The Jewish people: religion and culture. Anne Frank. Jewish policemen in the ghetto. Rescue and the Holocaust. By using this site, you agree we can set and use cookies. For more details of these cookies and how to disable them, see our cookie policy. Sign up for our e-newsletter. Search our website.
In Jewish families, parents and children are responsible for each other as a way of honouring God. Parents are seen as partners in God's creation of each human being, so to honour one's parents is to honour God. In the same way, to disrespect, or show violence toward one's parents is to do so to God.
Children should learn to respect their parents as well as caring for them when they are old. Likewise, parents have a duty to care for and educate their children. The Torah tells parents to teach their children about Judaism and their duties as Jews. Judaism is the faith of a Community Jews believe that God appointed the Jews to be his chosen people in order to set an example of holiness and ethical behaviour to the world.
Judaism is a family faith Judaism is very much a family faith and the ceremonies start early, when a Jewish boy baby is circumcised at eight days old, following the instructions that God gave to Abraham around 4, years ago. Who is a Jew? Someone who isn't born a Jew can convert to Judaism, but it is not easy to do so. Judaism means living the faith Almost everything a Jewish person does can become an act of worship. It's what you do that counts The Jewish view of God A summary of what Jews believe about God God exists There is only one God There are no other gods God can't be subdivided into different persons unlike the Christian view of God Jews should worship only the one God God is Transcendent: God is above and beyond all earthly things.
God doesn't have a body Which means that God is neither female nor male. God created the universe without help God is omnipresent: God is everywhere, all the time. God is omnipotent: God can do anything at all.
God is beyond time: God has always existed God will always exist. God is just, but God is also merciful God punishes the bad God rewards the good God is forgiving towards those who mess things up. God is personal and accessible.
God is interested in each individual God listens to each individual God sometimes speaks to individuals, but in unexpected ways. The Jews brought new ideas about God The Jewish idea of God is particularly important to the world because it was the Jews who developed two new ideas about God: There is only one God God chooses to behave in a way that is both just and fair.
The Jews found themselves with a God who was ethical and good. God in the Bible But how do Jews know this about God? They don't know it, they believe it, which is different. This becomes our own personal commentary on the Torah and is the heart of our legacy to those who follow us. As Jews, we honor a life well lived. We remember yahrzeits anniversaries of deaths rather than birthdays. The thrust of our mourning practices is to make sure that the values our loved ones tried to live by become part of our lives.
The hesped , the eulogy, focuses on the spiritual legacy bequeathed to mourners. It can be seen as a eulogy for the age of our patriarchs and matriarchs. It is through the Hebrew word for casket, aron , that the Jewish understanding that we are to embody Torah appears as we explore the Biblical text and later Talmudic commentaries. Although aron is still the common Hebrew word for a burial casket, in our religious and spiritual tradition the word aron has a broader meaning.
Our Bible uses it most frequently to refer to the box in which Moses placed the Tablets of the Law. Our bodies are like Torah scrolls. They both contain the living word of our living God. As long as we live, that word can be alive in us. When we die and the spirit that carried the word departs from us, our bodies still retain their sanctity. Like a worn out Sifrei Torah , Torah scrolls, we bury them in the earth. Like a Torah scroll, we place them in an aron , a casket.
As we lower our physical remains of our loved ones into the earth, we are asked to take up their spiritual legacy and make it our own. The sages of the Talmud saw Joseph as the example of one who truly embodied Torah.
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