Jewish Culture
Jewish Culture questions and answers
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Q: How did the Jewish culture help lay the foundations for the global civilization that we know today?
Jewish culture meaning, the Jewish culture way back when it first was founded.
A: did you guys even take history class?
for starters, the Hebrews were basically the last culture to develop meaning they were still freaking nomads and didn't know anything of crop rotation so they couldn't farm or be self-sufficient.
second of all they were always being ruled by other cultures for most of the BCE era and when they finally established a kingdom, it collapsed due to extreme over taxation and corruption within one hundred years with only 3 rulers.
third of all, the cultures that layed down the foundations of todays civilizations are mainly the Greeks and also the Romans and even the Hellenists
the only thing that the Hebrews are notable for is creating the first monotheistic religion which helped to unify them as opposed to most of the religions of the time in which every city-state had its own god which would separate them (but most city-states were already separated by natural borders anyway)
also a lot of the tenets of judaism and christianity are extremely similar to the Persian religion of Zoroastrianism (keep in mind that the Bible was first written during the Babylonian exile and the hebrews were in close contact with Persian culture borrowed by the Chaldeans or Neo-Babylonians)
Q: What do you find in Jewish Culture that you love or envy?
and maybe you wish that yours could have.
Civilization may have sprung after all not from Anatolia,Egypt,Mesopotamia,Phoenicia or Greece and Rome;but from them?
Do you love their contribution to western or middle eastern Societies?
A: being a jew myself, i like the certainty in our beliefs. we are sure of the one g-d and one torah, that has not been amended or abridged and we do not have to rely on compromised theological positions. what i do not like is all the prejudice within the community, where many ashkenasi jews feel superior to sephardis or yemenites because they are "white", where converts are mistrusted and their faith is constantly put into question,and where zionism is not separated from true judaism by many. I also do not like fellow jews who cannot take criticism either of themselves or of Israel without resorting to the anti semitism card.
Q: Why are kosher foods important to the Jewish culture?
A: This is one of those cases where the simplest answer is the correct one.
"Because G-D said so."
Seriously. If you take Torah literally, then the Kosher laws are handed down directly from G-D. No real explanation other than, "These are the rules, I know what I'm up to, trust me and do them."
Q: Is Chanukah an important part of Jewish culture or is it made popular to compete with Christmas?
I know this is an ethnocentric question but I was wondering if Chanukah's popularity has anything to do with the Jewish kids getting shafted at Christmas.
A: It's not a top holiday as far as the Torah goes, but it has a nice story and lovely traditions and is a part of our culture.
I believe the popularization of giving gifts does indeed stem from Christmas as Jewish people became more assimilated, although Jewish children have received gelt (chocolate coins) as part of the tradition for many generation.
And to quote cousin Geri on Facts of Life: Questions don't hurt; ignorance does. It's fine to ask questions.
Q: What are some differences in Jewish Culture/Entertainment before and after the Holocaust?
I need a little help for a report I am doing.
thanks for any help!
A: Well there was a huge debate among jewish rabbis whether to support zionism or not. After the holocaust most opponents of zionism were dead so jewish identity became much more about nationalitz and race, than about the jewish faith itself.
Q: what is different between Jewish Culture and Jewish Tradition?
A: Tradition is a subset of culture. Jewish culture contains all of Jewish tradition plus other staples.
Q: Why do you think Jewish myths outlived other ancient myths and cultures?
I mean, Jewish myths outlasted the Greek myths, the Egyptian myths and even the Roman myths even though the Romans almost annihilated the Jews and the survivors were scattered around the Mediterranean and parts of Europe. All these other ancient religious cultures and the myths they believed went extinct but Jewish culture and Jewish scriptural myths not only survived but also gave birth to todays two most dominant religious cultures; Christianity and Islam, both of which heavily rely on the Jewish myths in their belief structure. So it begs the question; how did Judaism and its scriptural myths survive when more dominant cultures, each with their own equivalent religious myths, died out?
I personally think it has something to do with the tendency for Jews to keep to themselves, marry amongst their own kind and shun the influence of other cultures on their own culture. I think they are able to do this by thinking of themselves as being the people to whom “God” chose to speak and deliver his commandments and deliver his word in scriptural form. Do you agree with these reasons and can you think of any others?
A: Jewish myths didn't outlast Greek myths - we still read and enjoy Greek myths. Jewish myths also contain a good many older mythological traditions.
But the real reason this nonsense lives on as a religion is that David put up the money around 600 BC to write the bible down. It had never been done before. Ancient traditions tended to be oral. But David was a different kind of guy - he believed in towns and writing things down. He had bought Jerusalem so that some of the Jews would have a place to live.
Then they wrote up a batch of the old myths and stuck these together in various parchments - that became The Book. Then years later the Babylonians came and took over Jerusalem and moved everybody to Babylon as slaves.
But... for the first time... the faith of the slaves could go with them as The Book - and Jews became the People of The Book. And this helped insure that their mythological story survived in some form.
But the Jewish myths were never as huge, flamboyant and well remembered as the Greek myths. It's just that Jewish myth slops over into monotheism - the the popular Greek myths remained in the time of the great pantheons. The Greek monotheistic mythology became Christianity.
Q: Ancient Jewish Culture?
I am doing a creative writing peice and I need some history about the Ancient Jewish culture. some help about their values, and food they ate.
Thank you for reading this and taking the time to answer my question.
God bless you
K.K.
The specific time I am focusing on is during the exile. Like the Babylonian and Persian Captivity.
Thank you for the answers so far!!!
God bless America!!!!
K.K.
A: Well--the ancient Jewish culture would have been just the tribe of Judah. Are you certain you don't want all the Israelites?
If it's the Israelites, how ancient do you want? Prior to their time in Egypt, they probably ate and dressed like Sumerians, and then while in Egypt, like Egyptians.
If after Exodus, then the Old Testament gives us many specifics. Men wore full beards and skirts. Diet followed the strict kosher laws:
never mix dairy products and meat.
eat only clean meat: animals with cloven hooves that chew the cud (cattle, sheep, moose [oh, they didn't have moose in Israel, sorry), fish that have scales, birds but not carnivorous or carrion ones, and locusts.
Q: I would like to know about the Jewish Culture.?
I work for a Jewish family and I would like to know more about their beliefs and culture. Not so I could fit in, I just don't want to be ignorant to whats going on. And maybe improve conversation.
A: There is a lot to learn about Jewish Culture, more than someone could write here. I would suggest picking up some books or researching online. You are asking for us to explain one of the oldest cultures in the world in one paragraph. Just remember Saturday is the holy day, not Sunday. If they are orthodox they will not be able to use electricity on this day. If they are orthodox they also will not eat certain foods such as pork and they can't mix meat and dairy, so no cheeseburgers! They have a whole different set of holidays and they even have their own new year because their calender started before Christians came along. Anything more than that I would pick up some literature.
Q: I love Hebrew/Jewish culture, proverbs, etc...?
I read once a quote saying that if 2 people belong together, God will join them. something like that. does anyone more know about the subject of soulmates in Jewish culture? and i mean romantic soulmates! you can talk about other cultures as well.
A: you should read the Mein Kampf....
Q: For people who are Jewish or Know the jewish culture (and a little bit about medicine) !!! Please Urgent!!!!
I am doing a project for a medical class and it requires me to state what cultural restrictions a nurse would have in treating or caring for a person of the jewish culture. What are some things a nurse needs to be sensitive to when treating a jewish person (who has cystic fobrosis)? What prefereces would they have? I mean think of every possible scenario of being in a hospital as a jewish person what would you need that would be different from any othr culture? like food/beverage, religious services, what is and is not acceptable gender behaviors, etc.
Thank you in advance!!!
A: Bryan A really covered it. The truth is, not all Jews are traditionally religious, and all religiously observant Jews believe that almost every Torah law can be broken in order to save a life. So while for modesty reasons, a religious Jew would have a real problem with having to be fully or even partially naked in front of someone of the opposite sex, if that is the only nurse available to treat them and they need the treatment, it's okay. But the flip side to that is, if impositions into their privacy can be limited, they should be (ask if they're covered first, don't come in and remove clothing if strangers or unnecessary medical personnel are in the room -- common sense stuff you probably do anyways). Kosher food is necessary for observant Jews, but if none is available and they have to eat, let them know it's not kosher and be ready to show closed food packaging if they ask.
As far as the Sabbath goes, it depends on how religiously observant the patient is, but again - to save their life, anything is permitted. For any non-essential therapies that can wait the 25 hours without harm (showering, for example), if you know they are religious then give them the choice about proceeding or waiting.
The only other thing I'd like to add is about guests. Many religious organizations visit sick people in hospitals, to pray with them (or over them) and give support. ASK the patient if they would like to be included on a patient list for visits from the Jewish community (don't assume they will). And even more importantly, if you know a Christian group is visiting, let them know firmly that the patient is Jewish and to pass them by. Many Christians see hospital-visiting as a perfect opportunity to spread the "Good News." They may even be especially eager to sit with a non-Christian patient and "chat." No matter how well-intentioned, this will not be welcomed by a Jewish patient - and when you are sick in bed, it is very difficult to make an unwanted visitor go away - and worse to be a captive audience. The best thing you can do for those patients is to let the staff know in advance to refuse missionaries admission, or at the very least, ask the patients privately whether they wish to admit them. It could save a lot of mental or emotional distress.
The last thing I will add is that for religious Jews (of all denominations), if some procedure or therapy is new or worries them, they may want to check with a rabbi to make sure that going along with it is in accordance with Jewish law. In an ideal world, you would have a list of local rabbis with phone numbers handy someplace in the hospital for patients who are from out of town - but even without this, be ready for a therapy or treatment to be delayed while they make a call, if they should need to. Don't rush them to agree to something unless they will genuinely suffer harm without it happening immediately, and even then, give them a reasonable amount of time to try and contact their rabbi. Be ready to have the doctor (or whoever prescribed the procedure) to speak to them as well. Most (if not all) rabbis will go out of their way to see the practice through the eyes of the doctors and condone it, because saving lives is so central to Jewish law.
Q: i was wondering with jewish modesty is it a representation of other parts of jewish culture ?
ie is it Traditional to keep things covered up and private rather than show them around
A: I agree with kosher ninja - in judaism there is very much a sense of ''time and place '' for everything...
Jews are by nature quite tribal and insular and with the strong emphesis on family and community there is very much this idea of not revealing things to strangers or ''outsiders''
when it comes to jewish modesty, orthodox jews and in particular orthodox women have the strictest standards when it comes to revealing thier body... the idea is that we should be seen as a spirit with a body - and for this reason we cover ourselves most of the time...
when it comes to husbands - the idea is that physical attraction and is healthy and normal but should really be for the bedroom only.. and things like hair which serve no specific vital function are covered exept in the most private of moments ... but even then there are restrictions during certain times of the month when a women cannot even touch her husband or share his bed... it sounds archaic to most but its actually a way of encouraging a husband to see his wife as more than just a sex object and to appreciate her more
more secular jews dont go to these lengths but many have their own standards or limits which can be anything from covering their shoulders or not wearing low tops in public to keeping long hair tied back or wearing skirts not trousers etc ..
ultimatly the whole point is to make ordinary things special and holy by keeping them only for certain times and places
hope that explains it ok ?
Q: Why have Jewish faith / culture / people been treated so badly throughout history?
No hateful answers please. I'm just trying to understand.
A: While it is certainly true that Christians blamed Jewish people for the death of Christ and propagated the blood libel in the high middle ages, this is not the only story. In late antiquity and the early middle ages, Christians did not blame the Jews alone, but most primarily blamed the (pagan) Romans. Many seemed to consider the Jewish people as misguided but capable (and worthy) of salvation. Certainly, we get no reports of anti-semitic violence before the 11th century.
Nevertheless, a combination of Christian-imposed laws and Jewish desire to maintain their cultural integrity meant that by the 11th century, they mostly lived within small Jewish communities in the newly growing cities of Europe. They were usually more educated than their Christian neighbors. Moreover, local laws often banned them from joining craft guilds or farming (Christians saw these rules as incentives for the Jews to convert). Thus, jobs for Jews were limited. Many find work and income as tax collectors for the kings and as usurers (money-lenders). As such, the kings valued and protected them as useful to them. The rest of the population, however, resented this role. After all, how many people love the taxman.
Thus as Europe shifted to a cash economy, we see a distinct rise in hatred and violence against the Jewish people and the emergence of the blood libel. In good times, Christians often just resented them; in bad times, they killed those to whom they owed money. During this period, most Jews not already doing so, made sure to move into Jewish urban communities for safety.
This, however, exacerbated the other problem. Groups, including cultures and nations, often define themselves as much as by what they were not, than by what they were. The people of the emerging nations of France, England, Spain, etc used the Jews as symbolic of the "Other." They weren't Jewish, so they were "real Frenchmen," for example. At times of political stress, economic or other stress, people would often turn on the "Other," in this case, the Jewish people, not so much because they hated the Jews but also because they wanted to reassure themselves. Something similar happened during the Crusades: the people who couldn't go turned on the Jews to reassure themselves they were really Christian enough. Similarly, during the Black Death, they turned on the Jews not because they really believed in the guilt of the Jewish people but because they needed to do something, to reassure themselves. Outside Europe, in the Middle East, we also see violence against Jews peaking during periods of religious and political turmoil WITHIN the Muslim community. Muslims might be fighting amongst themselves but they could at least unite to fight non-Muslims.
Of course, pogroms and violence just made things progressively worse. Jewish peoples only felt safe within their own communities, making them even more isolated, making them more of a targeted "other." As nation states continued to define themselves, politicians used them again and again. It is no coincidence that hatred towards Jewish people began to really rise in Germany in the latter half of the 19th century, just as the move towards German unification, the creation of a single German state opposed to lots of little princedoms, really took on speed. Nationalism and hatred frequently go hand and hand; too often, that hatred is focused on Jewish people.
Q: where can i find info on Jewish womens culture?
i need info about jewish womens culture in the 1st century..
A: try www.christiancentury.org/articles.lasso.id=2761!!!
Q: does anyone jewish know are there classes about jewish history culture etc for men?
my reason for asking is i live near a large jewish community and there are 2 women's seminaries which will teach the bible jewish life etc and a yeshiva now i don't want to study jewish law to the level they do, are there classes on the subjects that interest me of would i be able to arm twist and sit at the back of the women's classes
A: answer: You might check into the local synagogues for an Intro to Judaism class. They can be pretty pack filled with info but are extremely interesting and hit a lot of aspects of Judaism, from history to Torah to the Holocaust, etc.