Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Judaism
I think that Judaism is a mix between the three, although it is primarily thought of as a religion above anything else. Interactions between the Jews and God (including the multiple covenants), the Torah as a holy testament governing the way practicing Jews should live, and God's choice of the Israelites as the "chosen people" show the mixture of religion, culture, and race within Judaism. Yes, Judaism is one of the three monotheistic religions, with a holy book and traditions such as Passover and Shabbat (sp?) at the center of this religion. However, the holy book that governs the religious aspect of Judaism also dictates how Jews should live. For example, the Ten Commandments demands that no one should kill, covet the property of wife of his neighbor, nor should he practice idolatry. Religion is often a central part of culture (think of Israel or Muslim countries, for example), so the effect on Jews' life does not seem out of the ordinary. However, race is also an important part of Judaism. Excerpts from Genesis show that God has deigned the Israelites as his "chosen people", and these people and their descendants are destined to enjoy a land "flowing with milk and honey". Abraham is also seen as the father of all monotheistic religions, implying that all three religions, not just Judaism, have a hereditary aspect. Finally, a person's Jewish heritage is decided by if the mother is Jewish. A non-practicing Jew with a Jewish mother is considered more Jewish than a person who holds Jewish beliefs but does not have a Jewish mother.
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4 comments:
I Never thought as Judaism as a combination of all three I think that you made a very good point about that and your reference to the Torah was very well said.
I thought of similar ties to culture and race when I was thinking over this question.
I think it's interesting that you included that all three religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) have a common ancestor, and yet Christianity doesn't seem to claim that hereditary link as a stature for being a Christian (I can't really say too much about Islam, since I admittedly know very little about it). I know for me, that lack of racial identity made it harder for me to imagine identifying myself racially with my religion, or to be religiously identified with one specific race.
Good points, ladies. You will see soon that Christianity is forced by circumstances to abandon the connection between religion and ethnic/racial/tribal identity. This is a radical move in the history of religions, which have always been tied to your ancestors and your original tribal identity, and opening Christianity to people of all backgrounds is one of the ways it is able to survive and flourish. Islam is not exclusive, either, as it emphasizes the unity and equality of all who believe in Allah and his prophet, Muhammad. A good question would be; How does Judaism manage to survive and flourish despite the hereditary requirement/limitation? Many religions like Judaism without a missionary/conversion component run into difficulty. Zoroastrianism, for example, is close to extinction as its members choose to marry non-Zoroastrians or are otherwise unable to adapt the faith of their ancestors to the modern world.
Francesca, I also thought it was really interesting that Christianity doesn't have a racial identification. Islam is non-exclusive (although I have never met a non-Arab Muslim), while Judaism has said limitations or requirements. I'm not really sure what helps the religion survive, aside from the fact that people with similar beliefs are drawn to the culture, and often people are born into the religion, so the heriditary limitation is not much of an issue. Also, Judaism is not completely limiting in its requirements in that only your mother must be Jewish for you to be considered truly Jewish. Question: for people who come from another religious background, do the mothers of the converts also have to be Jewish for the converts to be considered completely Jewish?
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