Jewish Beliefs

• Nature of God as One:


  • God is the One. He is a single, whole, indivisible entity who cannot be divided. He is infinite and eternal.
  • God is creator and sustainer.
  • God is the source of all Jewish morality, beliefs and values.
• Nature of God as creator:


  • Genesis, in the Torah, states that God created the universe, and everything in it, in 6 days.
  • On the seventh day he rested and made it holy; Jews remember this between sunset on Friday and sunset on Saturday (Shabbat)
  • Only God can have the power to create the universe. God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent.
  • There is no concept of the devil. God created evil Himself and gave humans free will to be able to choose between doing good or bad.
  • “ form light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe- I the Lord do all these things.” ISAIAH 45:6-7
• Nature of God as lawgiver:


  • Jews believe they should obey God’s law as part of the covenant.
  • God gave the Jews many laws, the foundation being the Ten Commandments
  • The Torah contains 613 laws (mitzvah), known as the mitzvot. To follow these is to fulfil God’s will on earth.
• Interpretations of the Torah:

  
  

  Orthodox: think the Torah came directly from God

  Liberal: believe it is people’s interpretation of God’s word.
• Nature of God as judge and merciful:

  • Jews believe their behaviour will be judged by God after they die, based on how well they followed his laws
  • God will judge Jews and non-Jews
  • God is merciful and his judgements are fair; qualities of justice and mercy are perfectly balanced
• The Divine Presence of God (Shekinah):


  • Shekinah means ‘God’s divine presence’; God’s presence on earth.
  • Shekinah is thought to be present also in the Temple in Jerusalem and why people pray to the remaining wall (Western Wall), were they believe Shekinah is still present.
  • A small number of Jews believe Shekinah to be the feminine presence of God.
• Customs of Death:

  • People should not die alone- it is considered to be an act of great kindness to be present at the time of death and to close a person’s eyes.
  • “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, the True Judge”. This blessing is made to God upon hearing their death.
  • Jews mourn intensely following a death, then seven days after burial, with 30 days of lesser mourning to follow this.
• Life after Death:

  • Some believe life after death will be physical.
  • Others believe it will be spiritual.
  • Good people will enter paradise (Gad Eden), while others will go to a place referred to as Sheol (a place to wait where souls are cleansed).
  • Some believe they will be judged by God a soon as they die. Others believe God will judge everyone after the coming of the Messiah.
  • Jews believe the present is more important than the afterlife and that they should focus on living according to God.
• The nature and role of the Messiah:


  • Many Jews believe a Messiah, future leader of the Jews, will come and bring peace and prosperity, establishing the Messianic Age.
  • The Messiah will be human and a male descendant of the Jewish King David.
  • The prophet Elijah will appear just before he comes.
  • Isaiah 11:2 "the spirit of the Lord will be on him, he will have no fear"
  • People will be judged by God and the Messiah on their actions and live in a restored Israel, where there will be peace and harmony
• Covenant with Abraham:

  • Genesis 12: God told Abraham to continue to Canaan and made him a promise. God’s promise to Abraham meant Canaan (including present day Israel) has become the Promised Land
  • God promised to give Abraham’s wife, Sarah, a child, and to protect them and their descendants, his chosen people.
  • Abraham proved his acceptance of God’s covenant by circumcising all the males in his household.
  • Jews believe that the covenants are binding for all people and God.
• The Covenant with Moses:

  • God told Moses to go to tell the pharaoh to release the Jews from slavery and return to the Promised Land.
  • After wondering in the desert for many years, Moses ascended Mount Sinai, where God gave Moses the Torah , including the mitzvot, plus Ten Commandments carved on two stone tablets. The Ten Commandments form the basis of the covenant between Jews and God.
  • God will protect them if they obey his laws in return.
• Justice:

  • A sacred duty. According too the prophet Micah, God requires his people ‘to do justice and to love goodness, and to walk modestly with your God’ MICAH 6:8
  • The Torah and the prophets were sent by God to help people to understand and bring about justice.
  • Tzedakah (charity) should be given to make the world more just, as an obligation rather than a choice.
• Healing the world (tikkun olam):


  • Important in Judaism, as many see it draws people closer to God and motivates them to get involved in social justice
  • Healing the world can also include obeying mitzvoth and trying to become closer to God spiritually
  • GIFT: Give It Forward Today. Jewish charity focussed on this concept.
• Loving kindness (Chesed):


  • Many Jewish laws in the Torah teach this. It forbids bad actions e.g. murder, but also provides positive laws to encourage kindness.
  • “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against your countrymen. Love your fellow as yourself.” LEVITICUS 19:18
• The sanctity of life:

  • Humans are made in God’s image. God breathed life into Adam and therefore human life is sacred.
  • Life is sacred and belongs to God, so only God has the right to take a life away.
• 'Saving a life' (pikauch nefesh):

  • Saving a life is more important than any mizvot, except commandments 1, 2, 6 and 7.
  • The Talmud contains several instances where is is permissible to break Shabbat law in order to save a life
• Two types of mitzvot:

  • Ritual Mitzvot: are a list of things Jews must and must not do to avoid offending God- between a person and God.
  • Moral mitzvot: are about a Jew’s dealings with other people- they are between one person and another.
• Free will and 613 mitzvot:

  • Adam & Eve’s disobedience teaches Jews they have free will, so are responsible for following the mitzvot.
  • However, using free will to excuse wrongdoing will not bring them closer to God.
  • 613 Mitzvot in the Torah and others in the Talmud attempt to prevent the bond between God and humans from being damaged.