Importance- 10 commandments

• B- The ten commandments are in the Torah. They are central to Jewish beliefs and practices. The first four commandments are duties concerning humans and God, their creator. The purpose of these is that they show Jews how they should worship.

  E- "Do not take the name of God your Lord in vain."

  E- Therefore some Orthodox Jews prefer to write G-D or Hashem
• B- The second six all deal with relationships between people. The purpose of these is to tell Jews how to treat other people

  E- "honour your mother and father."

  E- A respectful parent/children relationship is shown each week through the ‘blessing of the children’ ceremony which is done by the mother or father on the Shabbat. It is clear that the 10 commandments affect every part of a Jewish persons life
• B- Some people maybe against this statement and feel the most important Jewish belief is that found in the Mishnah

  E- "When a man leaves the world, neither silver nor gold nor precious stones nor pearls accompany him, but only the Torah he has learnt and the good works he has carried out."

  E- Many Jews support Tzedek. Tzedek is a Jewish charity which works to reduce absolute poverty and care for those involved in national disasters, and seeking to increase social justice in the world. The belief in doing good works as outlined in the Mishnah is the most important Jewish belief.
• B- All Jews believe that the 10 commandments provide important beliefs in Judaism but they differ in how literally they should be taken. For Orthodox Jews, the purpose of the ten commandments is they provide laws to be followed at all times

  E- e.g. Orthodox Jews will not do any work on the Sabbath (even pressing an elevator button)

  For more reformed Jews the purpose of the commandments is to act as a guide and decisions about which ones to observe are often based upon individual choices.
• B- While all Jews agree that the 10 commandments are important, Reform Jews are less strict about how literally they should be taken

  E- “Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy”

  E-Jews may be liberal as to what is considered work, therefore they will drive a car, turn on light switches etc. However, Orthodox Jews will follow the law to the fullest extent.