The difference between Judaism and Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy and Judaism: attitude and opinion about religion, the main differences from the Orthodox Church

In the first hundred years from the moment of the birth of Christ, two religions - both Christianity and Judaism were something generalized, and were one. But the years passed, and the single religion was divided into two branches - Judaism and Christianity, which, years later, became different religions, which not only differ from each other, but also contradict each other in many points. Despite the fact that both religions are rooted in the same branch, this, however, caused them to disperse in different directions.

What exactly are Christianity and Judaism?

Judaism is the Jewish religion, the religion of the people who gave dinner to the prophet Abraham. The main feature of this religion is that it exalts the Jewish people over others.

Christianity is a transnational religion. It doesn't matter what color your skin is, what gender or nationality you are - the most important thing in this religion is faith in Christ.

What is the difference between Christianity and Judaism, and their main differences?

The basis of Christian teaching is that Jesus, through his actions and teachings, revealed God to people. Jesus was sent to people in order to save them. Judaism, on the other hand, denies that Jesus was resurrected and rejects the idea that Christ was the Messiah.

Christians are waiting for the day when Christ will return to earth, while Jews believe that the Messiah has not yet appeared to people. The Jews are waiting for Moshiach to appear to them. Judaism arose on the religion of the Old Testament, and over time became only a national religion, not allowing Judaism to become world. Christianity, on the contrary, originating from the same soil, over the years spread throughout the world, and became the religion of the peoples.

Judaism is almost completely focused on the material, on the kingdom of the earth and the dominion that the Messiah who came to Earth will give to all believing Jews. Christianity is a spiritual religion that focuses on the kingdom of heaven and victory over human passions. Everyone who keeps the commandments of Christ in life will be in heaven, regardless of their social status and nationality.

Judaism is studied according to two main books - the Old Testament and the Torah. And Christianity prefers two directions of study - the New Testament and the Old Testament.

Love is the main dogma of Christianity. God is love. Every word of scripture is saturated with love, and all people are one and equal for God. Judaism teaches to treat negatively those people who do not believe in it.

In Christianity, unlike Judaism, there is such a thing as original sin. Since our ancient ancestors fell into sin, all people who were born must go through the rite of baptism in order to atone for their sin. Judaism is of the opinion that all Jews are born sinless, and only the person himself has the choice - to commit a sin, or not to commit.

The difference between Christianity and Judaism is seen in the following points:

• In Christianity, Jesus is the savior of people, while Judaism rejects him.
• Christianity is a religion of different peoples, but Judaism is only one.
• Judaism is studied only according to the Old Testament, Christianity according to the New and Old Testaments.
• Christianity talks about the equality of all people in the face of God, while Judaism concretizes Jewish uniqueness and superiority over others.

And the books of the Prophets are in the synagogue;

The Jewish influence can be seen in the development of the daily liturgical circle, especially in the service of the hours (or the Liturgy of the Hours in the Western Church).

It is also possible that some elements of early Christianity, which are clearly outside the norms of Pharisaic Judaism, could come from various forms sectarian Judaism.

Fundamental differences

The main difference between Judaism and Christianity is the three main dogmas of Christianity: Original Sin, the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the atonement of sins by His death. For Christians, these three dogmas are meant to solve problems that would otherwise be insoluble. From the point of view of Judaism, these problems simply do not exist.

• The idea of ​​original sin. The Christian solution to the problem is the acceptance of Christ through baptism. Paul wrote: “Sin came into the world through one person... And since the sin of one led to the punishment of all people, then the right deed of one leads to the justification and life of all people. And just as the disobedience of one made many sinners, so by the obedience of one, many will be made righteous.”(Rom.). This dogma was confirmed by the Decrees of the Council of Trent (1545-1563): “Since the fall caused the loss of righteousness, falling into slavery to the devil and the wrath of God, and since original sin is transmitted by birth, and not by imitation, therefore everything that has a sinful nature and everyone guilty in original sin can be redeemed by baptism.

• From the point of view of Christianity, before the death of Jesus, the prophecies of the Old Testament about the Messiah were not fulfilled.

• The idea that people cannot achieve salvation by their works. The Christian decision - the death of Jesus atones for the sins of those who believe in him.

Contradictions between Christianity and Judaism

Relationship between Judaism and Christianity

In general, Judaism refers to Christianity as its “derivative”, but considers Christianity to be a “delusion”, which, however, does not prevent it from bringing the basic elements of Judaism to the peoples of the world (see below an excerpt from Maimonides talking about this).

Some scholars of Judaism share the view that Christian teaching, like modern Judaism, in many ways goes back to the teachings of the Pharisees. Encyclopedia Britannica: "From the point of view of Judaism, Christianity is or was a Jewish 'heresy' and, as such, may be judged somewhat differently than other religions."

From the point of view of Judaism, the person of Jesus of Nazareth has no religious significance, and the recognition of his messianic role (and, accordingly, the use of the title "Christ" in relation to him) is absolutely unacceptable. There is not a single mention of a person in the Jewish texts of his era that could be reliably identified with him.

In the Middle Ages, there were folk pamphlets in which Jesus was portrayed in a grotesque and sometimes extremely offensive form for Christians (see ch. Toledot Yeshu).

In the authoritative rabbinical literature there is no consensus, whether to consider Christianity, with its trinitarian and Christological dogma, developed in the 4th century, as idolatry (paganism) or an acceptable (for non-Jews) form of monotheism, known in the Tosefta as shituf(the term implies the worship of the true God along with "additional").

In later rabbinical literature, Jesus is mentioned in the context of an anti-Christian controversy. So, in his work Mishneh Torah Maimonides, who considered Jesus "a criminal and an impostor", (compiled in - in Egypt) writes:

“And about Yeshua ha-Notzri, who imagined that he was the Messiah, and was executed by the verdict of the court, Daniel predicted:“ And the criminal sons of your people will dare to fulfill the prophecy and will be defeated ”(Daniel, 11:14), - for can be a bigger failure [than the one that this person suffered]? After all, all the prophets said that Mashiach is the savior of Israel and its deliverer, that he will strengthen the people in keeping the commandments. This same was the cause that the sons of Israel perished by the sword, and their remnant was scattered; they were humiliated. The Torah was replaced by another, most of the world was misled, serving another god, not the Almighty. However, the intentions of the Creator of the world cannot be comprehended by man, for “not our ways are His ways, and not our thoughts are His thoughts”, and everything that happened with Yeshua ha-Nozri and with the prophet of the Ishmaelites, who came after him, was preparing the way for King Mashiach, preparing for the whole world to serve the Almighty, as it is said: “Then I will put clear words into the mouths of all peoples, and people will be drawn together to call on the name of the Lord and serve Him all together”(Sof.). How did [those two contribute to this]? Thanks to them, the whole world was filled with the news of the Messiah, the Torah and the commandments. And these messages reached the distant islands, and among many peoples with uncircumcised hearts began to talk about the Messiah, and about the commandments of the Torah. Some of these people say that these commandments were true, but in our time they have lost their force, because they were given only for a while. Others - that the commandments should be understood allegorically, and not literally, and the Messiah has already come and explained their secret meaning. But when the true Messiah comes, and succeeds, and achieves greatness, they will all immediately understand that their fathers taught them false things and that their prophets and ancestors misled them. »

Some leaders of Judaism criticize church organizations for their anti-Semitic policies. For example, the spiritual mentor of the Jews of Russia, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, accuses the Church of unleashing anti-Semitism.

Relationship between Christianity and Judaism

Christianity sees itself as the new and only Israel, the fulfillment and continuation of the prophecies of the Tanakh (Old Testament) (Deut.; Jer.; Is.; Dan.) and as the new covenant of God with everyone humanity, and not just the Jews (Matt.; Rom.; Heb.).

Many Orthodox Saints, like St. John Chrysostom, Theophylact of Bulgaria, John of Kronstadt, St. Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, Rev. Macarius the Great and many others have a negative attitude towards Jews and Jews. St. John Chrysostom calls synagogues "the dwelling of demons, where God is not worshipped, there is a place of idolatry and equates the Jews to pigs and goats", condemns all Jews that they "live for the womb, clung to the present, and due to their lustfulness and excessive greed do not at all better than pigs and goats ... "" and teaches that one should not only exchange greetings with them and share in simple terms, but should be turned away from them, as a universal infection and ulcer for the whole universe. . St. John Chrysostom believes that there will be no petition to the Jews "for killing Christ and raising their hands against the Lord - that's for which you have no forgiveness, no apology..."

The final break between Christianity and Judaism occurred in Jerusalem, when the Apostolic Council (about the year 50) recognized the observance of the ritual prescriptions of the Mosaic Law as optional for Gentile Christians (Acts).

Relations between Christianity and Judaism through the ages

Early Christianity

According to a number of researchers, "Jesus' activities, his teachings and his relationship with his disciples are part of the history of Jewish sectarian movements at the end of the Second Temple period" (Pharisees, Sadducees or Essenes and the Qumran community).

Christianity from the very beginning recognized the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) as Holy Scripture, usually in its Greek translation (Septuagint). At the beginning of the 1st century, Christianity was seen as a Jewish sect, and later as a new religion that developed from Judaism.

Already at an early stage, the deterioration of relations between the Jews and the first Christians began. Often, it was the Jews who provoked the pagan authorities of Rome to persecute Christians. In Judea, the temple Sadducean priesthood and King Herod Agrippa I participated in the persecution. "The partisan attitude and tendency to attribute to the Jews the responsibility for the suffering and death of Jesus is expressed to varying degrees in the books of the New Testament, which, therefore, due to its religious authority, became the primary source of later Christian slander against Judaism and theological anti-Semitism" .

Christian historical science, in a series of persecutions against early Christians, on the basis of the New Testament and other sources, considers the “persecution of Christians from the Jews” as chronologically the first:

Subsequently, due to their religious authority, the facts set forth in the New Testament were used to justify the manifestations of anti-Semitism in Christian countries, and the facts of the participation of Jews in the persecution of Christians were used by the latter to incite anti-Semitic sentiments in the Christian environment.

At the same time, according to biblical studies professor Michal Chaikovsky, the young Christian Church, which originates from Jewish teaching and constantly needs it for its legitimation, begins to incriminate the Old Testament Jews with the very “crimes” on the basis of which the pagan authorities once persecuted Christians themselves. This conflict existed already in the 1st century, as evidenced in the New Testament.

In the final separation of Christians and Jews, researchers distinguish two milestone dates:

• about the year 80: the introduction by the Sanhedrin in Yamnia (Yavne) into the text of the central Jewish prayer "Eighteen Blessings" of a curse on informers and apostates (" malshinim"). Thus, the Judeo-Christians were excommunicated from the Jewish community.

However, many Christians continued to believe for a long time that the Jewish people would recognize Jesus as the Messiah. These hopes were hit hard recognition as the Messiah the leader of the last national liberation anti-Roman uprising Bar Kokhba (about 132 years).

In the ancient church

Judging by the surviving written monuments, starting from the 2nd century, anti-Judaism in the Christian environment increased. Characteristic Message from Barnabas, A word about Easter Meliton of Sardis, and later some places from the works of John Chrysostom, Ambrose of Milan and some. others

The specificity of Christian anti-Judaism was the repeated accusation of the Jews of deicide from the very beginning of its existence. Their other “crimes” were also named - their stubborn and malicious rejection of Christ and his teachings, lifestyle and lifestyle, profanation of the Holy Communion, poisoning of wells, ritual murders, creating a direct threat to the spiritual and physical life of Christians. It was argued that the Jews, as a people cursed and punished by God, should be doomed to " degrading way of life”(Blessed Augustine) in order to become witnesses of the truth of Christianity.

The earliest texts included in the canonical code of the Church contain a number of prescriptions for Christians, the meaning of which is complete non-participation in the religious life of the Jews. So, Rule 70 of the "Rules of the Saints Apostle" reads: " If anyone, a bishop, or a presbyter, or a deacon, or in general from the list of the clergy, fasts with the Jews, or feasts with them, or receives from them the gifts of their feasts, such as unleavened bread, or something similar: let him be deposed. And if a layman: let him be excommunicated.»

“And how some consider the synagogue to be a venerable place; then it is necessary to say a few things against them. Why do you respect this place when it should be despised, abhorred and run away? In it, you will say, lies the law and the prophetic books. What of this? Surely, where these books are, that place will be holy? Not at all. And this is why I especially hate the synagogue and abhor it, because, having prophets, (the Jews) do not believe the prophets, reading the Scriptures, they do not accept its testimonies; and this is characteristic of people who are extremely malicious. Tell me: if you saw that some respectable, famous and glorious person was taken to a tavern, or to a den of robbers, and they would vilify him there, beat him and insult him extremely, would you really begin to respect this tavern or den because why was this glorious and great man insulted there? I don’t think: on the contrary, for this very reason you would feel a special hatred and disgust (for these places). Discuss the same about the synagogue. The Jews brought the prophets and Moses there with them, not to honor them, but to offend and dishonor them.

In the Middle Ages

Church and secular authorities in the Middle Ages, constantly and actively persecuting the Jews, acted as allies. It is true that some popes and bishops have defended, often to no avail, the Jews. Religious persecution of the Jews had its own tragic social and economic consequences. Even ordinary ("domestic") contempt, religiously motivated, led to their discrimination in the public and economic spheres. Jews were forbidden to join guilds, engage in a number of professions, hold a number of positions; agriculture was a forbidden zone for them. They were subject to special high taxes and fees. At the same time, the Jews were constantly accused of being hostile to this or that people and undermining public order.

In the new time

In Orthodoxy

«<…>By rejecting the Messiah, by committing deicide, they finally destroyed the covenant with God. For a terrible crime, they carry a terrible execution. They have been executing for two millennia and stubbornly remain in irreconcilable hostility to the God-man. This enmity sustains and seals their rejection.”

He also explained that such an attitude of the Jews towards Jesus reflects the attitude of all mankind towards him:

«<…>The behavior of the Jews in relation to the Redeemer, belonging to this people, undoubtedly belongs to all mankind (so said the Lord, appearing to the great Pachomius); the more it deserves attention, deep reflection and research.

“The Jew, denying Christianity and presenting the claims of Judaism, at the same time logically denies all the successes of human history before 1864 and returns humanity to that stage, at that moment of consciousness, in which it was acquired before the appearance of Christ on earth. In this case, the Jew is not just an unbeliever, like an atheist - no: he, on the contrary, believes with all the strength of his soul, recognizes faith, like a Christian, as an essential content of the human spirit, and denies Christianity - not as faith in general, but in its very logical basis and historical legitimacy. The believing Jew continues to crucify Christ in his mind and fight in his thoughts, desperately and furiously, for the obsolete right of spiritual primacy - to fight with Him Who came to abolish the "law" - by fulfilling it.

"An exceptional and extraordinary phenomenon among all religions ancient world represents the religion of the Jews, incomparably rising above all the religious teachings of antiquity.<…>Only one Jewish people in the entire ancient world believed in a single and personal God.<…>The cult of the Old Testament religion is remarkable for its height and purity, remarkable for its time.<…>High and pure and moral teaching of the Jewish religion in comparison with the views of other ancient religions. She calls a person to the likeness of God, to holiness: “you shall be holy, for I am holy, the Lord your God” (Lev 19.2).<…>From the true and frank Old Testament religion, it is necessary to distinguish the religion of later Judaism, known under the name of "new Judaism" or the Talmudic, which is the religion of the faithful Jews at the present time. The Old Testament (biblical) teaching in it is distorted and disfigured by various modifications and stratifications.<…>In particular, the attitude of the Talmud towards Christians is imbued with enmity and hatred; Christians or "Akums" are animals, worse than dogs (according to Shulchan-Aruch); their religion is equated by the Talmud with pagan religions<…>There are blasphemous and extremely offensive judgments for Christians about the face of the Lord I. Christ and His Most Pure Mother in the Talmud. In the beliefs and beliefs inspired by the Talmud to the faithful Jews,<…>This is also the reason for that anti-Semitism, which at all times and among all peoples had and still has many representatives.

Archpriest N. Malinovsky. Essay on Orthodox Christian doctrine

The most authoritative hierarch of the Russian Church of the synodal period, Metropolitan Philaret (Drozdov) was a staunch supporter of missionary preaching among the Jews and supported practical measures and proposals aimed at this, up to Orthodox worship in the Jewish language.

After the Holocaust

Position of the Roman Catholic Church

During the reign of the next pope - Paul VI - the historic decisions of the Second Vatican Council (- years) were made. The Council adopted the Declaration “Nostra Ætate” (“In our time”), prepared under John XXIII, whose authority played a significant role in this. Despite the fact that the full title of the Declaration was “On the attitude of the Church towards non-Christian religions”, its main theme was the revision of ideas catholic church about Jews.

For the first time in history, a document appeared in the very center of Christendom, exonerating the centuries-old accusation of Jewish collective responsibility for the death of Jesus. Although " the Jewish authorities and those who followed them demanded the death of Christ", - it was noted in the Declaration, - in the Passion of Christ one cannot see the guilt of all Jews without exception - both those who lived in those times and those who live today, for, " although the Church is new people God, the Jews cannot be represented as rejected or damned».

Also, for the first time in history, an official document of the Church contained a clear and unequivocal condemnation of anti-Semitism.

The question of the contemporary attitude of the Catholic Church towards the Jews is described in detail in the article by the well-known Catholic theologian D. Pollefe "Jewish-Christian relations after Auschwitz from a Catholic point of view."

Opinion of Protestant theologians

One of the most significant Protestant theologians of the 20th century, Karl Barth, wrote:

“For it is undeniable that the Jewish people, as such, are the holy people of God; a people who knew His mercy and His wrath, among this people He blessed and judged, enlightened and hardened, accepted and rejected; This people, one way or another, made His work their business, and did not stop considering it their business, and will never stop. They are all by nature sanctified by Him, sanctified as successors and relatives of the Holy One in Israel; sanctified in a way that non-Jews by nature cannot be sanctified, even non-Jewish Christians, even the best of non-Jewish Christians, despite the fact that they too are now sanctified by the Holy One in Israel and have become part of Israel.

Position of the Russian Orthodox Church

In the modern Russian Orthodox Church there are two different directions in relation to Judaism.

Representatives of the conservative wing usually take a negative stance towards Judaism. For example, according to Metropolitan John (-), not only a fundamental spiritual difference remains between Judaism and Christianity, but also a certain antagonism: “ [Judaism is] a religion of election and racial superiority that spread among the Jews in the 1st millennium BC. e. in Palestine. With the advent of Christianity, she took an extremely hostile position towards it. The irreconcilable attitude of Judaism towards Christianity is rooted in the absolute incompatibility of the mystical, moral, ethical and ideological content of these religions. Christianity is evidence of God's mercy, which gave all people the possibility of salvation at the price of a voluntary sacrifice brought by the Lord Jesus Christ, incarnate God, for the sake of atonement for all the sins of the world. Judaism is the assertion of the exclusive right of the Jews, guaranteed by their very fact of birth, to a dominant position not only in the human world, but in the entire universe.»

The modern leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate, on the contrary, within the framework of interfaith dialogue in public statements, tries to emphasize the cultural and religious commonality with the Jews, proclaiming "Your prophets are our prophets."

The position of “dialogue with Judaism” is presented in the Declaration “Knowing Christ in His People”, signed in April 2007, among others, by representatives of the (unofficial) Russian Church, in particular, a supernumerary cleric hegumen Innokenty (Pavlov)

Notes

1. Which, as is clear from the context, was apparently dictated by tactical considerations of the defense during the trial
2. The term "Nazarite" in the New Testament New Testament should not be confused with the term "Nazarene", which corresponds to two different words in the original Greek; the latter, according to most Christian exegetes, indicates the origin of the person in question from Nazareth; although in Matt. there is a deliberate semantic confusion of these concepts.
3. Christianity- article from the Electronic Jewish Encyclopedia
4. Jews and Christians Owe Debt to Pharisees (Rabbi) Benjamin Z. Kreitman, Executive Vice President of the United Synagogue of America, New York in New York Times August 27
5. Encyclopedia Britannica, 1987, Volume 22, p. 475.
6. Pinkhas Polonsky. Jews and Christianity
7. J. David Bleach. Divine Unity in Maimonides, the Tosafists and Me'iri(in Neoplatonism and Jewish Thought ed. by L. Goodman, State University of New York Press, 1992), pp. 239-242.
8. The fragment is contained in the uncensored version of the Epistle - See Halkin, Abraham S., ed., and Cohen, Boaz, trans. Moses Maimonides" Epistle to Yemen: The Arabic Original and the Three Hebrew Versions, American Academy for Jewish Research, 1952, pp. iii-iv; Russian translation - Rambam. Message to Yemen (abridged version).
9. Talmud, Yevamot, 45a; Kiddushin, 68b
10. Yeshua means savior.
11. Here: non-Jews. Esau (Eisav), aka Edom (Edom), is the twin, enemy and antipode of Jacob-Israel. Edom Jewish sages began to call Rome after the adoption of Christianity in the time of Constantine. In the conversion of Rome, a significant role was played by the Idumeans (Edomites, sons of Edom), who had previously converted to Judaism at the behest of Hyrcanus.
12. S. Efron. Jews in their prayers. // « Missionary Review". 1905, July, No. 10, p. 9 (emphasis added).
13. Metropolitan Anthony. Christ the Savior and the Jewish Revolution. Berlin, 1922, pp. 37-39.
14. .
15. complete collection works of John Chrysostom in 12 volumes. Volume 1, Book Two, Against the Jews, pp. 645-759. Moscow, 1991. Recommended for publication by the Department for Religious Education and Catechism of the Moscow Patriarchate.
16. St. John of Kronstadt. A diary. The last notes. Moscow, 1999, pp. 37, 67, 79.
17. Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt. Death Diary. Moscow-Saint-Petersburg, 2003, p. 50. Publishing House "Father's House". With the blessing of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy II.
18. Interpretation of Holy Scripture. St. Petersburg,. 1898, p.1380139
19. A word about Easter Meliton of Sardis A word about Easter reflects not so much the anti-Semite mood of the Christian community, but rather intra-Christian conflicts, in particular, disputes with the followers of Marcion
20. Crossan, J. D., Who Killed Jesus? Exposing the Roots of Anti-Semitism in the Gospel Story of The Death of Jesus, San Francisco: Harper, 1995.
21. An example of such an interpretation of these words is Martin Luther's anti-Semitic treatise " About the Jews and their lies».
22. See, in particular, Robert A. Wild "The Encounter between Pharisaic and Christian Judaism: Some Early Gospel Evidence", Novum Testamentum 27, 1985, pp. 105-124. The problem of the possible anti-Jewish orientation of the Gospel of John is discussed in detail in Anti-Judaism and the Fourth Gospel, Westminster John Knox Press, 2001.
23. Luke T. Johnson, "The New Testament's Anti-Jewish Slander and the Conventions of Ancient Polemic", Journal of Biblical Literature, 108, 1989, pp. 419-441
24. most researchers believe the attributed authorship is genuine
25. "Beware of circumcision" is a translation of the Greek phrase βλέπετε τὴν κατατομήν that letters. means "beware of those who cut off flesh"; in the next verse, the apostle uses the already usual term for circumcision as a religious ritual - περιτομή.
26. For a discussion of such passages and their possible interpretations, see, for example, Sandmel, S. Anti-Semitism in the New Testament?, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978.
27. Gager, J.G. The Origins of Anti-Semitism: Attitudes toward Judaism in Pagan and Christian Antiquity, New York: Oxford University Press, 1983, p. 268.
28. In relation to this era, some researchers prefer to talk more about " christianities" and " Judaism" in plural. See, in particular, Jacob Neusner Studying Classical Judaism: A Primer, Westminster John Knox Press, 1991.
29. See, in particular, Dunn, J. D. G. The Question of Anti-Semitism in the New Testament Writings of the Period, in Jews and Christians: The Parting of the Ways, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1999, pp. 177-212. The author gives an overview of the work of researchers who hold different points of view on the problem, including the opposite one. In particular, he quotes (p. 178) the words of David Flusser, one of the greatest Jewish scholars of the New Testament: “ If a Christian were to find anywhere such hostile statements about Christianity, would he not call them anti-Christian? I will say more: many Christians would not hesitate to call such phrases anti-Jewish if they met them not in the New Testament, but in any other text. And do not tell me that such expressions and ideas are just a polemic between Jews».
30. E.g., see tutorials:
    - * Archpriest Alexander Rudakov. History of the Christian Orthodox Church. SPb., 1913, p. 20 // § 12 "Persecution of Christians from the Jews."
    - * N. Thalberg. History of the Christian Church. M., 191, p. 23 // "Persecution of the Church by the Jews."
31. Apostle James, brother of the Lord Orthodox Church Calendar
32. Archimandrite Filaret. The outline of the church-biblical history. M., 1886, p. 395.
33. "The sin of anti-Semitism" (1992), priest prof. biblical scholar Michal Tchaikovsky
34. OK. and MF.
35. A word about Easter Meliton of Sardis. Some researchers believe, however, that A word about Easter reflects not so much the Judeophobic mood of the Christian community, but rather intra-Christian conflicts, in particular, disputes with the followers of Marcion; The Israel in question is more of a rhetorical image, against which true Christianity is defined, and not the real Jewish community, which is accused of deicide (Lynn Cohick, "Melito of Sardis's "PERI PASCHA" and Its "Israel" ", The Harvard Theological Review, 91, no. 4., 1998, pp. 351-372).
36. Cit. on: The book of rules of the holy apostles, the holy councils of the ecumenical and local, and the holy fathers. M., 1893.

Christianity and Judaism have much in common, since both of these religions are Abrahamic. But there are also significant differences between them.

Relation to original sin

According to the Christian faith, every person is born with original sin and must atone for it throughout life. The apostle Paul wrote: “Sin came into the world through one man... And since the sin of one led to the punishment of all people, then the right deed of one leads to the justification and life of all people. And just as the disobedience of one made many sinners, so by the obedience of one, many will be made righteous” (Rom. 5:12, 18-19). According to the Jewish religion, all people are born innocent, and to sin or not to sin is only our choice.

Ways to atone for sins

Christianity believes that Jesus atoned for all human sins by his sacrifice. But every Christian at the same time bears personal responsibility for his actions before God. You can atone for sins by repenting before the priest as an intermediary between the Lord and people.

In Judaism, a person can achieve the forgiveness of God only by his deeds and deeds. All the sins of the Jews are divided into two types: violations of God's commandments and crimes against another person. The former are forgiven if the Jew sincerely repents of them. But at the same time, there are no intermediaries between God and man, as in Christianity. In the case of a crime against someone, a Jew should beg for forgiveness not from God, but exclusively from the one whom he offended.

Relation to other world religions

Christianity claims that only those who believe in the one true God will go to heaven after death. In turn, the Jews believe that in order to enter Paradise, it will be enough to observe the seven basic commandments received by Moses from God. If a person observes these laws, he will go to heaven regardless of what religion he professes - if he is a non-Jew, then he is called a righteous non-Jew. True, Judaism is loyal only to monotheistic religions, but does not accept pagan teachings because of polytheism and idolatry.

Ways of communication between man and God

In Christianity, the mediators between man and God are the priests. Only they have the right to carry out some religious rites. In Judaism, the presence of rabbis is not required during religious ceremonies.

Faith in one Savior

As you know, in Christianity, Jesus is honored as the Son of God, who alone can lead people to God: “Everything has been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father; and no one knows the Father but the Son, and to whom the Son wishes to reveal” (Matthew 11:27). Accordingly, Christian doctrine is based on the fact that only through faith in Jesus can one come to God. In Judaism, a person who does not adhere to this creed can approach God: “God is with those who cry out to Him” (Ps. 145:18). At the same time, God cannot be represented in any form, he cannot have an image or a body.

Attitude to the problem of good and evil

In Christianity, the source of evil is Satan, who appears as a force opposite to God. From the point of view of Judaism, there is no other higher power except God, and everything in the world can happen only according to God's will: "I create the world and produce disasters." (Ishayahu, 45:7).

Attitude towards worldly life

Christianity teaches that the very purpose of human life is to prepare for the subsequent afterlife. The Jews, on the other hand, see the main goal in improving the already existing world. For Christians, worldly desires are associated with sin and temptation. According to Jewish teaching, the soul is more important than the body, but the worldly can also be related to the spiritual. So, unlike Christianity, in Judaism there is no concept of a vow of celibacy. The creation of a family and the continuation of the family for the Jews is a holy cause.

The same applies to material goods. For Christians, the vow of poverty is the ideal of holiness, while the Jews consider the accumulation of wealth a positive quality.

Attitude towards miracles

Miracles play an important role in the Christian religion. Judaism sees it differently. So, the Torah says that if someone publicly manifests supernatural miracles and calls himself a prophet, and then begins to instruct people to violate God's instructions, then he should be killed as a false prophet (Deut. 13: 2-6).

Attitude towards the coming of the Messiah

Christians believe that the Messiah has already come to Earth in the form of Jesus. The Jews are waiting for the coming coming of the Messiah. They believe that this will be associated with significant changes in the world, which will lead to the reign of universal consent and the recognition of one God.

In the first century from the birth of Christ, Judaism and Christianity were a kind of common continuum. But later two directions developed from it - Judaism and Christianity, which later became two religions, in many respects contradicting each other. Having common roots, the branches of this tree radically diverged.

Definition

Judaism- the religion of the Jews, the heirs of those who made the promise to Abraham. Its main feature is in the doctrine of the chosenness of the Jewish people.

Christianity- a religion that is outside of nationality, it is for everyone who considers themselves followers of Christ.

Comparison

Christianity is based on the fact that God revealed himself to people through Jesus
Christ. This is the Messiah who came to save the world. Official Judaism denies the Resurrection of Christ, does not consider him a prophet and, moreover, the Messiah.

Resurrection of Christ

Christians are waiting for the second coming of Christ. The Jews are sure that the Messiah has not yet come into the world. They are still waiting for Moshiach.

Judaism arose on an Old Testament, almost universal religion, but over time it turned into a national one, thereby losing the opportunity to become a world religion. Christianity, having arisen on the same soil, over time has become a world religion.

The focus of Judaism is the material religion, the earthly kingdom, the dominion that the Messiah will give to the Jews over the whole world. Christianity believes in a kingdom of another plane - Heavenly. Spiritual peace, peace in Christ, victory over passions. There will be everyone who fulfilled the commandments of Christ with his life, regardless of nationality and social origin.

The teachings of Judaism are based only on the books of the Old Testament and the oral Torah. In Christianity, the absolute authority is the Holy Scripture (Old and New Testaments) and Sacred Tradition.

The main dogma of Christianity is love. God Himself is love. It pervades every word of the Gospel. All people are equal before God. Judaism has a negative attitude towards those who are not Jews.

In Christianity, there is a concept of original sin. Since the fall of the first parents took place, a person born into the world must be redeemed by baptism.

Judaism is of the opinion that a person is born sinless, and only then chooses for himself - to sin or not to sin.

Findings site

1. In Christianity, Jesus Christ is the Messiah who came to save the world. Judaism denies the deity of Christ.
2. Christianity is a world religion, Judaism is a national one.
3. Judaism is based on Old Testament, Christianity - on the Old and New Testaments.
4. Christianity preaches equality before God of all people. Judaism emphasizes the superiority of the Jews.
5. Judaism is rational; Christianity cannot be reduced to rationalism.
6. Christians are waiting for the Second Coming of Christ, after which the Kingdom of Heaven will come. The Jews are waiting for the coming of their Messiah, who will create an earthly kingdom for the Jews and give them dominion over all nations.
7. In Judaism, there is no concept of original sin.

The reason for the tragic tension between Christianity and Judaism cannot be explained simply by differences in religious beliefs and dogmas, which also exist in relation to all other religions. From the perspective of the Jews, one can assume that the reason is the long history of Christian persecution. However, this is not the root cause, since persecution is a consequence of the already existing conflict between Christianity and Judaism. This problem is more relevant than ever in our time.

A time to think about the future of relations between Jews and Christians. After all, only now the representatives Christian churches openly admitted that the cause of crimes against Jews is primarily religious intolerance. In the 20th century, anti-Semitism took on a form dangerous to Christianity itself. Then certain circles of the Christian world began to reconsider their positions.

There followed an apology from the Catholic Church for centuries of persecution of the Jews. Protestant churches, for the most part, call for an understanding of God's mission for the Jewish people in this world. It is difficult to judge the current position of Orthodoxy on this issue, since this position is simply not expressed.

It is necessary to talk about the problems that have arisen between Christians and Jews, starting with an analysis of the contradictions that the church has fallen into when declaring itself to be the New Israel. The first Christians declared that they were not a new religion, but consistent successors of Judaism. All concepts of Christians are taken from the promises and prophecies of the Jewish Holy Scripture (Tanakh). The very central image of Christianity is Jesus, not just a savior, but also the promised Jewish people Moshiach, a descendant of King David. By the way, the origin of Jesus presented in the New Testament raises a lot of fair questions.

The Church insistently declared that it was a direct continuation of that Divine action in history, the main part of which is the chosen people of Israel. Meanwhile, the Jews continued to exist, claiming that the Bible was theirs, that their understanding of the Bible was the only legal one, and branding Christian interpretation as heresy, lies, and idolatry. This mutual opposition created a climate of hostility and rejection that made the already difficult Judeo-Christian relationship even more controversial.

The unwillingness of the Jews to accept the new doctrine gave rise to many problems for Christian theology, including one of the main doctrines - missionary, the essence of which is to convey the Gospel, i.e. Good news, for those who don't know about it. The Jews, however, were originally in a different category, being the first recipients of God's promise but rejecting it. In the eyes of Christians, Jews have become living evidence of stubbornness and blindness.

Jewish history in Christendom is marked by an alternation of more or less severe oppression, relative tolerance, expulsions, and occasional pogroms. Ideologically, Christianity is completely imbued with the philosophy of Judaism. The answers offered by Christianity to questions about the meaning of being, the structure of the Universe, the human soul, about birth and death, about eternity are based on ideas formulated long before the appearance of Jesus Christ. They are given in the Torah.

It is an undeniable fact that most people still do not know about such a close spiritual relationship between the two religions and that the basis of all the moral values ​​of the Western world is not just Christian values, but values ​​borrowed from Judaism. Even the ten basic commandments offered in the Gospel and which became the basis of Western morality are known to every Jew as the ten main commandments given by Gd to the people of Israel on Mount Sinai.

And yet Christianity is different from Judaism, otherwise it cannot be another religion. The eminent scholar of our time, Rabbi Nachum Amsel, lists ten such differences.

First difference. Most of the world's religions, including Christianity, support the doctrine that non-believers in that religion will be punished and won't get a place in Heaven or the World to Come. Judaism, unlike any major world religion, believes that a non-Jew (who does not have to believe in the Torah, but who keeps the seven commandments given to Noah) will definitely receive a place in the World to Come and is called a righteous non-Jew (Sanhedrin, 56b).

Second difference. In Christianity, the most important idea is faith in Jesus as the savior. This faith in itself makes it possible for a person to be saved. Judaism believes that the highest thing for a person is the service of Gd through the fulfillment of his will, and this is even higher than faith. There is a verse in the Torah that says: "He is my God, and I will glorify Him." In discussing how a person can glorify and exalt G-d, the Talmud replies that it is through actions. Consequently, highest form likening G-d is doing an action, not feeling or believing. Faith should be shown in deeds, not in words.

Third difference. The main belief of Judaism is belief in one God. There can be no other higher power in the world than G-d. In addition to believing in the concept of God, Christianity believes in the concept of Satan as the source of evil, which is the power the opposite of G-d. Judaism is very specific about the belief that evil, like good, comes from G‑d and not from any other power. A stanza from Holy Scripture reads: "I [God] create the world and bring disaster." (Ishayahu, 45:7). The Talmud tells the Jew that when trouble comes, the Jew should recognize G-d as the Just Judge. Thus, the Jewish reaction to apparent evil is to attribute its origin to G‑d and not to any other power.

Fourth difference. Judaism holds that Gd, by definition, has no form, image, or body, and that Gd cannot be represented in any form. This position is even included in the thirteen foundations of the faith of Judaism. On the other hand, Christianity believes in Jesus, who, as G-d, took on a human form. G-d tells Moses that a man cannot see G-d and remain alive.

Fifth difference. In Christianity, the very purpose of existence is life for the sake of the next world. Although Judaism also believes in the World to Come, this is not the only purpose of life. The Aleynu prayer says that the main task of life is to improve this world.

Sixth distinction. Judaism believes that every person has a personal relationship with Gd and that every person can communicate directly with Gd on a daily basis. In Catholicism, priests and the Pope act as mediators between God and man. Unlike Christianity, where the clergy are endowed with exalted holiness and a special relationship with Gd, in Judaism there is absolutely no religious act that a rabbi could do that any individual Jew could not do. So, contrary to the beliefs of many people, it is not necessary for a rabbi to be present at a Jewish funeral, a Jewish wedding (the ceremony can be performed without a rabbi), or when performing other religious activities. The word "rabbi" means "teacher". Although rabbis have the right to make official decisions about Jewish law, a Jew who is sufficiently trained can also make decisions about Jewish law without being instructed. Thus, there is nothing unique (from a religious point of view) in being a rabbi as a member of the Jewish clergy.

Seventh distinction. In Christianity, miracles play a central role, being the basis of faith. In Judaism, however, miracles can never be the foundation of faith in G-d. The Torah says that if a person appears before the people and declares that Gd appeared to him, that he is a prophet, performs supernatural miracles, and then begins to instruct people to violate something from the Torah, then this person should be killed as a false prophet ( Devarim 13:2-6).

Eighth difference. Judaism believes that a person starts life with a "clean slate" and that he can receive good things in this world. Christianity believes that man is inherently wicked, weighed down by Original Sin. This hinders him in the pursuit of virtue, and therefore he must turn to Jesus as a savior.

Ninth distinction. Christianity is based on the premise that the Messiah in the form of Jesus has already come. Judaism believes that the Messiah is yet to come. One of the reasons Judaism cannot believe that the Messiah has already come is that, in the Jewish view, the Messianic times will be marked by significant changes in the world. Even if these changes occur in a natural way, and not supernaturally, then universal agreement and recognition of G-d will reign in the world. Since, according to Judaism, no changes occurred in the world with the appearance of Jesus, according to the Jewish definition of the Messiah, he did not come yet.

Tenth difference. Since Christianity is exclusively aimed at the next world, the Christian attitude towards the human body and its desires is similar to the attitude towards unholy temptations. Since the next world is the world of souls, and it is the soul that distinguishes man from other creatures, Christianity believes that man is obliged to nourish his soul, and neglect his body as much as possible. And this is the way to achieve holiness. Judaism recognizes that the soul is more important, but one should not neglect the desires of one's body. So instead of trying to reject the body and completely suppress physical desires, Judaism makes the fulfillment of those desires a holy act. The most holy Christian priests and the Pope take a vow of celibacy, while for a Jew the creation of a family and the continuation of the family is a holy act. Whereas in Christianity the vow of poverty is the ideal of holiness, in Judaism, wealth, on the contrary, is a positive quality.

I dare to add Rabbi Nachum Amsel with the eleventh distinction. In Christianity, a person is responsible for the sins he has committed before Gd, they can be corrected by repentance and confession before a priest, who is endowed with authority, in the name of Gd and Jesus Christ, to let go in peace. In Judaism, sins are divided into two categories: sins against God and sins against man. Sins committed against G-d are forgiven after a person's sincere repentance before the Almighty himself (no intermediaries are allowed in this matter). But even the Almighty himself does not forgive crimes against a person, only the offended side, that is, another person, can forgive such crimes. Thus, a person is necessarily responsible to Gd, but this does not relieve him of responsibility to people.

Jewish Roots of Christianity. First of all, it should be noted the form of worship in Christianity, which has signs Jewish origin and influence. The very concept of church ritual, namely the assembly of the faithful for prayer, the reading of Holy Scripture and the sermon, follows the example of worship in the synagogue. The reading of passages from the Bible is the Christian version of the reading of the Torah and the Book of the Prophets in the synagogue. Psalms in particular play a very important role in both Catholic and Orthodox liturgy. Many early Christian prayers are excerpts or adaptations of Hebrew originals. And what can we say about many wordings in prayers, like "Amen", "Halelujah", etc.

If we turn to one of the central events of the New Testament - the Last Supper, we will see that there is a description of the real Passover Seder, which is obligatory for every Jew on the Passover holiday.

Needless to say, the very existence of similarities did more than just exacerbate the conflict. It became impossible for the Jews to consider the Christians merely the bearers of an unfamiliar and totally alien religion, as they laid claim to the heritage of Israel, bent on depriving the Jewish people of the reality and authenticity of their religious existence.