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Important links you should browse |
Important Histories: History of Jews in the Land of Israel History of Anciant Israel and Judea Hyksos enter Egypt Hebrews,invited by Yosef, enter Egypt History of Jews in Egypt Hyksos contribution to Egyptian gene pool Berber contribution to Egyptian gene pool History of Jews in Latin America History of Jews in Arabian Peninsula History of Jews in Europe Arab dispossession of Jews after creation of State of Israel. Jews of varying roles and status + special roles for non-Jews: Kohanim - Levi'im - Israelim - Ger Tzedek - Ger Toshav - Noachide |
Nusachot - different liturgical formats Nusach Ashkenaz - few, if any, kabbalistic additions Nusach Ari - variant of Nusach Sefard used by Chabad Hasidim and other Hasidim Minhag Aram Soba - Unique to Aleppo, Syria, Musta'arabi Jews Sephardic Nusach (Spanish-Portuguese older Castilian rite- no Kabbalah) Nusach Sefard - (some Kabbalistic additions) Minhag Italiani - (no Kabbalah) Nusach Temani (Yemenite) - [Baladi (no Kabbalah) Temani (with Kabbalah)] Nusach Edut HaMizrach (Iraqi) - (many Kabbalistic additions) Nusach Romaniote - (no Kabbalah) Nusach Eretz Israel - (reconstruction of Geonic liturgy - to be announced) Jews of diverse cultural heritage: Ashkenazi - Sephardi - Mizrachi - Italian - Romaniote - Maghrebim |
Common streams of Judaism You may not be aware that until the emergence of the Reform Movement in the mid-1800's, Jews were generally defined by their customs and liturgy - 1) Ashkenazi (Mitnagdim and Chassidim), 2) Mizrachi and 3) Sephardi. All three groups held Matrilineal descent and halachic conversion as the only two (2) methods of being counted as part of the Jewish People. Sephardi - Sephardim (including Mizrachim) have no 'movements' such as Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, or Reconstructionist therefore all Sephardim are educated in religious observance consistent with contemporary Orthodoxy.Religious observance will vary from Haredi (ultra-observant) to secular (observant on High Holy Days). Shulchan Aruch is authoritative text on Halachah, each community has its own liturgical minhagim with Pikei Avot studied weekly in Siddurim. There are dietary differnce between Sephardim and Ashkenazim. Ashkenazi Orthodox - the various subgroups of Orthodoxy, which maintain significant social differences, and differences in understanding Halakha. These groups, broadly, comprise Modern Orthodox Judaism and Haredi Judaism, most Hasidic Jewish groups falling into the latter category; their authoritative text on Halachah is the Mishnah Berurah. Ashkenazi Conservative - (Masorti Judaism in Israel and Europe) is more narrowly defined as a religious group led by the LCCJ, Leadership Council of Conservative Judaism, and any people affiliated with any of these organizations. Please note that many Sephardim that come to live in United States gravitate towards Conservative Communities due to the very small number of Sephardic Synagogues in the United States. There are many reasons for this including Ashkenazi Orthodox Synagogues demanding more rigorous observance of members than Sephardim might have undertaken in their prior homeland; their authoritative Conservative text on Halachah is Responsa originating in the Committee on Jewish Laws and Standards Ashkenazi Reform - Reform Judaism, born in Germany, espouses religious pluralism; it believes that most Jewish denominations are valid expressions of Judaism. Historically the Reform view of Orthodox Judaism has been highly negative. Reform began as a rejection of Orthodox Judaism, and early battles between Reform and Orthodox groups in Germany for control of communal leadership were fierce. Reform viewed Orthodoxy as overly focused on tradition and literal interpretation of scripture that conflicted with modern science. Relations with the Conservative movement are much more cordial, and Conservative and Reform leaders co-operate on many areas of mutual concern. Standards of belief and practice can vary widely from region to region, from congregation to congregation, and from individual to individual. There is little expectation of Halachic observance, perfrmance of Mitzvot or Torah study. |
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