Note
Studied by 3 peopleThe Nature of God/G-d
-God as one
-God as creator
-God as lawgiver and judge
God as one
-The belief that there is only one God is one of the main beliefs of Judaism and is at the heart of the religion.
-There are three main qualities that Jews believe God is:
Whole
Complete
Perfect
-In Judaism there is no division in belief in God, this contrasts with the Christian belief of the Trinity.
-Judaism teaches that God is:
Omniscient (all-knowing)
Omnipotent (all-powerful)
Omnipresent (present everywhere)
-Jews believe that the Non-physical nature of God makes it difficult for humans to describe him, he is beyond human understand and the concepts of time and space. Because of this, there are no statues or artwork of God in Jewish places of worship.
-There is also a belief that the name of God is so holy that it should not be spoken aloud or even written down. Instead, many refer to God as 'The Almighty' or 'Hashem' which means 'The name'.
-The word God is also often written with a hyphen instead of an 'o' as a sign of respect.
-God is the only being that Jews should worship.
-There is a declaration of the Jewish belief in the oneness of God, this is called the Shema prayer and the words are;
"Hear, O Israel: the L-RD is our G-d, the L-RD is one"
-The Shema is very important within Judaism and it is recited 3 times each day.
God as creator
-Jews believe that everything in the universe was created by God.
-In the Torah, the first chapter of the book of Genesis states how God made the world. It describes how God is so powerful that he spoke and the world came into existence. This can be seen in the quote;
"God said, "Let there be light," and there was light" This is from Genesis 1:3
-The first chapter of Genesis describes how God made humans in his own image and likeness. We can see this in the quote;
"God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" This is from Genesis 1:27
-Some orthodox jews believe that every detail of the creation in the Torah is true, that God literally created the world in 6 days. Others believe that God is still the creator of all thing but it shouldn't be taken quite so literally.
-When people rest on the Sabbath (Shabbat), they are reminded of how God rested on the seventh day. This can be seen in the quote;
"God completed on the seventh day His work that He did and He abstained on the seventh day from all His work that He did. And God blessed the seventh day and he Hallowed it." This is from Genesis " 2:2-3
God as lawgiver and judge
-Jewish people believe that God is all-good, and is concerned with humanity as his creation.
-They also believe that God is;
transcendent - beyond the earthly concepts of space and time.
imminent - he is within everything and that he plays an active and present role in the world today.
-Some Jews believe that God is personal and intervenes in the lives of people, while others believe in a more impersonal God.
-It can be difficult to understand that if there is a God who is all-powerful and all-good then why is there so much evil and suffering taking place in the world.
-Judaism teaches that God gives each person free will and control over their own actions. If there was no evil in the world, how would we be able to choose between right and wrong?
-In Judaism, God has the role of Law-Giver. Exodus, Chapter 20, Verses 1 to 14 in the Torah, record laws that God passed down to Moses on Mount Sinai. These laws are known as the 'Ten Commandments '.
-Jewish people believe that God also passed down laws to Noah and Abraham, as well as Moses.
-These rules and duties are recorded in the Torah, and Jews are expected to keep them.
-There are 613 Commandments, called 'Mitzvot', and they include instructions on how to behave towards God, how to treat other people, and how to live according to God's will.
-Judaism also teaches that God will judge each person based on their actions. Each year, Jewish people remember this at the New Year Festival of Rosh Hashanah.
-Jews believe that God weighs up the good and bad deeds that each person has committed over the previous year, and records all of their actions in the Book of Life. Other Jews don't always agree with this but place importance on reflecting on their actions during Rosh Hashanah.
-Jewish people believe that God is fair, loving, and merciful, and that humans can try to seek forgiveness by repenting of sin and making amends for the bad things they have done.
-In the days leading up to the holy festival of Yom Kippur, Jewish people seek forgiveness from God.
-Many Orthodox and Masorti Jews believe that on the day of judgement, they will be resurrected in physical bodies and God would judge them based on their actions on Earth. Not all Jews share this view, however; many Reform Jews believe in a spiritual, rather than physical, life after death, while others reject the idea of an afterlife at all.