History 53 Judaism Essay

Discuss the extent to which the religious schism during the sixteenth century was symptomatic of political, social, and economic problems.

1a. Describe the Jews’ view of God and their basic worldview in the Intertestamental Period. Concerned with practice, orthopraxy rather than right thoughts Jews held on to all the essential features of the OT. However, there were concerted efforts made to reinstate traditional institutions. (Scott, Jewish background of the New Testament 2000:265) In addition the retention, practice, and application of Monotheism, covenant, and law the three main pillars of OT religion made Intertestamental Judaism unique. The Jews viewed God distinctly based on these three pillars. (Scott, Jewish backgrounds of the New Testament 2000:266) God was consistently recognized as Creator and the Being by whose providence the created order was sustained. The

Born in Germany, in 1483, Martin Luther went on to become one of Western history’s most significant figures. He spent his early years in a relative church as a monk and scholar, and later he became a priest and professor of theology. But he never felt right about some rites in the Catholic Church. As a result, in 1517, Luther penned a document attacking Catholic Church’s corrupt practice of reconciliation to absolve sin. His “95 Theses,” a list of questions and propositions for debate, became the catalyst for the eventual breaking away from the Catholic Church and were later instrumental in forming the Reformation. Although these ideas had been advanced before, Martin Luther codified them at a moment in history ripe for religious reformation. His courageous action of questioning the church later began the reformation and eventually changed the course of Western civilization. Though Luther was excommunicated from the Catholic Church right after the publishment of “95 Theses”, his writings changed the course of religious and cultural history in the West.

The author asserts herself the task of describing the Jews in a positive way. It can meet with a feeling that many societies consider Jews as enemies of the humanity. Antisemitic movements trumpet negative rumors about controlling large countries by the Jews. According to them, the Jews took control over the mass media in order to spread the Jewish propaganda and to show the only information which is relevant to the public. Furthermore, they consider that America has become a tool in the hands of the Jews to rebuild the state of Israel and to the enrichment of the Jewish community. They also claim that the whole world is financially dependent from the Jewish nation. All of these statements lead to the fact that Jews are hostile perceived

In rabbinic Judaism, good and evil are always a possibility for man. However, man’s dignity and basic goodness requires that he be able to tilt the “scales” in either direction, so he can choose to do good. Modern rabbinic Judaistic thought of sin tends to be of criminal behavior. So, most Jews do not think of themselves as sinners.

So disillusioned with Catholicism, he would go on to nail his thesis to the door of, All Saints ' Church in Wittenberg, detailing ‘Ninety-Five Theses’ he put up for discussion, within two months, these proposals had spread across most of developed Europe. Luther’s Protestantism was primarily concerned with the authority of the Bible over, the authority of the established ‘Church’, and its ‘father’ on earth, the ‘Pope’. If Protestantism had a main objective it was to elevate the words of the ‘Bible’ over the occasion of the ‘Mass’ and, for the worshipper to have more of an individual relationship with God and to remove the intercedent and abuses of the Church and its clergy.

Jewish History Ever since the Jews were driven from their homeland (now known as Israel) they have faced discrimination and prejudice, mainly due to their beliefs and culture. They spread throughout the world and in some countries they were welcomed and enjoyed periods of peace with their neighbors, however in Europe the population was mainly Christian and the Jews found themselves being branded as outsiders. The reason Jewish and Christian populations couldn’t get along was due to different religious beliefs and for many years the Church taught of how it believed the Jews had killed Jesus, however in modern times this view has been discredited by many historians.

There is a fair amount of differences between modern and traditional Judaism. As this is the case, it is only natural that many well-known people in all walks of life can be considered “modern Jews.” This distinction is very important because as more famous people practice a more modern Jewish culture and lifestyle, more of the younger generations of the world quickly follow suit. Not only is modern Judaism accommodating towards modern scholarship, science, culture and a general modernity of the world, it goes as far as even welcoming it. This is because modern Judaism takes a fairly inclusive stance towards all that modern society has to offer and provide. (Waxman, 1993) In modern Judaism, interaction with different culture and knowledge is encouraged, not for the sake of facilitating the Torah as it is in the traditional Judaism, but for the sake of the person, as this outside knowledge is seen to be part of a larger truth. (Elias, 1960) With these general distinctions between traditional and modern Judaism, it is easy to find examples of people in popular culture that fit into the classification. One person who could be argued to be a good example of a modern Jew – someone who takes part in life outside of Jewish culture and welcomes with open arms modernity – is Woody Allen. As an 80-year-old man, Allen has had to struggle with the shift from traditional to modern Judaism and create a mixture (or lack thereof) that works for him. As an individual tying his whole life

The way of the beginning of the Hebrews is that there was rarely anything about Israelites. They were only mentioned really rare by their neighbors so many went by their bible which is the Hebrew bible. It goes by a person named Abraham came from the Ur and went west to tend to his flocks in Canaanites. Some of the people he knew had already settled there and many of the others wandered into Egypt. When the thirteenth century B.C.E came around it was led by Moses that had left Egypt. They went and wondered in the desert for a while before reaching Canaan, which they later conquered.

There were many arguments that early Christians made towards Judaism which involved both theological and geographical aspects of Jerusalem. Early Christians, after Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection, formed very strong opinions towards the religion of Judaism. They believed that Jews were to blame for the death and murder of their Savior, Jesus Christ, and that the destruction of the Jewish Temple in 70 CE was their Divine Punishment from God. Along with this belief, Christians also argued that the Jewish covenant had been passed to the church, so God was now with the Christians instead of the Jews.

Judaism is among the oldest of the world's major living religious cultures of the Jewish. Rich in culture and history Judaism is the first of three (including Christianity and Islam) monotheistic religions; teaching in the belief in one God. There is a cultural and religious spirit that contributes to the characterization of the Jewish people and the Jewish lifestyle. Influenced by Jewish history, the Jewish festival of Purim is celebration of deliverance from Haman’s plot to massacre the Jewish people and is observed differently within the contemporary branches of Judaism.

The culture of Israel is centered around many Jewish traditions, most notably including holidays. Though other religions still may celebrate their respective holidays, public holidays in Israel include notable Jewish holidays such as Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Chanukah, Purim, Passover, and more. In addition, Shabbat is celebrated appropriately every week (particularly in Jerusalem) with every shop closing its doors and streets bare of cars. The country provides a unique experience for Jews, with over 46 synagogues throughout Israel.

In order for the humans in early history to create a successful civilization, they needed a few main key components. First, these people needed a good food source so they can sustain a growing population in their community. Next, they needed a strong army to survive wars between other civilizations and each other. Finally, they needed a powerful leader to create laws for the civilians. The Hebrews, a civilization in Canaan, did not have all of these key factors. Although, they were still famous for their religion, Judaism. Judaism was unique compared to other religions in the region because it focused on morality, gave the freedom to choose, and it was monotheistic.

According to the Hebrew Bible, the history of the Jewish people can be traced back to the call that bade Abraham to leave his native land to become the father of many nations. From there the religious experience has undergone many phases, overcame and resisted many civilizations, and is still standing after 4,000 years. The Jewish people consider the Torah to be their holy book that gives account for how they came to exist and what they believe. All of their commandments, based on the Torah include laws pertaining to the Sabbath, festivals, cleanliness, and duties to one another. The Jewish people abide by the law so that they may remain a holy nation. The story of the Jews includes many hardships

Judaism has survived throughout history by being flexible and by admitting foreign influences into its practice. Its success in the 21st century depends on its ability to continue doing this in response to the pressures of modernity.