Jewish mythology: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 16:20, 29 July 2005

Revision as of 16:21, 29 July 2005

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[[Hasidic Judaism]] Jews study mystical texts because the [[Baal Shem Tov]], the father of [[Hasidism]] was a renowned mystic and ''Kabbalist'', his ardent followers would never refer to him as a mythologist as to them he neither a teacher of myths nor teaching mythology. In [[Orthodox Judaism]], for the most part, mysticism is part of [[Judaism]] whereas [[mythology]] is a [[pejorative]] term applied by critics of Judaism to denigrate what Orthodox Jews consider to be their faith's true teachings. Similarly, the famous Rabbi [[Joseph Karo]], the author of the [[Shulkhan Arukh]], which is the pillar of Jewish Law (known as [[halakha]]), was at the same time also a mystic, and he sought out the teachings of his favorite mystic of his time, Rabbi [[Isaac Luria]]. Neither of these great Jewish sages were considered to be devotees of mythology, on the contrary, they were classical rabbis who believed that [[Judaism]] incorporates within itself a whole strata of mysticism such as in the [[Kabbalah]]. Many Orthodox Jewish defenders of "mysticism" believe that Jewish mysticism has nothing to do with secular or non-religious notions of mythology. [[Judaism]] actually forbids belief in such things as [[Greek mythology]], [[Roman mythology]], and [[Norse mythology]] (the greatest and best known mythologies in the [[Western World]]). This prohibitive attitude is allegedly because of the multiple deities of [[Polytheism|polytheistic]]

religions, and what Jewish people, in general, consider to be the immoral behavior of so many of the mythological gods who Jews consider to be very far removed from the God that Jews have mostly worshipped through the times, a worship rooted in the [[Torah]] and the [[Monotheism]] at its core defined by the [[Ten Commandments]], which explicitly forbids recognizing the mythological gods. (Practicioners of [[Judeo-Paganism]] might beg to differ).)

According to many Jews, Judaism embraces mysticism, (even though it may have its own debates about it), whereas Judaism rejects mythology of any kind.