Questions about Judaism

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Annie

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I have to discuss something with someone who is Jewish and with whom I have discussed religion, so if it would be helpful to our discussion, I would like to mention some ideas, but wanted to make sure they weren’t Christian and not Jewish, iyswim.

Do Jews believe that God is love and that loving all others is important?

What about striving for virtue?

And finally, do Jewsih people think if they pray, that will help them to become holier or better people?

Thanks so much!
 
Yes, Yes it’s essential.

Yes, first, in the trivial sense, if you’re doing a positive commandment, then that excludes doing something negative (might be exceptions to this). So if you are sincerely praying, then you are not doing something sinful at the same time. In a larger framework, recall that Moses lead the Israelites out into the wilderness to be away from the temptations of the pagan idols in Egypt, and thereby to focus on praise and worship of God.

As much as I have read, I can’t point to a verse in scripture that is a proof-text for the necessity for prayer and the consequences of it. The Talmud is an ancient commentary on the Jewish scriptures, and it is likely that this subject is discussed there. But, the Talmud is so big, I wouldn’t know where to start looking for the answer. Many but not all Jews consider the Talmud to be inspired. There are many variations of Judaism and each synagogue has its own beliefs and customs. It has been difficult for Jewish sects to agree on all the issues of living as a Jew in the United States, for example.

A famous rabbi, Akiva, in the second century, helped to establish the canon of Jewish scriptures and to lay down some rules to compensate for the fact that there was no Temple after 70 AD. As I understand it, When the Torah commands a sacrifice for sin, for example, today, without a Temple and a sacrificial altar, etc. Akiva and other scholars decided that PRAYER was a substitute for an animal sacrifice, which was for the expiation of sins. So…I would say that, yes, prayer is intended to enhance holiness. An observant Jew is a “better person” by adhering to all the commands of the Torah, not just in external form, but in an inner spiritual way.

So, you have to gently explore your Jewish friend’s point of view.
 
I would say that Jews believe G-d is LOVING, rather than G-d is love. Saying G-d is love, as wonderful as that sounds, has two “problems” for Judaism. One is that G-d probably has other attributes in addition to that of love, such as those of justice, beauty, harmony, peace, and so on. Equating G-d ONLY with love is therefore too limiting. The other “problem” with saying G-d is love is in defining G-d at all, which is in itself too restrictive. Judaism prefers to speak of G-d as that which He is NOT rather than that which He is. OTOH, saying that G-d is loving does not exclude His other attributes and does not limit Him to only one dimension. Further, it also reveals G-d not as an entity alone but also as a never-ending process, not in the ordinary sense of change but in the sense of eternal being.

Regarding prayer, this too has certain limitations. While prayer is wonderful and brings us into a more intimate relationship with G-d, behavior is also really important in our daily interactions with others. One can and should pray for peace in the world, inner peace of mind, a more loving and generous heart, an end to the injustices and the suffering endured by people, and so on; but for us to uphold our portion of the legal partnership we have with the Almighty, we must also make every effort to act on our prayers by doing whatever we can to repair the inequities and suffering in the world.
 
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It is well. God bless you abundantly dear friend! You’re such a great contributor on these threads!
Pax et bonum!
 
Thanks everyone for your replies! I got sick and slept through most of the last 3 days, but your answers will be helpful.
 
You reply reminded me that the Eastern Christians (Catholic and Orthodox) think that way about God. I didn’t mean to limit Him :o
 
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