Jewish Practices
Practices:
Before and
after Christ:
- Before Christ:
Temple, the Ark, Altar, Sacrifices, the "Great Miracle to Come"...
the Sabbath...
Passover, Seder
- After Christ:
No Sacrifices, no Priests,
Rabbinical Judaism, Synagogue...
-
Today... "Home".
-
OTHER PRACTICES TODAY,
Marriage, Bar
mitzvah, Bat mitzvah, Funeral...Nutrition, kosher, health
At the times of Jesus Christ:
Jesus Christ, Sadducees (priests, the rich, the
politicians), Pharisees (scribes, writers, rabbis), Herodians, Essenes, Zealots,
Samaritan Sect, Sanhedrin, Publicans (Jews tax-collectors), Gentiles.
Immediately After
Christ:
Christians, Ebonite,
Nazareans or Nazarenes, Simonians, Cerintheians, Judaizers, Circumcisers,
Nicolaitans, the "Synagogue of Satan", the
"Throne of Satan", the "doctrine of
Balaam", Docetism, Gnosticism, Neo-Gnosticism, Agnosticism.
Judaism from
the Second Century to Present:
Rabbinic Judaism,
Anti-rabbinic reactions, Karaites, the Geonim, Sephardim and Ashkenazim, Jewish
Mysticism, Kabala, Hasidism, Gnosticism, Haskala or
Enlightenment, Zionism
Judaism Today:
-
In the USA and
the`world:
Orthodox,
Chasidim,
Reform,
Conservative,
Reconstrucionist,
Jews for
Jesus-Messianic Judaism,
Traditional,
Humanistic,
Gay/Lesbian,
Karaite Groups
-
In Israel,
World Jewish Population,
Links
It is often argued that Judaism is not a religion of doctrines but of
"practices". It is not true, because the doctrines of God, the Messiah,
humanity, and others, as just described, are uniquely the greatest in the human history...
... however, the "Practices", specially the "Sabbath", have kept
Judaism alive during the Egyptian slavery, the deportations to Babylon and Ninive, and
through the Diaspora for the last 2,000 years...
Some of the practices are very different "before Christ" and
"after Christ": ... Before Christ, the Ark of the Covenant, sacrifices, and
priests, were the center of Judaism. ... After Christ, when the Temple was destroyed and
the Ark lost, the synagogue and rabbis (teachers), are the center of Judaism. ... In both
instances, "the home" is the heart of Judaism.
An altar and a sacrifice were the center of Judaism at the times of
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob... with the rite of "circumcision" made to any boy born
from a Jewish mother.
After Moses:
An
altar, a sacrifice, and a priest, were the essence on Judaism, but now centered
around the "Ark of the Covenant", first, in the portable Tabernacle, during the
40 years of wanderings around Sinai, and since Solomon, in the permanent Temple
of Jerusalem, built to host the Ark in the Holy of Hollis, where nobody could
enter, except the High Priest, and only once a year, on the day of Yom Kippur.
Diagram of the Temple:
- The most holy place (Holy of
Holiest), with the Ark, is the smaller room on the left (west)... with two large cherubim
angels over the Ark.
- The holy place, with the altar of incense, colored gold, is on the
right... and the table of the shewbread and the seven-branched lampstand.
- The bronze altar of burnt offerings shown by a square outside the
tent, in the courtyard... in between, the bronze "see", as a small circle.
The "Contents of the
Ark":
There are 3 objects, the "symbols" for the times
after the Messiah, for the Kingdom of God on earth, "for the present time", says
Hebrews 9:
1- The "tables" of the 10 Commandments of Moses, symbol of
the "Bible".
2- The gold jar containing the "manna", symbol of the
"Eucharist".
3- The "rod of Aaron" which blossomed, symbol of the
"Hierarchy".
The Great Miracle of the Ark
The most spectacular "Miracle": The columns
of fire and cloud over the Ark is "the most durable and spectacular miracle" in
the history of humanity:
- Since the Ark was set up in the Tent, a column of fire stood on top of it during the
night and a column of cloud during daytime... columns of over 2 miles high, and over 40
years, day and night!...
...and still more!:
When the columns stood still, the people stood in the same place; but when the columns
moved, the people would follow them... the 3 million of Israelites, with their cattle and
belongings, and follow the columns for miles, until they stopped, and at that place, they
would set up the new camp; and they would stay there as long as the columns stayed there;
but, if in one day or in a month, the columns started to move, they would pick up
everything again, and follow the columns... the 3 million of Israelites!
(Num.9:15-23, Ex.40:34-38, 13:21-22, 15:38).
The great miracle to come,
at the end of times:
- When the Temple was destroyed, the
Ark was lost... but the Bible says that Jeremiah put it in a huge cave at Mount Nebo, and
made 2 prophecies: (1) It will stay there until God gathers his people together again, and
(2) at that time, the columns of fire and cloud will be seen again as in the times of
Moses (2Macc.2)... a huge column of fire of 3 kilometers high that will be seen from all
over Israel and Jordan... and by Television from all over the world!
- Many people are searching now for the "Ark of the Covenant", the most sacred
property of Israel, but they are looking for it in the wrong places!... it is at Mount
Nebo!, the Scriptures say.
The "SACRIFICES":
Sacrifices made by a priest on an altar, were the "essence of Judaism
worship". They were so important, that only the 5 books of the Torah dedicate 27 full
chapters to it: They offered, at the entrance of the Tent or the Temple.
The daily
"perpetual sacrifice", and 4 kinds of sacrifices:
1- The "perpetual sacrifice":
Two male lambs, one in the morning, and other at twilight (Num.28, Ex.29).
If it is "perpetual", "for all time", "eternal", it has to
exist now, and it does!, in the daily Christian Holy Sacrifice of the Mass... and, if it
is "eternal", is got to be in Heaven, and it is!, in Rev.5:6, "a lamb
standing like slaughtered", just in the center of the Throne, and the reason for all
the joy in Heaven, for eternity.
2- The "4 kinds of sacrifices" are:
1- "Holocaust": All animal is
burned (Lev.1).
2- The "sin-offering": The fat is burned, the rest
of the animal is for the priest (Lev.4-5).
3- The "Eucharistic" or "Thanks-giving":
The fat is burned; the rest of the animal, some for the priest, and some for the one who
offered it (Lv.3).
4- "Flour offering": Like "sin offering"
(Lev.2).
The Temple and the
Synagogue
The
3 Temples in the Bible
Ark
of the Covenant: The greatest and longest Miracle in the Bible, the great
Miracle to come at the End of Times
Exodus 5:
Tabernacle and Priests-Two kinds of Judaism and of Christianity-Ark of the
Covenant-Altar
Exodus 5b: Temple-Tabernacle-Holy of
Holies-The Ark- Holy
Place-The Veil-The Tent-The
Courtyard-The Two Gates-The Great
Miracle to come at the End of Times
Exodus 6:
Priests-Vestments-Jesus-Church-Perpetual Sacrifice-Sabbath-The Glory of God
Today in Judaism
there is no "eternal sacrifice", no "priests",
no "altar"... as it was announced it would happen after the coming of the
Messiah (Dan,8:11, 9:26-27, 11:31, 12:11, Hos3:4, Amos 7:9)...
... If Abraham or Moses would come today to Israel or New York, they would not recognize
"Judaism".
1- Judaism without "sacrifice":
The Prophets had announced that after the coming of the Messiah the Temple
shall be thrown down, and the eternal sacrifice and the priesthood shall be abolished...
Daniel 8:11, 9:27, 11:31, 12:11, Hosea 3:4, Amos 7:9...
... And this is exactly what happened after Jesus the Messiah, the Temple was destroyed in
70 AC by Titus, and Judaism was left without Temple, without Altar, without Sacrifice, and
without Priests... only Rabbis (teachers), as it is today!... if Abraham or David would
come today to Israel or New York, they would not recognize Judaism!...
... Only the 5 books of the Torah, the most sacred books, dedicate 27 full chapters to the
altar, sacrifices, priests... (Ex.25-40, Lev.1-6, 23-25, Num.28-29... plus Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob spent a good time of their lives erecting altars and offering sacrifices
(Gen.13:18, 26:25, 33:20, 35:1)... and now they are "obsolete" for the Jews of
today!.
... It is astonishing to witness the fulfillment of all of these prophecies... and to see
that still many Jews do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah!... though today there is a
big movement of "Jews for Jesus"... and the Word of God says that eventually
"all Israel will be saved, when the full number of Gentiles enter in"
(Rom.11:25-26).
... The heart of any religion, even the pagan ones, is an "altar" and a
"victim", with a "priest" to offer the "sacrifice"... today,
the Jews have moral and ethics, but no sacrifice... they have a "body" without
"heart"...
2- The Rabbinical Judaism and Talmud:
Without Temple nor sacrifices, the Sadducees (the priests), simply faded out of
existence, and the Zealots who brought the revolt that lead to the destruction of
Jerusalem disappeared.
...This left the "Pharisees alone" to carry on the Jewish faith... and the
Rabbis (teachers, masters) emphasized the Law and created the "Talmud" as
commented in the "Sacred Scriptures"... and the "rabbinical system",
with the Talmud, was put in place, and remains so to the present.
3- The "Synagogue":
Without the Sacrifices and Temple, the Synagogue was the center of the
Jewish life, with the rabbis at the center.
"Temple" and "Synagogue":
The worship at the times of Jesus was both in the Temple and the
Synagogue. The difference between both of them is:
1- The "Temple", was "the house
of God", where God was represented by the Ark of the Covenant. They went to the
Temple to adore God and make sacrifices to Him. The "center" of everything is
"God", with an altar, a priest, and a sacrifice.
2- The "Synagogue", means "hall
of meeting". God is not present there, and they went to the Synagogue to meet
together to pray, to learn the Torah, and to help each other. The "center" here
is the "people"... there is no altar, no priests, no sacrifices... only rabbis
(teachers).
Jesus,
with his presence, blessed both of them, and
today in Christianity should be both: Temple and Synagogue.
- Most of the Protestants have only Synagogues, without altar, nor priests, nor
sacrifices.
- The Catholics and Orthodox have Temples with the Tabernacle, altar, priests, and the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass; the Synagogues are lived in the different pious groups or
associations.
Judaism has no Temple, but Synagogues, with no altar, no priest...
though some Reform Jews call their synagogues temples... and the worship is in the
"synagogue", but primarily at "home".
The Home
is the center, the lifeblood of Judaism, not the synagogue or the wearing
of the star of David. And the Jewish wife and mother, more than the father, is the one who
rules the family, directs the education of children, makes sure that the right prayers are
said before and after meals, in the morning and at night, and controls the family foods
and purse. Domestic observances include the special meals connected with the Sabbath,
Passover, Yom Kippur and other festivals, the party atmosphere during Purim and
Hanukkah,
ritual washing of the hands...
The "Synagogue":
Houses the ark, in which the Torah is kept. A typical Jewish service
features scriptural readings, prayers, the chanting of hymns, often from the Psalms, by a
cantor, and the giving of a sermon or lesson by the rabbi, and concludes with the
"alenu" prayer, a prayer for doing one's duty to God.
The
Synagogue and the Temple
The "Shema":
One basic prayer is the "Shema" ("hear"), the first
word of the prayer of Deut.6:4-9, 11:13-21, Num.15:37-41, the first prayer to be learned
by children and the last to be said to a dying person. - At least 10 men must be present
before a public prayer can be offered. During the service men wear a prayer shawl
(Tallit), and a head covering (Yarmulke).
The Shema
Government of the Synagogue:
Synagogues, like Baptist churches, are governed in a democratic manner by
congregational decision. The rabbi, the leader or teacher, is endowed with no special
powers, though is most respected.
The
Synagogue and the Temple
Most Jewish Americans go to the synagogue only on the high holy days.
The "Halakah" (the "way"), formulates
the Jewish style of living.
A person is considered a "Jew" if the mother is a Jew, whether or not the
father is a Jew.
"Circumcision" of male infants, takes place on the 8th day after birth. The
child is welcomed to the covenant, and formally named. Corresponds to the Christian
Baptism (Lc.2:21).
Bar mitzvah, for boys at 13, marks the time of
reaching religious maturity. "Bat mitzvah", for girls at 12... the boys read a
portion of the Torah in the Sabbath... both celebrated with a party.
Marriage, under the wedding canopy (chuppah), a
symbol of their home. The feast last for 8 days. Ends with the "breaking of a
glass", indicating the destruction of Jerusalem.
Funeral: Divided in 3 periods: From death to
burial; the 7 days after burial; from the 7th to the 30th day after burial; then, every
year, a memorial light is kept burning for 24 hours, and contributions to charity are made
in the deceased's memory.
"Kosher", "Spiritually pure":
Foods chosen and
prepared according to biblical dictates. Pork and shellfish are taboo, as is the eating of
milk and meat at the same time (Ex.23:19). Animals must be slaughtered with the blood
completely drained, by a special person. The sale of kosher foods must have the approval
of a rabbi.
Leviticus 2:
Nutrition, kosher, health, preventive modern medicine, hygiene, asepsis
Jewish Practices in Scripture:
Leviticus 1:
Sacrifices, priests, holocaust, expiation, Eucharist,
consecration of priests, Jesus on the Cross, the Holy Mass
Leviticus 2:
Nutrition, kosher, health, preventive modern medicine, hygiene, asepsis
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Dominguez, M.D. Last edition: April,
2006