World Religions: Judaism

When it comes to the Catholic Church’s relationship with other religions, the message is clear. Nostra Aetate, a Vatican II document that addresses this, says, "The Catholic Church rejects nothing which is true and holy in these religions. She looks with sincere respect upon those ways of conduct and life, those rules and teachings which …often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all people.”

The places of origin of the world religions fall neatly into two geographical areas, the Near, or Middle, East and the Far East. Shared beliefs among the three Near Eastern or Western world religions – Judaism, Christianity, and Islam – make sense because both Christianity and Islam spring from Judaism and, therefore, share a similar worldview and concept of God. These religions are monotheistic, a word which means “one God.” Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all trust in that single all-powerful, all-knowing divine being who is entirely responsible for creation, yet exists apart from it. This is in contrast to the Greek or Roman gods, like Venus and Apollo, who were physical beings who lived on earth. And while these Olympian gods toyed with people for their own amusement, the Western faith traditions all believe that human beings, made in the image of the Creator, can and should enter into a relationship with God.

As Catholic Christians, we know a little more about Judaism because we hear a reading from the Old Testament every Sunday.

A fundamental difference between Jews and Christians is that Jews do not believe that Jesus was the Messiah spoken about in the Hebrew Scriptures. Other differences are found in what is celebrated and when. For example, while Christians attend services or Mass on Sunday, Jews may attend a Friday evening service, but primarily celebrate Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath, with home rituals.

Major Christian holidays reflect important times in Jesus' life, like Christmas and Easter. Jewish holidays, on the other hand, commemorate significant historical events and agricultural observances. This includes Passover, which commemorates the Exodus from Egypt, and the Festival of First Fruits, which recalls receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai.

The Church, says Nostra Aetate, recalls what St. Paul said about Jews: " ‘theirs is the sonship and the glory and the covenants and the law and the worship and the promises; theirs are the fathers and from them is the Christ according to the flesh,’ the Son of the Virgin Mary.” The Church also reminds us that “the Apostles … as well as most of the early disciples … sprang from the Jewish people.” And so we acknowledge our differences and celebrate our shared beliefs and history in our relationship with our Jewish neighbors.