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Messiah or Messiach
For the most part, this page is complete. I intend to refine it. It appears as "work in progress."
Some Major Differences Between Judaism and Christianity
If you are not Jewish, that's fine with me. Not only is this page not directed at you, I'm a little uncomfortable that you are here for fear that my intentions will be misinterpreted. Nothing presented on these pages is intended to offend or change your beliefs.
There is no philosophy and/or evangelist activity within Judaism that proposes changing any non-Jewish person's beliefs or religious affiliation. An inherent belief of Judaism is that the righteous followers of any religion have a place in the "World to Come" if they conform to a limited set of ethical laws that are summarized immediately below. There is no thought within Judaism that if one is not Jewish they are condemned by our creator to some punishment. We believe that G-d, expects everyone's adherence to these ethical rules of behavior which include a belief in G-d and behaving in a civilized manner. These rules we call the Seven Laws of Noah. They do not include being Jewish and are primarily negative commandments, i.e. commands not to do certain acts. For the Engineers in the crowd, these are derived requirements. We do not believe that Jews are better than anyone else but if one is Jewish, there are more rules to follow than those imposed upon those of other religions. That is, the Gentile must conform to seven laws, the Jew 613. Boy, was Moses a good negotiator!...and Navigator! Do you suppose if he a compass or GPS, Israel might have been the place with oil?
To re-emphasize, Jews do not attempt to convert non-Jews to Judaism. Not only does Judaism not solicit converts, it discourages them. If a non-Jew tries to convert to Judaism, he/she can expect to be turned away...three times. The reason is that people accepted for conversion must convince a Rabbi that they really want to become Jewish for the right reasons and that they intend to stay Jewish. As a group, we have a "live and let live" philosophy. By the same token, we resent anyone trying to interfere with our beliefs. This page is here because some people harass Jews by not respecting the right of Jews to follow their G-d and the eternal convent the Jews have with him. That is we get a lot of uninvited and unwelcome attention from "missionaries." Currently, the approaches used by these "good folks" is to mix beliefs and interpretations incompatible with Judaism with fundamental Jewish beliefs causing confusion. My purpose is to assist other Jews to identify these inconsistencies by providing some information. I am not qualified or educated enough to take the discussion much further than presented here. If you are seeking help resolving confusion precipitated by missionaries, I suggest contacting "Jews for Judaism."
Some Major Philosophical Differences Between Judaism and Christianity
It has often been a source of amazement to me that Judaism and Christianity are derived from the same source. While both religions arrived at a similar set of rules for living in a society, the structure of each's fundamental beliefs are very different and incompatible. I have noted, in completely non-hostile conversations with Christian friends, that trying to explain to one another what each believes, provides a good feeling for the environment at the tower of Babel. In discussing why, it's much worse. In a recent discussion, I thought I provided a clear explanation to a Christian friend of the Jewish concept of Messiah. When I finished, he said "But there is that one sentence." There is no sentence in the Jewish bible that forecasts a messiah that will do extraordinary wonderful things or that will have two shots at life. But if such a person had been prophesized, wouldn't they and their future deeds warrant at least a page?
Before discussing the differences, note that there are Judaic-Christian common beliefs. Monotheism, waiting for a messiah (note I didn't say the), and resurrection are valid concepts in both religions.
The focus of these two religions is different. Judaism is focused on G-d and only G-d. No one may come between any individual and G-d. While some people do get more respect than others (ask Rodney Dangerfield), based on what they have done or know, we are all of equal status in the eyes of G-d. In contrast, Christianity is focused on a single individual that has divine attributes. No one may approach G-d, except through that individual. Belief in that individual's divine characteristics is an essential part of Christianity. In some branches of Christianity praying to an additional intermediary is also acceptable. Praying to anyone or thing other than G-d is incompatible with the teachings of the Jewish bible.
Judaism assumes that man begins life with freewill and is not predestined to a particular fate. He is judged on his behavior, primarily towards his fellow man. A major premise of Christianity is that man, when born, is condemned through heredity to hell until he accepts certain religious beliefs. While action is not dismissed, belief in a specific messiah and that messiah's divine status is more important than any other measurement of behavior.
Belief that a Messiah is coming is an inherent part of Judaism. Yet, asking most Jews to discuss the characteristics of "the Messiah" usually leads to the equivalent of "huh?" The reason is, that while the Jew announces daily that he is waiting for the Messiah, compared to his belief in G-d, and conforming to his commandments, the existence of a messiah is almost of no consequence. Furthermore, the role of the Messiah is almost incidental.
Jews really wait for the Messianic Age, when the entire world will be at peace, all will believe in G-d, and the Jewish nation will have returned to the land of Israel. How will we recognize the next messiah? Recognizing the Messianic Age is key. That is when the "perfect world" prophecies come true, the one sitting on the throne of Israel will be a messiah. I explain in the section "Messiah", why I refer to the next Messiah and what a Messiah is to a Jew. I won't attempt to describe the Christian concept of the messiah since I don't understand it. It includes the integration of the Messiah with G-d (the Trinity), a second coming for the messiah, superhuman characteristics, and as previously stated, the belief that the only way to approach G-d and to avoid spending eternity in hell is through the Messiah. None of these concepts is compatible with the Jewish bible or beliefs. In summary, the expression "believing in Jesus" is so foreign from the fundamentals of the Jewish religion that there is no comprehension of the expression.
Jerold
H Feinstein saftyrma@erols.com
