SECTION 3 JUDAISM- TOPIC 2.3.2 THE TENAKH AND TALMUD

Question 1

What are the 3 parts of the tenakh?

Answer 1

-Torah (the Five Books of Moses)

-Nevi’im (the books of the Prophets)

-Ketuvim (holy writings).

Question 2

Torah

Answer 2

They contain:
the stories of the patriarchs
the Egyptian slavery
the Exodus
the long journey to the Promised Land
God’s covenants with Abraham and Moses
the giving of the Law to Moses.

regarded as the holiest part of the Tenakh because they contain the 613 mitzvot

Question 3

Nevi’im

Answer 3

-main purpose is to teach the Jewish people how the covenant God made with Moses worked its way out through the Jewish people.

-Their purpose is to teach faith in the one God
and to proclaim God’s message of justice and compassion.

Question 4

Ketuvim

Answer 4

purpose is to show:

how the way the Jews behaved towards God affected their history

to express the ups and downs of living as God’s people

to express thoughts on the ultimate questions of suffering and death

to give advice on how to live a moral life.

Question 5

The purpose and history of the Talmud

Answer 5

-when God gave Moses the Torah, he also
gave him the Oral Torah

-Written Torah and the Oral Torah together make up the halakhah.

Question 6

Why is the Tenakh important to Jews today?

Answer 6

TENAKH
-The Torah is particularly important in synagogue worship and daily living.

-Jewish people study and meditate on the books of the Tenakh to help their understanding of, and their relationship with, God.

-The Psalms are an essential part of daily prayers and of much synagogue worship.

Question 7

Why is the Talmud important to Jews today?

Answer 7

-It explains the meaning of the 613 mitzvot.
-It explains how the mitzvot should be applied in the daily lives of Jews.

-It is the basis of the halakhah, which is the foundation of Orthodox Jewish life today.

Question 8

The purpose of Jewish food laws

Answer 8

The purpose of Jewish food laws is to obey these mitzvot about food which God gave to Moses

Question 9

What can Jews eat? SOWAA

Answer 9

“You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof”

Question 10

What can Jews not eat? SOWAA

Answer 10

“The pig is also unclean”

“Although it has a divided hoof it does not chew the cud”

Question 11

What seafood can Jews eat?

Answer 11

“you may eat any that has fins and scales.”

Question 12

Kosher

Answer 12

– fitting; food a Jew is permitted to eat

Question 13

Kashrut

Answer 13

– the state of being
kosher

Question 14

Treifah

Answer 14

– not kosher

Question 15

Main Kosher restrictions:

Answer 15

-Kitchens should be in two halves, one for meat and one for dairy
-When meat is brought home it must be soaked in salt water for 30 minutes, then rubbed in salt and drained before washing in cold water
-Pigs, camels and shellfish must not be eaten

Question 16

Divergent implications of the food laws

Answer 16

-It gives a bond with fellow Jews.

-It gives a sense of Jewish identity.

-Keeping kashrut is not as important for Liberal/Reform Jews because they believe that the laws of Moses are not God’s direct commands, but rather they are a means for people to lead a holy life.

-Kosher food and kashrut is harmful for good relations between religions.

-By eating non-kosher foods or not keeping a kosher kitchen they have broken many of the mitzvot. This importance can be seen on supermarket shelves where many items now have a label -hechsher