Comparison of Judaism and Christanity
Uploaded by dumdum12364 on Nov 20, 2001
There are many substantial and vital differences between Judaism and Christianity. Of course there are many similarities, because Christianity emerged from Judaism. However, the emergence was not a direct line. Christianity broke from Judaism, forming a new religion, so it is confusing, however comfortable the thought might be, to believe that the two religions are essentially the same, or to see Christianity as the continuation of Judaism (Ludwig 376).
Judaism's main belief is that the people of all religions are children of God, and therefore equal before God. All people have God's love, mercy, and help. In particular, Judaism does not require that a person convert to Judaism in order to achieve salvation. The only requirement for that, as understood by Jewish people, is to be ethical. While Judaism accepts the worth of all people regardless of religion, it also allows people who are not Jewish but who voluntarily wish to join the Jewish people to do so (Liebman, Cohen 23-24).
The Christian notion of trinitarianism [ Trinity ] is that God is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In the book of Matthew, Jesus spoke to the disciples saying “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). These few words have been translated into a deep and sacred meaning of Christianity that God is all three combined. Judaism insists on a belief of monotheism, the belief and worship of one God. As Judaism understands this idea, God cannot be made up of parts, even if those parts are mysteriously united. Such a view, even if called monotheistic because the three parts are, by divine mystery, only one God, is incompatible with the Jewish view that this division is not possible. The Jewish main idea is that God is one. This idea allows for God's unity and uniqueness as a creative force. For Jewish people, God is the creator of all that we like and all that we don't like. There is no evil force with an ability to create equal to God's. Judaism sees Christianity's trinitarianism as a weakening of the idea of God's oneness. Jewish people don't have a set group of beliefs about the nature of God, therefore there is considerable,...