World Religions. Judaism Session 1: Ancient Origins. Dirk s Contact Info

Transcription

1 Slide 1 World Religions Judaism Session 1: Ancient Origins Dirk s Contact Info Phone: (Bethany Church s main number) drodgers@bethanychurch.com Facebook Page: Pastor Dirk Rodgers Tumblr: Dirk s Web Site: Bethany Church Web Site:

2 Slide 2 This Session 1 Preliminary Considerations 2 Key Ancient Dates 3 The Written and Oral Toah

3 Slide 3 Part 6.1: Judaism Ancient Origins 1 PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS

4 Slide 4 Why Study World Religions? Understanding Our Neighbor Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8 (ESV); see also 1 Corinthians 13:1-7

5 Slide 5 Why Study World Religions? Understanding Our Ourselves For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (ESV), see also 1 Corinthians 13:8-11

6 Slide 6 Judaism Worldwide ~14 million, 0.2% of the world population Image & Data Source:

7 Slide 7 Challenges to Understanding Multiple Judaic traditions Cultural and religious dimensions of Judaism A long history of Antisemitism Following the Jewish Calendar

8 Slide 8 Part 6.1: Judaism Ancient Origins 2 KEY ANCIENT DATES

9 Slide 9 Jewish Year One Rabbi s Opinion 1 CREATION OF THE WORLD, AND ADAM & CHAVA (EVE) THE GREAT FLOOD COVERED THE EARTH. Secular Year Avraham (son of Terach) was born THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL LEFT EGYPT Bnei Yisrael crossed the Jordan into Canaan THE FIRST BEIT HAMIKDASH WAS COMPLETED Dates and event descriptions are from Mattis Kantor, Codex Judica: Chronological Index of Jewish History (New York: Zichron Press, 2005),

10 Slide 10 Other Options Event Abraham Exodus First Temple Completed Secular Year c.2166 BCE or c BCE c BCE or 1279 BCE 959 BCE

11 Slide 11 Key Dates Following the First Temple Event First Temple Completed Kingdom Divides into Northern Kingdom (Israel) and Southern Kingdom (Judah) Northern Kingdom conquered by Assyria Southern Kingdom conquered by Babylon and First Temple Destroyed First Exiles return to Jerusalem Second Temple Dedicated Second Temple Desecrated by Antiochus IV Second Temple Destroyed by Rome Secular Year 959 BCE 930 BCE 722 BCE 586 BCE 538 BCE 516 BCE 168 BCE 70 CE Note: Many Jewish Rabbis would assign different dates to these events; This listing represents a consensus among biblical scholars in general.

12 Slide 12 Part 6.1: Judaism Ancient Origins 3 THE WRITTEN AND ORAL TORAH

13 Slide 13 Tanakh (24 Books) Torah (Law) Nevi'im (Prophets) Ketuvim (Writings) Entire Tanakh when it was displayed in Dallas at the Wycliffe Bible Translator s campus. The Written Torah Image Source: scrolls4all.org/scrolls, accessed 3/22/2016

14 Slide 14 Torah (5) Genesis (Bereshit) Exodus (Shemot) Leviticus (Vayikra) Numbers (Bamidbar) The Written Torah Deuteronomy (Devarim) Torah Scroll from Lithuania written in the 16th century Image Source: scrolls4all.org/scrolls, accessed 3/22/2016, copyright 2015 ezdigitalbooks.com

15 Slide 15 The Written Torah Nevi'im (8) Joshua (Y'hoshua) Judges (Shophtim) Samuel (I & II) (Sh'muel) Kings (I & II) (M'lakhim) Isaiah (Y'shayahu) Jeremiah (Yir'mi'yahu) Ezekiel (Y'khezqel) The Twelve Prophets* *Hosea (Hoshea), Joel (Yo'el), Amos (Amos), Obadiah (Ovadyah), Jonah (Yonah), Micah (Mikhah), Nahum (Nakhum), Habakkuk (Havakuk), Zephaniah (Ts'phanyah), Haggai (Khagai), Zechariah (Z'kharyah), Malachi (Mal'akhi)

16 Slide 16 The Written Torah Ketuvim (11) Psalms (Tehillim) Proverbs (Mishlei) Job (Iyov) Song of Songs (Shir Hashirim) Ruth (Rut) Lamentations (Eikhah) Ecclesiastes (Kohelet) Esther (Esther) Daniel (Dani'el) Ezra-Nehemiah (Ezra v'nechemia) Chronicles (I & II) (Divrei Hayamim)

17 Slide 17 From Genesis 1:1 Image Source: adapted from beautyofthebible.com/category/hebrew/page/3/, accessed 3/22/2016

18 Slide 18 Septuagint (LXX) Greek Translation of the Hebrew Text Originates 3 rd 1 st century BCE, Alexandria Legendary Origin Fragment of a Septuagint: A column from 1 Esdras in the Codex Vaticanus c CE Image Source: By Unknown - Uncial 059 (Gregory-Aland), Public Domain,

19 Slide 19 Septuagint (LXX) Witness to earlier periods Revised order of Books Septuagint Plus (Apocrypha) Scriptures for the Christian Era

20 Slide 20 Destruction of the temple, 70 CE Jamnia Discussion Yohann ben Zakkai, c. 30 BCE - 90 CE Which books, defile the hands? Yohann ben Zakkai on the Knesset Menorah Inage Source: Knesset_Menorah_P JPG: Deror avi derivative work: Rabanus Flavus - This file was derived from Knesset Menorah P JPG: siebenarmiger Leuchter vor der Knesset in Jerusalem, Jochanan ben Sakkai

21 Slide 21 Dead Sea Scrolls Secret agents using assumed names, clandestine meetings under cover of night behind enemy lines, switching cabs to avoid being followed these sound like things in a spy novel, but they all happened in conjunction with the discovery, sale, and publication of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Scanlin, H. P. (1993). The Dead Sea scrolls and modern translations of the Old Testament. Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

22 Slide 22 Dead Sea Scrolls ~972 Texts in 11 Caves Copies of Scriptures Copies of Second Temple Texts (Enoch, Jubilees, etc.) Copies of Community Documents (Community Rule, War Scroll, etc.) Qumran cave 4, where ninety percent of the scrolls were found Image Source: By Effi Schweizer - Own work, Public Domain,

23 Slide 23 Dead Sea Scrolls Time Differential of Biblical Texts 10 th century BCE to 2 nd century CE Every Book represented, except probably Esther Substantial agreement coupled with a range of textual variants Other views of Second Temple Judaism A portion of the second discovered copy of the Isaiah scroll, 1QIsab. Image Source: uploaded by Daniel.baranek - Public Domain,

24 Slide 24 Masoretes ( CE) Who Are They? Pointing System: A page from the Aleppo Codex, 10 th Century Rules of Transmission Textual Variants The Name of God By Shlomo ben Buya'a - by Ardon Bar Hama. (C) 2007 The Yad Yitzhak Ben Zvi Institute.Uploaded by Daniel.baranek on 2 June 2007 (upload date), Public Domain,

25 Slide 25 Talmud - Mishnah - Gemara Midrash Kabbalah The Oral Torah Title page of Midrash Tehillim (Prague, 1613), from the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia. Image Source: PD-US,

26 Slide 26 The Oral Torah Mishna [A]n early third century rabbinic compilation of rules and concepts. Considered by later generations to contain the oral Torah, which Moses received from God on Mount Sinai. Zahavy, Tzvee ( ). Judaism (Kindle Locations ).. Kindle Edition. Page from a 13 th Century Manuscript of the Mishnah, originating from Northern France Image Source:

27 Slide 27 Judah HaNasi ( the Prince ) c CE The Oral Torah Traditional burial place at Beit She'arim National Park, Israel Image Source: By Hebrew Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0,

28 Slide 28 Gemara Later Rabbinic discussions seeking to explain and harmonize teachings within the Tanakh and the Mishah Painting by Adolf Behrman ( ) - Zbiory ŻIH (Żydowski Instytut Historyczny) The Oral Torah Image Source: Public Domain,

29 Slide 29 The Oral Torah Talmud = Mishnah + Gemara Jerusalem or Palestinian Talmud - c. 400 or 450 CE - smaller of the two Babylonian Talmud - c. 500 CE - Talmud without qualification usually refers to the Babylonian text

30 Slide 30 Talmud: A Translated Sample From the Berakoth Tractate, 2a MISHNAH. FROM WHAT TIME MAY ONE RECITE THE SHEMA' IN THE EVENING? FROM THE TIME THAT THE PRIESTS ENTER [THEIR HOUSES] IN ORDER TO EAT THEIR TERUMAH1 UNTIL THE END OF THE FIRST WATCH. THESE ARE THE WORDS OF R. ELIEZER. THE SAGES SAY: UNTIL MIDNIGHT. R. GAMALIEL SAYS: UNTIL THE DAWN COMES UP. GEMARA. On what does the Tanna base himself that he commences: FROM WHAT TIME? Furthermore, why does he deal first with the evening [Shema']? Let him begin with the morning [Shema']! The Tanna bases himself on the Scripture, where it is written [And thou shalt recite them] when thou liest down and when thou risest up, and he states [the oral law] thus: When does the time of the recital of the Shema' of lying down begin? Simon, Maurice. Soncino Babylonian Talmud Berakoth (Kindle Locations ). Talmudic Books. Kindle Edition.

31 Slide 31 Midrash The Oral Torah 3 rd 11 th century commentaries, sermons & teachings on the Tanakh Halakhah Law & Religious Practice Aggadah Ethics & Theology Image Source: Public Domain,

32 Slide 32 Midrash A Translated Sample OF the six things which existed before creation, when only 'the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters,' two, the Torah and the throne of God, were complete in every detail. The remaining four, however, viz., the Patriarchs, Israel, the Temple, and the name of Messiah, existed prior to the creation only in an incomplete form. Tales and Maxims of the Midrash, Samuel Rapaport, (London: George Routledge & Sons, Ltd., 1907), 42, in accessed 3/25/2016

33 Slide 33 Kabbalah The Oral Torah [T]he name applied to the whole range of Jewish mystical activity. While codes of Jewish law focus on what it is God wants from man, kabbalah tries to penetrate deeper, to God's essence itself. Joseph Telushkin, Kabbalah: An Overview, in html, accessed 3/25/3016 The 10 Sephirot, or emanations of God s self revelation Image Source: By User:AnonMoos - Vector equivalent of File:Tree of life bahir hebrew.png based on File:Kabbalistic Tree of Life (Sephiroth).svgThis vector image includes elements that have been taken or adapted from this: Kabbalistic Tree of Life (Sephiroth).svg., Public Domain,

34 Slide 34 Zohar 3 rd or 11 th century CE Entrance to the tomb of Simeon bar Yochai, or Rashbi, traditionally the initial compiler of the Zohar in the 2nd century CE. The Oral Torah Image Source: Public Domain,

35 Slide 35 Zohar A Translated Sample 1. Rabbi Hizkiyah opened (began): It is said, as a rose among thorns (Shir HaShirim, 2:2). He asks, What does a rose represent? He answers, It is the Assembly of Israel, meaning Malchut. For there is a rose, and there is a rose. Just as a rose among thorns is tinged with red and white, so does the Assembly of Israel (Malchut) consist of judgment and mercy. The Zohar, ed. and trans. Michael Laitman (Toronto: Laitman Kabbalah Publishers, 2007), 41.