Jewish Beliefs Flashcards
Name the ten basic beliefs Jews have about God.
Created evil and free will Law-giver The judge Omnipotent Omniscient Omnipresent The sustainer Monotheistic (only one God) God as one (He is everywhere) God is the creator
What is the Shema?
A Jewish prayer affirming belief in the one God found in the Torah.
What is the Torah?
(1) the five books of Moses, which form the first section of the Tenakh (Jewish Bible).
(2) the Jewish written law.
What is the (1)Ultra-Orthodox and (2)Orthodox Jews?
(1) Jews who are extremely committed to strictly following the laws and guidance in the Torah.
(2) Jews who emphasise the importance of following the laws and guidance in the Torah; they believe the Torah was given directly by God to Moses, so should be followed as closely as possible.
What is the Shabbat?
The Jewish holy day of the week; a day of spiritual renewal starting shortly before sunset on Friday and continuing to sunset on Saturday.
What are the Ten Commandments and name them.
Ten laws given by God to Moses: There is only one God You shall not obey any false idols You shall not say Gods name in vain You shall not murder You shall not commit adultery Honour your mother and father You shall not lie You shall not be jealous You shall not steal Keep the Sabbath day holy
What are the Mitsvot (singular Mitsvah)?
Jewish rules or commandments (613 of them)
Most important are the first four Ten Commandments: Only one God/No false idols/No abuses of God’s name/Keep Sabbath holy
What does Merciful mean?
The quality of God that shows compassion or forgiveness to humans, even though he has the power to punish them.
What is the Shekhinah?
The divine presence of God
What is a temple?
The centre of a Jewish worship at the time pf Jesus; the meeting place between God and the priest
How has God previously shown himself as?
A cloud
A pillar of fire
A burning bush
In a Tabernacle
What do Jews generally believe about the afterlife?
Nobody should die alone
Mourning periods follow the loss of a loved one
‘Gan Eden’ (Paradise)
‘Sheol’ (state of imperfection before the afterlife
Physical or spiritual resurrection
A time for Judgement
Name two Jewish charities and what they generally do.
Tzedek and World Jewish Relief
Help poor people or Jews
Supports people of all ages
Create opportunities for young and teach them new skills
Do fundraisers/sponsored events
What is the Messiah?
‘The anointed one’ - a leader of Jews who is expected to live at some point in the future.
What is the Messianic age?
A future time of global peace where everyone is closer to God
Name two people who had covenants with God.
Abraham and Moses
What did Abraham do?
He was extremely faithful to God and was promised that if he remained faithful to God, that he would be a father of many nations. (The land of Canaan)
What did Moses do?
He freed the Jews from slavery in Egypt after the Ten Plagues. He parted the Red Sea and escaped the Egyptians in pursuit. He was also given the Ten Commandments.
What are the three moral principles?
Justice
Healing the world
Kindness to others
What is mean’t by the Sanctity of Life?
All life is holy as it is created and loved by God; human life should not be misused or abused. (Euthanasia or abortion is abusing it)
What is the Talmud?
A commentary by the rabbis on the Torah - consists of the Mishnah and the Gemara together
What is mean’t by Pikuach nefesh and give examples.
The obligation to save ones life even if it goes against all Jewish laws.
Be on the organ donation list
Support charities
Jewish doctor working on a Sabbath
Rescuing a child at sea/someone from a fire/someone under a wall
What is free will and what do Jews believe about it?
The ability to make their own decisions
All decisions have consequences and by having free will, you are prepared to take all the consequences
Adam and Eve used free will to disobey God and ate from the tree
