Class 5: Overview of Judaism

Question 1

What is the Jewish scripture called?

Answer 1

The Tanakh, which contains the Torah (the teachings of Judaism)

Question 2

What are the first 5 books of the Jewish bible called?

Answer 2

The Books of Moses

Question 3

What is the context from which Judaism came?

Answer 3

• Ancient Mesopotamia
• Polytheism view
• High worship of idols

Question 4

What is the cosmology of Judaism?

Answer 4

First traceable concept of monotheism
- Only one God that we have a unique relationship with

Question 5

What are the notions of the self in Judaism?

Answer 5

• Personal
• Eternal
• Evolves over the writings in the Torah
• Separation of soul and body
• Physical lives and bodily actions should be respected and seen as sacred
• Body and soul have equal responsibility to God

Question 6

Who is the founder of Judaism?

Answer 6

Moses

Question 7

Who is Abraham?

Answer 7

Father of Nations
All monotheistic lineages can be traced back to Abraham

Question 8

What is a covenant?

Answer 8

A very strong reciprocal relationship with God, meaning it is two sided and both sides have responsibilities

Question 9

What are the views of the afterlife in Judaism?

Answer 9

• Highly influenced from the context it came
• Dark and nihilistic
• Nothing to look forward to
• We can have a relationship with God because we have eternal souls

Question 10

What are the death rituals in Judaism?

Answer 10

• No cremation: belief in bodily resurrection so body had to be well maintained
• Communal burial sites: put bones of family members in slots in large communal burial sites
• No gravestones until a year into your death
• Grieveing and Mourning reflected by: tearing a piece of clothing, bury bodies with the back of a shovel
• Bodies were shrouded in white cloth and placed in pine coffins to signify everyone is equal in death

Question 11

What is Luz?

Answer 11

The only part of the body that Jews thought did not disintegrate, and would therefore make it possible for the body to reanimate

Question 12

What is Sheol?

Answer 12

• Early Jewish concept of the underworld
• Where everyone goes regardless of moral or immoral actions
• Referred to as shadows of your former self

Question 13

What is Gehenna?

Answer 13

Hell, which came from the fracturing

Question 14

What is a Messiah?

Answer 14

• A saviour, translates to “anointed one”
• Chosen by God to be our saviour
• The Messiah CANNOT die, if he does then he was not the true Messiah

Question 15

What is the Messianic Age?

Answer 15

• Came from the Hebrew Bible
• Waiting for this saviour to come in and bring them to salvation

Question 16

What are the Mitzvah’s?

Answer 16

• Explicit rules that come from the scriptures
• They tell us about how to do everyday things, like how to dress, cook, and more
• However, there are some rules that are above the others, known as the 10 Commandments

Question 17

What is the evolution of Hell?

Answer 17

Where did Hell come from?
- argues that the evolution of Hell, meaning damnation of souls being an option, came out of Jewish apocalyptic views. These views have way to Christian and Islamic Hell.