Download Ch. 2 Judaism

Ch. 2 Judaism
A LIVING RELIGION!
Well, believe it!
Oh really?
Why study Judaism?
Why Study Judaism?
What does it mean to be Jewish?
• Not all Jews practice
Judaism.
• Being a Jew has an ethnic
and religious connotation
• There are ethnic Jews and
Religious Jews. Religious
Jews practice Judaism.
An ethnic Jew may or may
not practice. A religious
Jew may also be an ethnic
Jew, but it is just as likely
for a religious Jew to be
from another ethnic
group.
Section 1 Summary (pg. 43)
• The Biblical Period found the Jews living in
occupied Palestine or exiled to a foreign land.
• The Rabbinic Period was a time of emerging
institutional structures in Judaism.
• The Medieval Period Jews contributed much to
the emerging Western culture. This time was
also marked by Jewish Persecutions
• The Modern Period reflects one of the most
devastating times and of the most triumphant
times in the history of Judaism. The Holocaust
resulted in the murder of about 6 million Jews.
Following this, the UN approved the return of
Palestine to the Jews.
Biblical Period or 1800BCE to 323CE (pgs. 30-32)
– Ca. 1800BCE=Abraham enters
Promised Land aka Canaan
(also Fertile Crescent)
– Ca. 1250 BCE=Moses, Exodus,
and reception of the Law
– Ca. 1200 BCE=Re-entry into
Promised Land
– Ca.950 BCE=Construction of
first temple in Jerusalem
– 586BCE=Babylonian exile and
destruction of first Temple
– 537 BCE=Return from
Babylonian exile
– Ca. 500BCE=Construction of
Second Temple begins
– Ca. 331BCE=Jerusalem
conquered by Alexander the
Great
Idolatry-giving worship to
something or someone
other than the one true
God.
Rabbinic Period/Classical Judaism or 323BCE to
625CE(pgs. 32-37)
– 323BCE Alexander the Great
Dies
– 168BCE Antiochus IV
demands that Jews cease
their rituals in the Temple
– 165BCE Maccabean Revolt
– 150BCE Septuagint compiled
– 63BCE Romans Rule!
– Ca. 10CE Hillel and Shammai
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillel_Slovak
– 70CE Jewish Revolt ends and
Temple destroyed.
– 130CE Jews banned from ever
returning to Jerusalem by
emperor Hadrian.
– 313CE Edict of Milan
– 625CE Jerusalem falls to
Islamic Army
DiasporaHellenizationSeptuagintSaducees, Pharisees, and Essenes
Dead Sea Scrolls
Rabbi
Talmud
Medieval Period or 638-1783CE (pgs. 37-41)
• Jewish Persecution
– With the Muslims: “a
protected people”
– In Spain both thriving
and persecution
– Blamed for the Black
Plague
MonothesiticHoly of HoliesSephardimMoses ben MaimonAshkenazimHasidism-
Modern Period or 1783CE-Present
(pgs.41-43)
• The Age of
Enlightenment and
equality.
• Holocaust and the
formation of the State
of Israel.
Four Branches of Judaism
Reform
Conservative
Orthodox
Reconstructionist
Zionism
Sacred Stories and Scriptures (pgs. 45-47)
• Tanakh
– Torah: GELND (2 torahs one
written and one oral)
• 613 Laws or 248 positive laws
and 365 negative laws
• Mishnah or “teaching” is the
oral Torah that was eventually
translated. Divided into six
sections: agriculture (land of
Israel), holidays, family life,
relations with other people,
sacrifices and dietary laws, and
ritual purity.
– Nevi’im: Major Prophets like:
Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel or
12 Minor Prophets like: Amos
or Hosea
– Ketuvim: writings like Job,
Psalms, or Proverbs
Sacred Stories and Scriptures (pgs. 45-47)
• Talmud: Commentaries
on the Mishnah.
– Jerusalem: meh.
– Babylonian: considered
more authoritative.
• Midrash: “to examine” or
“to seek out”. A way of
interpreting the Biblical
text. Used to see how far
the text can go? Used to
help Jews see
connections between
Torah and everyday life.
Beliefs and Practices (pgs. 48-51)
• Judaism in three words: God,
Torah, Israel!
• GOD: God is good and created
our world to be good.
• TORAH: the central source for
how to live as Jew. The Torah
is literally God’s self-revelation
to the people. Means literally
“law” or “teaching”.
• ISRAEL: A chosen people and
not just the place or the state
of Israel. More a choice to
accept God’s commandments
and to live lives that are good.
To be role-models for the rest
of humanity.
Sh’maArkMitzvotCovenantHalakhic-
Sacred Times(pgs. 52-61)
• Tishri=Fall and
Nisan=Spring
• Rosh Hashanah and Yom
Kippur
– Rosh Hashanah celebrates the
creation of the world (5774
years ago). It is believed that
God judges you on this day
for the sins you committed in
the previous year.
– Yom Kippur means Day of
Atonement (for sins). Ask for
forgiveness on this day.
– The ten days between RH and
YK are called the “Days of
Awe” and it is a penitential
period (fasting and
repentance). Jews strive for
repentance or turning back to
the proper way of living,
known as the Tishuvah.
Sukkot, Pesach, Shavuot, Hanukkah,
and Purim (pgs. 54-56)
• Sukkot: Tishri. Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Booths.
Begins five days after Yom Kippur and lasts for eight days.
Commemorates the time when the Jews were in the desert
for forty years and later, when in Israel, they had to protect
themselves from the elements of harvesting.
• Pesach: Retells the story of the Exodus. The 1st major feast
of the Nisan Cycle.
• Shavuot: means week in Hebrew and is celebrated 50 days
after Passover. First, a wheat harvest feast now associated
with the giving of the Torah to Moses on Sinai.
• Hanukkah: Festival of Lights during Tishri. A modern
invention to be a counterpart to Christmas Season.
• Purim: Feast of Lots. Celebrates the victory of the Jews
th
Shabbat (pgs. 57-59)
• Celebrated weekly from
sunset Friday to sunset
Saturday.
• A common greeting is
Shabbat Shalom
• A Shabbat dinner is a
weekly family ritual.
– Includes braided bread
called Hallah, white
tablecloth, candles
(allowed to burn out), and
wine.
– Concludes with Havdalah.
Sacred Places and Sacred Spaces (pgs.
61-65
• Synagogue
– From the Greek meaning
“place of assembly”
– Multidimensional:
House of: Prayer, Study,
and Assembly.
• Land of Israel
• Jerusalem
Bimah
Mezuzah
Kosher