Judaism

Judaism encompasses all aspects of life. People practicing it have turned out to be the very conservative. They believe that their Torah (law) is there to strengthen them. They also believe in it as a guide and a way to help them see beyond loss and to grow. This conservatism is imminent especially in issues like sexual relation. Some of them have been fighting for and believed in a sexual relationship between two people of either same or opposite genders. This includes in their laws, which they take as a guide between what to do and what not to do. The conservative group has been on the frontline against sexual relations other than heterosexuality. For example, in the US, they have always been fighting against bisexuality and homosexuality (Kirn 39).

In Conservative Judaism, a committee on Jewish law and Standards make laws. They make laws that will guide the people on how to conduct themselves and have passed a lot of laws that put into consideration the traditional ways. One incident is the signing of a segment that prohibits all forms of homosexuality, with guidance from the Leviticus prohibition on male-male anal sex (Neusner 41).

 

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They preserve a lot of ancient practices. These are rituals conducted after birth and death. They also include those conducted before marriage. They refer it as the Taharah. It is a ritual process where they cleanse bodies of the dead before the burial process. They also cleanse children after birth using ritually purified water. The bride and bridegroom also undergo the ritual so that to bless their wedding. They still practice it until now (Rhein 73).

Judaism consists of different movements. These include the conservative, reconstruction, reform and orthodox. They embrace patriarchs. They mainly adopt their laws from the first five books in the Bible. The first five books have the concept that men dominate in the society. They mainly put emphasis on practice more than they do on belief. They also have their ethnic norms which constitute through Hallacha, a legal system in Jewish states. They use the same system to refer to the system used in the Islamic law of Sharia. It is a Religion-legal system, meaning that it is a legal system based on religious beliefs. The commandments in their past include the present laws. While following closely in these laws, there are many elements of the ancient laws. These include allegory, metaphorical language, inter-textual mirroring and historical referencing. This shows how Judaism has been preservative of their past in making of their laws. They tend to follow the paths that their forefathers set for them. These laws are the Agaddah. This adds to the actual cases which arose in the community, but which are essential as a guiding principal to the society (Neusner 64).

Judaism tends to be a casuistic and deontological system. It bases in conduct, duties and rules. It involves the process and motives. It uses the same methodology as the ancient Judaism, which comprised of history, text and community. This is due to its assumption that Torah law is motivational, binding, central, case-sensitive and inductive. The ancient community also believed that real world matters. When it comes to the current system, it deals with real issues as they arise.

The four branches of Judaism mentioned above all believe in Hallachas, which are laws interpreted by a rabbi. Though, each gives a different weight on the standards of the traditional norms. Halachah methodologically wields a strong influence. Though there is a little variance among the three branches, all of them tend to merge in most of their ways. Mostly, an individual is liable for their own choices. The Conservative tend to employ Minhag, a concept that relies on the community in decision making. Jewish law then encompasses the Western philosophic norms and social sciences in decision making.

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Another issue with Judaism is the tension with the praxis, which arise in all branches. How do they achieve justice? The issue is not yet resolved. This is due to the questioning of the solidity if the text. There are many decision makers who defend positions different from those stated in the Judaism laws because of the many countervailing premises. Marvin Fox, in his writing; modern Jewish Ethics, Theory and Practice, gives a view on the Halachic system. He argues that the Halachic system has accountability to many different sources ((Montefiore 53).

They believe the method incorporates natural reality, science and traditional texts. Rabbis used interpretation as an important tool in reconciliation of the basic text with a reality in science and change. He also argued that the Arabic world understands the Maimonides better than the Rabbinic sages. Therefore, Jews need to accept the truth, no matter the source. He also noted the flexibility of the Aggadah, which indicates the freedom at the method of the Jews itself. He reminds readers that the Jews experienced and heard the revelation through their own body and ears at Mount Sinai (Montefiore 67).