BENTON PARK SCHOOL
CREATING A CLIMATE FOR GREAT LEARNING SUCCESS AND OPPORTUNITY
Year 12 Bridging Work – Religious Studies
The first topic we will be learning about in Year 12 is Judaism. Please complete the following work for the first lesson back. Please bring a ring binder and folder dividers to your first lesson.
Activity 1
Produce a fact sheet on the Jewish religion. Include:-
What Judaism is How Judaism began Who can be Jewish Key beliefs Key practices Different movements within Judaism (Orthodox, Hasidic, Reform, Conservative) Where Jews worship and how they worship Key festivals Key religious figures
The following websites may be useful:-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism
www.jewfaq.org
http://www.religionfacts.com/judaism
Activity 2
Produce a glossary for Judaism by finding a definition for each of the following key terms:
1. agunah 18. Shekinah 35. Dreyfus affair 2. covenant 19. Kavod 36. En Sof 3. Brit milah 20. Shema 37. Haggadah 4. Torah 21. Tefillah 38. Halakah 5. Orthodox Judaism 22. Tzedakah 39. Holocaust
6. Reform Judaism 23. Amidah 40. Kashrut 7. Hasidic Judaism 24. Zionism 41. Kibbutz 8. Talmud 25. Religious pluralism 42. Kol Nidre 9. Midrash 26. Synagogue 43. Machzor 10. Mishnah 27. Pesach 44. Maimonides 11. Gemara 28. Rosh Hashanah 45. Mikveh 12. Halakhah 29. Yom Kippur 46. Seder 13. Aggadah 30. Kabbalah 47. Anti-Semitism 14. Mitzvoth 31. bet midrash 48. Aseret he-D’ibrot 15. Messiah 32. brit milah 49. bereshit 16. Monotheistic 33. derash 50. bet din 17. Incorporeal 34. devekut 51. bet k’nesset
Key Word Definition
covenant
Activity 3 - Religious figures & texts
Read Genesis chapters 11-13, 15, 17 and 22 about the Abrahamic covenant and answer the following questions:
1. What does God promise to Abram? 2. What does Abram promise in return? 3. What do you think Abraham’s test is supposed to show us? 4. What do we learn about the relationship between God and Abraham? 5. What else is revealed about God’s character in these passages? 6. What Biblical event is being referred to in Genesis 15:13-14? 7. What does the covenant tell us about the relationship between God and the Jewish people? What challenges might there be to accepting this in light of Jewish history?
Activity 4 - Religious concepts & life
Write a report (1-2 sides of A4) explaining Jewish beliefs about the nature of God. This should include:
Beliefs linked to absolute monotheism Characteristics of God God’s presence as both kavod and shekinah. Maimonides on the attributes of God Whether God’s characteristics are meaningful today.
The following websites may be useful:
http://jewishstudies.eteacherbiblical.com Judaism.about.com http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism www.jewfaq.org