JUDAISM

Mr. Hoehne and Miss Semeniuk

REMINDER: THIS IS AN EXAMPLE THAT WOULD

RECEIVE A MARK BETWEEN ADQUATE AND SATISFACTORY!!!!

IMPORTANCE

"It has been estimated that one-third of our Western civilization bears the marks of its Jewish ancestry.... The real impact of the ancient Jews lies in the extent to which Western civilization took over their angle of vision on the deepest questions life poses."

-- Huston Smith, The World's Religions

ORIGIN

Founded in 1300 BC in Mesopotamia (middle east)

Founded by Abraham Abraham told by God to move to a new area

and that he would be make him into a nation and that he would be used as an example to other nations about what would happen if they followed God.

EARLY RECORDS

The early beginnings of Judaism is recorded in the Tanakh (old testament)

Tanakh contains the stories, laws, and covenants required to instruct people how to follow God

In general Jews have faced a lot of persecution over the years

TIMELINE

1500-1200 BCE Due to famine go to Egypt Leave Egypt where Moses gets the ten

commandments plus other moral guidelines 1200-1050 BCE Occupation of Canaan, the

Promised Land 1050-1AD Nation grows and has a history of

taking over, and being taken over by other nations

TIMELINE CONTINUED

1096 First Crusade prompts anti-Jewish violence in France and Germany

1400 First known occurances of bar mitzvah ceremony

1490’s Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal 1700–1760 Hasidic Judaism founded by

Yisroel ben Eliezer 1800s Founding of Orthodox, Reform, and

Conservative movements

1926 Progressive Judaism founded 1948State of Israel established 1938 Holocaust begins; Heschel is deported

to Poland by the Nazis 1984 First female rabbis ordained in

Conservative movement Currently, three main divisions of Judaism:

Orthodox, Reform and Conservative

THREE MAIN SECTS

Orthodox Judaism is the most conservative group, retaining nearly all traditional rituals and practices.

Reform Jews retain their Jewish identity and some traditions but take a liberal approach to many Jewish beliefs and practices.

Conservative Judaism lies in the middle of the spectrum, taking a moderate approach in its application of Judaism to the modern world.

LOCATION/MEMBERSHIP

14 million people identified as Jews 3.5 billion follow belief systems directly

influenced by Judaism (Christianity and Islam)

Main locations in Israel (40%), Europe, and USA (40%)

JEWISH BELIEFS

SYNAGOGUE Synagogues are Jewish houses of prayer and study. Usually contain separate rooms for prayer (the main

sanctuary), smaller rooms for study, and often an area for community or educational use.

There is no set blueprint for synagogues and the architectural shapes and interior designs of synagogues vary greatly. The Reform movement mostly refer to their synagogues as temples.

Some traditional features of a synagogue are: The ark- where the Torah scrolls are kept and is often closed

with an ornate curtain outside or inside the ark doors Bimah -The elevated reader's platform where the Torah is

read and services are conducted The eternal light - a continually lit lamp or lantern used as a

reminder of the constantly lit menorah of the Temple in Jerusalem

Amud (pulpit) - a lecturn facing the Ark where the prayer leader stands while praying.

CLOTHING Kippah is a slightly rounded brimless skullcap worn by many

Jewish men while praying, eating, reciting blessings, or studying Jewish religious texts, and at all times by some Jewish men. Kippot range in size from a small round beanie that covers only the back of the head, to a large, snug cap that covers the whole crown.

Tzitzit are special knotted "fringes" or "tassels" found on the four corners of the tallit or prayer shawl. The tallit is worn by Jewish men and some Jewish women during the prayer service. Customs vary regarding when a Jew begins wearing a tallit.

Tefillin are two square leather boxes containing biblical verses, attached to the forehead and wound around the left arm by leather straps. They are worn during weekday morning prayer by observant Jewish men and some Jewish women.

Kittel a white knee-length overgarment, is worn by prayer leaders and some observant traditional Jews on the High Holidays. It is traditional for the head of the household to wear a kittel at the Passover, and some grooms wear one under the wedding canopy.

PRAYERS Traditionally, Jews recite prayers three times daily, with

a fourth prayer added on Shabbat and holidays. Main prayer is the Amidah or Shemoneh Esrei. Another key prayer in many services is the declaration

of faith, Shema. The Shema is the recitation of a verse from the Torah saying "Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God! The Lord is One!"

Most of the prayers in a traditional Jewish service can be recited in solitary prayer, although communal prayer is preferred. Communal prayer requires ten adult Jews, called a minyan. In nearly all Orthodox and a few Conservative circles, only male Jews are counted toward a minyan; most Conservative Jews and members of other Jewish denominations count female Jews as well.

Prayers are recited upon waking up in the morning, before eating or drinking different foods, and after eating a meal.

FOOD – DIETARY LAWS The Jewish dietary laws are known as kashrut. Food prepared in accordance with them is termed kosher, and food

that is not kosher is also known as treifah or treif. Many of the laws apply to animal-based foods. For example, in order

to be considered kosher, mammals must have split hooves and chew cud. Pigs are the most well-known example of a non-kosher animas, even though it has split hooves, it does not chew cud.

For seafood to be kosher, the animal must have fins and scales. Certain types of seafood, such as shellfish, crustaceans, and eels, are considered non-kosher.

Birds, a list of non-kosher species is given in the Torah. Chickens and turkeys are permitted in most communities.

Other types of animals, such as amphibians, reptiles, and most insects, are prohibited altogether.

Also to be considered kosher for meat and poultry it has to come from a healthy animal slaughtered in a process known as shechitah. Without the proper slaughtering practices even an otherwise kosher animal will be rendered treif. The slaughtering process is intended to be quick and relatively painless to the animal. Forbidden parts of animals include the blood, some fats, and the area in and around the sciatic nerve.

Rabbinic Judaism forbids the consumption of meat and dairy products together. The waiting period between eating meat and eating dairy varies by the order in which they are consumed and by community, and can extend for up to six hours.

The use of dishes, utensils, and ovens may make food non kosher. Utensils that have been used to prepare non-kosher food, or dishes that have held meat and are now used for dairy products, render the food treif under certain conditions.

The Torah does not give specific reasons for most of the laws of kashrut. Some explainiations are: including maintaining ritual purity, teaching impulse control, encouraging obedience to God, improving health, reducing cruelty to animals and preserving the distinctness of the Jewish community.

JEWISH HOLIDAYS

Holidays are celebrated based on historic moments and relationship with God and the world (such as creation, redemption and revelation.)

SHABBATH A day of rest that occurs weekly from just before

sundown Friday night to just after sundown on Saturday. This represents God’s day of rest after 6 days of creation There are many religous laws that surround shabbath

such as the women of the house light 2 or more candles on Friday at sundown and recite a blessing.

The evening meal begins with the Kiddush, a blessing recited aloud over a cup of wine, and the Mohtzi, a blessing recited over the bread along with Challah (two braided loaves of bread)

Jews are forbidden to engage in any activity that falls under 39 categories of melakhah (aka. work)

Some activities banned on the Sabbath are lighting a fire, writing, using money and carrying in the public domain. The prohibition of lighting a fire has been extended in the modern era to driving a car, which involves burning fuel, and using electricity.

THE THREE PILGRIMAGE FESTIVALS

Passover 7 or 8 day long holiday starting on the 14th

day of Nisan (first month of the Hebrew calendar).

Commemorates the Exodus of Egypt In ancient times it would coincide with the

barley harvest. All leavened products are removed from the

home, such as bread, and Matzo is eaten in place of bread

Shavuot Also called Pentecost or Feast of Weeks celebrates the revelation of the Torah to the

Israelites on Mount Sinai. Also known as the Festival of Bikurim, or first

fruits, it coincided in biblical times with the wheat harvest.

Customs are all-night study marathons known as Tikkun Leil Shavuot, eating dairy foods (cheesecake and blintzes), reading the Book of Ruth, decorating homes & synagogues with greenery, and wearing white clothing (symbolizes purity).

Sukkot Tabernacles or The Festival of Booths Commemorates the Israelites' forty years of

wandering through the desert on their way to the Promised Land.

It is celebrated through the construction of temporary booths called sukkot that represent the temporary shelters of the Israelites during their wandering.

It coincides with the fruit harvest, and marks the end of the agricultural cycle.

Jews around the world eat in sukkot for seven days and nights.

It concludes with a pray for rain and "Rejoicing of the Torah", a holiday which marks reaching the end of the Torah reading cycle and beginning all over again. The occasion is celebrated with singing and dancing with the Torah scrolls.

HIGH HOLY DAYS The High Holidays revolve around judgment and

forgiveness.

Rosh Hashanah Jewish New Year but although it falls on the first

day of the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar (Tishri).

Marks the beginning of the 10-day period of atonement leading up to Yom Kippur, during which Jews are commanded to search their souls and make amends for sins committed, intentionally or not, throughout the year.

Holiday customs include blowing a ram's horn in the synagogue, eating apples and honey, and saying blessings over a variety of symbolic foods, such as pomegranates.

Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) It is a day of communal fasting and praying for

forgiveness for one's sins. Jews spend the entire day in the synagogue, sometimes

with a short break in the afternoon, reciting prayers from a special holiday prayerbook called a Mahzor.

Many non-religious Jews make a point of attending synagogue services and fasting on Yom Kippur.

On the eve of Yom Kippur, before candles are lit, a prefast meal is eaten.

Synagogue services on the eve of Yom Kippur begin with the Kol Nidre prayer. It is customary to wear white on Yom Kippur and no leather shoes are worn.

The following day, prayers are held from morning to evening.

The final prayer serviceends with a long blast of the ram’s horn (shofar).

OTHER HOLIDAYSHanukkah (Festival of Lights) 8 day holiday that starts on the 25th day of

Kislev in the Hebrew calendar. The festival is observed in Jewish homes by

the kindling of lights on a menorah each of the festival's eight nights, one on the first night, two on the second night and so on.

Hanukkah means dedication and was named accordingly because it marks the re-dedication of the Temple after its desecration by Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

Hanukkah (Festival of Lights) Spiritually, Hanukkah commemorates the

"Miracle of the Oil". According to the Talmud, at the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem following the victory of the Maccabees over the Seleucid Empire, there was only enough consecrated oil to fuel the eternal flame in the Temple for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days - which was the length of time it took to press, prepare and consecrate new oil.

Hanukkah is not mentioned in the Bible and was never considered a major holiday in Judaism, but it has become much more visible and widely celebrated in modern times, mainly because it falls around the same time as Christmas.

REFERENCES

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0062508113?tag=religionfacts20&link_code=as3&creativeASIN=0062508113&creative=373489&camp=211189

http://www.religionfacts.com/judaism/index.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judaism