Judaism
'I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.' (Genesis 17: 1-27)
Judaism emerged in the 1st century CE, tracing its heritage back to the covenant God made with Abraham and his lineage (even though Moses was to the one who found Judaism); an excerpt of the covenant is presented above. Judaism is a monotheistic religion, where the Jews believe that they have a covenant with only one God. It is regarded as a kind of community religion as the Jews are certain that they were the community of people chosen by an omniscient and provident God, who communicated with them through prophecy. During the course of history, Jewish beliefs were severely challenged instances such as the great genocide called The Holocaust which eliminated around six million Jews. Since its discovery, Judaism has somewhat separated into various branches, or slightly different beliefs, however the core of the ethics and tradition is preserved; some of these were and adaptation of the classical ways to better fit the modern lifestyle. This essay will discuss the classical period of Judaism and how it has wholly affected the modern Judaism.
Classical Judaism was started by the Pharisees, and even though it wasn't the 'original' form of Judaism, it still bore the same foundations, such as the belief in circumcision, a strong sense of family, and the laws of the Torah. The Pharisees believed in being 'pure' and their group came to be known as more of a reform movement than that of politics. In order to stress the idea of individual purity, the Pharisees came up with detailed rules regarding food choice, work, relationships etc. These rules, or laws, were then labeled 'traditions of the elders' as they were a tradition passed on by generations. Part of the reason for these laws was also to ensure complete obedience towards the holy texts of the Torah which was revealed to Moses by God.
The destruction of the Second Temple had played an important role in the authority of the rabbis. Furthermore, the emergence of the synagogue (500 – 200 BC) had aided the Pharisees in teaching the 'traditions of the elders' to the public. This period of Judaism may also be referred to as Rabbinic Judaism, and is arguably the key to all other forms of Judaism.
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen – this manifesto implied Jewish equality in the year of 1791, after years of being treated as an insignificant minority. The emancipation of Jews led to a slight dilemma, as this was a movement to free them, along with other minorities such as slaves, yet this may have been defined as against their laws. As a product of this, Judaism branched out in three paths.
The first branch is known as Reform Judaism. The main differences it had to Classical Judaism, as practiced by Jewish layman Israel Jacobson were: services and prayers were shortened, music was added and the language was changed from Hebrew to German. These practices of Judaism spread from Berlin to all around Europe. In addition to the changes in the synagogue, Reform Judaism rejected the oral Torah and saw the Tenakh as what God has instructed. Intricate food laws and Shabbat rules of foundational and classical Judaism were viewed as too restrictive and were abandoned. Homosexuality was also permissible. This type of Judaism is essentially, modern, and holds the most popularity in the US.
In conclusion, the classical period of Judaism had established the ground of Jewish belief and had heavily influenced Reform Judaism. Reform Judaism had simply modernized some beliefs to fit the ever changing lifestyles of the Jews, yet it basically remained the same religion with one God and celebrations. Even though Reform Judaism had branched out of the classical period, it did instill a large alteration, which is the equality of women in the religion. They do acknowledge Mount Sinai, yet as something that time progresses from and not something that should still be brought to attention, as the Orthodox Jews believe. The main difference between the two is their interpretation of time, however they both bear the same origins and therefore the past establishments of the Jewish religion wholly influence the modern version of the same belief.