The Nature of the Almighty (Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B): Revision Note

Characteristics of the Almighty

The Jewish scriptures

• The characteristics of the Almighty are outlined in the Jewish scriptures

• The main Jewish sacred scriptures are known as the Tenakh

• The name TeNaKh comes from the three different sets of books that it comprises:

  • Te from the Hebrew word for Torah, the books of Moses

  • Na for Nevi’im, the Prophets 

  • Kh for Ketuvim, the Writings

• The Tenakh governs all aspects of Jewish life

  • The Old Testament in the Christian Bible is made up of the books of the Tenakh, although they appear in a different order

• The most important part for Jews is the Torah, the part which was revealed directly from God to Moses

The nature of the Almighty

• Judaism is a monotheistic religion, a religion with one God (like Christianity and Islam)

• God is a non-physical being, making it difficult to describe him fully

  • The name of God is so holy that it should not be spoken aloud or even written

  • Instead, Jews use other terms for God to describe some of his characteristics, found in the Tenakh and Talmud

  • These names include:

    • El, or powerful and mighty

    • Hashem, or the Name

    • El Shaddai, or God Almighty

The characteristics of the Almighty

One

• The most important characteristic of God is his oneness

• The Torah teaches that God is one

• The shema is the most important prayer for Jews, one of only two prayers commanded in the Torah 

  • It states the most important Jewish belief: that God is one

  • It starts with these words:

• It is impossible to divide God into parts or describe Him by physical qualities

• God is the only being Jews should worship, making Judaism strictly a monotheistic faith

Creator

• God is the creator, the one who made everything in the universe

• The Torah starts with the words

• God is a life-giving force who breathes life into inanimate objects to create life

  • He formed human beings from dust and gave them life

• The idea of God as creator is the first of the Thirteen Principles of Faith written by Maimonides which summarise the Jewish faith

  • Maimonides said 'I believe with perfect faith that God is the Creator and Ruler of all things'

• Because God created the universe, everything in it comes from him, belongs to him and is dependent on him

• The Torah repeatedly emphasises that God’s creation is ‘good’

  • At the end of creation, the Torah states that God saw that everything was good

• God gave humans control over the world he had created

Law-Giver 

• God did not leave humans without help to look after the world he had created: He gave laws to help them do so

• The laws were given to the prophets, including Noah and Abraham, as part of God’s covenant with them

• Most notably, God gave Moses many spiritual and ethical rules or laws to pass on to the people 

  • There are 613 commands in all, known as the mitzvot

  • They are found in the Torah, which Orthodox Jews believe was given directly to Moses directly by God

  • When Moses accepted the Law, he and the Jewish people entered into a covenant 

  • These laws were intended to help people keep their side of the covenant

• By keeping the mitzvot faithfully, Jews connect with God in a special way

  • They become God’s people, bring holiness into the world, and prepare for the time when God’s plan for the world will be fulfilled

Judge

• The law of the Torah set out in the mitzvot is known as the Halakhah

  • Halakhah means ‘the path that one walks’

  • It is the divine law of Judaism

  • The divine judge of how well humans keep the law is God

• The Tenakh teaches that God as judge will: 

  • punish the evil and reward those who do good

  • treat everyone fairly

  • make justice reign at a time that is coming in the future

• The time when justice and judgement will come appears to be connected with the coming of the Messianic Age

Importance of the nature of the Almighty for Jews today

Importance of the belief in God’s oneness

• This is the basis of Jewish belief

• It reminds the Jewish people that they should always worship only one single God

  • That God is the only being to whom they should offer prayers and praise

• Since everything comes from the creation of the one God, it means that every element of the created world is unified

  • Interacting with God's creation provides an opportunity for people to come face-to-face with God

  • It also means that Jews have a duty to try to reflect that unity in society

• Jews demonstrate and remind themselves of their belief in God’s oneness in several ways

  • Jewish people have a mezuzah containing the words of the shema on the doorframes of almost all rooms in their house (except toilets and bathrooms)

    • They kiss their fingers and touch them to the mezuzah as they pass it, to show love and respect for the one God and His commandments

  • Jewish men attach tefillin containing the shema to their foreheads and arms when they pray each morning

Importance of the belief in God as creator

• The belief that God created the Earth is important for Jews because it means the Earth is a precious gift from God that they must respect and look after 

  • This means that Jewish people should care for the environment

  • It means that everything as God’s creation has meaning and purpose, including each person’s life

  • It is an ongoing creation and God is involved in the world each day

• Jewish people say a prayer each day to remind them that God ‘in His goodness renews the work of creation each day continually’

Importance of the belief in God as law-giver

• The Halakhah is formed from the mitzvot and this informs the actions and way of life of every Jew today

• Following God’s laws is an important part of the covenant with Moses which is the basis of Judaism

• It reminds Jewish people of God’s care for them

• Keeping these laws gives meaning and purpose to each person’s daily life

Importance of the belief in God as judge

• Jews have confidence that ultimately God will punish the evil and reward the good

• This will inform their lives and help them to act with justice and mercy themselves

• They can have faith that through his justice God is protecting the whole earth from chaos, which may happen if there was no way to ensure people followed God's laws