Criticism of Judaism: Difference between revisions

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Criticism of Judaism has existed since Judaism's formative stages, as with many other religions, on theological grounds.

Critics, such as Baruch Spinoza, criticize Judaism because its theology and religious texts describe a personal God which is interested in human affairs and has relationships with human beings.^[1] Spinoza instead believed God exists only philosophically and that God is abstract and impersonal. This criticism of Judaism is also made by some pantheists and nontheists who object to all theistic religions.^[2]

Many people, such as Baruch Spinoza,^[3] Moses Mendelssohn, ^[4] and Mordecai Kaplan,^[5] have criticized Judaism because its religious texts describe Jews as the Chosen People.^[6] Many secular and Christian critics, in particular, have made this criticism because of implied favoritism or superiority.^[7] However, most modern branches of the Jewish faith interpret "chosen people" to mean that Jews have special role to "preserve God's revelations"^[8] and to "affirm our common humanity",^[9] such as reflected in the policy statement of Reform Judaism that the role of chosen people means that Jews have a special responsibility to "cooperate with all men in the establishment of the kingdom of God, of universal brotherhood, Justice, truth and peace on earth."^[10]

See also: Persecution of Christians in Judea

Judaism has been criticized because it is alleged that Jews, particularly during the first few centuries CE, persecuted Christians.^[11]

Judaism has been criticized by claims that it is not righteous because it does not recognize Jesus as the messiah.^[12] Paul made this criticism in the New Testament (Rom 9:30–11:26).

Judaism has been criticized because the Talmud, the Tosefta, and the Toldoth Yeshu are claimed to refer to Jesus in an insulting manner, such as: stating that Jesus is condemned to hell and boiled in excrement;^[13] stating that he was executed for sorcery; stating that his mother Mary was a whore or adulterer; and identifying Jesus by the the Hebrew name Yeshu which, it is alleged, is not a short form of the name Yeshua, but rather an acrostic signifying "may his name and memory be blotted out".^[14] However, many scholars of Judaism maintain that the person identified as Yeshu in the Talmud is not the Jesus of the Gospels.^[15] In addition, the general trend in Judaism over the past two thousand years has been to treat Jesus with increasing sympathy.^[16]

Judaism has been criticized because it is alleged that Judaism is responsible for the death of Jesus Christ, often represented in the claim that "Jews killed Jesus", initially stated by Paul in the New Testament (1 Thes. 2:14–15).^[17] However, many historians state that the Romans were responsible for the death of Jesus, and the Roman Catholic church issued a proclamation absolving Jews of guilt for the death.

A prominent place in the Qur'anic polemic against the Jews is given to the conception of the religion of Abraham. The Qur'an presents Muslims as neither Jews nor Christians but followers of Abraham who was in a physical sense the father of the Jews and the Arabs and lived before the revelation of Torah. In order to show that the religion practiced by the Jews is not the pure religion of Abraham, the Qur'an mentions the incident of worshiping of the calf, argues that Jews do not believe in part of the revelation given to them, and that their taking of usury shows their worldliness and disobedience of God. Furthermore, the Quran claim they attribute to God what he has not revealed. According to the Qur'an, the Jews exalted Ezra as the "son of God." (See the Quranic statements about perceived Jewish exaltation). This however, has no historical basis, is not mentioned in any Jewish text or oral tradition, and is not practiced by modern Jews (nor is there evidence to show that it ever was practiced).^{[citation needed]} The character of Ezra became important in the works of the later Andalusian Muslim scholar Ibn Hazm who explicitly accused Ezra of being a liar and a heretic who falsified and added interpolations into the Biblical text. In his polemic against Judaism, Ibn Hazm provided a polemical list of what he considered "chronological and geographical inaccuracies and contradictions; theological impossibilities (anthropomorphic expressions, stories of fornication and whoredom, and the attributing of sins to prophets), as well as lack of reliable transmission (tawatur) of the text".^[18][19]

Kosher slaughter as a practice has attracted widespread criticism from animal welfare groups who claim that the absence of any form of anesthesia or stunning prior to the severance of the animal’s jugular vein entails prolonged and unnecessary pain. The British Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC), an independent body which advises the British Government in matters of animal welfare, has demanded that kosher slaughter no longer be exempted under relevant legislation, demanding that animals be subjected to stunning before slaughter. FAWC Chairwoman, Dr Judy MacArthur (herself a farmer and qualified veterinarian) has defended the organisation’s stance, criticising her detractors by claiming that "(kosher slaughter involves) a major incision into the animal and to say that it doesn't suffer is quite ridiculous." ^[20] This claim is contrary to those made by supporters of kosher slaughter, who claim that the extreme blood loss caused in the process results in a rapid loss of consciousness and therefore an absence of pain.^[21]

Conservative Judaism is criticized by some leaders of Orthodox Judaism for not properly following Halakha (Jewish religious law).^[22] It is also criticized by some leaders of Reform Judaism for being at odds with the principles of its young adult members on issues such as intermarriage, patrilineal descent, and the ordination of lesbians and gay men—all issues that Conservative Judaism opposes and Reform Judaism supports.^[23] (The Conservative movement has since moved in the direction of allowing for gay rabbis and the "celebration of same-sex commitment ceremonies."^[24])

See also Historicity of Hebrew bible, Documentary Hypothesis

Judaism's historical foundations - particularly some of the narratives of the Torah - are claimed to be historically inaccurate, including the events surrounding the Exodus, the narrative of Noah's Ark, the account of the earth's creation, the tradition that the Torah was written by Moses, and the events surrounding the battle of Jericho.^[25] However, some branches of Judaism do not interpret these narratives literally, and many Jews consider those narratives to be metaphorical or allegorical.

Judaism has been criticized because its religious texts allegedly endorse or glorify violence, including violence against innocent peoples. The battle of Jericho (Joshua 6:1–27),^[26] the story of Amalekites (1 Sam 15:1–6),^[27] the story of the Midianites (Numbers 31:1–18),^[28] and the Purim festival^[29] are cited as sources of violent attitudes that are allegedly endorsed by Judaism and its religious texts.^[30] However, modern religious authorities repudiate the sort of warfare described in the Torah, or assert that the violent episodes were not historical events, or claim that the events were exaggerated or metaphorical.

Judaism has been criticized because its religious laws contain several provisions that discriminate against non-Jews, such as the rule that there is no need to return lost property belonging to non-Jews, and the asymmetry in compensation rules following ox-goring incidents.^[31] However, religious authorities point out that those religious dicta must be interpreted within the context that they were created, and that non-Jews in that context were idolaters.^[32] In addition, arguments against such discrimination were posited by leading rabbis starting in the middle ages, and the rules are no longer enforced.^[33]

Judaism, particularly the Orthodox formulation, has been criticized because its religious laws can sometimes result in women being trapped in abusive relationships, and for tolerating the status of agunah.^[34] Many criticisms focus on the fact that women may be trapped in a marriage, because divorce cannot be granted without the husband's consent, and some husbands refuse to grant the consent.^[35] However, the Reform Judaism and Conservative Judaism formulations permit women to obtain divorces without the consent of husbands.

Judaism has been criticized because some of its religious laws and religious texts are alleged to treat women with a status inferior to men, including exclusion from some rituals and ceremonies,^[36] being rabbis or holding certain other positions of authority,^[37] which sometimes leads women to feel helpless, powerless, and like outsiders.^[38] Some critics blame Judaism and its religious texts for being the source of widespread patriarchal attitudes in the modern world.^[39] Author Naomi Gaetz addresses the fact that some feminists blame the Judaism for being the source of many sexist beliefs, and quotes Tikva Frymer-Kensky "Israel was neither the creator of patriarchy, nor the worst perpetrator in the ancient world.…Nevertheless, we make a profound statement when we acknowledge that the Bible is patriarchal. We are brought to the realization that the Bible contains a fundamental moral flaw: it does not treat all humans as equals."^[40] Reform Judaism and Conservative Judaism generally provide women with privileges comparable to men.^{[citation needed]}

Judaism has been criticized because the religious rules governing menstruation (generally known as niddah) are claimed to cause some women to view their bodies as damaged, and to cause some women to feel oppressed.^[41] Tova Hartman wrote "The rules that govern religious women's bodies are often criticized as oppressive methods of domination".^[42] However, one commentator noted that "Rabbinic commentary did not unilaterally focus on the menstruating woman as pariah. For every statement stressing defilement, danger, and impurity, exists a counter-statement emphasizing respect toward women, the holiness of sexual intimacy, and the incidental benefits of sexual regulation and restraint."^[43]

Judaism has been criticized because its religious texts condemn homosexual activity, and because some formulations, such as Orthodox Judaism, prohibit homosexual activity.^[44] However, Reform Judaism accepts gay and lesbian members and rabbis. Orthodox Judaism does not exclude homosexuals, but requires that they not engage in homosexual sexual activities.

Judaism has been criticized for encouraging or requiring brit milah, a circumcision ritual performed on young boys, because the ritual is alleged to be painful, cruel, tantamount to genital mutilation, and without the boy's consent.^[45] An anti-circumcision movement is active in some branches of Judaism.^[46][47] However, many view circumcision as an important religious ritual, involving only minor pain.

Some of Judaism's religious laws, such as the law prohibiting work on the sabbath or the law prohibiting interest on loans, have been criticized as being irrational, unjust, or incompatible with modern society.^[48]

See also: Reform movement criticisms of traditionalists

Judaism has been criticized because its religious laws and doctrines, when followed scrupulously, are alleged to cause the Jewish community to isolate itself from other cultures. This criticism has been made by leaders of the Reform Judaism movement, and was a factor in the growth of the Reform movement in Judaism. Historian Jehuda Reinharz wrote that the reform movement "implied the breakdown of the Jews' millennial social and cultural isolation."^[49] Historian Efraim Shmueli wrote that "[Jews] were eager to achieve integration in their host countries" and "these movements wished to tear down the barriers separating Israel from other nations".^[50] A biographer of Mordecai Kaplan wrote "According to Kaplan, the Jewish heritage, including the belief in God, must be reinterpreted so that it will be consistent with the intellectual outlook of the twentieth century. The Torah, which is Jewish civilization in practice, must be given a new functional interpretation." ^[51]

• Anti-Judaism
• Philo-Semitism
• On the Jewish Question by Karl Marx
• Orthodoxy and the Reform movement in Judaism
• Halakha#Views today

• Hartman, Tova (2007). Feminism encounters traditional Judaism: resistance and accommodation. UPNE.
• Lustick, Ian (1988). For the land and the Lord: Jewish fundamentalism in Israel. Council on Foreign Relations. ISBN 0876090366.
• Scult, Mel (1993). Judaism faces the twentieth century: a biography of Mordecai M. Kaplan. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0814322808.
• Shmueli, Ephraim (1990). Seven Jewish cultures: a reinterpretation of Jewish history and thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521373816.

• Hofesh organization - The largest Jewish secular web site.