The Presence of so many divisions within Judaism suggests that it is no longer a strong faith, Discuss

Authors Avatar

“The Presence of so many divisions within Judaism suggests that it is no longer a strong faith.” How far would you agree with this statement?

     Quantitatively speaking, the presence of many divisions within Judaism neither implies nor negates a weakening of the Jewish faith. Judaism has been a faith of divisions practically from its inception. It is the quality and nature of these divisions, including the motives that provoked them and the practical implications for Jewish religious life that must act as the criteria for ascertaining how pluralism affects the strength of the Jewish faith.

    When the Jewish people experienced the Exodus from Egypt they were divided into 12 tribes. Each tribe camped together in the desert. When the Jews entered into “The land of Israel,” each tribe lived separately in an allotted piece of land. In temple times (according to the zohar 3, 170a) each tribe had a specific gate by which to enter the temple courtyard, that only members of that tribe could enter. Similarly (Magen Avraham, Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim sec 68, shulchan aruch HaRav 86:2,) all cite the view that each tribe had a specific variant of the prayer liturgy unique for themselves. Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi explains that rather than being an arbitrary division, dividing one nation into 12 sub-nations; each tribe possessed a distinct, unique spiritual, emotional and intellectual characteristic that enhanced the nation as a whole. This form of divisiveness cannot be said to weaken the Jewish faith, on the contrary, it was the ideal. Each division complimented the whole. It expresses from the outset that Judaism is a religion that is sophisticated enough to handle certain differences. The fact that a religion could be divided yet could still strive towards an ultimate goal, without compromising on individuality, really highlights the strength and sophistication of that goal. However this was not a division on the grounds of theological belief.

Join now!

     In a similar vein, nowadays Sephardim make up a segment of the Anglo-Jewish community. They are a division in their own right. However it’s a division based solely on cultural differences stemming from their geographical differences, which Judaism recognises and respects. So much so, that there are halachic issues in changing from (for example) one variant of the prayer liturgy to another. However Jewish geographical customs do not impact on the fundamental theological principles of Judaism, and so it does not impact negatively on the strength of the faith. If anything, it expresses the fundamental significance of the ...

This is a preview of the whole essay