Rabbi Hillel, a great sage who lived in the first century BCE, was once asked by a non-Jew to explain Judaism. The man said that he would become a Jew himself if Hillel could teach him all about Torah in the time that he could stand on one leg. Hillel famously replied, "What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your neighbour. That is the whole Torah. The rest is commentary." (The story does not tell whether the man did indeed convert).

Belief

Although Judaism begins with the premise that G-d exists, there is no single set of beliefs, no creed, that defines Jewish belief. Indeed Judaism puts much more emphasis on action than on beliefs. There are many beliefs that are held by many Jews. Moses Maimonides, a great medieval Jewish scholar (often known as Rambam) set out a list of 13 principles of faith but there is hardly one of them that has not been disputed by some Jews at some time.

The actions which are held to be so important are the 613 Mitzvot as well as other laws and customs that have developed or been introduced over the long period of Jewish history.

Important Characters:

Judaism does not have a central character equivalent in status to, for example, Jesus, Mohamed or Zoroaster. Instead, central importance is given to the individual’s membership of the Jewish People. Membership of the people is assured by birth. Traditionally, a person is considered Jewish if his or her mother is Jewish, the religion of the father being immaterial.

However, there are a number of key characters in the Jewish story, of whom Moses is, perhaps, the most important. Moses was not the founder of Judaism, nor the person around whom the faith is constructed. He is considered the greatest of the Prophets and the only one to whom G-d spoke directly.

The most important other characters are the 3 patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.

Life after death:

Whilst Judaism believes that our life in this world is not the only life, the nature of life after death is both unknown and unknowable so we  do not consider it worth spending any energy speculating about it. Mainstream Judaism has little real concern with the nature of Heaven and no belief in Hell.

This life is what we know and we have a duty to make the best of it. To know how to make the best of this life it is necessary to gain as great a knowledge and understanding of Torah as possible. For this reason Judaism has developed an emphasis on study and learning. Learned people are seen as worthy of great respect, more so than kings and princes. Judaism could be said to have an "aristocracy of learning".

Prayers, Priests and Intermediaries:

Jews can pray anywhere. A synagogue is not necessary (indeed much Jewish prayer takes place at home), nor is a congregation (although there are some aspects of prayer which are held to require  a group of 10 worshipers - known as a minyan).

In Jewish thought, the Creator does not need a mediator between himself and humanity and, furthermore, humanity does not need a mediator to have a relationship with the Creator. Therefore, Jews pray only to the Creator. It is not proper to pray to anyone or anything else, nor through anything or anyone else.

During biblical times there was a hereditary priestly class, the Cohenim, whose role was to officiate in the temple services (hence the family name, Cohen). Since the destruction of the temple this role has been redundant. Orthodox Judaism still maintains the idea of the Cohen and those who are Cohens by birth still have particular roles and duties during synagogue services (eg. A Cohen is called first to read the Torah). Progressive communities make no distinction between Cohens and others.

Most Jewish communities employ a rabbi, who is most emphatically not a priest. He (or, possibly, in a progressive community, she) is a scholar, a teacher and interpreter of the Law and an exemplar to the community. In modern times rabbis often fulfill many of the functions usually associated with priesthood, such as visiting the sick. A rabbi may conduct synagogue services but this can be done by any member of the community. Many communities employ a Chazan, (cantor) specifically to lead the services.

Jews consider themselves to be the people chosen by God to be his priestly nation. The idea of "The Chosen People" has been widely misunderstood over the centuries and has been the cause of much grief. Most Jews have no belief in the idea that they are in some way superior to non-Jews, nor that righteousness is a Jewish preserve. Rather, the understanding is that we have been chosen for a particular task.

Jews do not consider it necessary to be ascetic in order to be holy. We believe that we should live IN the world and that in doing so our lives should be fulfilled. We also believe that we have a responsibility to contribute to the good in the world rather than to simply use it for our own benefit. Jews often refer to this responsibility for positive social action as Tikkun Olam, which means "repairing the world".

Good Deeds

Jewish practice centres on the concept of Mitzvot. A Mitzvah is a commandment, something laid down in the Torah. Technically there are 613 mitzvot  but by extension any good deed is a mitzvah. Mitzvot can be positive (DO it) or negative (DON’T do it). (There are 365 DON'Ts and 248 DOs). The implication is that Jewish observance is an all day-every day thing. Much Jewish ritual and practice takes place in the home.

An important mitzvah is that of Tzadakah (charity).

Good and Evil

Judaism has a rather different take on these two qualities. The basic idea, as I understand it, is that the world is G-d's creation and therefore everything in it is essentially good. Each person has two impulses - the impulse to good (the Yetzer Tov) and the impulse to evil ( the Yetzer Ra). The Yetzer Tov might be called the conscience. It is what guides you when you decide to keep a mitzvah or not to break one. The Yetzer Ra is not so much a desire to commit evil as the impulse to satisfy personal needs without thought of wider consequences. The Yetzer Ra is not seen as inherently bad (without it, for example, we would not build our homes, earn our livings, marry and raise families). What is important is how we manage it and balance it with the Yetzer Tov.

Judaism understands that these impulses are within us, and not the result of some external agency such as the Devil acting on us. We each have free will to act in ways that we choose.

Life

In Jewish belief life is to be valued above almost anything else. Most of the commandments may be broken to preserve life.

Kashrut

Kashrut refers to the laws concerning foods and other materials that are considered fit for use. The Hebrew word Kosher means "fit" or "correct". The most obvious manifestation of kashrut is the dietary laws. Some of these laws derive directly from Torah. Others are based on rabbinic interpretations of Torah. Foods which are forbidden by the laws of kashrut are referred to as traife (pronounced trayfa). Click here for more details.