First some history behind the name Jew- it comes from the biblical name
- Historical answer: They were the most prominent tribe of the tree tribes remaining after the 10 tribes went into Exile by Sancherev. The ten tribes are the ten lost tribes. Various people and groups have claimed to belong to these lost tribes over the centuries.
- Jewish answer—Mordechai of Megillas Esther is called Mordechai Hayehudi. Anyone who is kofer in avoda zara is called a yehudi.
רבי יוחנן אמר לעולם מבנימין קאתי ואמאי קרי ליה יהודי על שום שכפר בעבודה זרה שכל הכופר בעבודה זרה נקרא יהודי כדכתיב +דניאל ג'+ איתי גברין יהודאין וגו'
אִיתַי גֻּבְרִין יְהוּדָאיִן דִּי מַנִּיתָ יָתְהוֹן עַל עֲבִידַת מְדִינַת בָּבֶל שַׁדְרַךְ מֵישַׁךְ וַעֲבֵד נְגוֹ גֻּבְרַיָּא אִלֵּךְ לָא שָׂמוּ עליך עֲלָךְ מַלְכָּא טְעֵם לאלהיך לֵאלָהָךְ לָא פָלְחִין וּלְצֶלֶם דַּהֲבָא דִּי הֲקֵימְתָּ לָא סָגְדִין: ס
This is the key behind Judaism: No idol worship But doesn’t the Hebrew word mean Modeh—admit? Not deny!
- No idol worship was a radical idea in ancient times and it is radical today
Ancient times viewed the natural forces as independent. They had spiritual beings which caused them to work. Idol worship meant worshiping this spiritual being behind that force of nature and basically bribe it to get what you want.
People today also have this attitude to God. “Oh God, if you would just give me a good mark/job/lottery ticket/ I’ll pray every day to you!”
That’s not really worship—that’s manipulation. Denying idol worship means you don’t want anything in this world for its own sake. Everything in life is there just to do God’s will. We completely submit ourselves to God and don’t hold anything back. That is being “modeh”
Any religion that has God in the center and not man in the center is taking a concept from Judaism.
- Just as human beings go through a process from immaturity to maturity, Human civilization has also gone through a maturation process. God models his relationship with us as a parent raising a child.
(ה) וְיָדַעְתָּ עִם לְבָבֶךָ כִּי כַּאֲשֶׁר יְיַסֵּר אִישׁ אֶת בְּנוֹ יְקֹוָק אֱלֹהֶיךָ מְיַסְּרֶךָּ:
- Our civilization is backsliding from maturity to immaturity
The average age of marriage is getting older and older. Why? Immaturity. Marriage means living a large part of your life for someone else. You work to feed your family. You go to school meetings about them, you go to the doctor with them you sleep over at the hospital with them.
But you become a great person.
- The other way to define a Jew and Judaism is with the concept of holiness.
God commands us to be holy FOR HE IS HOLY.
(כו) וִהְיִיתֶם לִי קְדֹשִׁים כִּי קָדוֹשׁ אֲנִי יְקֹוָק וָאַבְדִּל אֶתְכֶם מִן הָעַמִּים לִהְיוֹת לִי:
What is in common between our holiness and God’s holiness. What is holiness?
Rav Shimon Shkop explains that holiness in Judaism means you become bigger than you are. You expand your identity to encompass people beyond yourself. It is the opposite of small self-centeredness which is a definition of immaturity.
Someone else’s success becomes your success. Someone else’s loss and pain becomes your loss and pain.
