Judaism is the world’s oldest Monotheistic faith, dating back nearly 4000 years. Over time it has built up a huge core of laws, rituals and observances that have been passed down from generation to generation. These act to connect us to our ancestors and to our future generations and provide a framework to base our practices […]
An Introduction to Judaism Read More »
In this article, I will look at how Jews regard God, how we feel about God and the reasons for our ‘special’ relationship with Him. It explains why Jews are obliged to behave in a certain way and live our lives in accordance with God’s wishes, to the very best of our ability. The Jewish
The Jewish Concept of God/The Covenant Read More »
Jewish law is known as Halacha, from the Hebrew word ‘to go or walk’. It explains the way a Jew should ‘walk’ in life ie: the way to behave. It is based on firstly, the 613 Commandments as written down in our Holy Book, the Torah and secondly, subsequent Rabbinic Law. The 10 Commandments These
Halacha – Jewish Law Read More »
This Article will explain why various subdivisions of Jews were created and how these function within the ‘umbrella’ of Judaism today. All Jews share much in common including our culture and history. Over the last 4000 years or so of experience within many cultures, many traditions have evolved. Up until about 200 years ago there
Subdivisions within Judaism Read More »
If we look back at the evolution of practices within Jewish society, we can see that there have traditionally been fixed roles for the different sexes. Men’s and women’s responsibilities and obligations were different but no more or less important than each other’s. With the development of Progressive Judaism the shift is towards complete gender
The Role of Women in Judaism Read More »
According to tradition, the Jewish Calendar began with year one at the time of the Creation, 3761 B.C.E. (Before the Common Era). This number is added to the current year of 2021/2022, thereby making this Jewish Year 5782. Jews follow the Jewish or Hebrew Calendar for religious observances. These include all the Jewish Festivals as well
In practical terms because God is the cornerstone of our faith, we bring Him into every aspect of our lives. (See Jewish Concept of God). This could be through prayer, ritual, worship and also through the symbolism that we use around us in our homes, in our synagogues and even with our clothes. (See Symbols
How & Why Jews Pray Read More »
This article is going to explain the importance of the Jewish Torah. It will explain why this is such a special Holy Book in so many ways. What is the Torah? A book of Mega Importance- essentially the keystone of Judaism! Why? The Torah is the Holy Book of the Jewish people. It consists of
The Torah: Everything You Need To Know Read More »
As evidenced by many different world religions, it is important to acknowledge key milestones in life. Such ceremonies are known as ‘Rites of Passage’. In Jewish tradition, all life cycle events have rituals which mark these. In this section we will look at Birth Ceremonies and those of Marriage, Divorce and Death. (Bar/Bat Mitzvah and
In this article I will be investigating this milestone in a Jewish child’s life and why it is so important. What is it? Bar/Bat – in Hebrew Bar means son and Bat means daughter. The word Mitzvah means Commandment but it also has the added meaning of an ‘honour’ – a deed one does in