Talk on Judaism

The Men’s Breakfast on 24^th March was hosted Theo Goldberg, prominent in Guildford Jewry having chaired the district Community and been a member of the Board of Deputies of British Jews. He described to us the traditional rites of Jewish life and worship and the observance of the time-honoured festivals, remembering salient markers on the journey of Judaism since fleeing Egypt. We noted particularly the foundational instructions of the Ten Commandments, the emphasis on the family gathering to share meals of celebration. We enjoyed the description of Judaism as being a faith officially organised on patriarchal lines, but actually run matriarchally. 

We discussed the commonality of our faiths rooted in the Old Testament and the significant differences over Jesus Christ. Whereas we believe He is the Son of God, Theo positioned him as the political activist of his time with a programme that was strongly socialist. Had the Communist Party existed 2000 years ago, Theo wondered if Jesus may have been a leading communist.

As breakfast ended, we may not have come to an agreement on faith, but we did agree we had experienced a thought provoking opening of a window onto another of the world’s great faiths.

Robert Avis