communication, September 25, 2014). Due to moneylending being
isolated to Jewish people, it allowed the Jews to be greedy and create their own wealth.
Greed associated with wealth. Many people see greed as the main cause of the wealth
stereotype regarding Jewish people. This ideal can come from the high interest rates in which
Jewish moneylenders used during the middle ages. Also, in one of William Shakespeare’s work
named the Shylock, there is greed associated with a Jewish moneylender. The greed of this
moneylender is exaggerated to a point that he asks that if money cannot be given for repayment
of debts, then the man in debt must, “Repay his overdue loan in a pound of flesh drawn from
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near his heart” (Telushkin, 1991, p.1,141). The payment in flesh also derived from another
ancient myth, which held that Jews ate humans during their rituals.
Blood Libel
An ancient stereotype that was fostered by the misinterpretations regarding Judaism was
the Blood Libel. According to Rabbi Telushkin, “The blood libel, the accusation that Jews
murder non-Jews in a religious ritual and then drink their blood, originated in twelfth-century
England” (1991, p.1,136). This accusation was the cause of tens of thousands of Jewish deaths. It
accusation ran ramped throughout England and other places. It can even be found in Geoffrey
Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, where supposed Jewish murder rituals are talked about. Many
Christians believed that Jews needed a Christian boy to perform their rituals. They had a notion,
which suggested that since they killed Jesus that they wanted more Christian blood (Telushkin,
1991, pp.1,136-1,140). The Jewish holiday of Passover was directly effected by this libel. Jews
were said to kill Christian boys and use their blood for their certain Passover rituals. This
accusation is also seen as recent as Nazi Germany, where a German newspaper depicted a Jewish
rabbi sucking the blood out of a German child (Telushkin, 1991, p.1,139).
Sects of Judaism Today
Throughout time, Judaism has been shaped and molded by its followers. But in the past
three centuries especially, Judaism has become victim to modernization. Today there are three
major sects of Judaism that are definitively seen: Orthodox, Reform, and Conservative. Though
these groups vary in beliefs in some aspects, they all contain the major themes of Judaism; one of
which is the belief in one god.
Orthodox Judaism
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Orthodox Jews believe that
they still adhere to the same practices
and beliefs that Jews have been
following throughout history.
Orthodox Jews follow a strict
interpretation of the Torah and oral
law. Orthodox Judaism is the most
traditional out of all of the sects. This
Figure 2. Orthodox Jews in Williamsburg
neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY. Note. Photo © Joe
Kohen/AP.
sect was never established until the
Reform movement. The Reform movement pushed for the need to modernize Judaism. The
Orthodox Jews were the ones who resisted the change and stayed to the traditional ways of
Judaism (Jacobs). Due to them staying in their traditional ways, Orthodox Jews are easily
pointed out when seen because of their unique attire (see Figure 2). The Orthodox Jews hold a
common belief in the divinity of the Torah. Rabbi Louis Jacobs states that the Orthodox Jews
believe that the Torah is unchanging and “minor changes take place in the wake of new social
and economic conditions, for the Orthodox these are not really ‘changes’ at all, but simply the
application of traditional law to new situations” (Jacobs). Orthodox Judaism also maintains
traditional Sabbath laws rather than the other sects, which set more relaxed Sabbath laws. In an
interview with Leah Glimcher, she makes a comment on Orthodox Jews strict obedience of
Sabbath laws: “But then somebody who’s Orthodox won’t even drive a car on Saturday, which is
why you might just see Jewish people walking around on Saturday” (Personal communication,
2014).
Reform Judaism
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A movement within Judaism, which has dominated the culture for the past three
centuries, is the Reform movement. Reform Judaism deemphasized the importance of many
aspects of Jewish rituals and faith. This movement was the first time in history that the divinity
of the Torah was denied within its own religion. Reform Jews see the Torah as a man made
document, thus denying its original perception of divinity. Reform Judaism did away with most,
if not all, Jewish rituals and replaced these rituals, which had great significance within Judaism,
with a new, strict focus regarding social action. Many critics of Reform Judaism state that their
values are “more secular than religious” (Telushkin, 1991, p.938). The reasoning of these
allegations is due to Reform Judaism stress on social activism than religious matters. The
Reform movement also created a patrilineal descent, which had never been seen. Movements to
connect Reform Judaism back to more religious ties have been seen in recent years. Reform
Judaism has dominated the Jewish front in America. The majority of Jews in America are
Reform Jews (Kelemen).
Conservative Judaism
Due to the Reform movement taking leaps and bounds away from Jewish traditions, it
left many people, who want to stray away from old traditions but not completely, behind. This
group of people, who wanted a more subtle approach, is part of Conservative Judaism
(Kelemen). According to Rabbi Telushkin, “Founders were less intent on creating a new Jewish
denomination than with offering a modern but traditional alternative to Reform Judaism” (1991,
p. 946). As stated in an interview with Leah Glimcher, Conservative Judaism is found
“somewhere in the middle” of Orthodox Judaism and Reform Judaism (Personal communication,
2014). Conservative Judaism still holds most of the rituals found in the Torah but they are open
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to innovations to Jewish law. The ethics involved with this sect are much like the Orthodox but
different in their openness for interpretation (Kelemen; Telushkin, 1991, pp.946-951).
Conclusion
Due to the harsh persecutions and the falsified stereotypes of Jew, the culture has been
forced to adapt. The spreading of Jews across the globe gave way to different insights within the
religion. The Jewish culture is one of the best examples of adaptation for survival. The culture
has, for the most part, stayed true to the foundation of the religion. Being the oldest monotheistic
religion just proves how strong its follows are and how important this religion is to them and the
world. The stress of community unifies Jews and strengthens them as one religion. After multiple
attempts to wipe out Jewish people, they now stand and hold their own country and they have a
strong presence within one of the world’s strongest nations- America. Persecutions of Jews can
be directly linked to the misinterpretations surrounding them. The erroneous stereotypes, from
eating humans to being extremely greedy, are also linked the unfamiliarity of the Jewish people
in a given era. Throughout history, the Jewish religion has faced many obstacles and trials, but
today the culture stands thirteen to fourteen million strong worldwide and holds the position as
the oldest monotheistic religion still practiced today (“Judaism,” 2009). I have gained a sense of
sympathy for this culture due to research and findings on it. I have learned how the stereotypes
of this culture that I have heard came to be, and also the harsh history behind them. The Jewish
culture should not be ridiculed or persecuted, but praised and admired for its values and message.
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