Judaism on its own is a monotheistic religion and the myth of history guides its understandings for life here on Earth. For Jewish people, the ideal life is living in harmony with the will of God. As mentioned in World Religions Today, “In Judaism, each and every human being is free to choose good or evil because each person stands before God in the same relationship that Adam and Eve did” (World Religions Today, 79). In the essence of Judaism the commandments require deeds of loving kindness and compassion to be embodied. People in their everyday lives follow this model and their lives are at the mercy of God as a model for the world.
When I visited Temple Beth El to explore my personal relationship with Judaism, I had no expectations. My
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only interest was in expanding my knowledge and trying to understand why so many people in my life have been influenced by this ideology. As I entered the synagogue the group and myself were warmly welcomed and showed around. Once guest arrived people were immediately comfortable and social with one another. The service began with singing and beautifully meaningful Hebrew recitations.
Songs were sung in order to round up everyone and start the service on a loving and kind note. One special mention prior to the start of the service that Rabbi Marcy Delbick made us aware of is, to be mindful of how special it is in that moment to sit with our brothers and sisters and connect to God. Due to our attendance falling on the Shabbat after Yom Kippur, it was a special service. There was a wonderful celebration of the fast and it was a much more relaxed gathering than the usual Friday Shabbat services. Throughout my entire experience at the Synagogue, not once did I question my belonging there, or feel unwelcomed. We sang, laughed, exchanged thoughts, and stories. The reformed Jewish community in Salinas is warm and kind- hearted. They focus on the importance of community, fun, language and connecting with each other and God. After the service, we broke bread, sang songs, and had discussions over gay marriage, restrictions amongst the community, and the rules of kosher food. What I gathered from the group’s conversations with the people of the synagogue is they are indifferent about other people’s personal decisions. Jewish people from this reformed church are taught to question things, and …show more content…
they speak primarily of tolerance and compassion. So for the individuals who I spoke to about these questions, they all were very accepting and say the Torah is rather ambivalent about any finite details regarding someone’s personal life. Rabbi Marcy Delbick says, “What happens in your life is between you and God in the end. Who am I to judge?” She also elaborates on how the Torah is to not be taken and understood literally. From my experience at the Temple Beth El, my understanding of Judaism became broadened. The religion cannot be simplified, however God is our ultimate judge and each day we must follow God’s deeds of loving-kindness. On the other hand, Buddhism follows the myth of liberation.
Shramanas believed that this life consists of a countless series of rebirths, and these are determined by an individual’s karma, this eventually is shed through moral perfection and a state of liberation can be attained. The variety of ancient accounts about Buddha’s lives, provide a systematic library that recounts the stories many practitioners use today as guidelines for the ideology. Among the many forms and paths to take in learning about Buddhist practices the Eightfold Path and Four Nobel Truths are the core essences of achieving the realized state of nirvana. World Religions Today notes, “The eightfold path emphasizes that moral progress is the essential foundation to successful meditation and that the measure of a successful mediation is the awakening and deepening of prajna” (415). Between the Nobel Truths and The Eightfold Path the foundational goal of improving ones moral, social, material, and lifestyle lies in the deconditioning and reconditioning of the
mind.
...t also with acceptance as one of their own, although I never wore a Tallit or Kippah. This was a very peculiar position since I have never been so accustomed to this sort of kindness. By the end of the Jewish service, not only did I respect and appreciate their faith much more, but, in a way, I began to grow a love for it as well. While I felt no negative feelings towards the service, the most positive aspect would, most definitely, be the warmth I felt from everyone inside the Synagogue and from the presentation of the building itself. At first glance, I was not able to fully appreciate the decorations in the room, but the longer I observed I began to realize each decoration represented something significant. Overall, if I learned anything important this day it is that one thing holds true: I can still appreciate ideas and concepts even if I do not agree with them.
Between 600 BCE and 600 CE, religion played an important role in the social order of the Middle East. The introduction of monotheistic religions challenged earlier polytheistic religions and caused people to have faith in in one almighty god. Social order was affected by these new understandings because people began to believe that those who sided with God would be granted everlasting life while those who were on the side of evil were sentenced to eternal punishment.
Buddhism’s approach to ethics and practices are centred upon the principal beliefs of; the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path and the Five Precepts. By adhering to these guidelines, Buddhists are ensured that they are taking a step closer to escaping Samsara, and attaining the revered state of Nirvana,
Overall, my visit to the Center for Jewish Life in Marlboro, N.J. was an enlightening experience that I will remember for the rest of my life. Ultimately, I thought it was delightful to see that whether you are at a Church or Synagogue, the main purpose of the establishment is to bring people together to pray for health, happiness and love for another.
Judaism is a religion with an excess of 13 million believers located mainly within the United States and Israel. Of all the religions practiced today, Judaism is one of the oldest. The roots of Judaism can be traced back over 3500 years to the Middle East with a lineage that descends from Abraham as a patriarch. With Abraham as a common ancestor, Judaism is considered one of the Abrahamic faiths alongside Christianity and Islam. The historical events within the Bible of Judaism’s past, all the way back to Abraham, have molded the beliefs and traditions practiced by Jewish adherents today.
Judaism, which originated in the middle east, is one of the oldest religions in the world. Judaism is the religion from where Catholicism and Islam have their roots. The main difference between Judaism and the previously mentioned religions is that Judaism is based on the old testament entirely excluding the new testaments in its teachings. Jews believe that they are the people chosen by God and that because of the covenant they have the duty, more than any other group of people, to keep the law of God. The law of God in Judaism comes in the form of the Torah. The books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, which are said to have been written by Moses, form the Torah.
Tilopa once said, “It is not the outer objects that entangle us. It is the inner clinging that entangles us.” Over 2500 years ago, Buddha outlined the framework for Buddhist thought in which he declared that he taught suffering, its origin, cessation and path. The four noble truths contain the basis of Buddha’s ideas which he attained while meditating under a bodhi tree, which would later become a Buddhist symbol. While Buddhism is not practiced by many, its affect in the world can be seen in the utilization of the four noble truths that Buddha was enlightened with. By accepting the four noble truths, we are able to identify, heal, and be set free from a life of suffering.
but within individual schools of though opinions still differ. Jewish ethics is centered around ‘being godly’ however ‘godliness’ can only be expressed through interactions on a human level. The highest ideal of Judaism therefore is to protect human life. Saving human life takes priority over any other commandment. Jewish religion has a great desire to reduce or eliminate human suffering.
In Judaism there is a direct link between their Jewish beliefs, sacred writings, texts and teachings, and their practices. The link between Shabbat, the Jewish practice, reflects their main beliefs that are derived from their sacred writings and teachings. The laws that they follow during Shabbat reflect their relationship with God and the Torah and how from their teachings they live life following specific guidelines. Their beliefs, sacred texts and teachings reflect the way they behave of a day to day basis as they set out the rules and laws they must follow.
... curated community called, ArtSetters, that is focused on encouraging and promoting the artwork of local emerging artists to a global audience. For me, this lecture was in many ways very interesting. This type of lecture would for one never happen in a Catholic mass, but as well was very nice to see a congregation welcome back a member. Allowing Wyner to speak about her passion for art was inspiring as well an informative. It was refreshing to see a community supporting each other as the congregation welcomed Wyner and applauded her accomplishments. The service was let out after the finish of Wyner’s lecture. While some of the lay lefts shortly after, I noticed a good majority of the congregation stayed behind and talked with each other. The service at Temple Israel was an unlikely comforting and fascinating service that gave me a greater appreciation for Judaism.
Judaism has most interested me, because of the respect I have for the history of the Jewish people and their ability to beat all odds. The perception of God in Judaism is monotheistic; in 2012 the world's Jewish population was estimated to be 13.75 million-according to Professor Sergio Della Pergola (2012) a Hebrew University demographics expert; that means an estimated 13.75 million Jews followed the tradition/religion of Judaism. The ultimate reality in Judaism is God; The Jews view God as eternal- the ultimate creator of the universe, and the source of righteousness. God has the power to intervene in the lives of the Jews. God has been called upon throughout Hebrew biblical history in many different names (ex. Elohim,YHWH), although all names reference the same God.
The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism capture ethos of the spirituality and its teachings. By just these four lessons, Buddha preaches the principles of tranquility within meditation of mere concentration. From these truths he developed a guidance referred to as the Eightfold Path, a series of principles that lead to awakening when practiced and understood. He preaches that inevitable suffering comes from desire, however he concludes with a solution to a life lived in nirvana. The first two of the Four Noble Truths are Dukha and Avidya, focusing on the primitive presence of suffering within day to day life. The other two are Nirodha and Magga, contributions to having faith that solvents for all suffering do exist and how it is accomplished. The combination of each understanding is a simple recipe to ultimate salvation, hence the contribution to development of self awareness and happiness within cultures across the map.
For a something I never really knew about, I now enjoy studying about Judaism. In chapter one, the use of a calendar that is a spiral instead of a cycle, the idea is for new and better things to happen in the future, instead of repeating events from the past. I have to remind myself that I can always have a better tomorrow, even if I am struggling at the moment. Also, with a future that spirals upward, means that things can only get better and life will never be the same. Being dragged down by things in the past do not make life easier, the past will only slow you down from making successes in the future. In chapter eight, the meaning that came across was taking care of others, instead of focusing on oneself for some time. I try to help others
The Eightfold Path labels all of the rights of monks and helps guide them to peace within themselves. The Eightfold Path guides monks and nuns towards Nirvana through eight simple principles. The first principle, the Right of Understanding, explains the significance of understanding situations the way they occur instead of understanding things from one’s personal experiences. “Right thought involves our intentions. The spirit in which we approach everything” (Sach). These two rights form into its own category ...
In Buddhism, the noble eightfold path serves as a roadmap to ridding oneself, and the world at large, from suffering. It consist the prajna (wisdom) steps, the sheela (action) steps, and the concentration (or meditation) steps. Although all of these steps share an intrinsically symbiotic relationship, the concentration steps are arguably the most important. Chiefly, because they serve as a conduit to, reinforcement of, and safeguard for the wisdom and action steps, and mastery of them is necessary to end Dukkha and achieve enlightenment.