Judaism: The Oldest Abrahamic Religion
By Sohail Gupta (32), Shambhavi Priyam (82), Shantanu Nevrekar (116)
Although Judaism happens to be a severely important religion in the modern as well as
the ancient history of the world, it is not a religion that the Indian population is well acquainted
with. India boasts for being a melting pot of all religion in the entire world, and rightly so.
However, since there are so few Jews in India, the average Indian is unaware of the customs,
traditions, beliefs, and history of this excessively important religion. The main cause of this
oblivion is the nature of the Jewish community being very compact, with only about 5000 Jews
living in Mumbai and surrounding areas. Moreover, the Jewish people do not take converts, thus
remain in a minority crowd wherever they reside. Though it was one of the first organized
religions of the world and has many ups and downs throughout history, Judaism still holds a
trivial position in shaping the future of this world.
Jewish Beliefs
Judaism is an Abrahamic religion, which originated from the Laws and commandments of God
which he revealed to Moses. The word ‘Judaism’ is derived from the Latin word ‘Ludaismus’,
and Hebrew word, ‘Judah’, refering to Judah of Maccabee. Judaism has no dogma, no formal set
of beliefs that one must hold to be a Jew. There is no formal set of beliefs in the religion. The
most accepted summary of Jewish beliefs is Rambam's 13 principles of faith. These are very
basic and general principles. The necessity of believing each one of these has been disputed at
one time or another and the liberal movements of Judaism dispute many of these principles.
Unlike many other religions, Judaism does not focus much on abstract cosmological concepts.
Although Jews have certainly considered the nature of God, man, the universe, life and
the afterlife at great length, there is no mandated, official, definitive belief on these subjects.
There is substantial room for personal opinion on all of these matters, because, Judaism is more
concerned about actions than beliefs.
Jewish Myth
Judaism shares the same ancestry as the other Abrahamic religions. The first was Adam created
by god. After him came Noah who during the great flood created an arc and moved away. Sarah,
wife of the descendant of Noah, Abraham, gave birth to Isaac. Isaac then gave birth to Jacob also
known as Israel. Israel then had twelve sons known as the Israelites. The Israelites and their
tribes were basically Nomads. Therefore during the famine the Israelites moved to Egypt. Under
the influence of the Israelite Joseph the tribes were prospering and living in peace. Joseph was
the chancellor to the then Pharaoh. After Joseph’s influence disappeared the tribes were made
into slaves and treated wrongly. To convert the wrong into right God apparently sent Moses.
Moses, who was initially a friend of the Pharaoh, helped the tribes to quit slavery and guide them
to the Promised Land. Moses initially did manage to get the tribes to Mount Sinai where God
gave Moses the Ten Commandments which the tribes must follow.
Though before the tribes managed to reach the Promised Land Canaan, one of the
spies sent forward by Moses reported that Canaan was home to monsters. Therefore Moses along
with his people settled down in an Oasis for thirty eight years. After which the spies were sent
again and this time the report came that Canaan was clean. Thus Moses again started the journey
to Canaan completing a forty day journey in forty years. But at the borders of Canaan, God
passed on more commandments to Moses which he delivered to the tribes and then passed away.
Thus Moses never reached the Promised Land.
Even after this, the Jews however do not believe that Moses was a Messiah drawing a
clear difference between their religion and Christianity. Moses was instead believed to be a
Prophet responsible of delivering God’s message and guiding them to the Promised Land.
Similarly Jews do not believe that Jesus was a Messiah either as they believe that Jesus did not
help them out in any manner. He was just another messenger.
Traditions and Customs
Like every other religion, there are certain traditions and customs that set the Jews apart from
other religions. The Jews give special importance to the life cycle events. Soon after birth, a boy
has to go through the process of Brit Milah. Traditionally, a Jewish baby boy has a circumcision
or Brit Milah on his eighth day of life, provided there are no medical reasons for delaying. This
event is followed by the Bar mitzvah and Bat mitzvah, when a child reaches adulthood. This
passage from childhood to adulthood takes place when a female Jew is twelve and a male Jew is
thirteen years old. Like the older Abrahmic religions, marriage is given special importance in the
religion. Judaism happens to be the first religion to practice monogamy. After the death a family
member, a long mourning period is observed for the deceased.
Jewish Clothing is something that often sets them apart. The traditional Jewish custom for
clothing involves covering the head and shoulders for both males and females. The covering of
the head is specifically required during prayers. Formerly, most Jews could have been seen
wearing long, covering gowns and tall black hats that set them apart from the crowd; however
this is only observed among the Orthodox Jewish community in the modern times.
Dietary Laws
Specific dietary laws are observed among the Jewish community known as Kashrut. The food
that the Jews prepare is made is a cleaner and holy environment and is then considered ‘Kosher’.
Most Jews, even today consume nothing but kosher food items. Everything from salt to bakery is
prepared in accordance to the kosher laws. Pigs, shellfish, crustaceans and certain birds, except
for chicken and turkey, are not kosher. On Saturdays, which is the day os Shabbat, the Jews do
not cook, and thus eat out in resaurants.
Festivals
The three main festivals that characterize the Jewish community include: Rosh Hashana, Yom
Kippur, and Hanukka. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, day of memorial and the Day of
Judgment, on which God judges each person individually according to their deeds, and makes a
decree for the following year. According to an opinion in Jewish oral tradition, the creation of
the world was completed on Rosh Hashanah. After a ten day repentance period, comes Yom
Kippur which is the Day of Atonement. This day is celebrated by lighting candles at sunset.
Hanukkah marks the defeat of Seleucid Empire forces that had tried to prevent the people
of Israel from practicing Judaism. Judah Maccabee and his brothers destroyed overwhelming
forces, and rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem. The eight-day festival is marked by the
kindling of lights — one on the first night, two on the second, and so on — using a special
candle holder called a Chanukkiyah.
Anti-Semitism & Formation of Israel
Anti-Semitism means a deep hatred for Jews which exists in many parts of the world, like
Europe and the Middle East. It is today, especially seen in the Middle East. Anti Semitism is
derived from the Latin word, ‘Semitismus’, which means ‘The Jewish Class’. It was prevalent
ever since the middle ages, but its extreme fallouts were seen only in the 20th Century, with ‘The
Holocaust’ and the Middle East crises. Adolf Hitler propounded the Anti Semitic theory in Nazi
Germany. He propounded the race theory which made some races wanted and some unwanted.
Jews were among the most unwanted of the races. According to him, they did not deserve to live.
In the pogrom that followed, 6 million Jews died in Germany and the parts which Germany had
occupied in the war. After the war, only 5 million Jews were left in the world. Jews were feeling
very marginalized and afraid after the holocaust. They demanded the formation of a new country
in ‘The Holy Land’. The movement was called ‘The Zionist Movement’. Thus, a new country
was formed called ‘Israel’, which became a land of the Jews, and till this day remains a land,
which is exclusively populated by the Jews. It was formed in 1948, and is today the most
developed economy in the Middle East and one of the most developed in the world. The
occupation of Jerusalem by Jews has created a lot of animosity in the region, between Israel and
its Arab neighbours like Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. It has fought three wars with its neighbours
and has developed a huge defence apparatus in Mossad and the defense forces. This has led to
the Middle East problem, making it the most volatile regions in the world.