2.2 Practices

• Three purposes of public worship in Judaism (3)

  1. Gives Jewish induviduals a sense of belonging within whole community
  2. Public worship provides structure and order to a Jewish persons life
  3. In order to worship God with all "your heart and soul" you must celebrate festivals and holy days with others
• Three features of public worship in Judaism (3)

  1. Main service on Shabbat morning
  2. Torah is kept in kept in the Ark and only taken out to be read from
  3. Synagogues hold special services for festivals
• One reason why Jewish people worship in different ways

  • Orthodox Jews believe men and women must worship separately, as the Talmud recommends this
  • Liberal Jews believe in complete equality of the two sexes so believe men and women should worship together
• Second reason why Jewish people worship in different ways

  • Orthodox Jews believe it is necessary to wear tefellin and tallit, because this is commanded in the Mitzvot, which they believe to be direct words of God
  • Liberal/Reform Jews believe it is up to personal choice whether to wear tefillin or tallit, because they believe the Torah was inspired by God
• Public worship: SoWa (2)

  Talmud recommends that men and women worship separately

  Shema: love your Lord God with all your heart, soul and strength
• What are the three parts that make up the Tenakh

  1. Torah - contains 613 mitzvot
  2. Nevi'im contains history & prophet books
  3. Ketuvim contains writings that express thoughts about life
• Why is the Tenakh important?

  Torah and Ketuvim are used in public worship

  Jewish people study the books of the Tenakh to develop their relationship with God
• The halakhah is made up of the Oral Torah & the Written Torah. This was written down as the Mishneh, which was commented on by rabbis & students. The Mishneh + discussions were written into the Talmud
• The Talmud is important because:

  • Explains what is meant by the 613 Mitzvot -> helps Jews to understand and follow Gods commandments & honour Mosaic covenant
  • consists of the halakhah, which is the foundation of Orthodox Jews lives today
• Outline three Treifah foods (3)

  • Pigs
  • Shellfish
  • Birds of prey
• Outline three Kosher foods (3)

  • Vegetables
  • Fish with scales & fins
  • Cows
• Outline three Kashrut food laws (3)

  1. Don't mix meat & dairy
  2. Animals must be prepared in a Kosher butchers
  3. Dont mix utensils between Kosher & Non-Kosher food
• Kashrut food laws: Sources of Wisdom & Authority

  • Deuteronomy: do not cook a goat in its mothers milk
  • Deuteronomy: dont eat any fish that doesnt have scales and fins
  • Leviticus: only eat animals which have a split hoof and chew the cud
  • Leviticus: all blood must be drained out before eating an animal
• Outline three purposes of prayer for Jewish people:

  1. develop relationship with God
  2. allows Jewish people to serve God with all their heart and soul
  3. bring peace & comfort in times of need
• What are three features of prayer in the home (3)

  • Psalms: encourages Jews to pray morning, noon, and evening
  • Jews touch the Mezuzah, which contains the Shema on the doorposts of their homes
  • Jews recite the Shema, which is the basis of the faith
• Explain two reasons why it is important to have different types of prayer:

  1. Formal prayer: provides structure, stops prayers from being selfish, unites Jews through the same words
  2. Informal prayer: more personal, might allow Jews to worship with all their heart and soul, expresses person concerns to God
• All formal prayers are found in the Siddur, which is a daily prayer book used by Jewish people.
• Three features of Brit Milah :

  • boys are circumcised
  • a mohel (circumciser) carries this out
  • enters male into the Abrahamic covenant
• Three features of Bat Mitzah

  • coming of age ceremony for girls
  • girls become "daughter of the commandment"
  • become responsible for their faith
• Three features of Bar Mitzvah

  • coming of age ceremony for boys
  • boys become "son of the commandment"
  • happens at the age of 13
• Three features of Brit Bat

  • naming ceremony for Jewish girls
  • mostly done in Reform/ Liberal synagogues
  • enters Jewish girls into faith
• Explain two reasons why Brit Milah is important for Jews:

  1. Brit Milah honours the covenant with Abraham-> In the Torah, it describes how God commanded Abraham to circumcise himself and his male descendants
  2. Brit Milah enters a Jewish baby boy into the faith, allowing them to grow up and have a relationship with God
• Outline three features of the Jewish wedding ceremony

  1. ceremony takes place under a canopy called a Huppah
  2. groom promised to provide for his wife
  3. rabbi blesses the marriage to be a happy one with children
• Explain two reasons why funeral rituals are important for Jewish people (4)

  -Provide mourners with the comfort and support of the community, allowing people to cope with grief during a terrible time. Mourners rip their clothes, following the example of Jacob in the Torah

  -Reminds mourners of the Jewish belief in the afterlife, that death is not the end and they will be reuinted with their loved ones.
• Outline three things Orthodox Jews cannot do on Shabbat (3)


  Jews cannot go to work

  They cannot switch on electricity

  They cannot drive cars
• Explain two reasons why Shabbat is important for Jews (4)

  1. Resting on Shabbat is one of the Mitzvah which all Orthodox Jews must keep. One of the ten commandments orders Jewish people to "honour the Sabbath day by keeping it holy" so by celebrating Shabbat, they follow Gods commandments
  2. Shabbat provides time for Jewish people to reflect on their lives and deepen their relationship with God by focusing on him
• What are three ways Shabbat is celebrated?

  Family meal & celebration on Friday night

  Father blesses the wine with the Kiddush blessing

  Challah bread is broken and shared
• What are three features of Sukkot

  • families make a temporary shelter called a Sukkah
  • families buy an etrog which is a citrus fruit
  • families use a lulav which is a palm leaf
• Why is Sukkot important?

  1. the four species: lulav, etrog, myrtle & willow symbolise different aspects of Gods presence and reminds Jewish people of the blessings which he bestows on his people.
  2. the Sukkah shelter honours the 40 years which the Israelites lived in the wilderness & this encourages Jewish people to connect to their ancestors
• Three features of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year)

  • Rams horn (shofar) is blown
  • people reflect on the past year and acknowledge any sins
  • people make New Years resolutions
• Outline three features of Yom Kippur (festival which takes place 10 days after Rosh Hashanah)

  1. Jews fast for 25 hours
  2. they dont wear leather as its forbidden in Leviticus
  3. people reflect on the promises they made at Rosh Hashanah
• Yom Kippur is also known as the 'Day of Atonement'. What does Leviticus say about Yom Kippur?

  Leviticus: anyone who does not fast will be cut off from his people
• Why is Yom Kippur important?

  1. fasting at Yom Kippur encourages self discipline and helps a Jewish person to focus all their mind to God and improving their relationship
  2. Yom Kippur helps people to reflect on their new year resolutions and releases people from guilt from the previous year
• Outline three features of the Sedar meal at Pesach (3)

  • the plate has special foods including unleavened bread and bitter herbs
  • the youngest child asks a series of questions to the father
  • the Hagadah instructs the order of food on the Sedar plate
  • bitter herbs represent the pain of the slaves
• Explain two reasons why Pesach is important for Jewish people?

  -Pesach reminds Jews of their history and of the struggles of their anscestors. Jewish people use a sedar plate containing many different foods, as instructed in the Hagadah, to represent Pesach. For example, the bitter herbs remind Jews of the pain of slavery

  -Pesach reminds Jews of Gods omnipotence and love for them. This is because it honours when God chose Jews to be his chosen people and without Pesach, there would be no Jewish faith today.
• Outline three features of Shavout

  1. people stay up and read the Torah
  2. some Jews will only eat dairy products
  3. the Ten Commandments are honoured in the synagogue
• Explain two reasons why Shavout is important for Jewish people

  • celebrates the gift of the Torah to the Jewish people. This is important because the Torah contains the Ten Commandments, which are the basis of the faith
  • Shavout represents the spiritual freedom that God delivered to his people through the mitzvot. This is important because it allows Jews to develop relationship with God by following his commandments
• Outline three external features of the synagogue (3)

  1. Synagogues should face Jerusalem
  2. Synagogues might have a Star of David on the outside
  3. They also should have windows which let light in
• Outline three interior features of the synagogue (3)

  1. holy ark contains Torah scrolls
  2. the Ner Tamid which shows the eternal light of Christ
  3. Menorah is a branched candlestick
• Describe the differences between Orthodox and Reform synagogues

  • Orthodox: Men and women sit seperately, as instructed by the Talmud. Reform: Men and women sit together
  • Orthodox: Do not allow music on Shabbat because they consider it work, which is forbidden in 10 Commandments. Reform: Allow music in Shabbat worship
  • Orthodox: Rabbi is always a men. Reform: Rabbi can be either male or female