How does modern Judaism differ from Biblical Judaism?

[dominikus28]

I am interested as to how Judaism has changed from the Judaism in the Bible (at the time of Christ) - I know that after Christ, the Jewish Leaders changed the Biblical canon (so Catholic Old Testament has more books).

I have also read (fisheaters.com/circumcision2.html) that circumcision has changed. I understand that these changes could have happened (because Judaism has no central authority) - what other changes have been made? I’d imagine that accepting contraception is a new development, but I could be wrong.

 

[mdgspencer]

Judaism in the New Testament was very different. In Jesus’ time there were different schools of Judaism that do not exists now, notably the Essenes and the Sadduceees, both of whom had their own theology. This is why Jesus’ rejection of the legalism of the Pharisees was really not out of place when it comes to Judaism. The Pharisees represented only one school of Jewish thought, which only later completely took over–but it had not in Jesus’ day. I suspect too that the expectation of the Messiah so evident in Jesus’ day is no longer significant in modern day Judaism.
There are also schools of thought in modern Judaism that would have to be taken into account, of which only one is orthodox Judaism. So I suspect it would be difficult to speak of the same moral outlook, as when it comes, for example, to abortion. But others here would know more about the landscape of modern Judaism–so correct me if I am wrong about this.
According to Saint Paul, too, the Church is the New Israel, now is God’s people. though Judaism somehow still has a special role in salvation history.

I am interested as to how Judaism has changed from the Judaism in the Bible (at the time of Christ) - I know that after Christ, the Jewish Leaders changed the Biblical canon (so Catholic Old Testament has more books).

I have also read (fisheaters.com/circumcision2.html) that circumcision has changed. I understand that these changes could have happened (because Judaism has no central authority) - what other changes have been made? I’d imagine that accepting contraception is a new development, but I could be wrong.

 

[valentino]

I’m not Jewish but I’ve read a little.Firstly there are many different branches of Judism today.There are the reformed Jews which one might say are liberals or modernistic.There are more orthodox Jews which still eat Kosher foods and followed Jewish traditions more closely.I see it like the different denominations of christians although there aren’t that many.But they do have different interpretations of the Torah.

 

[meltzerboy]

I’m not Jewish but I’ve read a little.Firstly there are many different branches of Judism today.There are the reformed Jews which one might say are liberals or modernistic.There are more orthodox Jews which still eat Kosher foods and followed Jewish traditions more closely.I see it like the different denominations of christians although there aren’t that many.But they do have different interpretations of the Torah.

You’re basically correct. There are different branches or expressions of Judaism although not really denominations. Some who follow Torah Judaism (commonly called Orthodox Judaism) prefer to say about Reform Jews and Conservative Jews that they are “less Orthodox,” and will hopefully in time become “more Orthodox” by following more of the commandments in the Torah. In other words, they do not acknowledge any expression of Judaism except Orthodoxy on a continuum. However, other Orthodox Jews call Reform and Conservative Jews heretics (or, more precisely, their leaders–“rabbis”–are heretics). Although traditional Orthodox Jews still regard the others as Jews, they believe that they have been led astray by their rabbis, who themselves are not following the Mosaic Law. At the same time, they do NOT regard the religion they practice as Judaism. Basically Reform Jews, as you said, are the most liberal. Indeed, most of them do not believe the Torah is divinely inspired. This is a major change from the Judaism of the Bible, which is practiced by Torah Judaism today. Although modern Torah Judaism cannot follow all of the commandments due to sociocultural changes, it endeavors to follow as many as possible and definitely believes that Mosaic Law is in essence unchangeable since it was given directly by G-d to Moses. Rabbinical interpretation of the Law is, however, important in applying the Law to the modern world. Judaism is not a sola Scriptura religion any more than Catholicism is. It is also important to note that there are “divisions” even within Orthodox Judaism, such as Modern Orthodox, Haredi Orthodox (ultra-Orthodox), and several other Hasidic forms. Other groups include Conservadox, Reconstructionist Judaism, and Secular Judaism.

 

[Kaninchen]

Obviously, things have changed since ‘The Exile’ but, at core, no. Judaism remains about Torah (the Law) and our (as individuals and as a People) relationship to it. The Law is interpreted - but it always was, the kinds of discussions (rows) Christians see in their scriptures were going on then and have carried on (and Jesus wasn’t exactly original in many of his views, by the way).

It’s a bit like wandering around Italy looking at all the great Cathedrals, seeing all the grand clergy of the Church and the mountains of interpretive thought in the Vatican library and saying ‘what’s the relationship of all this to first century Christianity?’ The Catholic answer would be ‘at core, it’s the same’.

Of course, you could go to a Southern Baptist site and read up on their interpretation and get a different picture, I expect D). So, perhaps it might be a good idea to read a few Jewish interpretations rather than head first to certain Christian websites for your information.

 

[patrick457]

I am interested as to how Judaism has changed from the Judaism in the Bible (at the time of Christ) - I know that after Christ, the Jewish Leaders changed the Biblical canon (so Catholic Old Testament has more books).

Well, many scholars are quite wary of speaking about a single, united ‘Judaism’ in a 1st-century context, because there were much similarity and at the same time, diversity, to the point that some will even use the term ‘Judaisms’. The Jewish faith at the time was unified and divided, much like Christianity is today. All Jews believed and practiced some core aspects of their religion (what E.P Sanders calls ‘common Judaism’), but different groups debated and disagreed with each other about many of the details - just about everyone, even a mere layman, could come to their own views. To name a few, you have Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, as well as people unaffiliated with any of these sects, each with their own idea about how to follow God and observe the Law.

Modern Rabbinic Judaism is an offshoot of one particular form of Judaism out of the many that existed at the time: much of the core of course remains pretty much the same, but the details have changed with the passage of time. Christianity itself had its origins as a ‘Judaism’ before it branched out on its own.

You must also remember that their definition of ‘religion’ is different from ours: when we use the word we often mean a set of beliefs and a set of voluntary institutions and rituals that teach and reinforce those beliefs. ‘Religion’ was interpreted by Jews as being doing things according to the traditional manner, performing “the ways of our ancestors” which had been handed down from father to son since time immemorial. The worship of God was never separate but was rather continuous with daily living and the agricultural and pastoral cycle of the land of Israel; the festivals and sacrificial offerings corresponded to planting and harvest and the birthing of domestic animals. God is being served whether it be in the home, in the synagogue, in the farm, in the market, in the Temple. As Josephus noted: “Religion governs all our actions and occupations and speech; none of these things did our lawgiver leave unexamined or indeterminate…” (Against Apion 2.171)

On the other hand, first-century Judaism was in some respects on its way to becoming a ‘religion’ in the modern sense. Expanded Jewish settlement and social change removed Jewish customs from their original life-setting. This forced Jews, especially the learned, to ask themselves “what must we do to serve God?” Thus many practices came to seem symbolic and purely spritiual now that they were observed as distinct from peasant life in Judea.

 

[thistle]

Obviously, things have changed since ‘The Exile’ but, at core, no. Judaism remains about Torah (the Law) and our (as individuals and as a People) relationship to it. The Law is interpreted - but it always was, the kinds of discussions (rows) Christians see in their scriptures were going on then and have carried on (and Jesus wasn’t exactly original in many of his views, by the way).

It’s a bit like wandering around Italy looking at all the great Cathedrals, seeing all the grand clergy of the Church and the mountains of interpretive thought in the Vatican library and saying ‘what’s the relationship of all this to first century Christianity?’ The Catholic answer would be ‘at core, it’s the same’.

Of course, you could go to a Southern Baptist site and read up on their interpretation and get a different picture, I expect D). So, perhaps it might be a good idea to read a few Jewish interpretations rather than head first to certain Christian websites for your information.

Actually he was original in his views because he is God.

 

[puzzleannie]

the most obvious is that there is no longer any temple sacrifice since the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70AD, so all those long laws governing those sacrifices are no longer relevant.

Since modern Judaism, like modern Christianity, has so many “denominations” and variants it is not possible to make a general statement true of all Jews or even of all rabbis. Why not simply visit a Jewish site and ask your specific questions? if fisheaters is not even a reliable site on Catholic matters, why would you consult them about the Jewish faith?

 

[Todd_Easton]

From wikipedia’s article on Judaism:

After a Jewish revolt against Roman rule in 66 CE, the Romans all but destroyed Jerusalem. Following a second revolt, Jews were not allowed to enter the city of Jerusalem and most Jewish worship was forbidden by Rome. Following the destruction of Jerusalem and the expulsion of the Jews, Jewish worship stopped being centrally organized around the Temple, prayer took the place of sacrifice, and worship was rebuilt around rabbis who acted as teachers and leaders of individual communities (see Jewish diaspora).

 

[valentino]

metzerboy: thanks for the information.

 

[Crumpy]

I am interested as to how Judaism has changed from the Judaism in the Bible (at the time of Christ) - I know that after Christ, the Jewish Leaders changed the Biblical canon (so Catholic Old Testament has more books).

I have also read (fisheaters.com/circumcision2.html) that circumcision has changed. I understand that these changes could have happened (because Judaism has no central authority) - what other changes have been made? I’d imagine that accepting contraception is a new development, but I could be wrong.

There’s a lot of good answers here. My reading relates to your first comment about changing the Biblical canon.

It depends on what you mean. If you mean changing the texts of the individual books in the canon, yes, that went on for some time then stopped (the experts say). If you mean selecting which books are in the canon, yes that too, the Conservative Judaism that I’ve read about identifies the canon as finalized (through no special process that has been ever discovered, except just perhaps by agreement). The role of the prophets in scripture was replaced by the leaders of the various sects. For example, Jesus refers to the High Priest as sitting on the chair of Moses.

In specific, for reasons not well understood except just perhaps a prejudice, Judaism accepted the Hebrew Masoretic text as authoritative and rejected the Septuagint (greek) version, which interestingly is thought to be older than the Masoretic text. And, there’s the rub, the S. had the deuterocanonical books in them, whereas the Masoretic did not. This decision held for a long time, until it was discovered that there were Hebrew versions of at least some of the deuterocanonical books in the scrolls at Qumran (Dead Sea). (whoops?)
Well, that decision still holds. Jewish scholarship looks at all the various texts for the widest understanding.

There’s a lot more to the discussion, as you can imagine. Part of it hinges around the subsequent commentaries of the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds and which books that they accepted. I’ve forgotten the details of that.

As far as there being a central authority in Judaism, there’s a lot of viewpoints. There still is a Sanhedrin in Jerusalem which issues interpretations. But, in a book called the Jewish Study Bible (Oxford Univ Press) and someplace else, I’ve read that there is no official interpretation of any Hebrew scriptures. Strange? Well, there’s a lot of writings (talmud “study”) and more modern Midrash (homiletic considerations of the Torah), with sometimes conflicting views. The modern commentaries I’ve read (just a few) seem to look across the full range of texts, to see what’s out there. The conflicting opinions don’t cause schisms as we know them because the Biblical texts themselves are conflicting.

One of the biggest differences is the directions for cooking the passover lamb. In one place it says that it should be boiled and another place it should be roasted. Trivial? Quite a big deal, actually. Leviticus, the priestly book, emphasizes the Aaronic priesthood, and the Levites are like sacristans, not performing priestly functions. But, in Deuteronomy, there is a “different tradition” (as the commentary says) where the Levites perform all the priestly functions – big difference, big deal.

Where did change come from? Look at the emergence of rabbis from the group of Pharisees. Rabbis aren’t mentioned in the Torah, but here they are today. big difference, big deal.

The transformation of Judaism after the destruction of the Temple c.70 AD is discussed briefly by Benedict XVI in the second volume of Jesus of Nazareth. The theology of the Torah became more important, with prayers replacing sacrifices. Prayer is the penultimate human activity of communication with the Divine.

 

[patrick457]

It depends on what you mean. If you mean changing the texts of the individual books in the canon, yes, that went on for some time then stopped (the experts say). If you mean selecting which books are in the canon, yes that too, the Conservative Judaism that I’ve read about identifies the canon as finalized (through no special process that has been ever discovered, except just perhaps by agreement). The role of the prophets in scripture was replaced by the leaders of the various sects. For example, Jesus refers to the High Priest as sitting on the chair of Moses.

Not the High Priest, really. “On the seat of Moses sat down the scribes and the Pharisees; all, then, as much as they may say to you to observe, observe and do, but according to their works do not, for they say, and do not.”

In specific, for reasons not well understood except just perhaps a prejudice, Judaism accepted the Hebrew Masoretic text as authoritative and rejected the Septuagint (greek) version, which interestingly is thought to be older than the Masoretic text. And, there’s the rub, the S. had the deuterocanonical books in them, whereas the Masoretic did not. This decision held for a long time, until it was discovered that there were Hebrew versions of at least some of the deuterocanonical books in the scrolls at Qumran (Dead Sea). (whoops?)
Well, that decision still holds. Jewish scholarship looks at all the various texts for the widest understanding.

We have Tobit (four Aramaic fragments, one Hebrew), three copies of Ben Sira (Sirach) - two of these, preserving portions of just three chapters, discovered at Qumran, with the third, representing six chapters, found at Masada - and one Greek copy of what seems to be the Epistle of Jeremiah (often bound with Baruch), in a very bad state: only two words (“therefore” and “them”) and parts of seven others have survived.

And for the record, the Septuagint and Masoretic are apparently the descendants of two different textual traditions (both ancient), as is testified by the DSS themselves: according to one estimate, about 35% of the manuscripts belong to the proto-Masoretic tradition, 5% to the Septuagint family, and 5% to the Samaritan, with the remainder unaligned. These ‘independent’ texts fall into two categories: those inconsistent in agreeing with other known types *, and those that diverge significantly from all other known readings.

As far as there being a central authority in Judaism, there’s a lot of viewpoints. There still is a Sanhedrin in Jerusalem which issues interpretations.

Which is actually probably just a modern reconstruction (among a number of attempts). As a reaction to Julian the Apostate’s support of Jews, Theodosius I forbade the Sanhedrin to assemble and declared ordination illegal. Capital punishment was prescribed for any Rabbi who received ordination and complete destruction of the town where the ordination occurred. However, since the Hebrew calendar was based on witnesses’ testimony, that had become far too dangerous to collect, Hillel II (reigned 320-385) recommended change to a mathematically based calendar that was adopted at a clandestine, and maybe final, meeting in 358. This marked the last universal decision made by that body.

Gamaliel VI (400–425) was the historical Sanhedrin’s last nasi or ‘prince’. He probably died around 425, as the Codex Theodosianus mentions an imperial decree of 426 which diverted the patriarchs’ tax (post excessum patriarchorum) into the imperial treasury. Theodosius II did not allow the appointment of a successor and in 429 terminated the Jewish patriarchate. With Gamaliel’s death came the end of the ancient Sanhedrin.*

 

[Crumpy]

Thanks, your information is much more in-depth than my sources. My quoting Jesus was from distant memory, which I should by all means correct.

 

[1holycatholic]

I am interested as to how Judaism has changed from the Judaism in the Bible (at the time of Christ) - I know that after Christ, the Jewish Leaders changed the Biblical canon (so Catholic Old Testament has more books).

To this day there are Jews that still use the Septuagint.

In any case Jews do not have the authority to determine the Canon of Scripture, only the Catholic Church has that authority.