what’s the difference: Judaism

November 27, 2022

“the foundation for the Christian faith, but still looking for the Messiah”

~ Judaism is the Jewish faith/religion
~ descended from the ancient Hebrews, their name coming from Eber, their traditional ancestor (Genesis 10:21), going even further back, to the name Shem (same verse). From Shem comes the word “Semitic”, a group of people that includes Jews and Arabs
~ History of the Jews is contained in the Old Testament, the only scriptures recognized by the Jews
~ the Torah, the Law contained in the first five books in the Old Testament, is of particular importance

Genesis 10: 21 (NKJV)
And children were born also to Shem,
the father of all the children of Eber, 
^[a]the brother of Japheth the elder.
[a] Or the older brother of Japheth

The Star of David
(internet image)

~ the writings of the prophets are another important part of the Old Testament, stressing the importance of justice and love
~ when the Temple and Jerusalem were destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70, having no place to offer sacrifices, the Jews scattered to almost every nation, building communities and synagogues to keep their faith alive
~ in 1948, the state of Israel was born and became a homeland. In 1967, the Israelis captured all of Jerusalem, the first time they had held it as a free people since 586BC

^{(internet image)}

Customs and Laws

~ four different forms – Orthodox, Conservative, Reform and Messianic
~ Orthodox Jews:
– try to obey the letter of the Law, carefully studying the Torah, observing teachings of famous rabbis

• Mishnah: a book written around 200AD, about 1000 pages and consists instructions for daily living called Halakah, meaning ” the way to walk”
• Talmud: written around 500 AD, contains about 36 volumes, based on the Mishnah, but contains much more material

~ very strict

Torah means “teaching and direction”,
denoting the body of doctrine, written and oral,
that has come down through the Jewish community

~ Conservative Jews:
– not as strict as Orthodox Jews, but want to keep the language alive and believe the Law is very important

~ Reformed Jews:
– have moved some distance away from Orthodox Jews
– teach that the principles of Judaism are more important than the practices
– most do not observe the dietary laws or strictly following laws for the Sabbath

~ all three agree that the Sabbath and holy days must be observed

~ Messianic Jews:
– break the mold
– believe that Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus) is the promised Jewish Messiah
– some Messianic leaders suggest that the movement of [some] Jewish people accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior may be an important fulfillment and indicator of end-time restoration of Israel as a nation
– it is estimated that there are over 350 Messianic Jewish congregations worldwide

~Jesus Christ: the great divide
– the division of who Jesus was began while Jesus walked the earth
– the Jews of the time were looking for someone – The Messiah – who would redeem them from their sins, they thought the Messiah was to come only for them – not everyone, they were looking for a king. The Jews of the time didn’t like that Jesus, who claimed to be the Messiah, had come to save all sinners.

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In summary:

~ Jews believe that the Lord God is one (Deuteronomy 6: 4); Christians believe there is one essence of the Godhead in which the Father, Son and Holy Spirit reside.
~ Some Jews accept Jesus as a good teacher or even a prophet but reject him as the Messiah; Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God as well as man, that he came to earth to save us from eternal death
~ Jews believe man is not born good or evil, that he is born with free choice; Christians believe that man is born a sinner
~ Jews believe that anyone may gain salvation through commitment to the one true God and through moral living; Christians believe that we are saved through faith in the atoning death of Jesus on the cross.

hope you have a great day!
thanks for stopping by!!

…I personally don’t believe in religion, not as it has been defined in society. All it is, is a tool to divide us. I grew up a Baptist and went to a Christian school. To this day I have questions, but I still believe – and I keep looking for answers. Having faith that God is in control and believing that He sent His son to die for our sins is all that is needed to be saved. One doesn’t need to pray on the rosary, live a life of celibacy, or not eat certain foods to be saved. Jesus paid it all!

(pinterest)

take care
stay safe
much love

I don’t think of all the misery
but of the beauty that still remains
~ Anne Frank
1929-1945