Download Judaism in the Diocesan Guidelines for RE

JudaismintheDiocesanGuidelinesforRE
Whatarethe‘bigideas’inJudaism?
JewsbelieveinOneEternalGod,whoisthegiverofall
lifeandhasapurposefortheworld.Jewsbelievethat
theyaredescendantsofAbraham,chosenbyGodto
showwhatheislike.JewstrytoliveaccordingtoGod’s
lawsintheTorah,whichareunchangeable,butcanbe
interpretedforthepresent.Torahreadingisan
essentialpartofsynagogueworship,andwillbethe
mostvaluableandsacredobjectinthesynagogue.
Jewishworshipisalsocentredonthehome:oftenitwill
belightingcandlesonFridaynightandwelcoming
Shabbat.ForJewslifeitselfisareligiousceremony:
livingaccordingtotheTorahandcarryingoutthe
mitzvoth(commandments)areallaformofworship.
BelongingisakeyconceptforJews,asbeingaJew
makessomeonepartofacommunity&atraditionas
wellasareligion.Therearemanyfestivalsduringthe
Jewishyear,manyofwhicharebasedinhome-life.
Throughthem,Jewskeeptheirhistoryaliveand
rememberwhattheeventshavetaughtthemabout
God.
KS1OSU:Why
doJewish
families
celebrate
Hanukkah?
InformationforKS1teachers
WhatdoIneedtoknowaboutJudaism?
Judaism is not just a religion, but can also be understood as a tradition and a cultural
identity.SomeJewsmightidentifythemselvesasbelongingtothenationofIsrael,somemay
practise Judaism as a religion and others choose to recognise their ‘Jewishness’ through the keeping of
culturaltraditions,religiousorsecular.AccordingtoJewishlaw(Halakah),aJewisanyonewhosemotherisJewish,
orhaschosentobecomeaJewbyconvertingtotheJewishreligion,regardlessofpersonalbeliefsorobservanceof
Jewish laws. The Jewish people are very family-orientated, and this is reflected both in the celebration of weekly
Shabbat,festivalsthroughouttheJewishyearandaproudtraditionofcaringinstitutions.Shabbatandfestivalsare
celebratedbothinthehomeandinthesynagogue.Although(throughthepartoftheBiblethatChristianscallthe
‘OldTestament’)Christianitysharesmanystories(anditsroots)withJudaism,itisimportantthattheJewishreligion
istaughtinitsownright:theNewTestamentisnotpartofJewishreligiousteaching.
MuchofJewishhistoryisconnectedwiththestruggleofIsraelandtheiridentityasapeople.TheTorahdescribes
thisearlyhistoryfromtheCreation,andcontainskeyeventssuchastheExodus(theescapefromslaveryinEgypt
under the leadership of Moses), the building of a portable sanctuary in the desert, and the Tenakh tells of the
establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Temple was destroyed in 586 BCE, and the Jews were exiled to
Babylonia.Re-settlementandtherebuildingoftheTemplecommencedabout70yearslater.In70CEtheRomans
destroyedthesecondTemple,andovermanycenturiestheJewsweredispersedthroughouttheworld.
Since 1948, the foundation of the State of Israel has provided a beacon of hope for a people nearly
destroyed by the Nazis in Hitler's Germany. The Holocaust and the systematic murder of 6,000,000
Jewishmen,womenandchildrenisapermanentreminderoftheevilsofracism.HolocaustMemorial
Dayhasbeenmarkedeveryyearfromtheyear2000,onJanuary27th,andnotonlycommemoratesthe
WWIIHolocaustbutprovidesopportunityforremembranceofothergenocidessince.Moreinformation
abouttheHolocaust,andtheHolocaustMemorialDaycanbefoundontheTrustwebsite:www.hmd.org.uk.
WhatdoJewsbelieve?
Key beliefs in Judaism are expressed in the shema, the first
prayerintheTorah,whichisalsoadeclarationofwhatJews
believe. It is the oldest prayer in Judaism and is recited by
Sh'maYisra'eilAdonaiEloheinu
Jews morning and night. The complete text of the shema
Adonaiechad.
comes from three places in the Torah: the book of
Hear,OIsrael:TheLordisourGod,
Deuteronomy (6:4-9 and 11:13-21) and the book of
theLordisone.
Numbers(15:37-41).Itistheshemathatisplacedinsidea
mezuzah and nailed to the right-hand doorposts in Jewish
homes as a reminder their faith and in obedience to the command to ‘…write them on the
doorpostsofyourhouseandonyourgates.’(Deut.6:9)Anothercommandwithinthisportionof
textgivesrisetothewearingoftefillin:‘youshallbindthemonyourhandandtheyshallbefor
youareminderbetweenyoureyes.’
There are two main branches of Judaism, with some significant differences between
different types of Jew: Orthodox and Progressive (also known as reform or liberal).
OrthodoxJewsbelievethattheTorahcontainstheexactwordsofGod,andfollowthe
rules laid out in the Torah very closely as outlined in the Talmud (oral Jewish laws,
writtendown),whereasProgressiveJewsbelievethattheirreligionneedstomovewith
thetimesandthatsomereligiouspracticesneedtobereformedtofitwiththemodern
world. Jews believe their special relationship with God is expressed in the 613 Mitzvot
(laws).Eachofthese613mitzvotcanbeplacedunderoneoftheTenCommandments,whichweregiventoMoses
byGod(Exodus20),andwhichdefinelifeforaJewishperson.JewsalsobelievethatGod'sspecialrelationshipwith
all humanity is expressed through obedience to the seven Noachide laws (Genesis 9), when, after the flood, God
madeacovenantwithNoah,andthatthepurposeofJudaismistherepairoftheworld.
The Tenakh is made up of three books; in fact, the word ‘TeNaKh’ is an acronym for the three
different parts: ‘T’ for Torah, ‘N’ for Nev’im (the Prophets) and ‘K’ for Ketuvim (other sacred
writings,includingstoriesfromJewishhistory,amongstthemthebooksofRuth,Job,Estherand
thePsalms).TheTorah,whichistheHebrewwordfor‘teachings’,isthemostimportantportion
forJews.TheTorahisthefirstfivebooksoftheTenakh(Genesis-Deuteronomy)andcontainsthe
storyofGod’scovenantwithhispeoplefromthetimeofAbraham.ItisthroughAbrahamandhis
descendantsthatGodwouldblessthenationsandshowthemwhatGodislike.TheTorah,whichwasrevealedby
GodtoMosesonMt.Sinai,isthecentralcorefoundationofJewishlife,and setsoutpracticalrulesandguidance
(includingtheTenCommandments)forallaspectsofdailyindividual,familyandcommunitylife.TheTorahiswritten
inHebrew,whichisreadfromrighttoleft(NBnot‘backwards’!)Asofer,aJewishscribe,will
hand-write the Torah on sections of parchment that are then stitched
together to form a long scroll, which, if unrolled, would stretch the
lengthofafootballpitch.ATorahscrollcostsinexcessof£25,000,will
takeasoferaroundayeartocomplete:ifanymistakesaremadewhen
writingGod’snameinthescroll,theTorahwillbegivenaburial,justlikeaperson.ATorahis
themostpreciousobjectthatanysynagoguewillown,andisdressedupwhennotinuseina
covercalledamantle,abreastplatebearingsymbolismrelatingtoancientJewishpriesthood
andapairoffinials,‘theCrownoftheLaw’,calledrimmonim (pictured,left)whichsitoverthetop
ofthehandleswhenthescrollisrolledup.‘Rimmonim’isHebrewforpomegranates,whichis
animportantsymbolinJudaismastheyaresaidtocontain613seeds,oneforeverycommandment(ormitzvot)in
theTorah.ThebellsthatareapartoftherimmonimprovideanauditorysignalthattheTorahisbeingtakenoutof
thespecialcupboard,theArk,whereitiskeptinthesynagogueuntilitisread.OnShabbat,theTorahisprocessed
outoftheArk,andportionsarereadaccordingtothepassageforthatweek,sothatitwillbereadcompletelyover
time(ayearforOrthodoxJews,3yearsforReform).TheprocessionoftheTorahbacktotheArktakesthelongest
route to involve the whole community. Simchat Torah is a joyful and noisy Jewish holiday at the end of Sukkot
centredontheTorah,markingtheendoftheyearlycycleofsynagogueTorahreadings,duringwhichtheTorahis
paraded/dancedaroundthesynagoguebeforethefinalversesofDeuteronomy,thenthefirstversesinGenesis,are
read.AtSimchatTorah,itistraditionaltoeatfoodsthatarerolled,liketheTorah!
ThenameofGod,YHWH (inHebrew,right) issoholythatitisonlypermissibletospeakitonce
a year, on the Jewish Day of Atonement. The name ‘Adonai’ (Master) or ‘Lord’ is more
frequentlyusedbyJews.ThenameYHWHmeans‘IAM’,whichiswhatGodtoldMoseswhen
herevealedHimselfintheburningbush,andspeaksofHiseternalnature.Whenwrittenintranslation,vowelsare
oftenomitted,asHebrewdoesn’thaveany,soyoumightsee‘G_d’(whichisnotaname)or‘L_RD’(alwayswritten
incapitals).JewsbelievethatGodisOneandthatHeistheCreatoroftheworldwhocaresforallHisCreation.Much
ofGod’scharacterisrevealedbythetitlesheisgiveninthebooksoftheTenakh,suchasElohim(Authority),Shaddai
(Almighty),Elyon(MostHigh)andAvinu(ourFather).
Abraham:JewsbelievetheyaredescendantsofAbraham,whoabandonedthe
Iwillmakeyouagreatnation,
polytheisticidol-worshipofhisancestorstofollowtheOneEternalGod,leaving
andIwillblessyou;Iwillmake
his home in Ur and becoming a nomad. God’s covenant promise to Abraham
yournamegreat,andyouwill
beablessing.Iwillblessthose
describeshowAbrahamwillhavemanydescendants,whichwasbroughtabout
whoblessyou,andwhoever
through the birth of his son, Isaac, and by Abraham’s faithfulness to God as
cursesyouIwillcurse;andall
demonstrated in the story of the sacrifice of Isaac in Genesis 22. Through
thepeoplesoftheearthwillbe
Abraham’ssonIsaac,theprophetandleaderoftheJewishpeople,Moses,was
blessedthroughyou.
born.
Genesis12:1-3
WhyshouldJews‘remember’?
The command to ‘remember’ is given many times throughout the Torah, and indeed, the
datingoftheJewishcalendarisconnectedwiththeimportanceofrememberinghowthe
world began, as the date represents the number of years since the creation, currently (in
2016),5776.ManyJews(frombothbranchesofJudaism)wouldsuggestthatthe‘days’inthecreationaccountare
not24hourperiods,buttimeperiods:othersmightsaythatthesixdaysareliteral.Throughouttheirhistory,God
gave his people the command to ‘remember’: in the Ten Commandments, Jews are told to remember how they
wereslaves,andtheweeklycelebrationofShabbator‘Sabbath’,theJewishdayofrest,isareminderthatonlyfree
people can choose to rest in this way. Many other Jewish festivals and celebrations are marked because of the
commandto‘remember’.
Awindowon…..Shabbat,the‘DayofDelight’
Aftercreatingtheworld,Godrestedontheseventhday,astheaccountinthe
book of Genesis relates. For Jews, celebrating Shabbat is a reminder of this,
but also a direct command within the Ten Commandments. Shabbat starts on Friday at
Rememberthatyouwereslavesin
EgyptandthattheLordyourGod
broughtyououtoftherewitha
mightyhandandanoutstretched
arm.ThereforetheLordyourGod
hascommandedyoutoobservethe
Sabbathday.
sunset,(allJewish‘days’runfromsunsettosunset)andallchoresmustbecompleted
beforetheninorderforthegiftofthedayofresttobegin.Jewishfamilieswillgather
in their homes and share a meal together, during which the symbolic lighting and
blessing of two candles takes place and they share wine and two special, plaited
loaves called challah. There are two as a reminder that Shabbat is no ordinary day,
Deuteronomy5:15
butalsorelatingbacktotheexodusfromEgyptandmannainthedesert,whenGod
wouldprovidethemwithdoubleportionsonShabbat.Thismealisaleisurelyaffair,a
markedcontrasttothebusy-nessoflifeonotherdays.JewishfamiliesoftenattendsynagogueonSaturday,usingan
orderofservicesetoutintheJewishprayerbook,calledthesiddur.Backinthehome,asduskfalls,thereisanother
symbolic ceremony, called havdalah, marking the end of Shabbat. Havdalah means ‘separation’ and involves the
lighting of a plaited candle with 6 wicks and smelling sweet spices: both symbolising the hope that the sweetness
andlightofShabbatwilllastthroughthecomingweek.
TheoptionalstudyunitatKS1focusesonthecelebrationofHanukkah,whichlastsfor8daysand
takesplaceinthedarkwintermonths.Asafestivalofremembrance,itiscommonforchildrento
receivepresentseachnightandforfamiliestolightcandlesonan8branched candelabra called a hanukiah, with one more candle
beinglitoneachnightsothatitisfullyilluminatedbythefinalnight
ofthefestival.Thedreidelgame (pictured,left) islinkedtothestoryofthe
miracle of the oil – ‘a great miracle happened there’ – which is found in the
Books of the Maccabees, not in the Torah, and is a traditional part of this Jewish
celebration.VersionsofthestorycanbefoundintheResourcessectionbelow.
Usefulweb-basedresourcesforteachersandclassrooms:
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www.reonline.org.ukGreatforbackgroundknowledge,withlotsoflinkstoclassroomresourcesviaasearchtool.Usethe
‘Knowing’tabtofindoutwhatyouwanttoknow,ortryhere:www.reonline.org.uk/knowing/what-re/judaism/
REOnlinealsohavesomelessonideas(searchfor‘REBanquet’),butensureyoumatchtotheDiocesanCoreKnowledge
objectives.
Thereisalsoplentyofinformationforteachersathttp://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/andtheJewishWayof
Liferesourceshttp://www.reonline.org.uk/specials/jwol/containsmaterialsforteachersandpupils.ItfeaturestwoJewish
children,SarahandDavid,whotellusallabouttheirfaiththroughamixofphotos,soundandwords.
TwosacredstoriesfromJudaism(oneofthemisHanukkah)featureontheBritishLibrarywebsite:
www.bl.uk/learning/cult/sacred/stories/Anotherusefulversionforteacherscanbefoundat:
http://www.history.com/topics/holidays/hanukkah
ChildsEyemediasellgreatDVDssupportinglearningaboutfestivals,oneofwhichfocusesonHanukkah.Theyareverywell
filmed,andincludemanydifferentaspectsofreligiouslifeinBritain.EachDVDalsohasadaptableandcreativeresource
materials.Theseareavailablefororderfrom:http://www.childseyemedia.com/festivals-p-195.html
MyLife,MyReligion’canbefoundasindividualclips,andascompleteprogrammesat
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05pc1c9AlthoughtheseprogrammesareaimedatKS2pupils,manywouldbe
suitableforKS1,withsometeacherinput.ThereareplentyofclipsaboutJudaismonthissitethatwouldbesuitableto
supporttheDiocesanunits,notably‘Shabbat’,‘Torah’and‘Chanukah’.
TherearealsoclipsyoucanviewonlinefromthePathwaysofBelief(http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zyxn34j)and
PlacesforWorshipDVDsets,suchasShabbat:http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zyxn34j
ThereisacompleteglossaryofJewishtermsavailableontheDiocesanwebsite:
http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/education/our-school-services/re/new-guidelines/materials-for-re-subject-leadersScroll
downtofindtheglossary!
‘SammySpider’sFirstShabbat’(ISBN:978-1-58013-006-6)and‘SammySpider’sFirstHanukkah’(ISBN:9780929371467)
arelovelyKS1-friendlypicturebooksaboutaspiderwholivesinaJewishhousehold
RETodayhavepublishedsupportmaterialsforteachingJudaism:‘OpeningupJudaism’,
http://shop.retoday.org.uk/9781905893553
Forteachersubjectknowledge,the‘ReligionstoInspiRE’seriesofKS3teacherandpupilhandbookscomehighly
recommended.Whilsttheteacherhandbook(at£65,veryexpensive!)dealswithteachingJudaismtoKS3-agedpupils,the
pupilbooksareveryusefulfor‘readingup’onareligion,andmorereasonablypriced,at£11.99.TheISBNnumberforthe
Judaismpupilversionis:978-1-444-12224-4.
PhotopacksandbookstosupportteachingaboutJudaismcanbefoundinandborrowedfromtheResourcesCentre.
ThetwocompulsoryJudaismunitsatKS1explorekeyJewishbeliefsabouttheTorahanditsimportanceinJewishlifeandthegift
oftheSabbathtoJews.TheywillbebuiltoninKS2bytwounits:onefocussingonothersignificantfestivalswithinJudaismand
howtheyhelptocreateasenseofJewishidentity;theotheronhowthelayoutanduseofasynagogueasaplaceofprayer,study
andcommunityhelpsusunderstandwhatJewsbelieve.Thereisalsoanoptionalstudyunit‘WhatdoesitmeantobeaJew?’It’s
vitalthatthecontentwithintheseunitsisnotexploredatKS1aswell!YoucanviewthemontheDiocesanwebsite.