Halakha

Halakha by definition is Jewish religious law, encompassing both civil and religious commandments and prohibitions. The word Halakha stems from the root meaning to walk. Halakha involves the study of law and customs in the Jewish religion. According to rabbinic law it must be performed to sanctify all life and attain redemption. This idea when introduced was a collection of rabbinic commentaries from the Hebrew bible or the torah. The importance of halakha among Judaism and its trends, ideas, theories

Sofer known as the Hatam Sofer, was recognized as the most authoritative Orthodox voice who shaped traditionalist opposition to Reform Judaism and, indeed, to all those who challenged the hegemony of halakha. He believed that deviators forfeited their right to be considered as proper jews. The halakha provides

accordance with Jewish law, Orthodox Jews also maintain a historic comprehension of their faith by acknowledging that they are considered Jewish if born to a Jewish mother or by religious conversion if they accept the Torah and Halakha to be law. In Jewish law, the Halakha represents the will of God, as directly or as close to as possible. The written and oral law of the Torah was dictated by God to Moses on Mount Sinai (Shalev,

Jewish ethics are inspired by the Sacred texts and are expressed in several different ways. Ethics have been derived from the Torah, and Prophetic visions, and are expressed through practices like Gemilut Chasidim and Tikkun Olam. The Scared Texts teach that Jews should be open to serving the poor and many mitzvot command Jewish people to address the needs of the poor. Gemilut Chasidim is how adherents respond to the call of God to serve others. Literally, “giving of lovingkindness” Gemilut Chasidim

Criterion C: Summary of Significant Findings The interview with Rabbi Weiner proved to be very illuminating, and quite a bit about the meaning of ethics in Jewish monotheism was displayed. When asked why Jews place such importance on following the halakha, Rabbi Weiner said, “Ethics is the core of Judaism because of the Covenant that Abraham made with God. It’s not enough simply to believe in God, one must act in a moral manner in order to truly be considered ethical from a Jewish perspective.” (Weiner)

concerned with putting women in their place and restricting their roles as humans and spiritual beings; these ideas found a greater voice following the eruption of the feminist movement in the 1970s. However it would be prudent to remember that Halakha, Jewish law, is not solely concerned with

force them to work in concentration camps. Ironically enough, it is believed that Hitler may have had Jewish ancestry. He wanted to rid the world of Jews, creating what he believed to be a perfect civilization. Halakha states that to be a Jew, you must be born to a Jewish mother. Halakha also claims that the acceptance of principles and practices of Judaism does not make a person a

MOSES MAIMONIDES Moses Maimonides, widely known as RaMBaM was a scholar of the Middle Ages who decoded, translated and created major Jewish texts, which much of Judaism has foundations on. Through his works, namely the Commentary of the Mishnah, the Guide for the Perplexed, and the Mishneh Torah, Maimonides aided the Jewish community through the clarifications of beliefs, the challenge of questioning one’s beliefs, maintaining relevances to the Jewish community and shaped interactions within and

there ready to greet us and the first thing he asked us to do was to put on a kippa. This was very interesting because none of the reformist synagogues had the same rules. Already, the orthodox synagogue seemed to be much more strict when it came to halakha. Another noticeable aspect of Chevra Thilim that was immediately noticeable was how the building itself was. Everything appeared to be extremely old. The seats were falling apart and even the prayer books looked like they had plenty of use. In addition

On October 29, 2016, I visited the Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple which offers services regarding the religion of Judaism. Although I don’t identify as religious, I was originally raised as Roman Catholic, even going to a private catholic elementary school. I’ve always had somewhat of an interest in Judaism as it’s believed to be among one of the oldest existing religions in the world along with Hinduism. The service I visited is referred to as the “Shabbat Morning Service”, which took place from