1. A pdf has been placed on Moodle with selections from Jewish Scriptures and other writings. Read the Talmudic selection on Rabbinic authority that appears on p. 20 of the pdf (p. 372 of the text). Explain the significance of the debate recounted here. Place the text in historical context, and explain the significance of debate between Rabbis about the meaning of scripture during this particular period of Jewish history. Also say what you make of G*d (the Holy One) laughing, as reported by Elijah. [the word “chlordane” in this passage is just an odd translation – in other translations it is rendered as “children”] 2 pages, typed and double-spaced. Due Friday April 17 th. first paper topic

2. Strategies for writing short papers Good Strategies Trust your own ability to read and interpret the text. Read the text carefully, and make use of relevant sections of the textbook to help make sense of the context in which the text you are considering appears. Put your explanation in your own words. Think of how you might explain what you’ve learned to a friend who asked you about the class you’re taking. Bad Strategies Quoting the powerpoint slides used in class. Going online to find how others have interpreted this text. Plagiarizing online sources. Forgetting to provide the explanation asked for in the assignment.

3. Creation: By Separation, Word, and Breath (in-spiration) G*d’s act of creation is not ex nihilo (out of nothing). Rather, G*d moves over the primordial ocean and separates sky and earth from it. G*d also creates by his word: by his speaking of things they come into being. G*d also gives form to his creations (e.g., forming Adam out of the dust). Finally, G*d breathes life into Adam (“the man”): “The Lord G*d formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (Genesis, Chapter 2, verse 7)

4. Adam, Eve, and The Fall Adam is made in G*d’s image, but he only seems to be like G*d. By eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve “become like one of us [i.e., divine], knowing good and bad” (Gen. 3:22) Adam and Eve are banished from Eden lest the process of becoming like G*d be completed by their eating of the tree of life, which would make them immortal. So, the creation and the fall together mark the incomplete immortalization of humanity. Banishment from Eden creates a distance, a gulf between humanity and G*d. This opening of distance is central to the Jewish conception of sin.

5. The First Covenant After flooding the world because of the iniquity of humans, G*d made a covenant with Noah to never repeat this event. The rainbow is the sign of this covenant. This covenant is believed to apply to all humans, not just Jews. A series of covenants follow this one, each one renewing and updating the relationship between G*d and humans.

6. Jewish Patriarchs Abraham: received the promise of the land of Israel through his covenant with G*d Isaac: Abraham’s son, nearly sacrificed on Mt. Moriah as a test of Abraham’s faith Jacob: Isaac’s son, brother of Esau; later named Israel, and father of 12 sons whose descendants form the 12 tribes of Israel

7. The Covenant With Abraham G*d promises to Abraham that his descendants will have the land of Israel (Genesis 15:17 – 21). In return, this covenant requires that all Jews circumcise their male children (Genesis 17:9 – 14). This is the first rule of conduct specifically given to Jews. Brit Milah (or Bris – see p. 103 of RWT) is the ceremony at which the circumcision is performed, eight days after the birth of the boy. This must be performed by a Rabbi, and the presence of a minyan (a group of ten adult Jewish males) is desirable. An uncircumcised male suffers kareit (spiritual excision), which means he has no place in the spiritual world to come.

8. Jewish Sacrifice Ancient Judaism (before and during the first age of diversity) was a sacrificial religion in which animal sacrifice was offered to G*d. It was a temple based religion and the power to perform the sacrifice was held by priests. Sacrificial worship is based on a dream (recounted in Genesis 15) in which Abraham sees a burning lamp pass between the halves of a cow, a goat, and a ram which he had been instructed to prepare. The story of Abraham preparing to sacrifice Isaac, in which Abraham’s hand is stayed by the Angel of G*d before the deed is done, reinforces the idea of animal sacrifice as an appropriate form of worship. This story also serves to show the righteousness of Abraham in obeying G*d’s command to prepare his son to be killed.

9. Prophets Prophets are persons chosen by G*d to be his spokesperson on earth. Tanakh identifies 55 prophets of Israel, most men but seven women. Moses is the chief prophet of Israel, since he met face to face with God, and also since he is the conveyor of the Torah. After Joshua led the Israelites into Canaan, several prophets emerged among the people over the next few centuries. They were sometimes antagonistic to the rulers of the state, and sometimes not. Some prophets were “cult” figures, associated with temples and taking part with the priests in sacrificial ceremonies. Others, like Moses, were individuals who through ecstatic experience conveyed messages from God.

10. Commandments: the substance of the Mosaic covenant Mitzvah (plural: Mitvot): there are 613 Mitvot contained in the Torah. Following these in daily life is at the heart of what it means to be a Jew. An initiation ceremony is held during adolescence (age 13 for boys, 12 for girls). Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah (see p. 103) This symbolically brings the child under the law or commandments.

11. Shema: The Daily Prayer of Judaism Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One. Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be in your heart. And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. [Deut. 6:4-9] And it shall come to pass if you surely listen to the commandments that I command you today, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul, That I will give rain to your land, the early and the late rains, that you may gather in your grain, your wine and your oil. And I will give grass in your fields for your cattle and you will eat and you will be satisfied.

12. Beware, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn and serve other gods, and worship them. And anger of the Lord will blaze against you, and he will close the heavens and there will not be rain, and the earth will not give you its fullness, and you will perish quickly from the good land that the Lord gives you. So you shall put these, my words, on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them for signs on your hands, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. And you shall teach them to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk on the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. In order to prolong your days and the days of your children on the land that the Lord promised your fathers that he would give them, as long as the days that the heavens are over the earth. [Deut. 11: 13-21] And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying... And they shall be tzitzit for you, and when you look at them you will remember all of the Lord's commandments and do them and not follow after your heart and after your eyes, which lead you astray. In order to remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. I am the Lord, your God, who led you from the land of Egypt to be a god to you. I am the Lord, your God. [Numbers 15: 37-41]

13. Prayer: “Tefilah” Prayer reminds us of G*d’s presence in our lives and our relationship to Him. Prayer requires a special kind of concentration known as kavanah, which involves an intensifying of our awareness of G*d Prayers are most commonly said in a group, known as a minyan; this “quorum” requires at least 10 adult Jewish men.

14. Tefillin These are leather boxes worn on the forehead and strapped to the upper arm during daily recital of shema. Also known as phylacteries, they contain written copies of the shema which guard against the temptation of sin.

15. Preparing for prayer, with tefillin on head and arms and wearing Tallit shawl.

16. Mezuzah (plural: Mezuzot) These are small scroll cases mounted on the doorposts of Jewish homes. The name “mezuzah” applies to both the scroll and the case which holds it. The scroll contains part of the text of the shema, and it should be hand-written, not mechanically made. A dedication ceremony is held when the mezuzah is installed on the house, and the mezuzah should be removed when the family moves away so that nothing disrespectful may be done to the scroll.

17. Outward signs of Judaism Circumcision of males. Tallit and Tzitzit: The tallit is a shawl worn during prayer; tzitzit are the fringes tied onto the corners of this shawl. The tying of fringes onto four-cornered garments is specified in the Torah as a reminder of the mitzvot. (This is also part of the Shema) Yarmulke: a small cap, also worn during prayer.