The Ways in Which Shabbat is Observed in Jewish Homes and in the Synagogue
Shabbat, the Jewish holy day, begins at sunset on Friday night and
ends Saturday night when the first star appears. It usually lasts 25
hours. Jewish people observe Shabbat in many different ways.
On Shabbat, Jews are forbidden to work. This is because they believe
that on their holy day they should devote themselves entirely to
praying, worshipping God and studying the Torah. Rabbi Saadia Gaon
stated that Jews must not work on the Shabbat "to achieve rest from
the abundance of one's toil…"
All preparation, such as cooking and cleaning, must be completed prior
to Shabbat because the Torah forbids work on the Jewish holy day.
Exodus 20:10-11 states "God made the seventh day holy by resting after
making the world". As the Jewish week begins on Sunday, Shabbat is the
seventh day.
On the Friday night the mother lights a candle just before sunset to
mark the beginning of Shabbat. It is the mother that does this because
home is central to Judaism and it is traditionally she who looks after
it. This Shabbat tradition is derived from the Berachah of God "King
of the universe, who hast hallowed us by the commandments, and
commanded us to kindle the Sabbath lights."
Before the Shabbat meal, the father blesses the children. This is to
pray that they will grow up to follow the examples of noble men and
women of Jewish history. The father then recites the Kiddush. This is
a blessing to thank God for giving Jews Shabbat.
The family all wash their hands. This is an act of purification. They
gather around the table while the Father recites a blessing over the
two loaves of Challot. This is another blessing to thank God, this
time for "bringing bread out of the ground" when the Jews were in the
wilderness. There a two loaves of Challot to represent the extra food
that had to be gathered the day before Shabbat so that the Jews could
rest on their holy day.
Jewish Historical Origin/ Time of Year The Jewish religious tradition of Rosh Hashanah celebrates the birthday of the world and a time of divine judgment. It is then followed by another holiday, called Yom Kippur, ten days later. These two traditions are called the High Holidays. Rosh Hashanah encapsulates four major and interconnected themes, which are: The Jewish New Year, The Day of Shofar Blowing, The Day of Remembrance, and The Day of Judgment (Layton, 2014).
The Sadducees were one of the many distinct groups making up the Jewish faith during the first century. Their name is derived from the Greek and Hebrew languages and means the “righteous ones.” This may have been in direct relation to their belief that they were the descendants of Zadok, who was once a high priest during the reigns of King David and King Solomon and the revelation of the prophet Ezekiel advising that only those who were the “sons of Zadok” could approach God and the most do so only in the Temple. Typically wealthy aristocrats, they had supreme control over the priesthood, the Temple and how their followers viewed religion. The Torah and its strict literal interpretation were the central focus of this group as they rejected all other written and oral laws that tried to clarify, question or add to this sacred written work. They shared a special bond with the Roman forces controlling the area and benefited from this alliance allowing the Sadducees to exert their influence over political concerns for the region. They believed that Roman control protected the political ...
only ever be a male rabbi, and all of the service will be read in
It prescribes the "eternal" duties all Hindus have to follow, regardless of class or caste such as honesty, purity, and self-restraint. Hindus see themselves as not so much practicing a religion but going about a way of life. Hindu sages claim that the individual 's self-understanding determines his or her perception of the world. Hinduism is seen as such a practice that was not founded by a single being. It came about in the Common Era of world history, and was atop the aforementioned faiths along with buddhism. Hindu practices involve seeking awareness of God and sometimes also seeking blessings from Devas. As a way of expressing their religion the sing songs they call Bhajan or a devotional song. A large part of Hinduism is performing rituals. These rituals are done on a daily basis and are seen as very important to Hindus. Any type of important thing that goes on in the life of a Hindu is almost guaranteed to have a ritual
Established in 1988, the B’nai Aviv Synagogue is one of South Florida’s most prestigious Conservative Jewish structures of worship. According to the article, “Conservative Judaism – Religious Facts,” these synagogues seek to escape the immoderations of Reform and Orthodox Judaism while preserving traditional elements through practical modernization. For example, “Conservative Judaism holds that the laws of the Torah and Talmud are of divine origin, and thus mandates the following of Halacha (Jewish law). At the same time, the Conservative movement recognizes the human element in the Torah and Talmud, and accepts modern scholarship that shows that Jewish writings also show the influence of other cultures, and in general can be treated as historical documents” (“Conservative Judaism.”). Correspondingly, this association believes that God is existent, as his spirit is exhibited though revelations similar to the experience on Mt. Sinai. Lastly, Conservative Jews are strongly concerned with future generations’ commitment to Judaism (“Conservative Judaism.”). Nevertheless, the Conservative movement has excelled through the establishment of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, which incorporates 1.5 million Jews in 760 gatherings, including the B’nai Aviv Synagogue (“Conservative Judaism - ReligionFacts.”).
The Holocaust affected many individuals, but mainly the Jewish society; an individual may not realise how expansive the slaughtering of millions of Jews in the Holocaust was. In the book, And Every Single One Was Someone, the word “Jew” was repeated 4,800 times on a single page, and was concluded with a total of 6,000,000 words in the book! (Chernofsky) Not many people actually think about how big 6,000,000 people is, but this book gives a physical representation to how many innocent Jewish individuals were wrongfully killed in the Holocaust.
Orthodox Judaism centers on the belief in one, all knowing God, and adherence to a strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah. The belief system in Eastern Europe, before the Holocaust, intertwined religious laws with traditions, mysticism and superstitions. These beliefs carried over into patterns of daily life and influenced such things as the foods eaten, the patterns for birth and marriage and death, the clothing worn, and the role of males and females.
Shortly after Hitler's appointment as Reich Chancellor on January 30, 1933, the Reichstag (German parliament) began to institute a series of anti-Jewish decrees. Sections of these laws are quoted below:
There are thousands of religions in this world, and of those, Hasidic Judaism is the most conservative. Throughout history Hasidism has not drifted from the rules and rituals of the 18th century. From the clothing, to the food, everything involved in Hasidic daily life is geared towards becoming closer to God. Around the world there are numerous Hasidic groups, and the largest population is in New York. Hasidic people live in small towns filled with members of the same group, and they all look towards their rebbe for guidance. The rebbe or the rabbi is the teacher of his followers and is responsible for inspiring his people. For Hasidic people everyday they must live by the 613 commandments of the Torah. Hasidic history, study, clothing, food, and communities prove that Hasidic Judaism is the most conservative and orthodox branch of religion for its time.
I am a very spiritual person and am always interested in learning about other religions, especially the three monotheistic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. I feel I have an adequate knowledge of Christianity and Islam, but I do not know much about Judaism. This paper will focus on the questions I have about Judaism. I have always wanted to know the fundamental beliefs of Judaism. I want to know how many Jews there are in the United States and in the world. I often see Orthodox Jewish men wearing yarmulkes and prayer shawls, and I wonder what is the purpose of wearing these. And finally, I wanted to know what is the role of women in Judaism.
within 24 hours but not on a Shabbat or on the first day of any
Since Judaism is so old, it has many important traditions, many of which are still practiced today. One of the first things that comes to mind when someone thinks of Judaism is the synagogue. In the Orthodox synagogues, only Hebrew is spoken, while in the Conservative and Reform synagogues English is also spoken. The synagogue is a place of worship for the Jewish community. Men used to be the only ones who went to the synagogue, while women stayed at home and raised...
Their general attitude is that they are above no one. The Jewish culture believes it is very important to be open, good hearted, and considerate to those around ("Culture and Customs"). The Jewish also have many different greetings they use in their everyday lives. The most common is “Shalom”, which means hello or goodbye ("Expressions and Greeings"). Since the sabbath day is very holy in the Jewish culture, wishing someone “savua tov”, would be to wish someone a good week after a sabbath service (“Expressions and Greetings").
All the religion's are based on methodology. Some religions believe that by praying once a day will bring them closer to God, and some think praying five times a day will bring them closer to God. For example, Hindus have a day called Carva Choth, Muslims have Ramadan, and the Jews have Yom Kippur. They all have different purposes for fasting, but there is one thing in common, which is a connection through humans to God. In World War Two, the Nazi Germans captured all the Jewish people and put them in concentrations camps, also known as the "Holocaust." By Fasting and linking to God by prayers, they asked God for forgiveness for all their sins they have committed. At that time Fasting had multipurpose, it showed the Germans that not everything can be taken away from the Jewish people, because they believe in God.