“I call heaven and earth to witness you today: I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse — therefore choose life!” (Deut. 30:19)
"The monotheistic faith of the Jews"; both "a religious and a national concept" based on the belief in one God, holy scriptures, and rabbinic traditions. Judaism is a praxis-based religion characterized by "the belief that God has revealed through the written and oral law (the Torah) ways of obeying his commandments in every aspect of daily life".
Judaism. (2002). In G. Wigoder, F. Skolnik, & S. Himelstein (Eds.), The new encyclopedia of Judaism (2nd ed.). New York University Press. Credo Reference.
Judaism. (2007). In R. E. Allen (Ed.), The penguin English Dictionary (3rd ed.). Penguin. Credo Reference.
Judaism traces its origins to Abraham (hence "Abrahamic Faith". According to Jewish tradition, Abraham was "the first individual to have arrived independently at the idea of monotheism. “From Abraham, the history of the Jewish people can be traced "to the exile in Egypt, the subsequent exodus, the giving of the Torah, and fulfillment of the covenant", to a series of political events that ended with the "dispersion of the Jews throughout the world for centuries, the record of persecution and pogroms culminating in the Holocaust, and the creation of flourishing communities in the West."
Judaism. (2002). In G. Wigoder, F. Skolnik, & S. Himelstein (Eds.), The New Encyclopedia of Judaism. New York University Press.
Maimonides
Hasdai Crescas
Simeon ben Tsmah Duran—Joseph Albo
Principles of faith. (2002). In G. Wigoder, F. Skolnik, & S. Himelstein (Eds.), The new encyclopedia of Judaism (2nd ed.). New York University Press. Credo Reference.
Definition: Finding its roots in 19th-century Germany through Zacharias Frankel's critique of the Reform movement, Conservative Judaism is a branch of Judaism that "seeks to 'conserve' Jewish traditions while living within the modern world". Conservative Judaism embraces the critical study of Jewish and secular texts along with traditional methods of study. The underlying assumption is that all resources are permitted in the pursuit of “truth.”
Conservative Jews "stress that Judaism has evolved historically to meet the changing needs of the Jewish people in various eras and circumstances. They believe that Jewish law should continue to evolve in the present and future. Nevertheless, Conservative Judaism maintains the traditional view that Jews must obey and observe the will of God through the commandments."
Conservative Judaism also set up a central authority for halakhah, Jewish law, called the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards (CJLS). "The CJLS often publishes both majority and minority positions on controversial matters of Jewish law. Individual rabbis serve as the mara d’atra (Aramaic for “master of the law”) for their own communities, and are free to follow the legal rulings as they see fit."
The main difference between Conservative and Orthodox Judaism is that Orthodox Judaism began as a reaction to Reform Judaism, defending observance of rabbinic law as "sacred". Conservative Judaism, on the other hand, sits as a middle ground between the Reform movement and pure Orthodoxy, in that Jewish law is obligatory but Orthodox interpretations of rabbinic law is too restrictive.
Karesh, S. E., & Hurvitz, M. M. (2016). Conservative Judaism. In S. E. Karesh, & M. M. Hurvitz, Encyclopedia of world religions: Encyclopedia of Judaism (2nd ed.). Facts On File. Credo Reference.
Definition: Orthodox Judaism "is the theology, ideology, customs, and social patterns of those Jews who strictly follow traditional Jewish law, or halakhah". The belief system of Orthodox Judaism rests on the idea that Torah in its entirety was handed down from God to Moses at Mount Sinai, a concept called Torah mi-Sinai. The majority of Jews who consider themselves Orthodox accept divine authorship of both the Oral Law and the Written Law. Thus, all Jewish law is a direct or indirect result of revelation from God, and Jews are obligated to live by that law, as interpreted by the rabbis and collected in authoritative codes of law such as the Shulchan Arukh.
Orthodox Judaism can be distinguished from "traditional Judaism" by its awareness of the modern world and consciousness that they have chosen a way of life that faces many challenges in an environment full of abundant consumer goods and services, secular education, and pluralistic worldviews. Orthodox Jews openly reject the ideology of Reform Judaism; they often disagree with the interpretations of Jewish law found in Conservative Judaism, and with the nontraditional theology often taught by Conservative Rabbis.
The main difference between Conservative and Orthodox Judaism is that Orthodox Judaism began as a reaction to Reform Judaism, defending observance of rabbinic law as "sacred". Conservative Judaism, on the other hand, sits as a middle ground between the Reform movement and pure Orthodoxy, in that Jewish law is obligatory but Orthodox interpretations of rabbinic law is too restrictive.
Karesh, S. E., & Hurvitz, M. M. (2016). Orthodox Judaism. In S. E. Karesh, & M. M. Hurvitz, Encyclopedia of world religions: Encyclopedia of Judaism (2nd ed.). Facts On File. Credo Reference.
Definition: One of the four major branches of American Judaism. Created by Mordecai Kaplan and arising out of Conservative Judaism in the 1960s, Reconstructionist Judaism sought to make Judaism "more meaningful to modern Jews by dispensing with all that is supernatural, retaining the traditions of Judaism, and furthering the continuation of the Jewish people." By 2008, "Reconstructionist Judaism had over 100 congregations, 150,000 self-identified individuals, and 200 rabbis in the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association worldwide."
Kaplan never intended to form a separate movement within Judaism. For nearly 40 years, Kaplan did everything in his power to prevent the split from Conservative Judaism. Kaplan wanted to replace outdated ideas (mostly ideas about God and the Torah that were "supernatural" in nature) with more secular ones, but he wanted to maintain the "old forms" of traditional Judaism to help maintain the historic continuity of the Jewish people and to express, or symbolize, spiritual values or ideals which can enhance the inner life of Jews.”
One of Kaplan's main ideas was "the reconstruction of Jewish civilization was the goal Kaplan,outlined in his book Judaism as a Civilization (1934)." This is potentially one of the most influential Jewish texts written in the US. "It articulated Kaplan's view of Judaism as “an evolving religious civilization.” It is a civilization because it contains within itself a culture, Kaplan contended. It is religious because it has a transcendent element that enables Jews to actualize what is best within themselves. To accomplish its goals, however, Judaism must speak to existing situations. Judaism has always evolved. It must continue this evolution in order to revitalize Judaism and provide meaning and value to modern Jews." Although Kaplan argued for the reconstruction of Jewish civilization, he vehemently denied the "chosenness" of Jews and Zionism, which read controversial to many after World War II.
Queen, E. L. (2018). Reconstructionist Judaism. In E. L. Queen, P. II, S. Stephen R., & J. Gardiner H. (Eds.), Facts on File library of American history: Encyclopedia of American religious history (4th ed.). Facts On File. Credo Reference.
Definition: The "liberal" Jewish movement and first modern denomination of Judaism. Beginning in 18th century Germany (in order to promote "assimilation" into German society) and continuing through the 19th century Haskalah (European enlightenment of Judaism), reform Jews tend to "question the authority of the Talmud (Jewish laws), deny that the Jews are a chosen people" (some do not believe in the Messiah), as well as rejecting belief in heaven and hell. The movement deemphasizes following laws regarding the melachot (work forbidden on the Sabbath), kosher (dietary) rules, restrictions on women's roles in the synagogue (women can become rabbis alongside men), and synagogue conventions such as Hebrew-only services and the renaming of the synagogue to the temple.
"In Britain, Reform communities became more conservative in the early 20th century, and Liberal Judaism was formed as a radical offshoot. Reform Judaism in Britain has now become less secularized. Congregants wear tallit (prayer shawls) at prayer, and much of the service is in Hebrew. Both Reform and Liberal Judaism receive rabbinic leadership from Leo Baeck College (London)."
Reform Judaism. (2018). In Helicon (Ed.), The Hutchinson unabridged encyclopedia with atlas and weather guide. Helicon. Credo Reference
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