Reform Judaism Essay

When I first heard about this assignment the beginning of the quarter my first thought was “this is going to be uncomfortable.” Mainly because I don’t practice my own religion often anymore and already feel left out the few times a year I do go to church. My second thought was what religion I would choose to explore and understand better. I chose Judaism because while I sat there thinking of the numerous religions I have encountered throughout my life, the very first besides my own was Judaism. My family had moved to a new city when I was six years old, a more diverse city in all aspects, and our neighbor happened to be a Jewish family, who had a son that was about my age. As a child I honestly didn’t give it any importance, he was my friend
Reformed temples believe that the Torah was written by man, oppose to it being written by God and then later it was combined. Reform Judaism recognizes that the sacred heritage is evolving and must continue to adapt over the centuries, in order for it to continue to thrive. Reform Judaism keeps all the moral values while studying traditions and observing the commandments, but they seek to extend the range of observance by being welcoming to irrespective of gender and sexual orientation. Reform Judaism tends to integrate with modern society and do not accept the binding nature of the Jewish
Shabbat is the Jewish Sabbath also known as the day of rest, which is celebrated from Friday evening to Saturday evening. I went to night services on Friday night, though they do provide Shabbat services on Saturday morning. While entering the temple the director stood at the door greeting people as they walked in and shaking everyone’s hands. As he greeted me, I introduced myself and explained that I was there for my religion class and that I was very interested in learning about Judaism. He told me that I was more than welcome to sit in the back and to take notes. He then told me that this temple had two different service