Judaism About the topic In this topic pupils will learn about their Jewish sisters and brothers, how they live as a family and how they worship Where this topic fits in This topic will be taught discretely but will follow two of the CHURCH topics: domestic family, and either local community or universal world ing outcomes Key words Moses, Exodus, Egypt, freedom, Passover, Pesach, Matzah, kosher, peace, community, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Teshurah, shofar, repentance, returning, forgiveness One We care for the earth God is the creator, he cares for us God is creator of the world and for each other God created the world Two (a) There are special days Saturday as God s special day Shabbat, day of rest, worship and Shabbat, the family gathers family for the meal Two (b) Special places going to the synagogue to worship the worship in the synagogue Three (a) Commitment to belief Jews believe in one God, How the Jewish people God leading Abraham to start express their love of God the nation. the Shema Three (b) We need guidance the Torah, the guidance God the importance of the Torah gives his people. God uses Moses to care for his people. Bar/bat Mitzvah Four (a) Special seasons Pesach, God caring for his people, the celebration of Pesach kosher food, family gathering Four (b) Special seasons Yom Kippur making a new start. the celebration of Yom Kippur Forgiveness; how Jewish people prepare opportunity to atone for sin Four: Other faiths: Judaism 1
JUDAISM Four (a) Lesson 1 Key words: Moses, Exodus, Egypt, freedom, Passover Special occasions Have you ever been in a nasty situation you did not like? Perhaps a time when you felt you were being a bit bullied? Pesach, God caring for his people, the Pesach, kosher food, family gathering The Israelites had been living in Egypt for a long time They were slaves to the pharaoh and had a very difficult life. The pharaoh made the people work very hard. Then things got even worse and the pharaoh ordered all the baby boys to be killed. One mother hid her little boy in a basket in the reeds. Pharaoh s daughter came across the baby and kept him as her own and called him Moses. When Moses grew up he saw how badly his own people were being treated. The Israelites prayed to God to rescue them from slavery. God thought Moses could help rescue the people, so he asked Moses to lead the Israelites to freedom. Moses was a bit shy and timid he was not sure he could do it. God promised to help him. So Moses went to pharaoh asked him to let the Israelites go free. But pharaoh was very stubborn. Moses knew the people would be free soon so he told them to get ready for a long journey, to kill a lamb and eat it and put some blood on the doorposts of their houses and take with them some unleavened bread for the journey. At midnight each eldest son in every family died except in the houses with lamb s blood on the doorposts. Death passed over these Israelite houses. The Egyptians were so shocked that they did not, at first, notice that the Israelite people, led by Moses had escaped. God had freed them from slavery. So today Jewish people remember that God passed over his people and lead them to freedom. Find out more about this story from Exodus 12. How do you think the Israelites felt when they were freed? Why did the Israelites have unleavened dough with them? The celebration of Pesach God showed his care for the people of Israel 2 Four A: Other faiths: Judaism
JUDAISM Four (a) Lesson 2 Key words: Exodus, freedom, Passover, Pesach, Matzah, kosher Special occasions What special times have you celebrated in your life? Have you ever celebrated someone s wedding anniversary? Have people remembered what happened when at the original wedding? Sometimes when we celebrate we remember another time Some important Jewish festivals, their meaning. Pesach, God caring for his people, the Pesach, kosher food, family gathering Recall the last lesson. Every year Jewish people remember and retell the story of how God passed over their houses in Egypt and lead them to freedom to his Promised Land. It is a very important celebration. Pesach or Passover always takes place at springtime as its origins lie in an ancient springtime festival. When Jews celebrate Pesach today, they remember how God saved them. It is a family and community celebration. No one is left out and those without families are welcomed into families. The house is cleaned thoroughly so that no leaven bread remains. The table is set for a special meal and is eaten as a reminder of the Exodus, the escape from Egypt.. That food is placed on a special plate, the Seder plate. All the food has to be kosher for the Passover, that is, specially approved according to the regulations that are in the Torah. Matzah (unleavened bread) is eaten as a reminder of when the Israelites left Egypt with unleavened dough. During the meal, the youngest child asks 4 questions. The answers to the question tell the story of the Exodus, so no one will ever forget it. Special songs are sung and the meal lasts for many hours. Watch a video of a family celebrating Pesach. Or ask a Jewish person to show you what happens at Passover. Research and find what is put on to the Seder plate and what each item represents. Decorate a Seder plate and draw the which goes on it. Research Kosher foods. Is there a quick and easy way to find out what is kosher and what is not? The celebration of Pesach At Pesach Jewish people remember how God lead them to freedom Four A: Other faiths: Judaism 3
JUDAISM Four (a) Lesson 3 Key words: Pesach, peace, freedom, community Special seasons If you could have one special wish for the people of the world what would it be? How would that wish make the lives of people happier and better? Some important Jewish festivals, their meaning. Pesach, God caring for his people, the Pesach, kosher food, family gathering The feast of Pesach (Passover) is a joyful occasion full of hope, of thankfulness to God for protection, guidance and sustenance. It is a time that parents use to retell their children the story of the Jewish people. They learn more about their faith through the question and activities of the Seder meal. It is a time when families gather, when they feel a sense of belonging to a community which has been chosen by God and is also dependent upon him. It is a time when strangers are welcomed. Jews think a lot about peace at this time. At the end of the Seder meal Jews pray that next year they can celebrate the Seder in Jerusalem and at peace. Here is a Jewish song about peace. Shalom Chaverim, Shalom Chaverim, Shalom, Shalom, L hitraot L hitraot, Shalom, Shalom Here is a similar song in English Our hope is for peace Our prayer is for peace Shalom, Shalom Let all now be friends Let all now be free Shalom, Shalom Find a tune to sing this to Write a poem about peace Research the life of some who has worked for peace Find out the word peace in some different languages The celebration of Pesach Jews think about peace at Pesach 4 Four A: Other faiths: Judaism
JUDAISM Four (b) Lesson 1 Key words: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Teshurah, shofar, repentance Special occasions, a new beginning The new year is often a time when we look back over the year and think about what we have done. Do you ever make new year s resolutions? Do you decide that in the future you are going to improve something in your life? Like getting out of bed when your are called? Yom Kippur making a new start. Forgiveness; how Jewish people prepare opportunity to atone for sin Rosh Hashanah (the head or beginning of the Year), marks the beginning of the new year for Jewish people. It is a holiday. It takes place in the Autumn. It lasts for ten days and ends when Jews celebrate Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) on the tenth day. For the Jewish people, Rosh Hashanah is a time to look back over the past year. Jews believe that God gave human beings free will to choose between good and evil and that God will forgive anyone who is really sorry. Saying sorry in Hebrew means returning, that is, returning to God. It is a time to put right any wrongs against another person. A time to express sorrow for sins (Teshuvah) During this time in the synagogue the ark, the bimah (reading desk) and the scrolls are covered in white. When people meet each other they say May you be inscribed for a good year. The hope is that God will record all people s deeds with favour. On Rosh Hashanah, apples dipped in honey are eaten with a prayer that God will make the New Year a good and sweet one. Design a Rosh Hashanah card for a Jewish friend. Why do you think this feast marks the beginning of the holiest time of the year for Jewish people? Research more about this feast. The celebration of Yom Kippur Jewish celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of a time of repentance. Four B: Other faiths: Judaism 5
JUDAISM Four (b) Lesson 2 Key words: Yom Kippur, returning, shofar, repentance Special occasions, being sorry What do you do if you know you have done something wrong and are really sorry about it? How can you feel better? Yom Kippur making a new start. Forgiveness; how Jewish people prepare opportunity to atone for sin Recall the last lesson. The ten days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur are called ten days of returning. (Yom Kippur means day of atonement.) During this time people try to mend broken relationships by apologising, saying sorry and also accepting apologies and forgiving others. During the month leading up to this time the ram s horn or shofar is blown to call people to repentance, so they are well prepared for this time. On the eve of the last day before Yom Kippur many families give money to the poor. Then a meal is eaten and after that a fast begins for 25 hours. This is a time when some men may visit the mikveh (a ritual bath for spiritual cleansing). Leather shoes are not worn as they are a sign of luxury. What are the signs that people are really sorry? Take one of those signs and say what you think it means. Using ICT or a dictionary, find out what atonement means and write out a meaning in your own words. at a shofar, hear one blown or picture of one. Why do you think it is used? Read Leviticus 23:26-32. What does it tell you about this time? Find out about mikvehs using ICT or the library. The celebration of Yom Kippur Jewish people are very serious about making peace. 6 Four B: Other faiths: Judaism
JUDAISM Four (b) Lesson 3 Key words: Yom Kippur, forgiveness Special occasions, making a new start Have you ever made a new start, turned over a new leaf? What does it feel like? Yom Kippur making a new start. Forgiveness; how Jewish people prepare opportunity to atone for sin Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish year. It is a day on which no work is allowed It is a very solemn day. It is the only time when Jews kneel to pray. On Yom Kippur people express sorrow for sins (Teshuvah) and receive God s forgiveness. Many people stay at the synagogues throughout this day; there are 5 different services of prayer and readings from the Torah. In the afternoon the book of Jonah is read, which is about forgiveness. Finally at the last service, the door of the ark is opened to show that God is willing to hear repentance and at the end it is closed to show that God has finished judging. One blow on the shofar announces that the fast is over. There is a service called havdalah which also marks the end of shabbat. Afterwards everyone goes home for a celebratory meal. Read the story of Jonah, tell it to someone else. Research Yom Kippur using ICT or the library. Find out about another Jewish festival such as Sukkot or Hanukkah, using ICT or the library. The celebration of Yom Kippur Jewish people make a new start at the beginning of their new year. Four B: Other faiths: Judaism 7