Upload
gervase-daniel
View
222
Download
0
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Origins of Judaism
Learning Goals:• I will understand what it means to be a Jew.• I will understand the key historical foundations of Judaism and how that has impacted their religion.
Agenda:• Note: “To be a Jew means…”• Textbook reading, complete “origins chart,” and discussion• Orange Text: Read pages 217-224• Powerpoint and timeline creation (Class effort!)
…to identify with the people whose story is told in the Jewish scriptures (Our Old Testament).… to be united with other Jews in a special relationship with God known as a “covenant” and to value being faithful in keeping that covenant.…that one is confident in God’s faithfulness to the promises made to one’s ancestors as recorded in the “Torah”.…to have a unique calling and responsibility…being the “Chosen Ones” to reveal God’s word to the world.
ABRAHAM Abram called (chosen) by God... renamed Abraham considered the first patriarch of three Western religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam
What do you know about Abraham?
What is a “covenant”?
God’s part of the deal:
Abraham’s part of the deal:
•Abraham will have descendants: he will be “father of all nations”•Abraham & descendents inherit a land forever – the “Promised Land”
•Abraham will abandon polytheism to worship and obey only ONE GOD
A covenant is a sacred contract
This is the birth of MONOTHEISM – before this time, the people were polytheistic
CIRCUMCISION:The removal of the foreskin of the penisAbraham and all his male descendants must be circumcised as a permanent symbol of their covenant with God.
This important rite of passage continues to this day.
Abraham & Sarah leave Ur to the land known as Canaan
They still have no children Sarah hasn’t fulfilled their marriage covenant She tells Abraham to take a concubine/
second wife - Hagar
+ Sarah
= Isaac
ABRAHAM+
Hagar=
Ishmael
Love triangle
Hagar & Ishmael survive in Saudi ArabiaGenerations later, descendents of Ishmael become the first Muslims –the origins of Islam
The history of Judaism (& Christianity) continues with the descendents of Isaac.
After all of this, Abraham is asked by God to sacrifice Isaac. He takes Isaac to the mountain to kill him, but an angel stops him at the last moment. The lesson is obedience to God – a prevalent theme in Judaism.
Interestingly, the same story appears in the Muslim Qur’an; in that version, Abraham is asked to sacrifice his son, Ishmael.
AbrahamAbraham & Sarah |
IsaacIsaac & Rebecca
Esau JacobJacob (renamed IsraelIsrael)marries Leah and thenRachel and has 12 sons= 12 tribes of Israel12 tribes of Israel
The descendents are known as Israelites or Hebrews
Drought in Canaan caused the Israelites to flee to Egypt
At first welcomed, eventually they are enslaved
Moses emerges as a leader
What do you know about Moses?
Two important things about Moses: He led the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt(parting the Red sea along the way)http://movieclips.com/mcQGT-the-ten-commandments-movie-moses-parts-the-sea/
He received the 10 commandments on Mt. Sinai (in Jewish belief, Moses received many more instructions from God over the years)
http://movieclips.com/Y5CF-the-ten-commandments-movie-moses-presents-the-ten-commandments/
This is the most sacred event of Jewish history – it highlights a commanding God who acts on behalf of the Hebrew people
The Hebrews wandered in the Sinai desert for 40 years because Canaan was occupied.
Moses died before they entered Canaan Joshua emerged as the next leader He received instructions from God about
how to defeat the Canaanites http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOKfhCfS6R8
The Israelites returned to the Promised Land.
The first King, Saul, united the 12 tribes of Israel into one unified kingdom
David, the second King, led the Israelites to the height of their power; making Jerusalem the capital city
David’s reign was seen as one of the best times in Jewish history; when the belief about the Messiah emerged, Jews regarded King David as a prototype of what the Messiah would be like
The star of David, one of the most important symbols of Judaism, is based on the crest of King David’s shield.
Solomon, the third King, built the Temple in Jerusalem, which became the centre of Jewish worship, which included animal sacrifice presided over by priests
After the death of Solomon, no leader emerged, and the Kingdom divided...
Prophets are people who speak the word given to them by God
With the end of the Kingdom, prophets became focus of Jewish story
Amos and Micah warned people to follow the commandments – they spoke about the moral responsibility to follow the covenant and began warning of a “Day of Judgment”
10 tribes of the North formed IsraelIsrael
-they did not accept the Kingship of the House
of David
2 tribes of the South formed JudahJudah
-they did accept the Kingship of the House
of DavidBut a Kingdom divided cannot survive...
Israel is conquered by the Assyrians in 722
BCEIsrael disappears from
history...for now
Judah is conquered by the
Babylonians in 586 BCELeadership of Judah is sent
to Babylon...this important period in Jewish history is referred to as the Exilethe Exile
*Temple Destroyed!*Temple Destroyed!
Just as the Exodus was seen as God protecting His people, the Exile was seen as God’s punishment (as the Prophets had warned)
New prophets emerged Jeremiah said God would not abandon them Isaiah comforted them with God’s mercy and
the prediction of the coming of a Messiah (the anointed one) who would lead God’s people to God’s kingdom – the belief in a Messiah became part of Jewish teaching
In Exile, the community carefully observed the law (commandments)
They gathered the sacred writings Since they could not perform sacrifices at
the Temple (destroyed for the first time), they gathered for study and prayer
The Sabbath day became more important Young Hebrews were educated in the
traditions and history by teachers called Rabbis
After approx. 50 years of Exile, the Persians conquered the Babylonians and the Hebrews were allowed to return from Babylon to Judea
Some returned, while others remained in Babylon, forming a tight-knit community there
Immediately those who returned to JudeaJudea began rebuilding the Temple destroyed by the Babylonians
At this point in history, the religion begins to be known as “Judaism” “Judaism” and the people begin to be referred to as “Jews”“Jews”
Collection of sacred writings completed Religious life centred on the study of scripture Most important was the Torah – meaning
“law” or “instruction” The Torah is made up of the first 5 books of
the Bible containing the story of the covenant and the law of Moses
The writings of the Prophets were added, as well as other historical writings, including Proverbs and Psalms
Jews continued to gather for prayer and studying the Torah
These gatherings took place in synagoguessynagogues RabbisRabbis were trained in study of the Law
(Torah) were in charge of the synagogues Outside of Judea, communities of Jews
prospered in Egypt and Babylon, maintaining religious identity by strict observance of the Torah (not the traditions of the Temple)
Alexander the Great conquered Persian Empire
Greek kingdoms were ruled by his successors Judea stuck in the middle of warring kingdoms
(Egypt & Syria) In 165 BCE, the Maccabee family was able to
regain independence for about a century The military victory of the Maccabees is
commemorated each year at Hanukkah And then came the Romansthe Romans...
Sectarian developments in Judaism: Zealots- dedicated to forming Jewish
state separate from Romans Sadducees– wanted separation of
politics and religion Pharisees- included rabbis - resisted
non-Jewish culture Essenes- withdrew to the desert
Existence of the Essenes wasn’t known until 1948 with discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls
Due to the harshness of Roman rule, expectations of the coming of the Messiah grew during this era (the time of Jesus)
The belief that Jesus was Messiah began as a Jewish movement
Not all Jews accepted Jesus as the Messiah A new religion was born separate from
Judaism... Christianity Christians believe Jesus was the Messiah Jews are still waiting for the Messiah The Romans persecuted Christians and Jews
Roman soldiers stormed Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple in 70 CE (Western “Wailing” Wall)
Jews were forced to reinterpret their religious practice without the Temple
Rabbis transformed Temple rituals for practice in synagogues
Rabbinical schools developed, most famously Hillel & Shammai
Roman Emperor Hadrian built pagan temple in Jerusalem
Last desperate Jewish rebellion – 132 CE - fails Jews banned from Jerusalem; Judea renamed
Palestine; surviving Jews are scattered throughout Roman Empire
DIASPORA: “dispersion” of Jews – “strangers in foreign lands”
Keeping the Torah became primary way to maintain religious identity
Throughout the Diaspora, synagogues were set up to study Torah and continue religious traditions
Rabbis become the heart of Judaism (thus, the Rabbinic period)
Rabbis collected commentaries on the Torah, which eventually became the TalmudTalmud
The TalmudThe Talmud is still used for study and discussion, showing how the Law can be continuously interpreted for changing times
Diaspora moved further from Palestine – western, central and eastern Europe, Asia, Arabian Peninsula, North Africa
In each place, Jews formed tight-knit communities around a synagogue
Romans had no concern about Jewish religious identity, but rise of Christianity lead to persecution of Jews
4th Century – Christianity becomes “official religion” of the Roman Empire
Christians become socially & politically privileged in the Roman Empire
Christian Emperors wanted unity in politics and religion
Intolerance toward Jews became normal Anti-Semitism - hatred of Jews – grew Reinforced by Gospel narratives that blamed
Jewish authorities for death of Jesus Seemed to forget that Jesus was Jewish!
Kept to themselves; married among themselves Followed their own religious practice Followed dietary laws (kosher laws) Came under suspicion, which became outright
hostility During the Crusades Jews were considered
enemies of Christianity and were easier to kill Persecutions in Western Europe led more Jews
to flee and settle in Poland and Ukraine
Hatred of Jews commonplace in Christian Europe Jews called “Christ killers”, accused of spreading
plague, poisoning wells, killing Christian children Jews were provided no protection under the law Jews were forbidden from holding public office,
owning land They were required: to live in special areas of cities
known as ghettos, to wear yellow badges to identify them, and to pay special taxes
Not allowed to learn a skill, which forced many into banking/financial occupations, which led to more hatred (and the stereotype of greediness)
In some kingdoms, extortion of Jewish money was easy way for Kings to raise cash
Kings would seize all community’s possessions and order Jews out of the country – ie: England 1290; France 1306
Under Muslim rule, generally more tolerant – ie: in Muslim Spain, large Jewish community thrived and contributed to cultural vitality
Christians took over all of Spain – in 1492, Jews were ordered to convert to Catholicism or leave
Portugal expelled Jews in 1495
Jewish communities settled in Poland, Lithuania, and Ukraine
They were segregated in ghettos or separate villages
PogromsPogroms –officially sanctioned massacres of Jews
After 1881, outbreak of pogroms in Russian Empire led many Jews to emigrate to US and Canada
Age of Enlightenment – emancipation of Jews in Western Europe
French Revolution – political & economic rights for European Jews
Equality under the law achievedSectarian developments:Sectarian developments: Reform Judaism Reform Judaism emerged – Jews who wanted to
assimilate more fully into modern world Traditional Judaism became known as OrthodoxOrthodox ConservativeConservative Judaism was the middle ground
Zionism = 19th century movement to return Jews to their “Promised Land” (Palestine)
After the Holocaust, the world became more responsive to the idea of Zionism
In 1948, the United Nations returned Palestine to the Jews, forming the State of Israel
Jerusalem was still divided between Israel and Jordan, until recaptured by Israel in 1967 after the 6-Day War
Now, Zionism =support of the state of Israel
Jerusalem is an important city for Jews, Christians and Muslims
Under Israeli rule, Jerusalem is open to visitors from all religions
The existence of the state of Israel continues to arouse controversy in the Middle East
Although countries of the Middle East are mainly Muslim, the issue is more political than religious
No peaceful resolution has been found ...yet