RS Revision Notes Topic 1 1. Beliefs About the Nature of God a. Omnipotent- parting of the Red sea b.

Omnipresent- we can pray anywhere because God is everywhere c. Omniscient- God knows exactly where you are d. Unchangeable- God is, God was, God will always be e. King- avenu malkanu f. Creator- he created the world g. God is one- first line of shema 2. Reasons Jews give in support of their belief in God a. Jews believe in God because God tells us to in the Torah b. Cosmological Argument There must have been a first cause to everything and that first cause is God if the big bang started the Earth, who started the big bang?? c. Teleological argument Based about purpose and design. The world is too complex to have happened by chance Watch story- cant have grown on its own- must have had a designer and purpose d. Historical argument We are the historical proof. We should not exist The Jews are an anomaly as all the large nations have risen up to kill the Jews and have failed. God promised we would survive and we did survive. Despite all the anti-Semitism and persecution, Jews are still alive- Holocaust, six day war e. Moral argument In order for there to be morality God must exist There seems to be a common understanding of right and wrong and this implies God has implanted these ideas inside of us. f. Blind Faith- Simple faith The people have to believe in something 6 day war- spark of faith inside a Jew that at sometime in their life can be blown into flames of trust.

3. The authority for Jews of the Torah and Talmud a. TORAH Bible Contains 613 commandments Moses wrote all of Gods words All that God has spoken, we will do and we will listen Handbook of Jewish Thought Moses received the Torah from Sinai and passed it on to Joshua, and Joshua passed it down and many generations later b. TALMUD- oral law Mishna- written down straight away by Rabbis GameraShould be part of the Jewish people Divinely inspired but written down by humans (Rabbis) work that interprets the Torah and tells us practically how to live a Halachic life. One cannot learn how to be a practicing Jew just from reading the Torah. Use the do not cook a kid in its mothers milk example.

c. TORAH AND TALMUD Torah is the headlines and Talmud is the information. Both are needed to gain a full understanding. Both teach a Jew how to live a Halachic life and both equally important (orthodox) Non- orthodox: Torah is more important as it was written directly from God

4. Belief in God intervening in the world through miracles and through the words of the prophets MIRACLES a. Open Miraclesi. Six day war ii. Do not change peoples belief iii. Do not happen

iv. We dont need them anymore b. Closed miraclesi. Baby being born ii. Every moment we just have to find them iii. In the eye of the beholder Miracles are in the eye of the beholder Something that reveals the existence of God God does intervene One should not depend on a miracle Every favour that God performs for man is a miracle. Many a miracle remains unnoticed by the recipient of Gods favour. Many a time a man is rescued from danger by the space of a nails breadth.

PROPHETS God communicating a message to man kind Whole of Judaism is based on the idea of prophecy Moses prophecy was objectively real- he was awake o Hence actually real God your Lord will raise up a prophet from among your people.. you shall heed him You may ask yourselves, How can we know the word was not spoken by God? If the prophet speaks in Gods name but his word does not come true, then that word was not spoken by God; the prophet has declared it falsely We dont need knew prophecy due to us already having the torah and tenach which teaches us everything we need to know 1. Explain how believing in God might affect the lives of a Jew God has purpose so things happen for a reason He is the only god so you regard him Everything happens for a reason He is the only God and appreciate the world which he gave to use God cares about us and hes given rules as he likes us Given us Torah and the value of History Future to generations to teach by example Not physical Omnipotent, omnipresent etc Overall unity to life God knows what I am thinking and therefore I have to worry about what I am doing.

Topic 2 THE NATURE OF BELIEF Prayer- service of the heart

Worship- Something we do to show our relationship with GodActions- Kosher food, Seder Words- Friday night, blessings, Kiddush Daily- Prayers in the home, washing hands in the morning, Modeh Ani thanking God for waking us up Occasional- Seder, lighting Chanukah candles

Synagogue House of gathering Not a house of worship Social function

Beit Knesset Social function House of gathering Uniting community Teaches us how to communicate with God through prayer

Beit Midrash Shul Education What is valuable in Judaism Teaches us history House of study Heder Public reading of the Torah

Mikdash Meat Means small temple/ sanctuary Model of the temple that was destroyed

1. Worship in the synagogue and in the home

 Prayer means a list of requests Prayer is the lowest level of communicating to God. Tefillah is the highest. Tefillah is self a process of self-judgement. Lahitpallel- to judge yourself (root of tefillah) We talk to God and we ask for things a. Mitzvot done at HOME Love your neighbour Keeping Shabbat Keeping Kosher Mazzuah Kiddush Seder night Shabbat meal Saying shema A person is not a person without a home b. Mitzvot done at SYNAGOGUE Bar/bat mitzvah Hagbah Minyan Learning torah Reading torah Kiddush Community In the multitude of people is the kings glory Ten who pray together the presence of God is with them Public worship has the advantage that the object of our meeting, the holiness of the place, and the union in a worship with our fellow-men combine to create, maintain, or intensify our devotion.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HOME AND SYNAGOGUE You dont get the community benefit at a home whereas you do in shul. At home prayers can be considered more personal and at shul it is more the community joining together. Both have differences and both have similarities such as Kiddush and keeping mitzvoth. 2. Prayer and contemplation PRAYER Lehitpallel To judge oneself. Prayer is more about personal growth than about asking for G-d to do things for us. The types of prayer are:

 Thankings Praising Requesting o Prayer that we have today replaces the prayer that we had in the temple o God doesnt need our prayers. Prayers are for ourselves. If God is all powerful he doesnt need our prayer o I believe with perfect faith that it is only proper to pray to God. One may not pray to anyone or anything else. o And serve Him with all your hearts [quote from Devarim 11:13]. CONTEMPLATION Mentally preparing oneself for God Different ways in which people prepare for prayer Talmud says that: o Hasidim use to go 1 hour before prayer started to prepare them Studying the prayer service Go off by themselves (meditating) as a source of inspiration Need a balance between meditation and contemplation

3. The use of food and fasting by Jews as a response to God Home is the temple; the table is the alter Talmud When the temple stood, sacrifices would secure atonement for an individual: now his table does Talmud FOOD Kashrut Food shows a relationship with God Trust in God that you wont lose out Makes you closer to other Jews unites you together Links you to our history kashrut milk and meat taste of community eg matzah , chicken soup , chees cake (Shavuot) g. every mouth full of kosher food gives jewish people their identity , which makes you closer to g-g due to you always thinking of him. 2. Brachot Birkat hamazon (grace after meals) thanking g-d for letting us have the food Laws on Shabbat about not cooking a. b. c. d. e. f.

Every type of festival has different types of food to represent each festival : pesach matzah ( symbolising trust in g-d) , bitter herbs, salt water ( symbol of Jew crying and Egyptians) helps us believe in g-d

Mitzvah foods Customary foods Cult rural foodJudaism is a religion that sanctifies the physical unlike some other religions that seek to get as little benefit from this world as possible. Kosher Meat and milk Separation Kosher animals Kosher fish Kosher birds

FASTING Just fasting without anything else is not that useful- we need to to have other purposes Makes us concentrate, repent more, no distractions so more learning. The motivation of fasting in the Ancient World, particularly in the Talmudic period, may be summed up under the following headings: (a) Fasting for the purpose of atonement Yom Kippur (b) Fasting in case of mourning- tishe bav (c) Fasting as a ritual for the purpose of purification Moshe went out to getting he Torah. He fasted for 40 days and 40 nights (d) Fasting as a means of causing visions and dreams fasting if you have a nightmare (e) Fast to evoke mercy from God- Fast of ester (f) Communal fast Bad things happening to the Jews

Jewish fast days Yom Kippur Fast of Ester Dropping the Torah

4. The architecture of the synagogue A synagogue is always based on the temple and it is meant to copy the temple as best as possible. A synagogue, whether large or small, designed elaborately or simply, must contain the following basic ritual items: Holy Ark (aron kodesh) a cabinet, or a recess in the wall in which are kept the scrolls of the Torah (sifrei Torah). The curtain covering the aron kodesh is called a parokhet. The aron kodesh is generally set on the wall in the direction of Eretz Yisrael (in Israel, toward Jerusalem). Eternal Light (ner tamid) a lamp that is placed above and somewhat in front of the Holy Ark. It is allowed to burn continually. * Bimah is the platform, traditionally set apart from the Ark, on which stands a table (shulhan). From this table, the Torah is read to the congregation and the Reader or contor leads the congregation in services. In Ashkenazic synagogues, there will be an additional lectern, amud, between the bimah and the aron kodesh, on a lower level, A womens section (ezrat nashim), is an ancient and distinctive feature of the traditional synagogue. It follows the pattern astablished in the ancient Tample of Jerusalem which provided an ezrat nashim so as to prevent light-headed levity, immodest and unbecoming behaviour between the sexes that might take place in the freely mingling crowds coming to the holy Temple. Mehitzah- separation of the men and women. This allow the men to concentrate more so that they can properly pray to God.

5. The use of music and art in Jewish worship MUSIC Shofar Hazan sings Choir sometimes Davids harp Singing joins people together Sounds better When sung people just follow and the prayers lose meaning

He who wishes to chant to God in a loud voice should possess a voice pleasant to others; if not, he should refrain from prayer aloud.

There is a Temple in Heaven that is opened only through song RABBINIC RULINGS ABOUT THE USE OF MUSIC IN JEWISH WORSHIP Cant use musical instruments on Shabbat During the period of mourning you are not allowed to hear live music Cant use musical instruments during the OMER

There are lots of psalms that mention the use of music in Judaism o e.g David with the harp The sound of the shofah In the temple the Levites sing during sacrifices After the splitting of the red sea Miriam sang and the bnei Yirael joined in with Music In shuls there is a Hazan who should have a pleasant voice 6. The ways in which symbols are used to express Jewish belief MAGEN DAVID The Magen David - shield of David, or as it is more commonly known, the Star of David is the symbol most commonly associated with Judaism today. CHAI Chair- to life (celebrates living) MEZUZAH Mazuzah- put on the door so that people know the house is declared by Jews. This shows that Jews are proud and this enables God to be watching over the house. Relates to blood over the houses in Egypt. LIONS Symbol of the tribe of Judah Shows strength and courage In the morning you should serve your creator like a lion CROWN God is king Kings rules- God Rambam says there are 3 crowns, kings priests and torah First 2 can only achieve if you are born into that way of family-

Torah anyone can achieve MENORAH Part of the daily service in the Torah 7 branches represents completion Miracles- Chanukah Shows we are alight ner tamid ever lasting light 7. Jewish views forbidding the representation of God in art DO NOT MAKE IDOLS Do not have any other gods before Me. Do not represent [such gods] by any carved statue or picture of anything in the heaven above, on the earth below or in the water below the land. Do not bow down to [such gods] or worship them. I am God your Lord, a God who demands exclusive worship.

GOD IS NOT PHYSICAL Watch yourselves very carefully, since you did not see any image on the day that God spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb. You shall therefore not become corrupt and make a statue depicting any symbol. [Do not make] any male or female image, or the image of any animal on earth, any winged creature that flies in the sky, any lower form of land animal, or any animal that lives in the water below the earth. Music that will not help us focuses on the spiritual and makes us focus on the physical. This is not allowed, as it is a distraction to God. Cant make idols, statues, paintings against God Explain how praying in Hebrew might effect the attitudes and beliefs of a Jew Language of the bible Connects to God Connects to holy Torah Connects us to all Jews in the world We all will speak the same language Links me to the past Passes it on to the future Commonality between all Jews

TOPIC 3: RELIGION AND SCIENCE 1. Jewish ideas about the origins of the world and of humanity ORIGIN OF THE WORLD
Day 1- physical, light and dark Day 2- water and clouds Day 3- separated dry land, plants, trees, grass Day 4- sun, moon, stars Day 5- fish, birds, fleas Day 6- larger land animals, humans Day 7- rest

God alone created the world- genesis The world was created by God in a moment God created the world effortlessly God created the world from nothing God created the world in 6 days and on the 7th day he rested God was pleased with his creation God created the world in the purpose of mankind Every day God created unique creations ending with mankind on the 6th day Ex nihilo- something from nothing God created the world out of love God spoke, it happened, God thought it was good Genesis Each day God created a different thing each day God created the world for man

In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth - Genesis Rabbi Akiva said: As a house implies a builder, and a garment a weaver, and a door a carpenter, so does the existence of the Universe imply a Creator

ORIGIN OF HUMANITY Made from dust of the earth- genesis God breathed inside of us Man is made in the image of God When man is created there was a purpose Male and female were created together and were separated Women are there to help men concentrate Commanded to be fruitful and multiply Women was made by mans rib Man has a soul Man has free will o Same as angels and different to animals Created at the end of the sixth day o We are the pinnacle of creation o Fleas are created before us B) Scientific ideas about the origins of the world and of humanity: Very basic understandings of the Big Bang theory, and of Darwinian evolutionary theory THE BIG BANG THEORY 2 atoms collide causing an explosion Creates universe made up of particles and planets and stars world one of the created planets, where life is sustained The world is always expanding The world is billions of years old

DARWINIAN EVOLUTIONARY THEORY Survival of the fittest Some animals could not simply evolve by chance JEWISH RESPONSES TO THE BIG BANG THEORY Science is always changing and Torah is always the same. Science is therefore not consistent Science is just a theory therefore is not always true Adam was created with a tail, similar to evolution Order of animals is similar to big bang theory (six days of creation) Each day in the 6 days is 1 billion years so evolution would have happiness c) Jewish ideas about the place of humanity in the world and the relation between people and animals THE PLACE OF HUMANITY IN THE WORLD

 Big bang- chance luck, survival of the fittest Rabbi Simcha Bunen says: everyone should carry in their pockets one paper saying, I am dust and ashes and another paper saying, for my sake the world was created. A wise man will know when to use each one. We have to have a balance between being big and being small. We cant be too modest and we cant be too shy. Sometimes we need to rise above all and speak up and there are also times when silence is necessary. Balance is vital. Mankind is last in creation. Dust and ashes Genesis: day 6 Talmud- even a flea was created before mankind- we are not important

THE RELATION BETWEEN PEOPLE AND ANIMALS Before the flood we were not allowed to eat meat After the flood we were allowed to eat meat as human nature changed but it had to be in a painless way- we have to live like humans and not survive like animals. Dominion over creatures - we were more important as we were made in the image of God Animals dont have souls Feed animals before you eat more important Dont plough the ox and the donkey together dont be selfish to animals and ill treat them Animals are also made by God Jews do not cause suffering to animals On Shabbat animals also rest We can learn from animals Modesty from the cat Honesty from ant Good manners from the cockerel Ritual slaughter is done painlessly God created animals therefore it is important to care for animals Feed your animal before oneself Rebecca is the mother of the Jewish people as she gave water to the animals D) Jewish responses to environmental issues For the future In the Torah God tells Adam that he should cultivate and look after the land. Furthermore, there are many other laws found in the Torah that teaches us that we should care for the land. Therefore, Jews

should take care of the planet because God commanded us to do so. God placed mankind in this world to look after it. Mankind doesnt own the world we are like stewards/ caretakers. Therefore, Jews might feel they have a duty to take care of the planet because it is not theirs. We are told in the book of Bereshit that Adam was created from the dust. That is, we originate from the planet itself. Therefore, as we come from the planet we should look after it When Adam and Eve disobeyed Gods rules as to how they should relate to their environment, terrible things happened and they were expelled from the Garden of Eden. This acts as a strong warning that Jews should listen to Gods laws when it comes down to how their connect to their environment Jews should care for the environment so that the Jewish children can live in an environment that is sustainable and safe. God created the planet and therefore showing disrespect to the environment is showing disrespect to God. God created the world therefore we must respect it World was built before man therefore we should respect it Care for it now and people in the future can have it. Tree story World was created for man but if it gets destroyed no one can fix it Shmittah law- shows respect to the fields Must not cut down the fruit tree We have to work it and guard it

TOPIC 4: DEATH AND THE AFTERLIFE A) The ways in which Jews understand the relationship between the body and the soul Understand the Jewish ideas about how human beings are made up of the body, which is: Physical Finite Mortal When you look at a tree, you dont look at the roots Dont only look at the physical being, look at the spiritual that makes the physical- the roots in this example

Soul is: Love the God with all your heart and all your soul Spiritual Infinite when Rachel died her soul left her Immortal God breathed life into Adam This means God gave Adam a soul animals only physical humans physical and spiritual angels only spiritual Humans are in the middle of angels and humans. Soul yearns spirituality and the body physicality. The body therefore has certain desires as we are half animal, but it is our half angel side that corrects our wrong god realises we have these desires so he gives us rules to follow. For you are dust, and to dust you will return A mans soul testifies during the night whatsoever he does during the day

B) Understandings of heaven and Sheol Next World Depending on how good you are in this world depends on how close you are to God. This is the where you will be in the world to come. Jewish teachings compare this to a theatre and God is on the stage. The next world is: Non physical place Different to Christians beliefs of world to come (fire in hell) Every Jew has a place in the world to come and every Jew has to earn it Non Jews has a portion as long as they keep the 7 Noahide Laws rules of morality

HEAVEN Heaven is happiness God light shines over you Purely spiritual No physical distractions Only righteous people go to heaven Ramban states: 3 types of people o Righteous (heaven) o In between (waiting area in Shaol) o Evil (stay in Shaol)

In the World-to-Come, there will be no eating, or drinking, or procreation, or business, or jealousy or hatred or competition, but the righteous will sit with crowns on their heads feasting on the radiance of the Shechina the divine presence In Paradise there are seven sections for the various types of pious souls, and a separate SHEOL - Not really hell- hell is a Christian concept - Sheol is a place of judgement - In Sheol you cant d Mitzvah, its too late. This is why we say Kaddish for the dead - Longest time people are in Sheol is 12 months USUALLY. Some people are denied e.g Hitler

(1). It is said to be very deep (2) and it marks the point at the greatest possible distance from heaven (3). Sometimes the living are hurled into Sheol, in which cases the earth is described as opening her mouth (4). Here the dead meet without distinction or rank or condition the rich and the poor, the pious and the wicked, the old and the young, the master and the slave. In Sheol, God is not praised (5). It is a horrible, dreary, dark, disorderly land where souls are held captive with ropes (6) and return from Sheol is not expected Corrach- went to Sheol because he was evil and he tried to rebel against Moshe Earth swallowed him up proves Sheol is a bad place

COMPARING HEAVEN AND SHEOL - This world is fake and in the world to come everything is clear - 2 sides of a table - 1 side is full of a food and the person is feasting - the other side is empty - this allows the people to see what they could have had but they didnt NOBODY KNOWS As for the world beyond the grave, no eye has seen, and no ear has heard, but God alone knows what He has prepared for those who wait for Him!

C) The relation between moral behaviour and life after death The second paragraph of Shema says if we listen to Gods voice and the mitzvot, in return we get the land and rain in this proper time. If we dont worship God, we wont get the land and rain. this punishment carries on in the world to come.

Gaining a place in Heaven Measure for measure- what we do in this world will affect us in the world to come Divine omniscience- God knows everything that we do This means we are going to get reward for what we do

If you intend to do something and you didnt put it into action you will still get reward for it Story of a parent telling her son to shoo away the mother bird when taking away the egg. The child fell off the tree and died. therefore this idea works in the world to come as well as this world. There are certain commandments where man benefits in this worlds but the reward lasts in the world to come.- Mishna These are: If you are the first person at Shul in the morning and the morning you will get honoured. Escort the dead Honour the dead Honour your parents Leaning Torah is equivalent to all of this Jews have an automatic place in the world to come but they still have to earn it. The more Mitzvot you do the better your chance (theatre and God on stage) Denying God exists and denying Torah is from heaven will not allow you a place in the world to come.

All Israel has a share in the World to Come[however], these are the ones who have no share in the World to Come The road to Heaven bears signposts based upon the Torah. Those who study the Torah will therefore be able to find their way to Heaven Rabbi Yaakov said: This world is like a lobby before the World to Come; prepare yourself in the lobby so that you may enter the banquet hall

D) Jewish funeral rites and mourning customs, and the ways in which these reflect belief and aim to support the bereaved LAST THING TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE Say the Shema Rambam says you should repent the day before you die. It is not too late to ever repent. HOW JEWS ARE BURIED The body should never be left alone. Soul is still there and it is comforting for the soul to have someone with them Chevra Kadisha is the person who sits with the body.

 No post mortems allowed on the body- unless its a murder No cutting up the body The Chevra Kadisha washes the body, tie up the mouth,clothes the body and prepares the funeral arrangements Burial should take place as soon as possible after death, preferably even on the same day. The coffin is a peace of wood- in Israel there is no coffin The reason for this is that death atones for the sins of man. Therefore, the body should at the earliest moment be laid to rest. A reason why linen shrouds are used is because flax the plant from which linen is derived, grows during the season of the early rains and is symbolic of the tree of life We need not make monuments for the righteous their words serve as their memorial It is improper for someone to walk in a cemetery with his Tefillin on or carrying a Sefer Torah and reading from it. Everyone is berried in the same type of coffin this symbolises everyone is equal MOURNING RITES When Nadav and Avihu died, God ordered their brothers not to allow their hair to grow long, and to rend their garments because of their holy office. This teaches that others, who are not officiating priests, in mourning for the death of one of their family, should not cut their hair, and should rend their garments David took hold on his clothes and rent them 7 people you mourn for: Mother Brother Sister Father Spouse Son Daughter

These people before burial are called ONEM: During this time you are excluded from time bound Mitzvahs. This is because you cant perform these Mitzvahs appropriately because, you are angry, you have to do the funeral arrangements and you are upset. This comforts the relative

La Vaya- escorting the body Kriah tearing the clothes and wear this for 7 days Beit Olam -the cemetery. Its not the end of the life Tziduk Hadim- the beginning of judgement or the burial Kaddish- the prayer of belief in God Comforting Shura- where all the omnipresent comfort you among all other mourners Meal of consolation- this meal where the mourners eat. The food is round to represent life and its a cycle Shiva 7 days of mourning (see below) Shloshim- 30 days after the shiva

ORDER OF THE FUNERAL Eulogy La vaya- (accompanying) escorting the body Shovel the dirt onto the body- God made us out of dust so we have to die with dust. Shiva- 7 days of Shiva

PRAYERS OF A MOURNER Eulogy- it is a speech about the person who died. A person must bless God for the bad just as one must bless God for the good, as it says You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart The ritual of burial combines grief with consolation, mourning with acceptance. Jews use the Hebrew word Niftar to refer to someone who has passed away. This word is derived from patur, the Hebrew for free. It is meant to imply that the deceased has freed himself from the bonds of the world of falsehood and is entering the True World of joy and happiness SHIVA 7 days of Shiva Order: Should not leave the house Community come to you Service is at your house Comfort the person in mourning Shiva gives the opportunity to see the person at certain times Sit on low chairs- Job did

 After Shiva you are allowed to go back to work Son and daughter (unless no one else can) say Kaddish for 11 months Wear leather Shave Do not bathe for pleasure During 30 days Still do not listen to live music Still do not shave Dont buy new clothes

WHAT MOURNERS MAY NOT DO Cover up the mirrors- not a time of physicality but a time of repent Mourners may not wear leather shoes. They should sit on the ground or on a low stool, as we read in the book of Job So they sat down with him on the ground They may not work Mourners are forbidden to bathe during the seven days of mourning. They also must not engage in marital intercourse. Mourners may not study Torah, for the study of Torah makes a person rejoice Should not be socialising

FOOD GIVEN TO MOURNERS Round food to show the cycle of life continues Once, when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the open, famished. On that day Abraham our father died, and our father Jacob made a stew of lentils to comfort Isaac his father. Why lentils? Even as the lentil has, so to speak, no mouth [no cleft], so a mourner has no mouth [he is mute]. According to others: Even as a lentil is round, so mourning comes round in turn to all who enter the world

SPECIAL MOURNING CUSTOMS There is a custom that a candle is kept burning in the house of mourning during the seven days of the shiva. The reason for this custom is that it is said that the soul of the departed derives some joy and comfort from this glowing light, as the soul of man is the lamp of the Lord

A LIMIT FOR MOURNING A person should not mourn too much for the deceased, and anyone who mourns too much, weeps for someone else. Rather, there should be three days for tears, seven days for lamenting, and thirty days to refrain from cutting the hair and wearing pressed clothes. You are the children of the Lord, your God, you shall not cut yourself, nor make a bald patch between your eyes for the dead. This prohibition teaches Man the correct approach towards death. THE KADDISH Some say that the Kaddish for a son who mourns his parent originated in this way. Why is the Kaddish recited not throughout the year of mourning but only for eleven months? Tradition has it that the souls of the wicked are subject to judgement for twelve months. The practise of reciting Kaddish for only eleven months implies that the children do not regard their departed parent as wicked and in need of prayer.

TOPIC 5: GOOD AND EVIL A) Beliefs about the goodness of God and the nature of Satan GOODNESS OF GOD - Epitome of Good - We are the shadow of God- we cannot be God but we can follow God - God is perfect! - What ever God does is ultimately good - God passed by before [Moses] and proclaimed, God, God, Omnipotent, merciful, and kind, slow to anger, with tremendous [resources of] love and truth. He remembers deeds of love for thousands [of generations], forgiving sin, rebellion and error 13 attributes of God 1. Mercy you can repent for your mistakes 2. Kind he visited Avram when he was sick 3. Slow to anger He doesnt get angry with the Jewish people he just gives 4. Compassionate God didnt need to choose us as the chosen people. It was his truth 5. Truth if you want to know the truth, look at the torah God is the true judge 6. Provides kindness to thousands and shares his goodness 7. Forgiving of sins we do intentionally and unintentionally8. Loving- god created the world and this is a big sign of love

NATURE OF SATAN We can not blame God for bad things going wrong. Man has free will and man listens to his evil inclination- SATAN Satan and the Yetzer and the Angel of Death are One In order for people to realise what good is, WE NEED EVIL Satan is part of God and made to show the weakness in humanity. Satan is the distraction, therefore when we do well we actually achieve something. Part of Gods love is that he allows evil and free will. During the time of the golden calf Satan created an illusion that Moshes coffin was going to heaven.

Satan tries to provoke a wrong out of us. If we dont succumb to this, then we have done well. Example of Satan at work is when King David was about to die, he kept trying to distract David and he eventually died.

Satan 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Created by God Evil inclination Angel of death Satan The prosecutor on Yom Kippur Not the devil

B) Jewish responses to the problem of evil If God is good then how can he let evil happen God creates both good and evil God always acts for the good Ultimately good happens in the end The world to come is the true world- this world is not the real world and when you get punished in this world- in the world to come it is all reward God is good and therefore evil cannot occur because God is good and wont allow it In order for god to be loving there has to be evil because part of Gods love is allowing free will to occur In order for us to truly appreciate the goodness in the world, we must understand evil Were it not for the evil inclination men would not take homes, have wives, have children, and do business. People therefore would not do any of this because there is no reason to or competition. We need an evil inclination to do well.

C) Responses to the Holocaust The view of the ultra orthodox people was it was a punishment because secular Zionism were too Zionist. The secular Zionist believe that we werent zionist enough. Jewish people forgot about the land of Israel and our need for it. God gave us Free will! God did not build Auschwitz and its crematoria. Men did The Holocaust may make faith in God difficult, but it makes faith in man impossible Dont blame God blame man

ELIEZER BERKOVITS God hides his face to give us free will God stepped aside and allowed free will to occur. God must withdraw himself and be silent in order for there to be proper love.

EMIL FACKENHEIM 614th commandment marry Jewish, have Jewish children You can not build your life on hatred The holocaust was a unique event that requires a unique response. We want to deny a posthumous victory, therefore we should have Jewish children and believe in God. We are here and Nazis are no more D) Coping with suffering through acceptance and prayer Acceptance- you dont understand why but you just have to accept it god acts with unity and purpose o Rabbi Akiva everything for the best Gum Zu LTova- all for the good, I am sure there is a good reason for this. o Rabbi Akiva story- everything is for the best We bless the good just the same as we bless bad. When someone dies we still bless God. We still pray every time something good happens and every time something bad happens Sometimes when you have no one, you should believe in God just for comfort Do Mitzvot for them E) Discovering the right way to behave through the teachings of the Torah and Talmud Torah is a guide to life 10 commandments Halachic teachings- Jewish law o Way of life o Knowing the right or wrong way of doing something 613 commandments o 248 are positive o 365 are negative Talmud puts these rules and laws into stories

Rabbi Simlai taught: 613 commandments were revealed to Moses; 365 negative commandments. And 248 positive commandments When David [to whom authorship of the Psalms is attributed], came, he summed up the 613 commandments in eleven [ethical] principles: Lord, who may sojourn in Your tent, who may dwell on Your holy mountain? 1. He who lives without blame 2. who does righteous acts 3. who speaks the truth in his heart 4. who tongue speaks no deceit 5. who has not done harm to his fellow 6. or borne reproach for [his acts toward] his neighbour 7. for whom a contemptible person is abhorrent 8. who honours those who fear the Lord 9. who stands by his oath even when it is to his disadvantage 10. who has never lent money for interest 11. or accepted a bribe against the innocent When Isaiah came [the talmudic passage continues] he summed up the 613 commandments in six [ethical] principles: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. He who walks in righteousness who speaks honestly who spurns profit from fraudulent dealings who waves away a bribe instead of taking it who closes his ears and doesnt listen to malicious words who shuts his eyes against looking at evil

The Talmud next cites Micah who summed up the 613 commandments in three principles: Only to do justice, to love goodness, and to walk modestly with your God Then it returns to a different verse in Isaiah, which summarizes the 613 commandments in two principles: 1. Do justice 2. carry out acts of righteousness (or charity) Finally, when Habakkuk came, he summed up the 613 commandments in one principle, for he said The righteous shall live according to his faith

Story of Hillel never gets angry proves to us that we should never get angry You should be happy and smile These are not Jewish laws but they are just basic general rules to be a good person. F) The conscience Compound conscience- good and bad free will Children only have the bad side of the conscience when young- education teaches them the good and this stays with them for the rest of their life. There is no Rabbinic word for a conscience. In Judaism the conscience is not mentioned but there are references. There are references telling us to do the right thing Story of Joseph getting seduced by Pottyfah wife. He thought of his father and resisted the seduction This source is telling us that he is doing something wrong- conscience Heart has to decide- conscience We have a conscience but we cant listen to our conscience only- listen to God G) The reasons why Jews try to follow a moral code If you keep my covenant, you shall be my special treasure from among the nations, even though all the earth is mine - Covenant with God - Purpose of an individual is to imitate God and try and be like God - Harness all God commandments in the service of God, not in the service of mans ego - Seta moral example to all of the nations of the world- Kingdom of Priest - The moral code is Gods way of telling us of how to follow a moral code - Every law will help us become a better person - A Halacha will teach us how to become moral - Moral ideas to do not suffice to create moral individuals and a moral world- You need to have a system of law in place - Judaism is an oxymoron working towards being a paradox- how is it possible to be part of something and be separate at the same time