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JUDAISM and the “GOLDEN RULE” a) PRIMARY SOURCES = 1) Hebrew: " "כמוך לרעך ואהבת: “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against your kinsfolk. Love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.” —Leviticus 19:18 (“Thou shalt not hate thy brother. in thy heart; thou shalt surely rebuke thy neighbour, and not bear sin because of him. 18 Thou shalt not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.” – Jewish Publication Society’s version of Leviticus 19:18) 2) Hebrew: “תלמוד בבלי, לא שבת.” "What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That is the whole Torah; the rest is just commentary. Go and study it." -Talmud Shabbat 31a B) SECONDARY SOURCE = Many people think of Judaism as the religion of cold, harsh laws, to be contrasted with Christianity, the religion of love and brotherhood. This is an unfair characterization of both Judaism and Jewish law. Love and kindness have been a part of Judaism from the very beginning. When Jesus said, "love thy neighbor as thyself," he was merely quoting Torah, and he was quoting the book that is most commonly dismissed as a source of harsh laws: Leviticus 19:18. The point is repeated in Leviticus 19:34: love [the stranger] as thyself. Love and Brotherhood in Jewish Sources A large part of Jewish law is about treating people with kindness. The same body of Jewish law that commands us to eat only kosher food and not to turn on lights on Shabbat, also commands us to love both Jews and strangers, to give tzedakah (charity) to the poor and needy, and not to wrong anyone in speech or in business. In fact, acts of kindness are so much a part of Jewish law that the word "mitzvah" (literally, "commandment") is informally used to mean any good deed. Pirkei Avot, a book of the Mishnah, teaches that the universe depends on three things: on Torah (law), on avodah (service to G-d), and on g'milut chasadim (usually translated as "acts of lovingkindness") (Avot 1:2), perhaps drawing from Psalm 89:3, "the universe is built on kindness" (more commonly translated as "forever is mercy built"). In fact, this quote has become a popular song in synagogues: Al Shlosha D'varim (On Three Things). The Mishnah also describes g'milut chasadim as one of the few mitzvot (commandments) for which there is no minimum amount sufficient to satisfy your obligation. (Pe'ah 1:1; reiterated in Talmud Chagigah 7a). That verse also describes g'milut chasadim as one of the few things that one derive benefit from in this world and yet still be rewarded for in the world to come. The Talmud says that g'milut chasadim is greater than tzedakah (charity), because unlike tzedakah, g'milut chasadim can be done for both poor and rich, both the living and the dead, and can be done with money or with acts. (Talmud Sukkah 49b). The Talmud tells a story of Rabbi Hillel, who lived around the time of Jesus. A pagan came to him saying that he would convert to Judaism if Hillel could teach him the whole of the Torah in the time he could stand on one foot. Rabbi Hillel replied, "What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That is the whole Torah; the rest is just commentary. Go and study it." (Talmud Shabbat 31a). Sounds a lot like Jesus' "Golden Rule"? But this idea was a fundamental part of Judaism long before Hillel or Jesus. It is a common-sense application of the Torah commandment to love your neighbor as yourself (Lev. 19:18), which Rabbi Akiba described as the essence of the Torah (according to Rashi's commentary on the verse). The true difference between Judaism and Christianity lies in Hillel's last comment: Go and study it. Judaism is not content to leave love and brotherhood as a lofty ideal, to be fulfilled as each individual sees fit. Judaism spells out, in intricate detail, how we are meant to show that love. -Judaism 101 Website