Comparisons

Judaism was an interesting religion to learn about this past week. Being that it is the mother of Islam and Christianity, it is intriguing to know how different they all are. The first link was an article explaining why Jews do not believe that Jesus was their Messiah. To start off, the word Messiah means the anointed one. The Jewish concept of the Messiah is that this person will walk our earth in our life time being born a mortal and that there is a promise of a future age of perfection characterized by universal peace and recognition of God. The Messiahs accomplishments are to build the third temple, gather all Jews back to the Land of Israel, usher in an era of world peace, spread universal knowledge of the God of Israel, which will unite humanity as one. And according to the article, the historical fact is that Jesus did not fulfill any of these prophecies. However, Christians, like myself, counter that Jesus will fulfill these in the Second Coming, but the Jewish sources show that the messiah will fulfill it outright. Some of Jews reasons for believing that Jesus was not the messiah is because they say that Jesus is not a prophet; he was not a descendent of David. Jesus was of a virgin birth, and they say that Jesus also contradicts the Torah in the New Testament. Jewish belief is also solely based on national revelation; they do not believe in miracles. The national revelation was the personal eyewitness experience of every man, woman, and child standing at Mount Sinai 3,300 years ago. One thing I found very interesting was the fact that Jews consider the Christian belief in the Trinity as idolatry, one of the three cardinal sins that a Jew should rather give up his life than transgress. They view the Lord as one, meaning that that do not believe that God came to Earth as man. They say that it makes God small, diminishing both His unity and His divinity. The next link I watched talked about what Judaism is. It is the oldest monotheistic religion. I found it very interesting that it is a particular religion, meaning that it affects the Jews. They believe that all human beings have a share in the world to come and that you do not have to be a Jew to get into Heaven. I like how this religion does not block everyone that is not Jewish, and that it is kind of like a universal law that for everyone who follows this law shall see their way to Heaven. The tour of the Synagogue was neat to watch. Rabbi Meza explained the tallith and what the six hundred and thirteen knots represented. He also explained the separation of women during prayer. He said that it is to help concentrate on prayer, and he showed the Ark of the Covenant where the Torah is held. The holidays that the Jews celebrate are actually kind of neat. During Sukkoth, they use two fruits, etrog and lulav, to worship God; they also build a hut to stay in overnight. Pesach is their Passover. It is one of the most important holidays in the Jewish calendar. It is celebrated to commemorate the liberation of the children of Israel who were lead out of Egypt by Moses. The Festival of Weeks, also known as Shavuot to the Jews, commemorates the day that God gave the Torah to the entire nation of Israel. It was fifty days after Passover, and it is called the Pentecost. This is also the day in which people can bring the first fruit offerings to the temple. The Feast of Purim was interesting to learn about. It marks the Jewish peoples rescue from Haman. The Feast of Purim is centered around the question what is your purpose and why were you born? Following through with the story of Esther, it helps to understand how she answered this question. She fulfilled her purpose even though God was not visible. The message of Purim is that God is here even when he does not seem to be. God is present in the everyday workings of life and history as well. The Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year; it is a two-day celebration usually in September. I thought it was neat that they make their challahs in a circular shape to represent the cycle of the year. Yom Kippur is another holiday they celebrate. It is the holiest day of the Jewish year. The video talked about atonement, which is wiping away the wrong and the relationship is restored. They also mention that God is the only one that can atone. I thought some of the things they are not allowed to do on Yom Kippur was pretty interesting. They are not allowed to eat or drink, bathe themselves, wear leather shoes, have intimacy, or do any anointing with oils. The last holiday that was mentioned was Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights. It is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. I always had the wrong idea of Hanukkah because I was told it was the Jewish Christmas, but now I know the real meaning behind it and it is pretty intriguing. Overall, I enjoyed learning about this religion. It allowed me to get to know the facts rather than go by hear-say and believe what others have told me.