Before Rabbi Hillel, Rabbi Jesus, and Rabbi Akiba, the Torah (Leviticus) says that “Loving thy neighbor as thyself” is the essence of the Law and, implicitly, all the rest is commentary. I think Jesus adds “Loving thy enemy” although the Law states “Rejoice not when thy enemy falls.”
First of all, Meltzerboy, when you quote, please don’t mention only the book. I mean the chapter and verse too. If not for any other reason, that you are being integral.
The Mourner’s Kaddish has no mention of death; rather, it is a memorial prayer in praise of G-d. Likewise, the period of mourning for the departed (traditionally lasting for eleven months) is for the dual purpose of showing respect for the dead and comforting the living. Nonetheless, I maintain there is indeed a belief in an afterlife in Judaism, in which those who follow the commandments of the Torah–essentially loving G-d by means of expressing charity toward others–will be rewarded.
Thank You for clarification.
The Mourner’s Kaddish has nothing to do with the dead but as a prayer of praising God for the evidence of God’s providence to give and take life. “God gives and takes away; so, praise to His name.” There is no reference at all to the dead in the sense of asking God for a good destination for his soul. We all know that the dead is going to the world to come
Jews do not obey God’s Law with an eye in rewards. We obey the mitzvot for the sake of obedience to the mitzvot.
Yes Vanes, according to Judaism, there is no such a thing as ascendance to paradise. That’s not a Jewish doctrine. Besides, the soul is not something that exists independent of the body. According to Genesis 2:7, when the Lord formed man from the dust of the earth, He breathed in his nostrils the breath of life and he became a living soul. As you can see, soul is something we become and not something we have. Therefore, we are living souls. At death, the body goes back to the dust and the breath of life goes back to God, Who gave it. The soul then, becomes as if it never existed. In other words, the soul is by definition the composition of the body with the breath of life. From the moment one is out of the other, the soul is gone.
Ritual, Vames, just an item of Jewish tradition. We also have rituals.
The Mourner’s Kaddish (for parents) is technically for one year. However, it is felt that one would have to be quite wicked to need a full year of prayer, so it is by custom reduced to eleven months. Again, contrary to Shibolet, I was taught that we DO pray for the souls of the departed to be cleansed so that they can enter the World to Come (not the grave). The latter concept comes later in Jewish tradition than that of the here-and-now world, which is nonetheless still the major focus in Judaism.