Judaism Beliefs Flashcards
Concept and Nature:
Judaism is a monotheistic religion. Jews believe that God is one, he is the lawgiver, judge, sustainer and creator
God or G-d?:
Many jews prefer not to say
the word “God” out loud and
prefer not to write it, so they
use “G-d”. Jewish God is also
know as YHWH (Yahweh)
God as One
“God as one” means that God is infinite and eternal, Only God should be praised and worshiped. All values and beliefs come from God.
Shema:
The Shema is a prayer that
affirms belief in the One God,
it is found in the Torah. The
opening line is recited twice a
day and reminds Jews of their
monotheistic belief: “Hear, O
Israel, the lord our God, the
lord is one”. It also implies that
God requires total loyalty.
God as Lawgiver:
God gives laws on how people should behave. God gave the Jews 613 Mitzvot to follow and they are accepted as the code of conduct for Jewish Life, the first 10 mitzvot are the 10 commandments. By following the mitzvot it is impossible to disobey God.
God as Judge:
-God judges the Jews on how well they follow his laws.
-His judgments are fair and merciful, all good
-Jews are judged once a year at Rosh Hashanah and once they die
Shekhinah—The Divine Presence:
Jews believe that God can focus his presence in certain places, this is the shekinah. The shekinah
does not mean God is physically present or split into certain parts. The word “shekinah” is not appear
anywhere in the Tenakh but it is reffered to. The Tenakh describes how the Jews where lead by a pillar
of cloud at day and a cloud with fire at night, these are acts of the Shekinah
“I beheld my Lord seated on a high and lofty throne…” - Isaiah 6: 1-2
Beliefs about creation:
-Orthodox Jews believe in the creation story (Genesis1:1)
-Reform Jews believe God
created the world using the big bang theory
and created humans through evolution
Sustainer:
God sustains the universe and everything needed for life. However as a result of free will humans have distributed resources unequally.
Jews who choose to help those in need are
helping fufill God’s plan for creation.
What is a quote about creation?
“When God began to create heaven
and earth…” Genesis 1:1
Evil and Free Will:
-God created evil BECAUSE he gave humans total free will
-The fact he gave humans free will signifies that good actions are more significant to god.
-blank-
Commandments between man and God:
1) Worship no God but me
2) Do not worship idols
3) Do not use my name for evil purposes
4) Keep the sabbath holy
Between man and man:
5) Respect your Father and Mother
6) Do not murder
7) Do not commit adultery
8) Do not steal
9) Do not lie
10) Do not be jealous
Heaven
Those who are good will enter heaven
(Gan Eden). It is believed heaven will be
with God, howeber it is unkown if in a
state of contiousness or and actual
physical or spiritual place