Week 2

SS HUM G111: INTRODUCTION TO WORLD RELIGION AND BELIEF

SYSTEMS

13
 Ave Maria College
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
School ID No. 402686 Gov’t Permit No. 0059 s. 2015

SS HUM G111: Introduction to World Religions and Belief Systems

To my students:

You are now on the 2nd week of this course. Before you start working on the lessons for this
week make sure that you have submitted to your course facilitator the requirements of Week 1.

For this week you will learn Lesson 3. Read and watch the learning materials below then
answer Weekly Exam 2 and do Activity 2.
At the end of this week, you should be able to:
 answer correctly at least 85% of the questions in the weekly exam and;
 produce a video presentation explaining the significance of the Ten Commandments.

LESSON 3: JUDAISM
A. TEASER
Favoritism. We are familiar with this situation, which happens even, at home and in school. As
human beings, we tend to prefer being with some people over others. Could it be the same with divine
beings? Does God play favorites?
According to Judaism and its adherents, God has especially chosen the descendants of Israel as his
own people, to whom He has given special blessings, but who are expected to live distinctively and
uprightly. Most people would rather be among God’s favorites. But is it really better to be God’s
favorite?
Keep this in mind as we learn more about Judaism.

Watch:
Video Clip 1 – Judaism in Brief Video Clip 1 - Judaism in brief.mp4

B. ORIGINS OF JUDAISM
1. The Beginnings

The very idea that history is not cyclical but a linear process, with a beginning, middle, and end,
has its roots in the people of Israel. In the sacred texts of Judaism, human history begins with the
creation of the world and of human beings-the first of the saving deeds of their God, whom they
consider the Lord of history: called Adonai. The Hebrew Scriptures are a unique collection of historical
documents, which narrate the encounter of the people of lsrael with Adonai, a story mainly of
unfaithfulness on their part-with inevitable adverse consequences-and of unfailing faithfulness on the
part of Adonai.
Judaism, the religious beliefs and practices of the people of Israel, traces its heritage to the divine
covenant made between Adonai and their ancestor Abraham, whose family of origin migrated from
Mesopotamia nearly four thousand years ago and ended up settling in the Middle East region called
Canaan-what is now the territory of the states of Israel and Palestine. In this covenant, Adonai promised
Abraham in Genesis 12 several things: a great name, numerous descendants, and a land of their own.
The divine covenant was passed on to Abraham's younger son Yitzchak/Isaac and later on to Isaac's

14
 younger son Ya'akov/Jacob,
who was be renamed lsrael.
With his two wives and two
concubines, Jacob/Israel begot
twelve sons-foreshadowing the
Twelve Tribes of Israel.
The family and
descendants of Jacob/Israel
ended up as immigrants in the
empire of Egypt, because
Jacob's favorite son,
Yosef/Joseph, had risen from a
mere slave to become vizier or
the Pharaoh's prime minister.
The people of Israel, as a
growing foreign immigrant
minority, ended up oppressed
and enslaved by the native
Egyptians under an insecure Pharaoh. Their God, Adonai, intervened by empowering the prophet
Moshe/Moses to ultimately lead the people of Israel out of Egypt-the Exodus-after a showdown between
Adonai and the deities of Egypt, recalled yearly at the Jewish feast of Passover.
Led into the wilderness, Adonai revealed the Torah to Moses and made a sacred covenant with
the people of Israel at the mountain of Horeb/Sinai. This giving of the Law to Moses was celebrated
yearly for fifty days after Passover in a harvest festival known as Shavuot or Weeks. Provided with
water, a mysterious food called manna, and even quail meat, the people spent a purifying forty years
wandering in the desert before they were permitted to enter the promised land of Canaan, under the
leadership of Yehoshua/Joshua, son of Nun, the successor of Moses.
Under Joshua and later of the tribal Judges, the tribes of Israel overthrew the previous inhabitants
and occupied the land of Canaan-which even today, adherents of Judaism vehemently claim belongs to
them because it was promised by Adonai. At the insistent demand of the people, the last judge Samuel,
who was also a recognized prophet of Adonai, anointed Saul, son of Kish, from the tribe of Benjamin as
the first king of Israel. Later, Saul lost the favor of Adonai, and the prophet Samuel quietly anointed
David, son of Jesse, as Saul's successor.
David, a popular warrior-leader, conquered the Jebusite fortress of Jerusalem in the hill country
of Judaea and established there a new capital for his united kingdom. In the Book of Samuel, Adonai
promises David that your house and your kingdom will be made secure forever before you; your throne
will be set up forever" (2 Samuel 7:16, CJB).
After a bloody conflict among his own sons and a reign of about four decades, David was succeeded as
the monarch of the united kingdom of Israel by Solomon, the son of his wife Bathsheba. In 950 B.C.E.,
Solomon commissioned the construction of a magnificent temple to Adonai in Jerusalem. After the
death of Solomon, the kingdom was divided into southern kingdom (Judah), ruled by descendants of
David from Jerusalem, and a northern kingdom (Israel) ruled from Samaria, which built a rival temple to
Adonai.
In 722 B.C.E., the empire of Assyria led by Sennacherib conquered and wiped out the northern
kingdom of Israel, exiling its inhabitants and populating it with its own subjects, but failed to seize
Jerusalem. In 586 B.C.E., however the Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians led by Nebuchadnezzar |laid waste
to the remaining southern kingdom and succeeded in besieging, pillaging, and afterwards razing the city
of Jerusalem with its temple. After killing all the Sons of Zedekiah, the last king of Judah,
Nebuchadnezzar had him and almost five thousand other Jews [i.e., citizens of the southern kingdom of

15
 Judah] deported to Babylon, putting
an.end to the independent Kingdom of
Judah, and beginning what is known as
the Babylonian Exile.
In 539 B.C.E., the Achaemenid empire
of Persia led by Cyrus the Great defeated
the empire of the Chaldeans/Neo-
Babylonians. Cyrus allowed the exiled
Jews to return to Jerusalem and construct
a second temple, which was completed
in 515 B.C.E. under the direction of
Zerubbabel, a grandson of Jehoiachin,
the second to the last king of Judah. The
Book of Ezra describes that these exiles,
most of whom came from the tribe of
Judah, believed that they were the
purified "remnant of Israel" the members
of the Twelve Tribes who survived the
catastrophe. In 444 B.C.E., the earliest
legal interpreters known as the
Sanhedrin established the oral form of
the Torah, which would later develop
into rabbinic Judaism. The Jews
remained under the Achaemenid empire
until its defeat at around 333 B.C.E. to
the invincible Alexander the Great of
Macedonia, founder of one of the largest
empires in history.
With Alexander the Great's demise in 323 B.C.E. and, having no clear successor, three of his generals
fought over and divided the Middle East among themselves causing the breakup of his empire:
Antigonus took Greece; Ptolemy secured Egypt and Palestine; and Seleucus grabbed Syria and Asia
Minor. For the next century, the successors of the generals Ptolemy and Seleucus competed over the
land of Israel.
After defeating the Egyptians, the Seleucid dynasty under Antiochus finally prevailed in 198
B.C.E. and incorporated Jewish territory into their empire. Initially, he permitted continued autonomy to
the Jews. But after being roundly defeated by the Romans, Antiochus began a program of Hellenization
that forced Jews to accommodate Greek lifestyle at the expense of their religious tradition. In the face of
staunch Jewish opposition, Antiochus later backed down.
His son, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who came to power in 176 B.C.E. resumed his father's attempt to
introduce Greek deities into temples without exception. A brief Jewish revolt only hardened his views
and led him to outlaw central tenets of Judaism (such as the Sabbath and circumcision), and to pollute
the temple in Jerusalem by erecting an altar to the god Zeus, permitting the sacrifice of pigs and
admission to non-Jews.
When a Greek official tried to force Mat tathias, a Jewish priest, to offer sacrifice to a Greek
deity, patriotic JewS murdered the official, which led to retaliation from Antiochus. In 167 B.c.E., the
Jews finally rose up in revolt behind the priest Mattathias and his five sons. His family became known
as the Maccabees, from the Hebrew word for "hammer, as they supposedly struck hammer blows against
their enemies. The Maccabees founded the dynasty ruling Judaea from 164 B.C.E. to 63 B.C.E. that later
would be known as the Hasmoneans, from the name of Mat tathias' great-grandfather Hashmon. When
Mattathias died, the revolt was led by his son Judah-or, more popularly, Judas Maccabee.
16
Antiochus underestimated the will and strength of the Jewish revolutionaries and sent a small force to
quell the uprising, which was defeated. He then led a larger army into battle only to be decisively
defeated. In 164 B.C.E., the Maccabees retook Jerusalem and purified the temple, an event recalled by
the festival of Chanukah. Reasserting the Jewish religion and reducing the influence of Greek culture,
they also regained, by conquest, the boundaries of Judaea, not too far from Solomon's realm.
Yet it took another twenty years before the Maccabees forced the Seleucids to retreat from Israel. The
successor of Antiochus IV agreed to the Jews' demand for independence. In 142 B.C.E., after more than
500 years of subjugation, the Jews were again masters of their own fate. By the end of the war, Simon
was the only one of the five sons of Mattathias left alive. He ushered in an eighty-year period of Jewish
independence in Judaea, as the land of Israel is now called.
The family of Hasmoneans claimed not only the throne of Judaea, but also the post of High
Priest-bringing them into conflict with the priests descended from Moses' brother (Aaron) and the tribe
of Levi. It did not take long for rival factions to develop and threaten the unity of the Hasmonean
kingdom. Ultimately, internal divisions and the appearance of yet another imperial power, Rome, were
to put an end to Jewish independence in the land of Israel for nearly two centuries.
In 63 B.C.E., Judaea, ruled nominally by a king, became a protectorate of the empire of Rome
under a governing prefect, who maximized tax revenue and regulated trade. But even with a native
tetrarch, the Judaeans desperately rose up in revolt against the Romans in 70 C.E., which ended in the
total destruction of Jerusalem. In 73 C.E., the last of the insurrectionists in the mountain fort of Masada
were surrounded and besieged by the Romans. In desperation, these Jewish revolutionaries, numbering a
thousand men, women, and children, chose to kill themselves rather than surrender to the Romans.
The Romans annexed Judaea as a Roman province, and systematically expelled the remaining
Jews from the land. Following a subsequent unsuccessful Jewish revolt led by Simon bar-Koseba in 135
C.E., the Roman emperor Hadrian decreed that the territory name "Judaea" should be replaced by Syria
Palaestina [Latin "Philistine Syria"] or "Palestine." After 73 C.E., Jewish history would only be the
history of the Diaspora {Greek "Dispersion"] as the Jews and their worldview scattered all over Africa,
Europe, and elsewhere in Asia.
Classical or rabbinic Judaism, the forerunner of this contemporary religious tradition, emerged during
the 1st century C.E. only, after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70
C.E
Watch:
Movie 1 – The Ten Commandments Movie 1 - Ten Commandments.mp4

C. SACRED TEXTS

"The Torah Moshe [Moses commanded us as an inheritance for the community of Ya'akov
[Jacob/lsraell" (Deuteronomy 33:4, CJB). The Hebrew word Torah means "instruction" Broadly
understood, Torah is the "instruction" or teaching of Adonai contained in the entire collection of Hebrew
Scriptures called the Tanakh, as well as in the orally transmitted interpretations laid down later in the
Talmud. More narrowly, it refers to what is also known as the Pentateuch.
Jewish culture is deeply textual. The possession of and reverence for books, even nonreligious ones,
has always characterized Jews. When books of a religious nature become unfit for use, these are not
discarded carelessly but honorably buried in the cemetery. Adherents of Judaism have at times even
referred to themselves as Am Ha Sefer, "People of the Book"
Judaism is a tradition grounded in the worldview expressed in sacred texts called Miqra [Hebrew
"that which is read"] or, more often, the TaNaKh – an acronym for three collections of twenty-four
Biblical books, Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvim. These twenty-four books were written in Hebrew, an
ancient Middle Eastern language.
Also called the Pentateuch, the Torah is the collection of the first five books traditionally attributed
to the patriarch Mosheh/Moses, known in English as Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and
17
Deuteronomy. These five books are the central source of Jewish law and ethics. The Nevi’im and the
Ketuvim are the books of history, prophecy, poetry, and other sacred writings.
Nevi’im [Hebrew "Prophets"), the second section of the TaNaKh, is a continuous historical narrative
about the wavering fidelity of the people of Israel to the Covenant with Adonai, accompanied by the
messages of God's messengers. Medieval rabbinic commentators divided its eight books into the Former
Prophets and the Latter Prophets. The Former Prophets consist of the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel,
and Kings. The Latter Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve Prophets. The book of the
Twelve Prophets contains the minor [i.e., shorter] prophetic narratives of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah,
Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. The prophets of Israel
reprimanded the people for failing to live according to the demands of the Covenant and constantly
called upon them to manifest the holiness of Adonai by fulfilling the mitzvoth.
Ketuvim [Hebrew "Writings"] is a collection of eleven books comprising a variety of material
that were most likely compiled by the time of the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the
Romans. The books of Psalms, Proverbs, and Job consist of poetry and pearls of worldly wisdom. In
particular, the book of Psalms [Hebrew Tehillim "praises"] is a collection divided into five books [like
the Torah] of 150 religious poems used in worship, with a variety of themes ranging from glorification
of God to outcry and lamentation, from meditation to jubilation. Five shorter books originally written on
small scrolls [megillot] are placed together: Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Qoheleth/Ecclesiastes,
and Esther. The remaining Ketuvim are historical narratives: the books of Daniel, Ezra-Nehemiah, and
Chronicles.

In addition, rabbinic Judaism asserts that God handed to Moses a written Torah as well as verbal
instructions, the oral Torah. While the written Torah may be found in the Tanakh, the oral Torah may be
found in the Talmud ["teachings'|, which consists of commentaries on the Torah by Jewish rabbis.
Originally, the oral Law was not transcribed, but rather, orally transmitted from father to son and from
teacher to disciple. During the second century C.E., fearing the loss of the oral Torah, Rabbi Yehudah
ben ShimeonHaNasi assembled contemporary Jewish scholars in Israel to collect and record all previous
known oral teaching and had them compiled in the Mishnah, a relatively short work in Hebrew. The
multivolume Talmud consists of two intertwined texts: the Mishnah and the Gemara, a longer work in
Aramaic that presents the legal interpretations and argumentation of later rabbis. And while the Talmud
is a fundamental text of rabbinic Judaism, only rabbis and scholars are able to use it due to its level of
reading difficulty.

D. MAJOR DIVISIONS IN JUDAISM

Contemporary Judaism expressed in its various movements remains committed to the belief in a
single, personal, beneficent God; in the authority of Sacred Scripture, and in the institutions of the
synagogue and rabbinate, together with a sense that the tradition has to be interpreted and adapted in
view of new knowledge, technology, and changes in society. The terms describing the different
movements are to be understood as labels designating a widely disparate group of people who are
loosely united by some core beliefs.

18
 1. Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism is a modern but dogmatic expression of Judaism, which believes that Torah in
both its written and oral forms-the Tanakh and the Taimud-were received directly from God and
consequently permits no modification. The movement was inspired by the extremely conservative
approach of the German rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888), who feared the undermining of the
ancient belief in God's revelation and thus, resisted unrestrained reform. Orthodox Jews hold that their
tradition, which emphasizes the ongoing importance of fulfilling the Biblical commandments
exclusively bears the proper interpretation of God's Torah. The Orthodox movement today has been
described as "uncomfortably straddling the fence between traditionalism and modernism.
2. Conservative Judaism

Occupying the middle ground in modern Judaism, Conservative Judaism is a north American
movement associated with the Jewish Theological seminary in New York founded in 1887, but inspired
by another German rabbi, the Jewish historian Zecharias Frankel (1801-1975). It seeks to integrate the
best of tradition with the best of modernity, and believes that "integrating the Jewish tradition with our
own contemporary culture is the best way to create a vibrant and meaningful form of Judaism for
ourselves and our descendants." In some countries, the movement is known as Masorti [Hebrew
"traditional"]. While avoiding authoritative statements, Conservative Judaism is strongly committed to
the people of Israel and its values, but open-minded in interpreting these values according to the
demands of changing times. It views Jewish religious law as binding, but subject to historical
development.
3. Reform Judaism
In general, the Reform movement in Judaism is more accommodating, and holds that Judaism
and its traditions should be updated and made compatible with contemporary culture. It is the first to
permit the use of vernacular language in worship and the ordination of women as rabbis. Many branches
of Reform Judaism assert that Jewish law may be outdated and needs to undergo critical evaluation and
renewal. Traditional Jewish law is thus understood as a set of general guidelines rather than as a list of
restrictions that must be literally observed by all Jews believing that all human beings are created in
God's image and are God's partners in repairing the world [Hebrew tikkun olam). Reform Jews strive to
bring freedom, justice, and peace to all people.
Reform Judaism is also characterized by its commitment to racial and gender inclusivity and
equality. It considers a child to be Jewish, as long as the father or mother is Jewish and the child is
raised as a Jew. It permits women to become rabbis, cantors, and synagogue presidents, and also allows
people with homosexual orientations to participate in the synagogue.

E. CREED

1. Understanding of God
Judaism professes faith in one, supreme, personal God, who created the universe, who has revealed
His will through Moses and the other prophets, and has intervened at key moments in history to save His
chosen people of lsrael. God is infinite and utterly beyond human understanding and imagination.
In the sacred texts of Judaism, the God of Israel was referred to in various ways. Sometimes, God was
just "God," or in Hebrew Elohim. El is the common name for a god in Semitic languages. Elohim is a
plural in Hebrew meaning "gods." But when it is used for the God of Israel, Elohim is used as if it were
a singular noun. In fact, Bible versions in English usually render Elohim as "God."
There is a collection of biblical interpretations called Midrash [“searching”] where one can read rabbinic
stories that aim to explain specific verses in the scriptures. Here is an interesting example. Genesis 11:27
states that among the descendants of Terah are Abraham, Nahor, and Haran. The next verse simply said:
‘And Haran died in the presence of his Father Terah' (v.28). There is this story that attempts to explain
19
how Haran died, but the account essentially and clearly points to the interpretation that Abraham was the
first believer in one God. Here it goes:
Terah, the father of Abraham and Haran, was a dealer in images as well as a worshipper of them.
Once when he was away he gave Abraham his stock of idols to sell in his absence.
In the course of the day an elderly man came to buy an idol. Abraham asked him his age, and the man
said, "Fifty. Abraham taunted him saying. "Really? You are fifty years old and you call a day-old object
your god? Don't you even realize it was merely carved by another human like you?" With this, the man
went away ashamed of himself.
Next came a woman with a handful of fine flour and asked Abraham to offer it to the idols. He took a
stick and broke all the images except the largest one, in the hand of which he placed the stick which had
worked this wholesale destruction.
When his father returned and saw the havoc committed on his 'gods and property, he demanded
an explanation from his son whom he had left in charge. Abraham mockingly explained that when an
offering of fine flour was brought to these idols, they quarreled with each other as to who should get the
offering. The largest of them got angry, took up a stick and broke them all.
Terah, far from being satisfied with this explanation, understood it as a piece of mockery, and when he
learnt also of the customers whom Abraham had lost him during his management, he became very
angry, and drove Abraham out of his house and handed him over to Nimrod.
Nimrod suggested to Abraham that since he had refused to worship his father's powerless gods, he
should worship fire, which is very powerful Abraham pointed Out that water has power over fire.
Well, said Nimrod, let us declare water god
‘But, replied Abraham,’ the clouds absorb the water and even they are dispersed by the wind.’
Then let us declare the wind our god
Bear in mind, continued Abraham, 'that man is stronger than wind, and can resist it and stand
against it.
Nimrod, becoming weary of arguing with Abraham, decided to cast him before his god-fire-and
challenged Abraham's deliverance by the God of Abraham, but God saved him out of the fiery furnace.
Haran too was challenged to declare his god, but he was undecided and delayed his answer. "If Abraham
is saved from the fire, I will choose the God of Abraham. If not, I will choose the god of Nimrod"
When he saw Abraham coming out of the fiery furnace unharmed, he declared himself on the side of
Abraham's God, thinking that he too, having now become an adherent of that God, would be saved by
the same miracle.
So Nimrod cast him into the furnace. But since his faith was not real, he perished in the fire.
This is hinted in the words (Gen. 11. 28): 'And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his
nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees.-Gen. Rabba 38.
[Irnternet Sacred Texts Archive, Genesis Rabba. Accessed April 14, 2016.http:/www.sacred-
texts.com/jud
trmm/tmm07.htm]

On other occasions, the God of Israel is referred to by his personal name, YHWH [nin], as revealed
to the patriarch Moses in Exodus 3:14. In some versions, it is rendered as Yahweh and in others, the
Lord." In Jewish tradition since before the first century C.E., to guard the holiness of God's name, the
Hebrew word Adonai ["the Lord"] is substituted for YHWH during the reading of the Bible.5 In this
textbook, the title Adonai and masculine personal pronouns will be used to refer to the God of Israel.
Out of reverence, pious Jews likewise say HaShem ["the Name"] to refer to God in prayer and in
ordinary conversation. Adonai is unique and the people of lsrael were to worship no other god and were
to make no divine images. There are no other known ancient Middle Eastern deities who could not be
represented in pictures or statues. Moreover, Adonai uniquely chose the people of Israel, made Himself
known, and entered into a personal relationship with them through a covenant. Adonai is made known
through revelation-through speech, through acts, through history, through the institutions of Israel,
20
through the Torah, through the prophets, and through creation. The interventions of Adonai in history, in
behalf of the people of Israel, demand a personal response. The Jews are convinced that, despite all
adversity and tyranny, Adonai, the Lord of history, will one day finally intervene to redeem a broken
world and reign unequivocally over it, ushering an age of well-being and harmony for all creation-the
day when the Messiah will come. The word Messiah [Hebrew mashiakh; Greek christós] means
"anointed (with oil)" To be "anointed" means being chosen for a special mission from God-just as kings,
prophets, and priests were. The expectation of a Messiah is belief in the power and will of God to save
by intervening in human history through a personal human agent of deliverance, one who brings God's
well-being into the world. The Messiah came to be understood as the anointed king of the Davidic
dynasty who would establish the reign of Adonai in the world. As David, son of Jesse was once
portrayed as the ideal king over Israel, so would his descendant anointed by God establish a society of
justice and peace. The expectation of the Messiah in the strict sense appears in Judaism after the exile in
Babylon.

F. BASIC DOCTRINES
The Thirteen Articles of Faith by Moses Maimonides
During the twelfth century, the north African rabbi Moses Maimonides (1135-1204), a philosopher and
physician, set down the Thirteen Articles of Faith or Thirteen Foundations of Judaism. Founded on the
sacred texts of Judaism, the Thirteen Articles/ Foundations outline basic truths that must be
acknowledged and accepted to be considered an adherent of Judaism.
1 God alone is the Creator
2. God is absolutely One.
3 God has no body or bodily shape.
4. God is the first and the last.
5. God alone deserves worship, obedience, and praise.
6. The words of God's prophets are true.
7 The prophecy of Moses, the first and greatest prophet and father of all prophets, is true.
8. God gave the Torah to Moses.
9 The Torah is perfect, not subject to change, and no other will be given.
10. God knows all the thoughts and deeds of human beings.
11. God rewards and punishes according to one's deeds.
12 God's Messiah will come at an unexpected time.
13. The dead will be resurrected.

1. Covenant
"Now if you will pay careful attention to whatI say and keep my covenant, then you will be my own
treasure from among all the peoples, tor all the earth is mine; and you will be a kingdom of cohanim
ipriests) for me, a nation set apart! These are the words you are to speak to the people of Isra'el" (Exodus
19:5-6, CJB).
The sacred texts of Judaism describe the relationship between Adonai and Israel in various ways-father
and son, husband and wife, king and subject-but ultimately, it is a covenant. A covenant [Hebrew
berith} was originally a verbal agreement in a culture that did not keep written records. Adonai initiates
the covenant by choosing the people of israel. Out of love for His chosen people, Adonai saves them
from slavery under the empire of Egypt and later hands over the land of Canaan to them.
This covenant with Israel, renewed more than once, was also a contract because the people, in return,
accepted certain conditions, especially the obligation of being faithful to Adonai, their God. What are
better known as the Ten Commandments summarized Israeľ's corresponding duties (Exodus
20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:1-21; Jeremiah 11:1-8).
In good times and bad throughout history, the Jews have felt sustained by this formal, solemn, and
binding agreement made with Adonai: "I will take you as my people, and I will be your God" (Exodus
21
6:7, CJB). This covenant may be considered as
the existential root and core of Jewish identity,
purpose, and destiny. Under the covenant with
Adonai, all Jews are brothers and sisters who
are expected, as a people chosen and set apart,
to reflect God's holiness by their fulfillment of
mitzvah [Hebrew "commandment]: "For am
Adonai,. your God. Therefore, you are to be
holy, because I am holy" (Leviticus 11:45,
CJB).
The consequences of becoming unfaithful to
this covenant were dire. The prophets warned
that the blessings bestowed by Adonai-one of
these was the land of Israel-would be lost
because of their infidelity.

2. Code
Mitzvah [Hebrew "commandment"] is the
action performed with heartfelt devotion by an
adherent of Judaism in response to Adonai,
with whom he/she is in a covenant-relationship.
By fulfilling mitzvah, a Jew makes manifest
the reality that he/she is at the service of
Adonai who rules over all creation. All of life
ideally should be mitzvah, for the glory of
Adonai.
Judaism holds that the Jewish people received
from their god Adonai six hundred and thirteen
(613) sacred mitzvoth ("commandments"), all
equally binding and important. Corresponding
to the days in a year, there are three hundred
and sixty-five prohibitions "'don'ts"), implying
that daily activity must be confined within
Adonai's kingship. The remaining two hundred
and forty eight are positive calls to action
['dos"), supposedly the same number as the
parts of a human body, which must always be
ready to serve as Adonai's coworker.
In the book of Exodus, the patriarch
Moses, on the holy mountain, received from
Adonai two stone tablets containing Aseret ha-
D'varim [Hebrew "the ten
words/statements/declarations", what are more
popularly known as the "Ten Commandments"
(Exodus 20:2-17; Deuteronomy 5:6-21).
Judaism does not understand Aseret ha-
D'varim as specific directives, but more as
classifications or categories of commandments,
with any of the 613 commandments subsumed
in one of these ten categories.
22
There are two general classifications of mitzvoth
given in Torah: those concerning religious
observance [i.e., between God and humanityl
and those among human beings. In the first five
"declarations" a set of duties to the divine
Creator and one's biological creators are
identified, while the remaining declarations
identify one's duties in relation to other people.
While one's duties to God are parallel and equal
to one's duties to others, Judaism holds that,
when forced to choose between them,
obligations to persons must be fulfilled first
because human beings need help, while God does not. Rightly proclaimed by Jewish sages as the
keystone of Judaism, the fundamental commandment is "love your neighbor as yourself" (Leviticus
19:18, CJB).
Every mitzvah or commandment, no matter how seemingly inconsequential, is considered significant
because it not only reflects Adonai's holiness in the world, but helps one to live acccording to God's will,
which leads to true well-being: “Take care to obey, so that things will go well with you, and so that you
will increase greatly, as Adonai, the God of your ancestors, promised you" (Deuteronomy 6:3, CJB). 4.
Observance of Sacred Timees
The institution of a seven-day week punctuated by a sacred day of rest can be attributed to Judaism. The
weekly day of rest for Adonai called the Sabbath [Hebrew Shabbat] or Sabado in Spanish, which begins
at sunset on Friday evening and ends on Friday, is one of Judaism's most beloved and distinctive
features. The fourth "declaration" in Exodus 20:8-11 urging Jews to observe sacred times originates
from the creation narrative: "On the seventh day God was finished with his work which he made, so he
rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. God blessed the seventh day and
separated it as holy; because on that day God rested from all his work which he had created…” (Genesis
2:2-3, CJB).
On Shabbat, Jews are forbidden from carrying out essential daily tasks (such as preparing food, doing
business, making and carrying things, traveling or even lighting fires), except when it is necessary to
protect and save any life, human or nonhuman. Instead, they are encouraged to engage in leisurely
activities, as well as to pray and to study God's Torah. It is divine will that human beings should imitate
the Creator by resting from work and enjoying the fruits of one's labor on this day. Moreover, the
distinctive observance of Shabbat is a constant reminder of the unique relationship between Adonai and
the adherents of Judaism.
Jews, especially from the Orthodox movement, are also known for observing certain dietary
restrictions found in the books of Leviticus (chapter 11) and Deuteronomy (chapter 14). A pious Jew
must eat only food that is designated as kosher ["proper]. No carnivores, carrion feeders, or shellfish
may be eaten. Fish must have both fins and scales. Four-legged beasts must both chew cud and have
cloven hoof, and must be slaughtered according to kosher laws. Considered the seat of life, blood is
forbidden, so none of it may remain in meat to be eaten. Some parts of kosher animals, such as internal
organs and the fat surrounding them may not be eaten. Meat and dairy products are not to be mixed. A
form of mitzvoth sanctifying the body, these dietary laws may have emerged from ancient taboos or
from hygienic considerations.

G. CULT
The major Jewish festivals commemorate events in the history of lsrael. Commemorated every year
at Passover [Hebrew Pesakh), on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nisan [March-April), is the saving
deed of Adonai in history, the deliverance of the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt narrated in the
Book of Exodus. By the first century, the feast of Weeks [Hebrew Shavuot] was being celebrated as the
23
anniversary of the revelation of Torah, which is part of the covenant. The day of Sabbath is set aside as a
holy day of joy spent at rest and in study of Torah.
The main rites of passage are b'rit milah [Hebrew "covenant of circumcision"j, bar mitzvah,
marriage, and the funeral service. Jewish identity is conferred on both male and female not by ritual, but
by birth. However, membership in the divine covenant comes at a price. Through the ages, Jews,
especially the men, have courageously continued to fulfill the mitzvah of circumcision, declaring their
Jewish identity in a permanent, unambiguous, physical manner. Held eight days after the birth of a
Jewish male child, the b'rit milah traditionally requires the presence of ten men. The grandmother or
another close relative of the child brings him in to be held by another close male relative, while a mohel
removes the foreskin of his penis. The child's father recites the blessing, "Blessed are you,
Adornai,...who has commanded us to enter him into the Covenant of our father Abraham", while those
present respond, "As he entered the Covenant, so may he enter into the study and performance of]
Torah, into marriage, and [the performance of] good deeds." A name is then given to the child. A drop
of wine is placed on the child's lips, and the father drinkS the rest of the wine. A festive meal completes
the ceremony.
The bar mitzvah [Aramaic "son of the commandment'] identifies a thirteen year old Jewish male as
having attained adulthood and his accompanying responsibility of fulfilling mitzvoth. It is usually
celebrated in synagogue where the boy will be called up to chant a selection from the Torah. Some
Jewish congregations als celebrate an equivalent bat mitzvah [Aramaic "daughter of the commandment'|
ceremony for twelve year old Jewish females.
The Jewish wedding ceremony traditionally combines legal and religious features. In the midst of
the synagogue stands a huppah or wedding canopy, where a rabbi and witnesses await the couple. To
joyful music, the groom enters accompanied by his father and his father-in-law. The bride, accompanied
by her mother and her mother-in-law, joins her groom under the huppah. Upon confirming the desire of
the man and woman to be married, the rabbi raises the first Cup of wine and recites the blessing for
betrothal. Bride and groom share the cup of wine, offered by their parents. The groom then places a ring
on the bride's right index finger saying: "Be you consecrated unto me by this ring according to the law of
Moses and Israel" The bride gives consent by accepting the ring. Signed by the witnesses, the ketubah or
marriage contract is read by the rabbi, who then raises a second cup of wine and invokes seven blessings
upon the couple. The parents-in-law offer this second cup to the married couple, who drink it. At the end
of this ceremony, a glass is broken as a reminder of the fragility of love and of the suffering of Jews
since the destruction of the Temple. The congregation then exclaims, "Mazel tov!" ["May it be under a
good star!"] The couple leaves the synagogue together and breaks their fast in solitude. They may now
consummate their marriage, if they wish. Then, they return to the assembly for the festive meal.
During the final stages of life, loved ones stay with the dying person and recite with [or for] him/her
the confession of sins and the affirmation "Shma, Yisra'el! Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai echad [Hear,
Isra'el! Adonai our God, Adonai is one]" After death, the body is placed on the earth, symbolic of the
return to the dust of the earth from which God created humanity. The body is washed and dressed in
simple white linen-garments, with a prayer shawl around the shoulders for men, and placed in a simple
wooden coffin without embalming-visibly manifesting the equality of all in death. Instead of floral
offerings, money is donated to charity in honor of the deceased. After a brief eulogy and prayer, the
departed is buried in the ground as quickly as possible. At the most intense moment of grief, mourners
express it by symbolically tearing their garments, usually an attached ribbon. Then, the children of the
deceased recite the Kaddish, a traditional prayer sanctifying the Name of God, beginning the seven days
of mourning.

H. COMMUNITY
The Jews were the first to transform the tiny abode of the deity into a meeting place where people
solemnly assembled in the presence of God to sustain each other in affirming their belief in this God.
The congregation or synagogue [Greek sunagõgë "assembly"] is a symbol of the Jewish people united
24
before God that foreshadows a humanity united under one God. Moreover, the congregation sustains the
individual, with each adherent aiding, strengthening, and upholding the others.
The religious meeting house, thus, is an invention of Judaism. The term 'synagogue originally meant the
assembled Congregation, but later was applied to the building-a subtle reminder that it is the people
assembled who give meaning and purpose to the building. During the period of the Second Temple,
synagogues existed in many Jewish communities, simultaneous with the operation of the Temple in
Jerusalem. The synagogue served as a house of prayer, of study, and of the people. In each synagogue,
the centers of worship are the Ark, lit by an eternal lamp where the scrolls of Torah are secured, and the
bema, or pulpit for reading the Torah.
With the loss of the temple in Jerusalem, no more sacrifices could be offered, making the priestly
family of Aaron superfluous. Especially with the further loss of the land of promise, emphasis went to
Torah and the fulfillment of mitzvoth. Instead of sacrifices, worship would now revolve around Torah.
The Torah was to be read regularly to the people, explained, interpreted, and studied-which demanded
teachers, rather than priests. The forerunner of today's rabbi, these teachers could be either priest or
layman, wealthy or poor, from nobility or even a recent convert. A pattern of worship emerged-one
adopted by many Western religious traditions: the recitation of Torah Surrounded by prayer and psalm,
and made meaningful by a rabbi's elaboration.
Most Jewish congregations today are led and ministered to by an ordained rabbi, a religious professional
who is more a teacher than a priest.

Since the destruction of the Second Temple in the first century C.E. by the Romans, the Jews as
a people have tended to settle in foreign lands within autonomous minority communities, which strive to
preserve their distinctive cultural identity. For this effort to remain distinct as an often counter-cultural
group, Jews have been criticized and (on many occasions) persecuted for refusing to adopt the lifestyle
and values of the surrounding non-Jewish society in which they lived. Their identification in the
Christian Gospel narratives with the Jewish leaders who incited the Romans to execute Jesus of
Nazareth has only increased hatred for them. This prejudiced hostility toward and discrimination against
Jews is known as anti-Semitism.
Such anti-Semitism fueled further persecutions against people of Jewish descent, who were
perceived as backward, inferior, or even underhanded minorities who were out to exploit-if not destroy-
the predominant but nominally Christ ian civilization. Anti-Semitism in the second millennium C.E.
reached its peak during the Nazi occupation of Europe engineered by Adolf Hitler, resulting in the act of
genocide known as the Shoah [Hebrew "catastrophe"] or Holocaust. The Shoah was the systematic
bureaucratic, State-sponsored mass murder of six million Jews, along with five million other non-Jews,
by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. Often described as a secular Messianism, Zionism is the

25
promotion of the resettlement of Jews united as a nation, preferably in their ancestral homeland of
Canaan/Palestine. The movement began in nineteenth century eastern Europe, triggered by continuing
outbreaks of anti-Semitic violence and climaxed with the emigrations caused by Adolf Hitler's "Final
Solution" to the so-called "Jewish problem The triumph of Zionism came with the establishment of the
State of Israel on May 14, 1948.
However, this new State of Israel populated mostly by Jewish by immigrants led to further
conflicts with the earlier Palestinian Arabs who already occupied the same territory, which was to be
shared by these two potentially independent nations, according to the original partition plan of the
United Nations for what used to be the British-occupied territory of Palestine. Despite the declaration of
independence of the State of Palestine on November 15, 1988 and its recognition as a "nonmember
observer state" on November 29, 2012 by the United Nations general assembly, the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, which has caused the loss of many lives and much damage to property, continues unresolved to
this day.

Keep in Mind:

 Judaism, the religious beliefs and practices of the people of Israel, traces its heritage to the
divine covenant made between Adonai and their ancestor Abraham, whose family of origin
migrated from Mesopotamia nearly four thousand years ago and ended up settling in the
Middle East region called Canaan-what is now the territory of the states of Israel and
Palestine.
 "The Torah Moshe [Moses commanded us as an inheritance for the community of Ya'akov
[Jacob/lsraell" (Deuteronomy 33:4, CJB). The Hebrew word Torah means "instruction"
Broadly understood, Torah is the "instruction" or teaching of Adonai contained in the entire
collection of Hebrew Scriptures called the Tanakh, as well as in the orally transmitted
interpretations laid down later in the Talmud. More narrowly, it refers to what is also known
as the Pentateuch.
 The three main divisions of Judaism are orthodox, conservative, and reform.

REFERENCES
Book:
Manloto, Christian B. and Rapadas, Maria Teresita R. (2016), Pilgrimage to Sacred Spaces: An
Introduction to World Religions. Phoenix Publishing House Inc. Quezon City

Sites:
Judaism in Belief Retrieved on: May 29, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sOzmBAaCHA
The Ten Commandments Retrieved on: May 29, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=8IhVikL6Ed4&t=18s

Ave Maria College

26
 SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT
School ID No. 402686 Gov’t Permit No. 0059 s. 2015

Weekly Exam 2- Judaism

NAME: _____________________________________ DATE: ____________________

PROGRAM & YEAR _________________________ SCORE: ___________________

I. Instruction: Write the 13 Articles of Faith by Moses Maimonides. Provide a brief description for
each article.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10

11.

12.

13.

II. Instruction: Give and explain each division of Judaism.

27
 1. __________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

2. __________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

3. __________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

III. Instruction: Answer the question below.

1. Why do you think the Jews worship only one God?

_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________

Ave Maria College

SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

28
 School ID No. 402686 Gov’t Permit No. 0059 s. 2015

Activity 2: 10 Commandments (Exodus 20)

NAME: ______________________________________ DATE: _________

PROGRAM & YEAR ___________________________ SCORE: ________

Instruction: After watching the movie “Ten Commandments”, memorize the 10 commandments of God.
After memorizing, take a video of yourself while reciting and explaining the significance
of it.

Then God spoke all these words:

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery;
you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in a form of
anything that is in heaven above, or that is on earth beneath, or that is water under the earth. You shall
not bow down to them or worship them; for I Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for
the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, but showing
steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.

You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit
anyone who misuses his name.

Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. For six days you shall labor and do all your work.
But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work – you, your son or
your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six
days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested on the seventh day;
therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.

Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your
God is giving you.

You shall not murder.

You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not steal.

You shall not bear false statement against your neighbor.

You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female
slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

29
Reminder:

Keep all your outputs in your portfolio and make sure to submit them to your course facilitator
before you proceed to Week 3.

Well done!

End of Week 2

30