Judaism is one of the oldest religions in the world. History reveals that Judaism has existed for more than four thousand years ago. Historians point out that Judaism is the religion with the least number of followers globally. Besides Zoroastrianism, Islam, and Christianity, Judaism is among the four major monotheistic faiths present in the modern world. Monotheistic adherents have a firm conviction that God exists as one. The construction of Judaism is rooted in this assertion.
Judaism has many followers on various continents. Although widely practiced by Jews, Judaism practices and beliefs have attracted other cultures across the world. It is estimated that about fourteen million of the world Jew population claim Judaism tenets of beliefs. The religion is mostly concentrated in Europe, Israel, the United States, and some parts of Asia.
According to Hannabuss (16), whereas Judaism is connected with the rabbis of the second century, many historians believe that Hillel, a Pharisee, was the real founder. Hillel Immigrated to Palestine during the first century B.C.E. His immigration was sparked by King Herod’s decision to dissolve the Hasmonean priesthood (Forta, 116). Hillel influenced many followers; this made his appeal to the majority of them.
Besides, he was found to possess the “holy spirit,” based on his personality attributes. He was patient, humble, loving, and peaceful. These moral attributes were exemplified in his personal precept of embracing personal responsibility and being careful to avoid endangering the well-being of the society. Hillel further illustrated these values by harmonizing himself and others in his lawful enactments, the Prosbol. The Prosbol negated the biblical decree that demanded the liberation of all debts a person had every seven years.
The origin can also be traced to the region of Canaan, present-day Israel. It originated as a method of practices and beliefs of the people referred to as “Israel,” Rabbinic, or Classical (Forta, 98). However, in the earlier periods of growth, Judaism did not emerge strongly. It was until the first century when the strength of Judaism started to be felt. Judaic heritage is anchored in the covenant made between God, Abraham, and his ancestry. The covenant spelled out that; God will grant his descendants a holy land and make them sacred. For several years this covenant came true. This was illustrated in the prominent leaders of Israelite culture, such as Moses, Isaac, and Abraham himself.
Judaic followers believe in God as the Supreme Being. They believe that God created the world and all therein. Judaism beliefs are entrenched in the ethical, religious, and social laws, as they are presented in the five books of the Hebrew Bible, the Torah. Jews refer to the Bible or the holy book, the Tanakh, an ellipsis for the prophets, writings, and Torah. They also have other revered texts (Forta, 103). They include; the Mild rash (oral law), and the Talmud (holiest book) legal, the rabbinic and narrative control of the Torah (Warren, 238)
Judaism has various rites that shape their religious practices. The primary ritual of the Jews is the circumcision of baby boys (Hannabuss, 16). The circumcision was and is still done when the boy is eight days. The rite came into being when God authorized Abraham to circumcise himself, the male members of his family, and his descendants. This was to illustrate the Divine Covenant God had made with him, and his offspring’s as the preferred people of Israel.
The rite has prevailed over the ages and serves as a rite of passage into the entry in the Jewish community. For example, the uncircumcised males were not allowed to participate in the first sacrament of historical Judaism and the sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb during the exodus (Forta, 123). Similarly, the uncircumcised person was “alienated” in the rabbinic traditions, the community of Israel, and from enjoying his or her future life in the perceived world to come (Solomon, 198).
The Jews believe that the soul of the uncircumcised perishes with his body. Thus such a person is not likely to experience the anticipated renewal at the end of the time of the Messianic age. A professional surgeon called Mohel carries out this rite. The rite entailed giving a baby a Hebrew name accompanied by a commemorative feast (Solomon, 112).
Judaism also practices the tradition of mourning a lost relative. When a relative dies, the burial is done in less than twenty-four hours. The volunteers or holy society, called Cheryra Kadisha, perform ritual cleansing on the body of the deceased. The body is buried in white shrouds. For men, the tallit or fringed prayer shawl is used (Solomon, 74). One fringe is often detached or removed to make it unsuitable for ritual use. The Judaic law restricts using any materials which are not eco-friendly. These materials include; metals in the burial of a casket. Most Jew religious leaders are buried in plain made pine boxes with no hinges, decorations, and nails.
The third ritual of the Jews is marriage. A wedding is a main canopy of Judaism. It is the moment of social and personal transition. The female and male assume new responsibilities as productive members of the community. The wedding fulfills the first Mitzah (commandment) of the Torah, being fruitful and multiply. Hence the wedding is a fundamental transition to Jewish institutions for the welfare of the community (Warren, 249). The marriage is usually arranged by peer groups.
Judaism tends to avoid using symbols as representations during worship. However, there exist some special symbols that are commonly displayed in many Jewish institutions and synagogues, places of Jews worship. Similarly, traditional Judaism created objects of art. They were restricted for decorative purposes. They included breastplates and silver crowns, which were used to adorn and cover Torah scrolls.
Additionally, silver wine beakers were designed for use during meals and the Sabbath festival (Warren, 164). Gold was shunned for religious use. This was because it had a connection with a biblical incident of idolatrous reverence of the golden calf.
Some other symbols are significant to Judaism, whose present is omnipresent in Jewish life. One of these symbols is Magen David, Star of David (Robinson and Rodrigues, 224). It is a popular image that reminds of the Jewish people of the height of Kind David, for whose restoration Jews pray for each day.
Judaism believes in sacred narratives. Hence this is reflected in the biblical construction of revelation, creation, and redemption. The origin of Jewish narratives is the Hebrew Scriptures. The thematic role is used to form a relationship between God and Israel. This is represented in three distinct ways; creation, revelation, and redemption.
Judaism believes in ultimate reality and Divine Beings. At the same time, many Jewish philosophers have traditionally connected reality with a theistic icon of God; there as had been an on-going deliberate about the character of God and the divine nature of the human relationship.
Jews believe in human nature and human existence. Human nature is deeply rooted in the divine image; thus, it has an infinite value. They also relate the purpose of human existence to the divine and human “other” (Robinson and Rodrigues, 145). They view this linkage as God’s covenant. While the Jew ascertain that they have a covenant with God as children of Israel, the rest of humanity seems to have a collective covenant connected with Noah’s children. The rabbis recognized the twofold character of human beings and positioned them amid earthly and heavenly creatures in the hierarchy.
Jews have continuously addressed the relationship between God, human and evil by representing a scale between those who preserve, recognize or rationalize God’s connection to evil and those who detest attributing any optimistic sense for the existence of evil on earth (Forte, 123). However, the Jewish view God in these circumstances as omnipresent, omnipotent, and goodness; God’s connection to evil is hazy in the light of unfair distress.
Jews’ reflection on the afterlife and salvation occurs from different perspectives. This is mainly what happens to the soul and the body after death. They are based on various medieval, rabbinic, theological sources, and folklore to understand the afterlife. Basing on folklores and scholarly sources throughout medieval times, Jews believe that there is a steady evolution of bodily death to the afterlife in which spirit remains connected through immortality or resurrection of the soul (Forte, 86). Rabbinic folklore indicates that souls of the dead continue to drift on earth in the hope of being restored to the body (Robinson and Rodrigues, 124). They suggest that the soul maintains a temporal correlation with the body in a kind of purgatory leading either to hell, Gehinnom, or paradise, Gan Eden.
Modern Judaism exists in four main movements; they include Conservatives, Orthodox, and Reformists. Despite their distinct views, Jews remain unified on the grounds of their common link to an array of consecrated narratives expressing their bond with God as righteous people.
Works Cited
Forte, Arye. Judaism. London: Heinemann, 1995. Print.
Hannabuss, Stuart. “The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism.” Reference Reviews (2006): 9 – 20. Print.
Robinson, Thomas Arthur & Rodrigues Hillary. World Religions. London: Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd, 2006. Print.
Solomon, Norman. Judaism. New York: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., 2009. Print.
Warren, Matthews. World Religions. Connecticut: Cengage Learning, 2008. Print.