Epistemology:
What do particular people believe they should rely on in order to gain valid knowledge?
Jews relied on Revelation (revelation from God, God reveals knowledge to prophets, Forms
of revelation: 1. history (God taught them through things that happened in history, ex. The
Flood, study through texts and archaeology), 1400 BCE (enslavement), 1200 BCE (let out of
promise land), 70 CE (temple of Solomon destroyed, Rabinic Judaism, Diaspora), 1492 (Jews
expelled from Spain), 16th Century (return to Jewish land or promise land under ottomans),
1917 (Balfour Declaration- land of Palistin would be homeland for Jews, very political- give
funding to Great Britain and establish Palistin by home), after soviet union fall- Serbia and
Bosnia unity broke up and Serbia leader stirred up against Bosnia, Ottomans= sick man of
Europe, 1948 state of Israel established, Shabtai SVi (claimed to be Messiah)
2. Texts (Hebrew bible, Revelation),
5 books of Moses (Torah) is Pentateuch and TaNaKh (Torah, Navim- prophets,
Ketuvim- the other books or Psalms, entirety of Jewish literature
Mishnah: repetition or study, oral teachings of Rabis, in year 200 it was edited and
put in written form
Talmud: teachings of Rabis, Mishnah included is Talmud, Mishnah + Gemara
(discussions of Rabis about laws), Palistian and Babalonian Talmud
Midrash: means investigation (law and stories of Hebrew Bible), Halakha
(jurisprudence), aggadic literature (Passover hagaddah)
Kabbalistic texts: early Jewish mystics, kabbala means to receive presence of god,
Zohar is most important 12th century written of Aramaic
Spiritual experience, prophets felt, saw, and heard revelation
Orthoproxy: living religious life
Ontology:
A. Theology: What does someone believe about God, what are His Characteristics?
God is ultimate reality, not simply transcendent
Qualities
God is personal: anthropomorphic, aniconic
God is one: monotheism, shema (listen)
God of justice and mortality
God is benevolent: things work out well for righteous believer doesn’t always work
out in this life
God is the creator: Deists (god created the world and the sat back), atomism (god is
always creating)
God is supremely powerful, doesn't always save you, God of goodness, relationship
to jews takes place in form of covenant
