Orthodox Judaism Essay

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Orthodox Judaism is the continuation of beliefs and practices of Judaism and is accepted by the Jewish nation today. Orthodox Judaism is different than Modern Judaism as it isn’t a single movement. It actually has several different movements, but they all come back to the “common beliefs.” Both Orthodox Judaism and Modern Judaism have different beliefs and attitudes about modern culture, but they are similar in ways of practice throughout the Torah. (Jason Levine, 2016) Traditionally to be a Jew, you have to be born from a Jewish mother or someone who has been properly converted to Judaism. Due to this, Judaism is considered a minor religion since one cannot simply convert to Judaism by simple choice. Like other religions, Judaism …show more content…

This holiday is about the significance of the temple that was desiccated by the Greeks. Chanukkah is an eight day festival beginning the 25th of the Jewish month, Kislev. Chanukkah is not a very important holiday but is widely known and popular due to it being around the time of Christmas. Lots of Jews actually think of this holiday as the Jewish Christmas. It is rather odd that this festival is widely known across the world, even before the birth of Christ. There are several different traditions that go with this holiday. One of them is known as the lighting of the candles. The candles are set on what is called a menorah where there is 9 slots for candles, one for night and then the middle candle. Another popular thing that goes along with this festival is gift giving. Though it is not stated anywhere that gift-giving is part of the practice, many do it so Jewish children would not be envious of Christian children receiving gifts around Christmas time. It is also traditional to eat fried foods during this eight day period due to the significance of the oil from the candles. The dreidel is a fun activity that is also part of the tradition of Chanukkah. This is a gambling game with a square top. This game came about when practicing Judaism was illegal. Those who wanted to follow the Torah would hide this by playing with the dreidel when an officer or official was in sight. (Tracey R. Rich,

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