1.2 The Nature of God: God as Creator Flashcards
What words does the Torah begin with?
‘When God began to create heaven and earth…’
What is established from the very start of the Torah?
That God is the creator
What does the book of Genesis tell us?
How God took 6 days to create the universe and everything in it
What do orthodox and ultra-orthodox Jews reject?
Scientific theories of evolution
What do other Jews accept?
Than an evolutionary theory may be correct and that the universe is much older, but God made that happen
What do orthodox and ultra-orthodox Jews believe?
This is literal truth that happened around 6000 years ago
According to the creation story, how long did it take God to get the universe fit to support life?
4 days
According to the creation story, how long did it take God to create all living creatures?
2 days
What did God do in the seventh day?
Rested and made it a holy day
Why do Jews rest on the Sabbath?
To be regularly reminded of Gods importance and role in the creation of everything
What do Jews believe Gods characteristics are?
Omnipotent - all powerful
Omniscient - all knowing
Omnipresent - being everywhere at all times
What is there no concept of in Judaism?
That evil was created by the devil, and that God must have created it
What did God give people and why?
Free will to choose what they know is right, and to reject evil as being completely against God
Jews believe that in order for people to have free will…
They have to be able to make their own choices between good and bad, hence why evil exists
When do Jews find it difficult to accept that God created evil?
When reflecting on times such as the Holocaust when they faced extreme prosecution
