One Jewish tradition that speaks to me strongly is the tradition of the "Days of Awe" just before the Jewish New Year. For one thing, it has a really cool name. Days of Awe. It kinda makes you stop.
Second, it has a lot of symbolism, but for this I need to explain a little background:
Yom Kippur is the "Day of Atonement". Ten days before Yom Kippur is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.
According to Jewish tradition, it is during the Days of Awe (The ten days between Rosh Hashanah) that God finalizes each person's fate in the next year. He inscribes these decisions in a book on Rosh Hashanah, but they can be changed until the end of Yom Kippur, when the books are sealed.
Everyone knows about King David, and probably most people who have spent anytime in church have heard the story of David's first wife, Michal, and how she mocked him in front of all the people and God struck her childless. Today, I would offer her story from a different perspective, the perspective of a woman in love.
Her story can be found in 1 Samuel 14, 1 Samuel 18, 1 Samuel 19, 1 Samuel 25, 2 Samuel 3, 2 Samuel 6.
Michal was the daughter of a King: the first King of Israel, in fact, King Saul. She had an older sister. In those days, Kings would marry off their children, daughters especially, to other powerful people so as to secure an alliance with those people and thus protect his throne.
At the time, King Saul was feeling a little threatened by a certain young hero, David, who had recently slain a giant and was favored by the people. After David killed the giant, the people were celebrating and singing a song that drove Saul nuts: "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands". This lit Saul up with jealousy, envy, and paranoia and so he kept a close eye on him. At the same time, Saul's son, Jonathon, had become very close to David, in fact, best friends with him. Saul ended up putting David in charge of a huge army which did nothing but increase his fame and valor in the eyes of the people. So, when Saul realized he couldn't really kill him, he decided that he would set David up.
He came up with a scheme to give his oldest daughter, Michal's sister, to David in marriage, in return for David going out on the front lines and fighting bravely. (His secret plan was to have David in such a dangerous position that he would be killed by the Philistines). David politely declined, saying that he wasn't worthy of a King's daughter, and this infuriated Saul. Around the same time, Saul's second oldest daughter, Michal, came to him and confessed that she was head-over-heels in love with David. This is the only time in the Bible I can find where it says a woman was in love with a man:
Now Saul’s daughter Michal was in love with David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased. 21 “I will give her to him,” he thought, “so that she may be a snare to him and so that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “Now you have a second opportunity to become my son-in-law.” (I Samuel 18:20)
David agrees that this is fair and heads out to collect the foreskins. He kills 200 Philistines and delivers the foreskins to his father-in-law and is subsequently married to Michal.
When the attendants told David these things, he was pleased to become the king’s son-in-law. So before the allotted time elapsed, 27 David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins. They counted out the full number to the king so that David might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage. 28 When Saul realized that the LORD was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David, 29 Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days. 30 The Philistine commanders continued to go out to battle, and as often as they did, David met with more success than the rest of Saul’s officers, and his name became well known. (I Samuel 18: 26-30)
While Saul was trying to think of ways to get rid of David, Michal loves him even more, and when Saul finally DOES hatch a plan to kill him, Michal and her brother Jonathon warn David. Michal begs David to leave when Saul is sending his soldiers to arrest David, but it's too late for him to go through the city gates, so Michal lowers him with a rope out of her window and he flees into the darkness. No sooner does he get out, then soldiers are at the door demanding David. Michal says that he's sick and she will not send him and her dad, the King, will just have to wait. This buys enough time for David to escape properly. When the soldiers come back with the intent to bring David in his sickbed to the king, they discover that Michal has cleverly hidden statues under the covers to make it look like someone asleep in the bed, and instead they arrest her and bring her to the King.
Saul is pretty furious that Michal betrayed him, and to save her own life, Michal tells him that she didn't have a choice and that David forced her to hide him and lie to protect him. Saul buys this and doesn't kill Michal. In the meantime, David is a fugitive. He makes no effort to contact his wife, although he sends messages to his best friend, her brother Jonathon, and even meets him on a few occassions, but he doesn't have anything to do with his wife, who was in love with him and waiting for him to send for her! Then, Michal hears through the grapevine that David has taken a couple more wives, which upsets her greatly, I'm sure.
Since it's been so long since David left, Saul decides that Michal's marriage was as good as dead, and goes ahead and marries her off again, this time to Paltiel, a semi-powerful man from another city. Eventually, her feelings for David subside and she settles into this new marriage.
Over the years, David ends up gathering enough support that he can overthrow the king. The King's sons are killed (including David's best friend, Jonathon), and the King, knowing that he is about to be defeated, commits suicide. Then David comes back. Two new wives in tow, he comes to take "what is his" - Michal. David ends up making a treaty with Sauls only living heir, and in the treaty, Ishbosheth agrees to give Michal back to David. She is ripped from her home once again, and given to this man that she hardly knows by now. It is made more tragic by the fact that she probably didn't want to go, and her husband Paltiel was desparately in love with her.
When they took her awa to give back to David, Paltiel followed the procession, weeping and begging them to stop. He finally went home when one of the more savage and evil of the army guys in charge told him to get lost.
The story continues to an unhappy ending for Michal, who is locked up in the harem for several years without seeing her husband, then when she finally DOES see David, he embarrasses her by dancing around half-naked through the town, and God is angry with her for being embarrassed and confronting him. She spends the rest of her life without love and childless. Not only that, but her husband David continues to do despicable things like kill a man for his wife and lay all of his conquests end to end to see how far they stretch out... he's not, apparently, the nicest person to be married to. All in all, I feel sorry for this strong Jewish heroine. Even if she was wrong in laughing at and confronting David, Michal was dealt a pretty rough hand and it's no wonder she was angry and bitter!
Saul sent his servants to David to tell him "Look, the King really wants you for a son-in-law. I know you said that you're not worthy to be married to a King's daughter and you're from a poor family, but here is the only price for your bride, Michal: 100 Philistine foreskins."
I would be remiss in not mentioning the importance and emphasis placed on certain women in Jewish history. As I said in an earlier post, women are considered more spiritual and intuitive and their male counterparts. It should come as no surprise that women are spoken of with important roles in Jewish history. In the Bible, here are some profiles of just a few of those great women.
Deborah - Prophet, Wife & Mother
The first reference to Deborah described her as a prophet and a wife. She served as a Judge of the Jewish people - in essence, the Queen and spiritual leader - during her reign. She was well-respected among her peers, even a male general who refused to go to war when Israel was being attacked unless she joined him in leading. She gathered a huge army and lead them to victory. Judges chapter 4 tells her story, which I will paraphrase here:
So, Ehud the judge passed away, and the Israelites were wandering from the path (again). So God let them become oppressed (again) for twenty years. They were getting really tired of a man names Sisera who was cruel and vindictive and also happened to be in charge of the enormous army that was oppressing them, so they started crying out to God for help (again). During this time, Deborah - a prophet and a wife - was leading Israel. She held court under a palm tree (aptly named the Palm of Deborah) and would listen to people bring their grievances and sort them out day after day. One day, God spoke to her, so she called General Barak (the commander of the Israeli army) and told him this: "God says that you need to gather your army of ten thousand, then go to Mount Tabor. I (God) will lead Sisera's army there to the river by that mountain, then you can rush down and kill him with all your men."
Usually in every religion, I highlight some interesting and less-known oddities about the religion I'm studying, and I will do that in Judaism as well... here are some interesting beliefs (and superstitions) Jews have.
Like all ancient traditions, religious or not, there are multitudes of customs and superstitions regarding all aspects of life and death. I found these the most interesting today...
If a woman drinks the havdalah wine she will grow a beard.
Havdalah means "separation" and marks the end of the Shabbat and other religious holidays. In Jewish tradition, Havdalah is recited over wine. In the ceremony, a candle is lit, and the five senses are used. Havdalah is recited over kosher wine or kosher grape juice, although other beverages may be used if wine or grape juice are not available. On completion of the Shabbat, a special braided Havdalah candle with more than one wick is lit, and a prayer is recited. It is customary to gaze at one's fingernails reflecting the light of the candle. Spices, often stored in a decorative spice container, are handed around so that everyone can smell the fragrance.
Havdalah is intended to require a person to use all five senses—to taste the wine, smell the spices, see the flame of the candle and feel its heat, and hear the blessings. If a woman drinks the wine during Havdalah, however, tradition says she will become like a man, with chest or facial hair.
Failure to properly dispose of your nail clippings may cause a pregnant woman to miscarry, if she steps over them.
The Gemorah (Moed Katan 18a; Niddah 17a) tells us that "the righteous burn their nails, the pious bury them, and the wicked carelessly discard them."
The Gemorah explains that nail clippings must be carefully disposed of lest a pregnant woman pass over them and miscarry.
Listening to a woman singing will make men want to have sex with her. Kol Isha states that listening to a woman sing will cause arousal in men, and thereby detract their attention from God. In modern Orthodoxy, they really only apply this to prayer time.
It is bad luck to sleep with your head to the door... due to the fact that that is how the dead are carried out, probably.
So... although in modern Judaism, superstition and belief in something without proof is pretty much frowned upon, its interesting to see what the orthodox beliefs are!
Women have a very important role in both Orthodox and most contemporary practices of Judaism. The Jewish heritage is primarily passed down through the mothers’ blood line. In Orthodox belief, the children of a Jewish mother are Jewish, even if the father is not Jewish. However, the reverse is not true. There is not really such thing as “half Jewish” – either you are or you aren’t Jewish. If your mother was not Jewish, then you are not Jewish (unless, of course, you convert to Judaism). So it is the responsibility of the woman to pass down and keep the faith of the Jewish people intact. This is unusual compared to other religions and it begs the question of whether the Jewish people would have survived had it not been for women, passing down the Jewish heritage from generation to generation.
Women are considered “separate but equal” in Jewish law. The position of women in Jewish law (halakhah) that dates back to the Bible was actually much higher than the status of American women up until 100 years or so ago! Women were permitted to own property, make their own legal contracts, run a business (as long as it didn’t interfere with the primary duty of raising children), take part in leadership roles and government roles, advocate for those less fortunate, and even choose who (or whether) they would marry in some instances. It is no surprise that many of the women who led the feminist movement in America were also Jewish: the respect given to Jewish women was part of their culture.
Men and women’s equality in Judaism starts with the most supreme being: God. The Jewish people have never viewed God as male or female; instead saying that God has both masculine or feminine qualities. Due to the fact that Hebrew does not have a gender-neutral pronoun, God is referred to as “he”, but as one Rabbi said
“God has not body, no genitalia, therefore the very idea that God is male or female is patently absurd. We refer to God using masculine terms simply for convenience sake, because Hebrew has no neutral gender; God is no more male than a table is.”
According to traditional Judaism, women were actually endowed with more intelligence and intuition than men. The “man” that was formed in Genesis was actually dual gender, then he was separated and women were “built” rather than formed, which made her superior. Early Jewish opinion was also that the matriarchs of Judaism, Sarah (Abraham’s wife), Rebecca (Isaac’s wife), and Rachel and Leah (Jacob’s wives) were superior to their husbands in understanding and comprehending the will and words of God. Miriam, Moses’ sister, helped with the freeing of the captive Jews from Egypt, and led them with her brothers to the desert. Women weren’t thought to be involved with the idolotry and worship of the golden calf in the desert that resulted in the first set of 10 Commandments being broken by Moses and the following 40 years of desert wandering.
Rabbis in the Talmud speak of their wives with respect, even inserting their wives’ opinions and thoughts into the text. Indeed, rabbi’s wives had a title of their own: “rebbetzin” and were well respected for their wisdom and opinions, which were often accepted over their male contemporaries. The Talmud is both positive and negative about women; as is the Bible. They have many positive things to say, but also describe women sometimes as lazy, jealous, vain, prone to witchcraft and divination, and sexually tempting to men. ((The Talmud has an equal number of things to say about men that are negative, however, and that should be noted.))
A VERY interesting (and unique) point in my discovery was that women have the right to be consulted with regard to their marriage. Marital sex is a woman’s right, not a mans; therefore, unwanted marital sex is recognized within traditional Judaism is considered rape and not permitted. In America today, rape within marriage is not a crime in most states. Also Orthodox Jewish women AND men must cover their heads, although for women it can be with a wig. Most Orthodox men wear a hat.
The primary duty of a woman in traditional Judaism is to be a wife and a mother, and care for her home. There are many laws that women are exempt from because they might interfere with the woman’s home duties, which is not to say that a woman can’t participate, only that she doesn’t have to, if she so chooses. Women are also discouraged from extensive religious study and higher education on the grounds that a woman might become too devoted and forget her duties in her home, which should come first.
There are three mizvot (commandments) that are reserved exclusively for women: Lighting the candles, separating a portion of dough, and sexual separation during a woman’s menstrual period and ritual immersion afterward. The candle lighting must be done by a woman, if there is a woman present, and it marks the beginning of Shabbat or a holiday. It signifies a sacred time in the home. The privilege of separating a portion of dough from the bread before baking it is also the woman’s responsibility, and signifies the family support of the priests at the temple. Traditionally, the separated bread is given to the kohein, who is a descendent of Aaron (Moses’ brother) to help with their livelihood and well-being. The Torah prohibits intercourse during a woman’s menstrual cycle and requires a ceremonial cleansing after the period.
It is interesting to note that for the construction of the Golden Calf, the women refused to participate and refused to let their children participate. The Bible talks about while Moses was up on the mountain talking to God, “the people” came to Aaron and asked him to make an idol for them to worship. Aaron told them to go get the golden rings from their wives and sons and daughters, implying (and widely believed) that it was the men who wanted the calf. When they went to their wives and sons and daughters, the women refused to participate or give up their gold. For this refusal, the women are rewarded by getting their own holiday on the first day of each month: “Rosh Chodesh”.
Within the place or worship, women and men are typically separated by traditional Jewish Law, although its important to note that Reform Judaism and more contemporary versions, have removed this restriction and allowed women to not only sit with men, but also to lead in some aspects of the services, as well as undergo Rabbinical training!
One last interesting note with regards to Jewish women… there is a character who is not in the Bible, but who is mentioned in the Talmud and Jewish folklore called Lilith. Although Christians do not buy into the belief in Lilith and she is not mentioned in the Bible, in Judaism, Lilith may have been a female demon who seduces men and threatens women and babies in childbirth. She has long hair and wings and could be the mother of demons. The root of her name is the Hebrew word for night. She is very similar to a pagan demon of the Babylonians. The revisionist view of Lilith is not all negative, however, and she is portrayed as a strong-willed and empowered woman. The tale presented by one Jewish teacher is that Lilith was Adam’s first wife:
After God created Adam, who was alone, He said, 'It is not good for man to be alone' (Gen. 2:18). He then created a woman for Adam, from the earth, as He had created Adam himself, and called her Lilith. Adam and Lilith began to fight. She said, 'I will not lie below,' and he said, 'I will not lie beneath you, but only on top. For you are fit only to be in the bottom position, while am to be in the superior one.' Lilith responded, 'We are equal to each other inasmuch as we were both created from the earth.' But they would not listen to one another. When Lilith saw this, she pronounced the Ineffable Name and flew away into the air. Adam stood in prayer before his Creator: 'Sovereign of the universe!' he said, 'the woman you gave me has run away.' At once, the Holy One, blessed be He, sent these three angels to bring her back. "Said the Holy One to Adam, 'If she agrees to come back, fine. If not she must permit one hundred of her children to die every day.' The angels left God and pursued Lilith, whom they overtook in the midst of the sea, in the mighty waters wherein the Egyptians were destined to drown. They told her God's word, but she did not wish to return. The angels said, 'We shall drown you in the sea.' "'Leave me!' she said. 'I was created only to cause sickness to infants. If the infant is male, I have dominion over him for eight days after his birth, and if female, for twenty days.' "When the angels heard Lilith's words, they insisted she go back. But she swore to them by the name of the living and eternal God: 'Whenever I see you or your names or your forms in an amulet, I will have no power over that infant.' She also agreed to have one hundred of her children die every day. Accordingly, every day one hundred demons perish, and for the same reason, we write the angels' names on the amulets of young children. When Lilith sees their names, she remembers her oath, and the child recovers."
Questions for Joel:
What is the difference between the Jewish Race and the Jewish Religion?
Is your wife and family Jewish?
Have you ever eaten bacon?
Do you really take off work on all the days the Torah suggests?
Do orthodox Jewish women really shave their heads? and why?
Do men and women have equal standing in the synagogue you attend? Are you reform or orthodox (if you are still Jewish)?
Ritual
Ritual is obviously very important to the Jewish Religion. Thinking of Judaism for me brings to mind a people set apart by tradition and ritual:
The bris, circumcizing their sons and a celebration on the child's 8th day of life
The bar-mitzvah and bah-mitzvah, coming-of-age parties for children turning 13.
Pesach, or Passover - the acknowledgment of God's hand in liberation from Egypt.
Shabbat, time set apart every single week to worship God
Hundreds of other little (and big) things are unique to the Jewish tradition... sacrificial rituals, the Ten Commandments, the Ark of the Covenant, Chanukah (Hanakkuh), dreidels and matzah balls, Mezuzahs, tefillin, the songs, reading the Torah in Hebrew...
WANTED: a Tribe. I can offer a fresh prospective, fierce loyalty, and willingness to learn. Will not sacrifice independent thought, reason, or intellect. Interested tribes should contact me asap.
“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? If not now, when?” Pirki Avot, 1:14, Hillel
Jean-Paul Sartre (who was not Jewish) wrote in 1948 that Jewish identity "is neither national nor international, neither religious nor ethnic, nor political: it is a quasi-historical community."
Sartre further argues that the Jewish experience of antisemitism - making the Jews "outsiders" - preserves and even creates the sense of Jewish community. Conversely, that sense of specific Jewish community may be threatened by the democrat who sees only "the person" and not "the Jew".
It is interesting to wonder about the difference in Jewish tradition today, had the Jewish people not undergone such a trial by fire in their long history. Judaism is unquestionably a tribe – “a unit of sociopolitical organization consisting of a number of families, clans, or other groups who share a common ancestry and culture and among whom leadership is typically neither formalized nor permanent.” A group of people who identify with a common culture or ancestry – either spiritually or physically.
There are about 613 commandments (mizvot) in the Torah (Pentateuch), which coincides with the Christian first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.
About 100 of these are related to sacrifice. So, its safe to say that probably one of the more important tenets practiced in Judaism historically is the sacrifice, since 1/6th of the total laws in the religion are related exlcusively to sacrifice. Although it is not unique to Judaism, sacrifice is certainly unique to most religions today.
In the Torah, there are directions of how, when, where, and what sacrifices should be made. The instructions are specific and failing to do it correctly (or even if you do it correctly, but you're the wrong person to do it). The instructions are detailed and precise. For example, the red heifer sacrifice instructions go something like this, in Numbers 19:
Bring a red heifer without defect or blemish and who has never had a calf or born a yoke,
Have the high priest slaughter it, then dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times toward the front of the tent.
While he watches, the heifer is to be burned completely.
The priest must, while watching, throw some cedar, hyssop, and scarlet wool onto the burning heifer.
After that, the priest and the guy in charge of the fire must wash their clothing and bathe, but they will both be unclean until evening.
When the burning is done, a man who is clean should gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside of camp where they are used in the future for use in water of cleansing (for the purification from sin).
Women and Sacrifice
Most of the important sacrifices are made by the priest, but regular people can (and SHOULD!) make sacrifices, too, historically. Women were required to perform a number of korbanot (sacrifices) too including:
After childbirth
Following recovery from illness or danger
On Passover - women could offer the sacrifice and hold a seder themselves, if they wanted to!
In atonement for transgression and sins
Following the cure from certain diseases
Women could also voluntarily participate in a number of other offerings and rituals for which they were not obligated, including:
First Fruits on the Holiday of Shavuot
Sheqalim (tax to maintain/support the Temple)
Peace offerings and charity
Laying on of hands of sacrificial animals for sacrifices they didn't have to perform themselves, and they could even slaughter their own sacrificial animals if they wanted.
If a woman was performing a sacrifice, they could enter the Temple through the women's gate but offer the sacrifice in the same place as men. Women who were not offering sacrifices were required to remain within the women's courtyard while at the Temple.
We do know that Korbanot revolved around the Temple. The sacrifices were almost always made there or had something to do with the Temple itself, so it is no surprise that when the Temple was destroyed, the sacrifices stopped. One of my readers (Jennifer from Tyler) asked this question, which I posed to Moreh Joel:
Question: How does sacrifice come into play in modern interpretations of the Law?
Joel: A helpful thing in addressing this question is to first understand how it came to play into the ancient interpretation of the law and what sacrifice meant to Jews.
So: the ancient Hebrew word for “sacrifice” (which is a real misnomer) is Korban. A Karban, in the Hebrew, derives from the word Karov, which means “close” or “near.” The Karbonim (sacrifices) were seen as a means of drawing near to God, but the interesting bit is how they were done and when.
The reason sacrifice is a misnomer is that they can be better described as a kind of holy barbeque because when the people made Karbonim, the entire community was invited to join in eating the sacrificed animal.
It was a communal ritual that was costly and demonstrative of commitment (a psychological mechanism which creates strong loyalty and affiliation). This also gives mundane things (killing and eating an animal) a sacred and community affirming power and draws us close to God. Hence the term Karban. The remarkable idea of the Karban is that any of us, with a community of faith and commitment, can approach God without an intervening agent. The “sacrifice” is not a sacrifice in that sense – it’s a value proposition.
There came to be a belief amongst Jews (derided by the prophets) that simply performing the perfunctory mitzvah of karbanim as commanded would be sufficient to appease God (as though God needs these offerings somehow) and so obsession with ritual as a stand in for religious experience became fashionable.
Isaiah and Jeremiah and other prophets derided this practice and in doing so, explain the significance of Karbanim themselves.
I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. (Amos 5:21)
In modern Jewish practice since the Temple has been destroyed and we can no longer make offerings, charity and community participation have replaced Karbanim the reason being that, in the end, this is what Hashem truly desires:
Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. (Isaiah 1:17)
Joni: So is it fair to say that the point was not the sacrifice… the point was the relationship with other people and that its only through community that you can truly connect with God? Sacrifice was really more of an investment in the community and religious institution you chose.
Joel:that is the spirit of the Karbanim – we are supposed to draw near as individuals and as a community to God and the measure of our intimacy is our charity and willingness to advocate for the least fortunate amongst us.
Additionally, those who are familiar with the Bible can see quite a lot of history of the Jewish people in the Old Testament. If you were raised in a Christian church, the Jewish Heritage, as recounted in the Bible, is second nature and a heritage we share as Christians.
That said, I’m going to give you a quick crash course in Jewish history, hopefully hitting the more important milestones in a 4,000 year old tradition:
Around 1800 BC (or BCE), Abraham founded Judaism and in effect, fathered the nation of Hebrews. Abraham was the first circumcised male, and he circumcised himself as a covenant – a marriage almost – to God. God, in return, gave Abraham and his descendents the Land of Israel.
Abraham fathered many children, the most important of whom was Isaac. Isaac fathered several children himself, the most important of whom was Jacob. (Although Jacob had a twin brother, Esau, who the Jewish people believe was the forefather of the Romans). And Jacob had 12 sons which later became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Around 1500 BC, Joseph, the 2nd youngest son of Jacob was sold into slavery and went to Egypt. This is important because eventually, he made it out of slavery into the government and ended up providing a place for his brothers to live. Hence, the 12 tribes of Israel settled in Egypt. About 100 years later, they were enslaved by their hosts.
Enter Moses, the rescuer of the Israelites from Egypt. Moses was a Hebrew baby raised by an Egyptian princess. He had a temper, and apparently some leadership qualities, because God chose him to lead the people in a revolution and walk right out of Egypt. Ten plagues and a desert march later, the Hebrew people have settled in the desert where the Ten Commandments were given to them on Mount Sinai. Moses climbs the mountain, God gives him some instructions for how to live good lives, and a directive to conquer a “promised land”.
Unfortunately, the Hebrews are restless while Moses is having his talk with God and they decide (well, 1/10th of them decide, according to Jewish tradition) to go ahead and build a golden calf to worship in the meantime. Moses comes down and breaks the first set of 10 Commandments in a rage and has to go back and get another set. As punishment, the Hebrews have to stay in the desert for 40 years (until all of the current generation dies out).
In around 1275 BC, the Promised Land Conquest begins, and eventually the Hebrews settle into their new home. Their form of government was first a Judge form, where the judges provided leadership and guidance. The judges were both warriors and prophets. Then they became a monarchy and had Kings. In 825 BC, the first Temple was built and completed by the King Solomon (aka the wisest man who ever lived, with the most wives).
Only 30 years later, the Hebrews have a civil war of sorts and divide into 2 kingdoms, Northern and Southern Israel. Being separated proves to be an unfortunate choice because about 150 years later, the Northern Kingdom (comprised of 10 tribes) are conquered by the Assyrians who are then conquered by the Babylonians. The Southern Nation of Israel lasts another 134 years and is ALSO conquered by the Babylonians, who subsequently destroy Temple #1.
Fast forward 70 years and the construction of the second Temple begins. The Ark of the Covenant, which houses the Ten Commandments, however, is missing – presumably taken and destroyed by the Babylonians. ((Keep in mind that the Ten Commandments has been the FOUNDATION for all of the Hebrew Law and that the loss of those tablets and the Ark of the Covenant is very damaging to their ritual and religion.))
In 312 BC, about 40 years after the Temple is reconstructed, the Greeks conquer Israel. The Greeks revered what was beautiful, and the Jews thought that what was holy and revered was inherently beautiful. But in the midst of all this, the Greeks translated the Torah to Greek, then promptly instituted terror. Jewish women who allowed their sons to be circumcised were killed with their babies tied around their necks. Horrible atrocities were committed to the Jewish people until the Jewish people revolt against their Greek oppressors in 140 BC, who, at the same time are fighting off (unsuccessfully) the Romans. The Romans conquer the Greeks, then move on to the Jews in short order.
Around 65 AD, about 30 years after Jesus, son of Mary and Joseph, was killed, the Jews launch another uprising against the Roman rule. Followers of Jesus ((incidentally, a splinter group of Judaism)), are growing in number and integrating with the people of all civilizations and offer no help (from what I can tell) to their Jewish brothers and sisters who are fighting to the death to save their spiritual center, Jerusalem. In 70 AD, the second Temple was destroyed by the Romans.
In 219 AD, after centuries of oppression, revolts, and war, the Rabbis make the landmark decision that the oral law, which has traditionally been passed down through the religious teachers, should be committed to writing, and the Talmud is written.
Christianity, which has been quietly spreading both within and outside of its Jewish roots, has gained popularity by 312, and the Roman Emperor Constantine converts the entirety of the Roman Empire to Christianity .
In 638 AD, Mohammed leads the Islamic conquest of Jerusalem, reportedly angry when the Jews refused to accept him as the last of the prophets. ((To be fair, he DID accept the Jewish prophets as his predecessors.))
In 1096, the Christians sweep through the world destroying everything in their path during the Crusades. The Christians also invented plenty of lies about the Jewish people so that everyone else would be on their side, making the Jews out to be blood-thirsty barbarians who drank the blood of their own children.
In 1348, the Jews are blamed irrationally for the bubonic plague.
In 1478, the Inquisition begins and Jews who converted to Christianity are questioned repeatedly because Christians suspect they are still ((secretly)) Jews.
In 1567, the King of Poland extends an invitation to the Jews and gives them a home, rights, and privileges. A lot of Jews take him up on it. Incidentally, the Polish people were so welcoming and inclusive of the Jewish people that during WW2, many of them protected the Jews at risk of their own lives.
In 1654, the first Jews arrived in America, where they had (and continue to have) a great and important impact on not only the founding and molding of American democracy, but upon American culture as well.
The Jews are pretty well persecuted around the world between 1654 and 1933, when Hitler comes to power in Germany and begins the Holocaust. The rest of the world ignores the facts.
Finally, the US comes to the aid of Europe and helps win WW2, ending the Holocaust. And then, (I think primarily out of shame for being horrible people who wouldn't help when such inhumanities were being committed) in 1948, the State of Israel is declared. Since its founding in 1948, Israel has been in a constant state of war.
***deep breath!***
The Jewish people have a long, complicated and violent history, which, to me, is testament to their perserverance and tenacity in maintaining a tradition that has historically been so underappreciated that it resulted in death for many of its followers.
The question I had for our moreh Joel today was this:
Does belief in Jesus make it impossible for you to be a Jew?
There seems to be some confusion (at least on my part) about whether Judaism is a race, a religion, or maybe just a cultural identity. If I were given a multiple choice with those answers, I would choose (d) all of the above. But one of the beauties of Judaism is that it is what you make it.
For those who have read or are familiar with the Bible, you know that in the Old Testament, the Jewish people are not referred to as “Jews” so much as “Hebrews.” With their own language, their own nationality, their own cultural traditions, and their own religious traditions, it is easy to see that in the ancient context, the Jewish people were a race, a religion, AND a cultural identity.
But, through the years, the Jewish people by and large rejected Judaism as a “Race” and instead those with European Jewish Ancestry identified more strongly with “Caucasian”. To be sure, the persecution of Jewish people throughout modern history (and before!) makes the distinction of a Jewish “race” less than desirable.
In addition, you can become Jewish. A person can convert to Judaism. I could not convert to Asian, even if I wanted to really bad! You can’t change your ancestral heritage, but you can become a Jew.
Culture doesn’t make you a Jew either. The culture of Jewish groups around the world varies dependent upon where they are! Although holiday observances are mostly similar, and the religious text as well, American Jews have very different traditions than Russian Jews, for instance.
The Jewish “Religion” doesn’t make you a Jew either. There is a Jewish religion, obviously, which I am studying! But the amazing thing about the Jewish religion is how flexible and open to interpretation their holy books are. It is not practiced in the same way across the board in Jewish homes or synagogues. And more than half of the people in Israel who call themselves “Jews” don’t believe in G-d or, in fact, ANY of the religious beliefs of Judaism!
So, what is Judaism today? Perhaps the best description of Judaism would be that Jews are a family, as Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz describes the Jewish people in his book; as spiritual or physical descendents of forefathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – by birth or conversion. Jewish people are a community of people bound together by tradition, a common ancestry (either spiritual or physical), and most oddly, a connectedness to each other regardless of religion or DNA. ((I find this fascinating.)) The Jews are an exclusive group, to some extent: compared to Christianity, for example, who invite anyone into their church off the street (for the most part) any day of the week. But they are more connected to each other – even to those who don’t practice or live the way they do – than many Christians within the same CHURCH, and certainly most within the same denomination!
So, for my purposes, I would say that Judaism is more a community than anything else, and that is how I will approach it, as a community of people who are as different and varied in belief and practice and culture as my own community, having in common the fact that they all live on the same ground – not literally, but historically: having the same heritage and spiritual or physical ancestry. Additionally, I will approach the Jewish Community from an American perspective. Not only because we Americans are ego-centric and believe that our way of life is THE way of life (haha), but because the American perspective is what we live here in the US, and since the study is about American women and religion, not about international women and religion, we will approach it from that context!
Joel & Abby Finkelstein
With that introduction, I would also like to introduce you to JOEL FINKELSTIEN. Yes, he is a man, which makes him unusual in persons I’ve interviewed in the past. But he is also very knowledgeable about the Jewish Community. He was raised Jewish, as a Rabbi’s son, no less! We went to school together in Tyler, and he offered to answer any questions I or my readers have about Judaism. He is also married to his beautiful wife, Abby, and they have two children, Annika and Nathaniel. He lives in California and works at Stanford Medical School. He has a degree in Behavioral Neuroscience (yes, he’s uber smart!!) and his work at the Stanford University Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education makes me breathless (yes, I realize that makes me both nerdy and creepy at the same time!!). So a big thanks to my personal Moreh (that’s TEACHER in Hebrew) – I greatly appreciate your help and insight!
In that vein, Joel has agreed to answer any questions we have via video, which I will post on my blogs! The FIRST question I had was this: “Do Jews believe in Heaven or Hell?” And he kind of delves into the things I spoke about above.
Welcome to Judaism! As promised, this week I have started back on my religious journey. First stop, Judaism. First topic, soul mates.
As always, my own life and circumstances color everything in my writing. For the past months, I have been asking myself “Is there such a thing as a soul mate? And do you only have one in your lifetime? What if you miss him/her? What if they die an untimely death at eight and now you’re cursed to spend the rest of your life soulmateless?” It’s a grim prospect to me. And of course, I go to the worst possible scenario:
"What if my soulmate was on a boat like on Deadliest Catch and he was trapped between one of the pods and the side, and then his leg got cut off, and right now he's in a hospital somewhere on the East Coast recovering from this injury, but that hospital is about to get blown away by the HURRICANE?!? WHAT THEN!"
Last week, I headed to UNT for a panel on Women and Spirituality. When I received the notice in my inbox, I nearly peed my pants with excitement... because, what's better than my two favorite topics - women and GOD together in the same discussion!?
Join us for an exploration of gender and spirituality!
The event centerpiece is a panel of women from various faith traditions discussing their personal experiences with the intersection of faith and gender, various traditions' histories of restriction and empowerment, and gender-focused social justice work in religious contexts.
