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Part of a series of articles on Jews and Judaism Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...           Who is a Jew? · Etymology · Culture Image File history File links Star_of_David. ... Image File history File links Menora. ... Who is a Jew? (‎) is a commonly considered question that addresses the question of Jewish identity. ... Look up Jew in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Secular Jewish culture embraces several related phenomena; above all, it is the culture of secular communities of Jewish people, but it can also include the cultural contributions of individuals who identify as secular Jews, or even those of religious Jews working in cultural areas not generally considered to be connected... Judaism · Core principles God · Tanakh (Torah, Nevi'im, Ketuvim) Mitzvot (613) · Talmud · Halakha Holidays · Prayer · Tzedakah Ethics · Kabbalah · Customs · Midrash This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... There are a number of basic Jewish principles of faith that were formulated by medieval rabbinic authorities. ... At the bottom of the hands, the two letters on each hand combine to form יהוה (YHVH), the name of God. ... Tanakh (‎) (also Tanach, IPA: or , or Tenak) is an acronym that identifies the Hebrew Bible. ... It has been suggested that Tawrat be merged into this article or section. ... Neviim [נביאים] (Heb: Prophets) is the second of the three major sections in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), following the Torah and preceding Ketuvim (writings). ... Ketuvim is the third and final section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). ... This article is about commandments in Judaism. ... Main article: Mitzvah 613 Mitzvot or 613 Commandments (Hebrew: ‎ transliterated as Taryag mitzvot; TaRYaG is the acronym for the numeric value of 613) are a list of commandments from God in the Torah. ... The first page of the Vilna Edition of the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Berachot, folio 2a. ... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah with pronunciation emphasis on the third syllable, kha), is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ... A Jewish holiday or Jewish Festival is a day or series of days observed by Jews as holy or secular commemorations of important events in Jewish history. ... Jewish services (Hebrew: תפלה, tefillah ; plural תפלות, tefillot ; Yinglish: davening) are the prayer recitations which form part of the observance of Judaism. ... Tzedakah (Hebrew: צדקה) in Judaism, is the Hebrew term most commonly translated as charity, though it is based on a root meaning justice .(צדק). Judaism is very tied to the concept of tzedakah, or charity, and the nature of Jewish giving has created a North American Jewish community that is very philanthropic. ... // Jewish ethics stands at the intersection of Judaism and the Western philosophical tradition of ethics. ... This article is about traditional Jewish Kabbalah. ... Minhag (Hebrew: מנהג Custom, pl. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... Jewish ethnic divisions Ashkenazi · Sephardi · Mizrahi Jewish ethnic divisions refers to a number of distinct Jewish communities within the worlds ethnically Jewish population. ... Languages Yiddish, Hebrew, Russian, English Religions Judaism Related ethnic groups Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, and other Jewish ethnic divisions Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (Standard Hebrew: sing. ... Languages Hebrew, Ladino, Judæo-Portuguese, Catalanic, Shuadit, local languages Religions Judaism Related ethnic groups Ashkenazi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, other Jewish ethnic divisions, Spaniards, Portuguese. ... Languages Hebrew, Dzhidi, Judæo-Arabic, Gruzinic, Bukhori, Judeo-Berber, Juhuri and Judæo-Aramaic Religions Judaism Related ethnic groups Ashkenazi Jews, Sephardi Jews, other Jewish ethnic divisions and Arabs. ... Population (historical) · By country Israel · Iran · Australia · USA Russia/USSR · Poland · Canada Germany · France · England · Scotland India · Spain · Portugal · Latin America Under Muslim rule · Turkey · Iraq · Lebanon · Syria Lists of Jews · Crypto-Judaism Jewish population centers have shifted tremendously over time, due to the constant streams of Jewish refugees created by expulsions, persecution, and officially sanctioned killing of Jews in various places at various times. ... Jews by country Who is a Jew? Jewish ethnic divisions Ashkenazi Jews Sephardi Jews Black Jews Black Hebrew Israelites Y-chromosomal Aaron Jewish population Historical Jewish population comparisons List of religious populations Lists of Jews Crypto-Judaism Etymology of the word Jew Categories: | ... The vast territories of the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest Jewish population in the world. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The earliest date at which Jews arrived in Scotland is not known. ... For a list of individuals of Jewish origin by country in Latin America, see List of Latin American Jews. ... Excluding the region of Palestine, and omitting the accounts of Joseph and Moses as unverifiable, Jews have lived in what are now Arab and non-Arab Muslim (i. ... List of Jewish historians List of Jewish scientists and philosophers List of Jewish nobility List of Jewish inventors List of Jewish jurists List of Jews in literature and journalism List of Jews in the performing arts List of Jewish actors and actresses List of Jewish musicians List of Jews in... Crypto-Judaism is the secret adherence to Judaism while publicly professing to be of another faith; people who practice crypto-Judaism are referred to as crypto-Jews. The term crypto-Jew is also used to describe descendants of Jews who still (generally secretly) maintain some Jewish traditions, often while adhering... Jewish denominations · Rabbis Orthodox · Conservative · Reform Reconstructionist · Liberal · Karaite Humanistic · Renewal  · Alternative Several denominations have developed within Judaism, especially among Ashkenazi Jews living in anglophone countries. ... For the town in Italy, see Rabbi, Italy. ... Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonised in the Talmudic texts (Oral Torah) and as subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and Acharonim. ... Conservative Judaism, (also known as Masorti Judaism in Israel predominantly), is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s. ... Reform Judaism can refer to (1) the largest denomination of American Jews and its sibling movements in other countries, (2) a branch of Judaism in the United Kingdom, and (3) the historical predecessor of the American movement that originated in 19th-century Germany. ... Reconstructionist Judaism is a modern American-based Jewish movement, based on the ideas of the late Mordecai Kaplan, that views Judaism as a progressively evolving civilization. ... Liberal Judaism is a term used by some communities worldwide for what is otherwise also known as Reform Judaism or Progressive Judaism. ... Karaite Judaism or Karaism is a Jewish movement characterized by the sole reliance on the Tanakh as scripture, and the rejection of the Oral Law (the Mishnah and the Talmud) as halakha (Legally Binding, i. ... Humanistic Judaism is a movement within Judaism that emphasizes Jewish culture and history - rather than belief in God - as the sources of Jewish identity. ... Jewish Renewal is a new religious movement in Judaism which endeavors to reinvigorate modern Judaism with mystical, Hasidic, musical and meditative practices. ... Alternative Judaism refers to several varieties of modern Judaism which fall outside the common Orthodox/Non-Orthodox (Reform/Conservative/Reconstructionist) classification of the four major streams of todays Judaism. ... Jewish languages Hebrew · Yiddish · Judeo-Persian Ladino · Judeo-Aramaic · Judeo-Arabic The Jewish languages are a set of languages that developed in various Jewish communities, in Europe, southern and south-western Asia, and northern Africa. ... “Hebrew” redirects here. ... Yiddish (Yid. ... The Judæo-Persian languages include a number of related languages spoken throughout the formerly extensive realm of the Persian Empire, sometimes including all the Jewish Indo-Iranian languages: Dzhidi (Judæo-Persian) Bukhori (Judæo-Bukharic) Judæo-Golpaygani Judæo-Yazdi Judæo-Kermani Judæo-Shirazi Jud... Not to be confused with Ladin. ... Judæo-Aramaic is a collective term used to describe several Hebrew-influenced Aramaic and Neo-Aramaic languages. ... The Judeo-Arabic languages are a collection of Arabic dialects spoken by Jews living or formerly living in Arabic-speaking countries; the term also refers to more or less classical Arabic written in the Hebrew script, particularly in the Middle Ages. ... History · Timeline · Leaders Ancient · Temple · Babylonian exile Jerusalem (in Judaism · Timeline) Hasmoneans · Sanhedrin · Schisms Pharisees · Jewish-Roman wars Relationship with Christianity; with Islam Diaspora · Middle Ages · Sabbateans Hasidism · Haskalah · Emancipation Holocaust · Aliyah · Israel (History) Arab conflict · Land of Israel This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This is a timeline of the development of Judaism and the Jewish people. ... Jewish leadership: Since 70 AD and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem there has been no single body that has a leadership position over the entire Jewish community. ... For the pre-history of the region, see Pre-history of the Southern Levant. ... The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple (Hebrew: בית המקדש, transliterated Bet HaMikdash and meaning literally The Holy House) was located on the Temple Mount (Har HaBayit) in the old city of Jerusalem. ... Babylonian captivity also refers to the permanence of the Avignon Papacy. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ... Main article: Religious significance of Jerusalem Jerusalem has been the holiest city in Judaism and the spiritual homeland of the Jewish people since the 10th century BCE.[1] Jerusalem has long been embedded into Jewish religious consciousness. ... 1800 BCE - The Jebusites build the wall Jebus (Jerusalem). ... The Hasmoneans (Hebrew: , Hashmonaiym, Audio) were the ruling dynasty of the Hasmonean Kingdom (140 BCE–37 BCE),[1] an autonomous Jewish state in ancient Israel. ... For the tractate in the Mishnah, see Sanhedrin (tractate). ... Schisms among the Jews are cultural as well as religious. ... For the followers of the Vilna Gaon, see Perushim. ... Combatants Roman Empire Jews of Iudaea Province Commanders Vespasian, Titus Simon Bar-Giora, Yohanan mi-Gush Halav (John of Gischala), Eleazar ben Simon Strength 70,000? 1,100,000? Casualties Unknown 1,100,000? (majority Jewish civilian casualties) Jewish-Roman wars First War – Kitos War – Bar Kokhba revolt The first... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the historical interaction between Islam and Judaism. ... The Jewish diaspora (Hebrew: Tefutzah, scattered, or Galut גלות, exile, Yiddish: tfutses) is the expulsion of the Jewish people out of the Roman province of Judea. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Not to be confused with Sabians followers of an ancient religion in Babylonia. ... This article is about the Hasidic movement originating in Poland and Russia. ... Haskalah (Hebrew: השכלה; enlightenment, education from sekhel intellect, mind ), the Jewish Enlightenment, was a movement among European Jews in the late 18th century that advocated adopting enlightenment values, pressing for better integration into European society, and increasing education in secular studies, Hebrew, and Jewish history. ... Dates of Jewish emancipation. ... “Shoah” redirects here. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Combatants Arab nations Israel Arab-Israeli conflict series History of the Arab-Israeli conflict Views of the Arab-Israeli conflict International law and the Arab-Israeli conflict Arab-Israeli conflict facts, figures, and statistics Participants Israeli-Palestinian conflict · Israel-Lebanon conflict · Arab League · Soviet Union / Russia · Israel and the United... Kingdom of Israel: Early ancient historical Israel — land in pink is the approximate area under direct central royal administration during the United Monarchy. ... Persecution · Antisemitism History of antisemitism New antisemitism This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is discrimination, hostility or prejudice directed at Jews. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... New antisemitism is the concept of a new 21st-century form of antisemitism emanating simultaneously from the left, the far right, and radical Islam, and tending to manifest itself as opposition to Zionism and the State of Israel. ... Political movements · Zionism Labor Zionism · Revisionist Zionism Religious Zionism · General Zionism The Bund · World Agudath Israel Jewish feminism · Israeli politics Jewish political movements refer to the organized efforts of Jews to build their own political parties or otherwise represent their interest in politics outside of the Jewish community. ... Zionism is a political movement that supports a homeland for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel, where Jewish nationhood is thought to have evolved somewhere between 1200 BCE and late Second Temple times,[1][2] and where Jewish kingdoms existed up to the 2nd century CE. Zionism is... Labor Zionism (or Socialist Zionism, Labour Zionism) is the traditional left wing of the Zionist ideology and was historically oriented towards the Jewish workers movement. ... Palestine (comprising todays Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza strip) and Transjordan (todays Kingdom of Jordan) were all part of the British Mandate of Palestine. ... Religious Zionism, or the Religious Zionist Movement, a branch of which is also called Mizrachi, is an ideology that claims to combine Zionism and Judaism, to base Zionism on the principles of Jewish religion and heritage. ... General Zionists were centrists within the Zionist movement. ... A Bundist demonstration, 1917 The General Jewish Labour Union of Lithuania, Poland and Russia, in Yiddish the Algemeyner Yidisher Arbeter Bund in Lite, Poyln un Rusland (אַלגמײַנער ײדישער אַרבײטערסבונד אין ליטאַ, פוילין און רוסלאַנד), generally called The Bund (בונד) or the Jewish Labor Bund, was a Jewish political party operating in several European countries between the 1890s and the... World Agudath Israel (The World Israeli Union) was established in the early twentieth century as the political arm of Ashkenazi Torah Judaism. ... Jewish feminism is a movement that seeks to improve the religious, legal, and social status of women within Judaism and to open up new opportunities for religious experience and leadership for Jewish women. ... Politics of Israel takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Israel is the head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. ... v • d • e

Jewish views on evolution includes a continuum of views about evolution, creationism, and the origin of life. This article is about evolution in biology. ... Creationism is the belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in their original form by a deity or deities (often the Abrahamic God of Judaism, Christianity and Islam), whose existence is presupposed. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Some Jewish denominations accept theistic evolution. Several denominations have developed within Judaism, especially among Ashkenazi Jews living in anglophone countries. ... Theistic evolution, less commonly known as evolutionary creationism, is the general opinion that some or all classical religious teachings about God and creation are compatible with some or all of the modern scientific understanding about biological evolution. ...

Classical rabbinic teachings

The vast majority of classical Rabbis hold that God created the world close to 6,000 years ago, and created Adam and Eve from clay. This view is based on a chronology developed in a midrash, Seder Olam, which was based on a literal reading of the book of Genesis. It is attributed to the Tanna Yose ben Halafta, and covers history from the creation of the universe to the construction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Although it is known that a literal approach is not always needed when interpreting the Torah, there is a split over which parts are literal. For the town in Italy, see Rabbi, Italy. ... Michelangelos Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Chapel. ... The Gay Head cliffs in Marthas Vineyard are made almost entirely of clay. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... Seder Olam (Hebrew: סדר עולם) is the name of two works of early rabbinical literature dealing largely with religious chronology. ... For other uses, see Genesis (disambiguation). ... The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, Repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta (Hebrew: יוסי בן חלפתא) was a Tanna of the fourth generation (2nd century CE). ... The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple (Hebrew: בית המקדש, transliterated Bet HaMikdash and meaning literally The Holy House) was located on the Temple Mount (Har HaBayit) in the old city of Jerusalem. ... It has been suggested that Tawrat be merged into this article or section. ...

Most rabbis believe that the world is older, and that life as we know it today did not always exist. Such a view is needed to accept science, which Orthodox Jews fully accept. Rabbis who had this view based their conclusions on verses in the Talmud or in the midrash. For example: The first page of the Vilna Edition of the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Berachot, folio 2a. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ...

• Talmud Chaggiga 13b-14a states that there were 974 generations before God created Adam.
• Some midrashim state that the "first week" of Creation lasted for extremely long periods of time. See Anafim on Rabbenu Bachya's Sefer Ikkarim 2:18; Midrash Bereshit Rabbah 9.
• In Psalms it says "A thousand years is like a day in Your sight" (Psalm 90:4)

Not to be confused with Bahya ibn Paquda. ...

Medieval rabbinic teachings

Some medieval philosophical rationalists, such as Maimonides held that it was not required to read Genesis literally. In this view, one was obligated to understand Torah in a way that was compatible with the findings of science. Indeed, Maimonides, one of the great Rabbis of the Middle Ages, wrote that if science and Torah were misaligned, it was either because science was not understood or the Torah was misinterpreted. Maimonides argued that if science proved a point, then the finding should be accepted and scripture should be interpreted accordingly. Commonly used image indicating one artists conception of Maimonidess appearance Maimonides (March 30, 1135 or 1138–December 13, 1204) was a Jewish rabbi, physician, and philosopher in Spain, Morocco and Egypt during the Middle Ages. ... Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... Commonly used image indicating one artists conception of Maimonidess appearance Maimonides (March 30, 1135 or 1138–December 13, 1204) was a Jewish rabbi, physician, and philosopher in Spain, Morocco and Egypt during the Middle Ages. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

Nahmanides, often critical of the rationalist views of Maimonides, pointed out (in his commentary to Genesis) several non-sequiturs stemming from a literal translation of the Bible's account of Creation, and stated that the account actually symbolically refers to spiritual concepts. He quoted the Mishnah in Tractate Chagigah which states that the actual meaning of the Creation account, mystical in nature, was traditionally transmitted from teachers to advanced scholars in a private setting. Many classic Kabbalistic sources mention Shmitot - cosmic cycles of creation, similar to the Indian concept of yugas. Nahmanides' disciple, Rabbi Isaac of Akko, a prominent Kabbalist of 13th-century, held, that the Universe is about 15 billion year old - strikingly close to the modern scientific calculations. According to the tradition of Shmitot, Genesis talks openly only about the current epoch, while the information about the previous cosmic cycles is hidden in the esoteric reading of the text. Nahmanides (1194 - c. ... The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... This article is about traditional Jewish Kabbalah. ... In Hindu philosophy, the existence of the world is divided into four Yugas (ages): Satya Yuga or Krita Yuga Treta Yuga Dwapara Yuga Kali Yuga According to the rishis of ancient India, the world goes through a continuous cycle of these ages. ... Nahmanides (1194 - c. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ...

A literal interpretation of the biblical Creation story among classic rabbinic commentators is uncommon (yet there is universal agreement regarding the literal understanding of the time of the creation of Adam). One of several notable exceptions may be the Tosafist commentary on Tractate Rosh Hashanah, where there seems to be an allusion to the age of creation according to a literal reading of Genesis. The non-literal approach is accepted by many as a possible approach within Modern Orthodox Judaism and some segments of Haredi Judaism.

Jewish views in reaction to Darwin

With the advent of Charles Darwin's evolutionary theory, the Jewish community found itself engaged in a discussion of Jewish principles of faith and modern scientific findings. For other people of the same surname, and places and things named after Charles Darwin, see Darwin. ... There are a number of basic Jewish principles of faith that were formulated by medieval rabbinic authorities. ...

Post-1800 Kabbalistic views of compatibility

In his commentary on the Torah, Rabbi Bahya ben Asher (11th century, Spain) concludes that there were many time systems occurring in the universe long before the spans of history that man is familiar with. Based on the Kabbalah he calculates that the Earth is billions of years old. Not to be confused with Bahya ibn Paquda. ...

Rabbi Israel Lipschitz of Danzig (1800s) gave a famous lecture on Torah and paleontology, which is printed in the Yachin u-Boaz edition of the Mishnah, after Massechet Sanhedrin. He writes that Kabbalistic texts teach that the world has gone through many cycles of history, each lasting for many tens of thousands of years. He links these teachings to findings about geology from European, American and Asian geologists, and from findings from paleontologists. He discusses the wooly mammoth discovered in 1807 Siberia, Russia, and the remains of several then-famous dinosaur skeletons recently unearthed. Finding no contradiction between this and Jewish teachings, he states "From all this, we can see that all the Kabbalists have told us for so many centuries about the fourfold destruction and renewal of the Earth has found its clearest possible confirmation in our time." Israel Lipschitz of Danzig (1782-1860) was the author of Tiferet Yisrael a well-known commentary on the Mishna. ... Paleontology, palaeontology or palæontology (from Greek: paleo, ancient; ontos, being; and λόγος, logos, knowledge) is the study of prehistoric life forms on Earth through the examination of plant and animal fossils. ... The Mishnah (Hebrew משנה, repetition) is a major source of rabbinic Judaisms religious texts. ... This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... This article is about the genus Mammuthus. ... Orders & Suborders Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Theropoda Ornithischia Thyreophora Ornithopoda Marginocephalia Dinosaurs were vertebrate animals that dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing approximately 230 million years ago. ...

When scientists first developed the theory of evolution, this idea was seized upon by Rabbis such as Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, known as the Netziv, who saw Kabbalah as a way to resolve the differences between traditional readings of the Bible and modern day scientific findings. He proposed that the ancient fossils of dinosaurs were the remains of beings that perished in the previous "worlds" described in some Kabbalistic texts. This today is the view of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan. Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (נפתלי צבי יהודה ברלין also known as Reb Hirsch Leib Berlin, 1817- 10 August 1893) was a rosh yeshiva (dean [of a] yeshiva) of the Volozhin yeshiva and author if several works of rabbinic literature in Lithuania. ... For the comic-book writer, see Arie Kaplan. ...

Late 1800s Orthodox view of evolution

In the late 1880s, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, an influential leader in the early opposition to non-Orthodox forms of Judaism, wrote that while he did not endorse the idea of common descent (that all life developed from one common organism), even if science ever did prove the factuality of Evolution, it would not pose a threat to Orthodox Judaism's beliefs. He posited that belief in Evolution could instead cause one to be more reverent of God by understanding His wonders (a master plan for the universe). Image File history File links Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, died 1988, copyright likely to be expired File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... // Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... Rabbi S.R. Hirsch Rabbi Dr. Samson Raphael Hirsch (June 20, 1808 – December 31, 1888) was the intellectual founder of the Torah im Derech Eretz school of contemporary Orthodox Judaism. ... A group of organisms is said to have common descent if they have a common ancestor. ... “Life on Earth” redirects here. ... This article is about evolution in biology. ... For other uses, see Universe (disambiguation). ...

This will never change, not even if the latest scientific notion that the genesis of all the multitudes of organic forms on earth can be traced back to one single, most primitive, primeval form of life should ever appear to be anything more than what it is today, a vague hypothesis still unsupported by fact. Even if this notion were ever to gain complete acceptance by the scientific world, Jewish thought, unlike the reasoning of the high priest of that notion, would nonetheless never summon us to revere a still extant representative of this primal form as the supposed ancestor of us all. Rather, Judaism in that case would call upon its adherents to give even greater reverence than ever before to the one, sole God Who, in His boundless creative wisdom and eternal omnipotence, needed to bring into existence no more than one single, amorphous nucleus and one single law of "adaptation and heredity" in order to bring forth, from what seemed chaos but was in fact a very definite order, the infinite variety of species we know today, each with its unique characteristics that sets it apart from all other creatures. (Collected Writings, vol. 7 pp. 263-264)

By the early to mid 1900s, the majority of Conservative Judaism and Reform Judaism came to accept the existence of evolution as a scientific fact. They interpreted Genesis and related Jewish teachings in light of this fact. // Public flight demonstration of an airplane by Alberto Santos-Dumont in Paris, November 12, 1906. ... Conservative Judaism, (also known as Masorti Judaism in Israel predominantly), is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s. ... Reform Judaism can refer to (1) the largest denomination of American Jews and its sibling movements in other countries, (2) a branch of Judaism in the United Kingdom, and (3) the historical predecessor of the American movement that originated in 19th-century Germany. ...

Modern day Orthodox Jewish views

The Rabbinical Council of America (RCA)^[1] has maintained that evolutionary theory, properly understood, is not incompatible with belief in a Divine Creator, nor with the first 2 chapters of Genesis. The Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) is one of the worlds largest organizations of Orthodox Jewish rabbis; it is affiliated with The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, more commonly known as the Orthodox Union, or OU. History The roots of the organization go back to 1923 when...

One can find an array of Orthodox views on the age of the universe, the age of the earth, and views on evolution, in Challenge: Torah Views on Science and Its Problems edited by Aryeh Carmell and Cyril Domb, and in Gerald Schroeder's Genesis and the Big Bang. These works attempt to reconcile traditional Jewish texts with modern scientific findings concerning evolution, the age of the earth and the age of the Universe.

Prominent Orthodox rabbis who affirm that the world is older, and that life has evolved over time, include Aryeh Kaplan, Israel Lipschitz, Sholom Mordechai Schwadron (the MaHaRSHaM), Zvi Hirsch Chajes. These rabbis propose their own versions of theistic evolution, in which the world is older, and that life does evolve over time in accord with natural law, yet also holding that God has a role in this process. For the comic-book writer, see Arie Kaplan. ... Rabbi Schwadron Rabbi Sholom Mordechai Schwadron (1835-1911), also known as Shalom Mordechai Hacohen Schwadron, the gaon (sage) of Berezhany, was known as the Maharsham (after the initials of his title and name). ... Zvi Hirsch Chajes (November 20, 1805 – October 12, 1855) was one of the foremost Galician talmudic scholars. ... Theistic evolution, less commonly known as evolutionary creationism, is the general opinion that some or all classical religious teachings about God and creation are compatible with some or all of the modern scientific understanding about biological evolution. ...

One of the most prominent writers on this subject in the Orthodox Jewish community is Gerald Schroeder, an Israeli physicist. He has written a number of articles and popular books attempting to reconcile Jewish theology with modern scientific findings that the world is billions of years old and that life has evolved over time. (Genesis and the Big Bang: The Discovery of Harmony Between Modern Science and the Bible) His work has received approbations from a number of Orthodox rabbinic authorities. Dr. Gerald Schroeder is a former professor of nuclear physics at MIT and former member of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. ... This is a discussion of a present category of science. ...

Modern day Conservative Jewish views

Conservative Judaism embraces science as a way to learn about God's creation, and like Orthodox and Reform Judaism, has found the theory of evolution a challenge to traditional Jewish theology. The Conservative Jewish movement has not yet developed one official response to the subject, but a broad array of views has converged. Conservative Jews teach that God created the universe and is responsible for the creation of life within it, but proclaims no mandatory teachings about how this occurs at any level. Conservative Judaism, (also known as Masorti Judaism in Israel predominantly), is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s. ...

Many Conservative Rabbis embrace the term theistic evolution, and most reject the term intelligent design. Conservative rabbis who use the term intelligent design in their sermons often distinguish their views from the Christian fundamentalist use of this term. Like most in the scientific community, they understand "intelligent design" to be a technique by fundamentalist Christians to insert religion into public schools and to attack science, as admitted in the Intelligent Design movement's wedge strategy position papers. Theistic evolution, less commonly known as evolutionary creationism, is the general opinion that some or all classical religious teachings about God and creation are compatible with some or all of the modern scientific understanding about biological evolution. ... For other uses, see Intelligent design (disambiguation). ... The wedge strategy is a political and social action plan authored by the Discovery Institute, an organization that works to promote a Neo-Creationist religious agenda centering on Intelligent design, and is the hub of the Intelligent design movement. ...

In contrast to fundamentalist views, Conservative Judaism strongly supports the use of science as the proper way to learn about the physical world in which we live, and thus encourages its adherents to find a way to understand evolution in a way that does not contradict the findings of peer-reviewed scientific research. The tension between accepting God's role in the world and the findings of science, however, is not resolved, and a wide array of views exists. Some mainstream examples of Conservative Jewish thought are as follows:

Professor Ismar Schorsch, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, writes that: Ismar Schorsch is the sixth chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) of Conservative Judaism in the United States, where he is the Rabbi Herman Abramovitz Professor of Jewish History. ... The Jewish Theological Seminary of America The Jewish Theological Seminary of America, known in the Jewish community simply as JTS, is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism. ...

The Torah's story of creation is not intended as a scientific treatise, worthy of equal time with Darwin's theory of evolution in the curriculum of our public schools. The notes it strikes in its sparse and majestic narrative offer us an orientation to the Torah's entire religious worldview and value system. Creation is taken up first not because the subject has chronological priority but rather to ground basic religious beliefs in the very nature of things. And I would argue that their power is quite independent of the scientific context in which they were first enunciated.

Rabbi David J. Fine, who has authorized official responsa for the Conservative movement's Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, expresses a common Conservative Jewish view on the subject: Note: This is based on an entry from the 1906 public domain Jewish Encyclopedia The responsa literature, known in Hebrew as Sheelot U-teshuvot (questions and answers), is the body of written decisions and rulings given by rabbis to questions addressed to them. ... The Committee on Jewish Law and Standards is the central authority on halakha (Jewish law and tradition) within Conservative Judaism; it is one of the most active and widely known committees on the Conservative movements Rabbinical Assembly. ...

Conservative Judaism has always been premised on the total embrace of critical inquiry and science. More than being compatible with Conservative Judaism, I would say that it is a mitzvah to learn about the world and the way it works to the best of our abilities, since that is to marvel with awe at God's handiwork. To not do so is sinful.

But here's where the real question lies. Did God create the world, or not? Is it God's handiwork? Many of the people who accept evolution, even many scientists, believe in what is called "theistic evolution," that is, that behind the billions of years of cosmic and biological evolution, there is room for belief in a creator, God, who set everything into motion, and who stands outside the universe as the cause and reason for life. The difference between that and "intelligent design" is subtle yet significant. Believing scientists claim that belief in God is not incompatible with studying evolution since science looks only for the natural explanations for phenomena. The proponents of intelligent design, on the other hand, deny the ability to explain life on earth through solely natural explanations. That difference, while subtle, is determinative.

David J. Fine, Intelligent Design

Rabbi Michael Schwab writes:

...the Jewish view on the first set of questions is much closer to the picture painted by adherents to intelligent design than to those who are strict Darwinians. Judaism, as a religion, and certainly Conservative Judaism, sees creation as a purposeful process directed by God, however each individual defines the Divine. This is clearly in consonance with the theory of Intelligent Design. What Darwin sees as random, we see as the miraculous and natural unfolding of God’s subtle and beautiful plan.

...However, as unlikely as it may seem, this does not mean for one moment that Judaism’s view rejects wholesale the veracity of Darwin’s theory. In fact, I believe that it is easy to incorporate Darwin and Intelligent design into a meaningful conception of how we humans came into being...

We have frameworks built into our system to integrate the findings of science into our religious and theological beliefs. That is because we believe that the natural world, and the way it works, was created by God and therefore its workings must be consistent with our religious beliefs.

...One of the most well known ways our tradition has been able to hold onto both the scientific theory of evolution as well as the concept of a purposeful creation was by reading the creation story in Genesis in a more allegorical sense. One famous medieval commentary proclaims that the days of creation, as outlined in the book of Bereshit, could be seen as representative of the stages of creation and not literal 24 hour periods. Thus each Biblical day could have accounted for thousands or even millions of years. In that way the progression according to both evolution and the Torah remains essentially the same: first the elements were created, then the waters, the plants, the animals, and finally us. Therefore, Genesis and Darwin can both be right in a factual analysis even while we acknowledge that our attitudes towards these shared facts are shaped much more strongly by the Torah – we agree how the process unfolded but disagree that it was random.

Parshat Noah -- November 4, 2005, How Did We Get Here? Michael Schwab

The claim that evolution is purposeful is in conflict with modern day evolutionary theory. The precise way in which God inserts design is not specified by Schwab or other rabbis. Teleology is the philosophical study of purpose (from the Greek teleos, perfect, complete, which in turn comes from telos, end, result). ...

Rabbi Lawrence Troster is a critic of positions such as this. He holds that much of Judaism (and other religions) have not successfully created a theology which allows for the role of God in the world and yet is also fully compatible with modern day evolutionary theory. Troster maintains that the solution to resolving the tension between classical theology and modern science can be found in process theology, such as in the writings of Hans Jonas, whose view of an evolving God within process philosophy contains no inherent contradictions between theism and scientific naturalism. Rabbi Lawrence Troster is the Jewish Chaplain of Bard College, where he is an associate of the colleges Institute of Advanced Theology. ... Process theology (also known as neoclassical theology) is a school of thought influenced by the metaphysical process philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead (1861–1947). ... German-born philosopher Hans Jonas (May 10, 1903 - February 5, 1993) studied under Martin Heidegger and Rudolf Bultmann in the 1920s. ...

Lecture God after Darwin: Evolution and the Order of Creation October 21, 2004, Lishmah, New York City, Larry Troster

In a paper on Judaism and environmentalism, Troster writes: For the psychology topic, see Environmental psychology. ...

Jonas is the only Jewish philosopher who has fully integrated philosophy, science, theology and environmental ethics. He maintained that humans have a special place in Creation, manifest in the concept that humans are created in the image of God. His philosophy is very similar to that of Alfred North Whitehead, who believed that God is not static but dynamic, in a continual process of becoming as the universe evolves.

From Apologetics to New Spirituality: Trends in Jewish Environmental Theology, Lawrence Troster

Jewish opposition to Darwinian theory

While most of the Jewish world has declared that there is no conflict between science and Judaism, some Haredi rabbis have remained staunchly opposed to certain teachings in evolutionary theory. In contrast with the literalist biblical interpretation of some Christian creationists, they express an openness to multiple interpretations of Genesis, through Jewish oral tradition and Jewish mysticism. They have also expressed an openness to evolutionary theory in biology, except where they perceive that it is in conflict with the Torah's account of creation. Haredi Judaism, also called ultra-Orthodox Judaism, is the most theologically conservative form of Judaism. ... This article is about evolution in biology. ... Creationism is the belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in their original form by a deity or deities (often the Abrahamic God of Judaism, Christianity and Islam), whose existence is presupposed. ... For other uses, see Genesis (disambiguation). ... When Moses received all of the laws that would define the Jewish tradition, he also received the explanation of these laws. ... This article is about traditional Jewish Kabbalah. ... It has been suggested that Tawrat be merged into this article or section. ...

Rabbi Avi Shafran, a spokesman for Agudath Israel, writes a weekly column that is widely syndicated in the Jewish press. As an opponent of Darwinian evolutionary theory, Shafran is careful to distinguish the Jewish perspective from that of Christian fundamentalism. He writes, "An unfortunate side-effect of our affirmation of purpose in creation at a time of controversy is the assumption made by some that we believing Jews share some other groups’ broader skepticism of science. But while Torah-faithful Jews reject the blind worship of science, we do not regard science as an enemy." Quite the contrary, Shafran remarks, Judaism seeks to learn as much as possible from God's creation. Rabbi Avi Shafran is a Haredi rabbi who serves as the Director of Public Affairs for Agudath Israel of America, an organization established to meet the needs and viewpoint of many Haredi Jews in the United States. ... Agudath Israel of America (or Agudas Yisroel of America or Agudat Yisrael of America or simply the Agudah [agudah is Hebrew for gathering or union]), is a Haredi Jewish communal organization in the United States loosely affiliated with the international World Agudath Israel. ...

Shafran also rejects the literalism of Christian fundamentalism. He writes, "Nor is 'Biblical literalism' a Jewish approach. Many are the p’sukim (verses) that do not mean what a simple reading would yield." To Shafran, the Jewish oral tradition is the key to the true meaning of the Torah's words. "There are multiple levels of deeper meanings inaccessible to most of us. The words of Breishis (Genesis, Ashkenazi Hebrew) and the Midrashim thereon hide infinitely more than they reveal. It is clear that the Torah describes the creation of the universe as the willful act of HaKodosh Boruch Hu (the Holy One), and describes creation as having unfolded in stages. But details are hardly provided."^[2] Languages Yiddish, Hebrew, Russian, English Religions Judaism Related ethnic groups Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews, and other Jewish ethnic divisions Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim (Standard Hebrew: sing. ... “Hebrew” redirects here. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ...

Moshe Feinstein

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (1895-1986), a Haredi posek who was known for his opposition to evolution, was one of the most famed Orthodox rabbis and decisors of Jewish Law for the ultra-Orthodox community. Rabbi Feinstein ruled that the reading of an evolutionary textbook is unequivocally forbidden, because belief in evolutionary history is tantamount to apikorsus (Hebrew, heresy). If a textbook was indispensable for other purposes, Feinstein directed that those pages containing references to evolution be torn out and discarded.^[3] Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (1895-1986) Moshe Feinstein (1895 - 1986) was a Lithuanian Orthodox rabbi and scholar, who was world renowned for his expertise in halakha and was the de facto supreme rabbinic authority for Orthodox Jewry of North America. ... Haredi Judaism, also called ultra-Orthodox Judaism, is the most theologically conservative form of Judaism. ... Posek (Hebrew פוסק, IPA: , pl. ... Orthodox Judaism is the formulation of Judaism that adheres to a relatively strict interpretation and application of the laws and ethics first canonised in the Talmudic texts (Oral Torah) and as subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and Acharonim. ... Posek (Hebrew פוסק, IPA: , pl. ... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah with pronunciation emphasis on the third syllable, kha), is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ...

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (1895-1986)

Sefer Iggorot Moshe (Book of Letters of Moshe Feinstein)

Rabbi Shafran's comments on intelligent design illustrate the distinction that Feinstein was making, that there is an essential difference between animals and humans that evolution does not uphold. He writes, "There is simply no philosophically sound way of holding simultaneously in one’s head both the conviction that we are mere evolved animals and the conviction that we are something qualitatively different. And no way to avoid the fact that when schoolchildren are taught biology, if they are taught to embrace the one, they are being taught to shun the other."^[4] Rabbi Moshe Feinstein This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Rabbi Moshe Feinstein This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Image File history File links Igros. ... Image File history File links Igros. ... The reaction of Jewish leaders and organizations to intelligent design has been primarily concerned with responding to proposals to include intelligent design in the public school curriculum as a rival scientific hypothesis to modern evolutionary theory. ...

Responses to Feinstein's ban

Torah MitZion is a religious Zionist movement in Israel that promotes Torah study together with service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The organization operates a yeshiva in Jerusalem where soldiers in the IDF can study Torah. According to Torah MitZion, the study of evolution itself does not present a conflict with Jewish Law: Religious Zionism, or the Religious Zionist Movement, a branch of which is also called Mizrachi, is an ideology that claims to combine Zionism and Judaism, to base Zionism on the principles of Jewish religion and heritage. ... Emblem of the IDF The Israel Defense Forces are part of the Israeli Security Forces. ... This article is about the Jewish male educational system. ... For other uses, see Jerusalem (disambiguation). ... Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah with pronunciation emphasis on the third syllable, kha), is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ...

If biology is so prized a discipline, then so must be evolution — a central pillar of the life sciences. It is indisputable that organisms adapt to the environment via natural selection, as is evident for instance, by the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antiretroviral-resistant HIV. Further indisputable is the fact that the same DNA which encodes the blueprint for simple organisms also encodes the blueprint for higher organisms (including human beings) with exquisitely minor variations, demonstrating that evolution need not be limited to microbes. Hence, one might expect on the basis of the foregoing that Halacha would welcome the study of evolution with open arms.^[5] Antibiotic resistance is the ability of a micro-organism to withstand the effects of an antibiotic. ... In the context of virology, resistance or drug resistance refers to the lack of response of a population of viruses to an antiviral drug or treatment. ... Species Human immunodeficiency virus 1 Human immunodeficiency virus 2 Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS, a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections). ... The structure of part of a DNA double helix Deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is a nucleic acid molecule that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms. ...

Torah MitZion resolves this conflict between Feinstein's responsa on evolution and the observations of science by distinguishing between "evolution that we can observe" and "evolutionary history." Its resolution of the matter allows for the study of evolution as a science, but forbids its use to "extrapolate backwards in time" to speculate on matters of creation: Note: This is based on an entry from the 1906 public domain Jewish Encyclopedia The responsa literature, known in Hebrew as Sheelot U-teshuvot (questions and answers), is the body of written decisions and rulings given by rabbis to questions addressed to them. ...

Evolution that we can observe and measure with our senses is certainly part of the science curriculum that ought to be encouraged. But to extrapolate backwards in time on the basis of circumstantial evidence to so absurd an extent as to supplant the account of the creation of life given by the Torah with that of unverifiable human speculation is not a question of science but rather a revision of history.^[6]

Slifkin affair

Banned book by Natan Slifkin

Main article: Natan Slifkin

In 2004-2005, three popular books by Rabbi Natan Slifkin (Yiddish, Nosson) were banned by a group of Haredi rabbinic authorities on the grounds that they were heretical. Known to his admirers as the "Zoo Rabbi," Nosson Slifkin was the author of The Torah Universe, a series of children's books on science and religion that were widely read in Orthodox communities until they were suddenly banned. "The books written by Nosson Slifkin present a great stumbling block to the reader," the ban declared. "They are full of heresy, twist and misrepresent the words of our sages and ridicule the foundations of our emunah (faith)." The ban, which prohibited Jews from reading, owning, or distributing Slifkin's books, prompted a widespread backlash in the Orthodox Jewish community. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Natan (Nosson) Slifkin (born 1975) is an Orthodox rabbi best known for his interest in biology, zoology, and natural history, and for his books on these topics. ... Natan (Nosson) Slifkin (born 1975) is an Orthodox rabbi best known for his interest in biology, zoology, and natural history, and for his books on these topics. ... Natan (Nosson) Slifkin (born 1975) is an Orthodox rabbi best known for his interest in biology, zoology, and natural history, and for his books on these topics. ... Haredi Judaism, also called ultra-Orthodox Judaism, is the most theologically conservative form of Judaism. ... Lifnei iver (Hebrew:  ; before the blind) is one of the 613 mitzvot (commandments) in Jewish law. ...

Jennie Rothenberg, reporting on this ban in the secular Jewish journal, Moment, asserted that the incident represents a major breaking point within ultra-Orthodox society. Rothenberg interviewed several rabbis who wished to remain anonymous. According to one of them, "Over the past 15 years, the rabbis of Bnai Brak and the more open American ultra-Orthodox rabbis have been split on a number of important policy decisions. The Slifkin ban is a huge break. It’s a kind of power struggle, and those who didn’t sign the ban are outraged right now. I’m talking about rabbis with long white beards who are furious about it." Slifkin’s views, according to this rabbi, are shared by countless figures within the ultra-Orthodox community. "He’s saying out loud what a lot of people have been talking about quietly all along. To those people, he’s a kind of figurehead." ^[7] Moment magazine is a popular non-sectarian, politically diverse, religiously inclusive bi-monthly Jewish publication produced in the United States. ... Bnei Brak (or Bene Beraq) (Hebrew: , ) is a city in Israel, on the central coastal strip, just east of Tel Aviv, and part of the metropolis known as Gush Dan, the Tel Aviv District. ...

Orthodox scientists respond to Darwin

Several Modern Orthodox Jewish scientists have interpreted creation in light of both modern scientific findings and rabbinical interpretations of Genesis. Each of these scientists have claimed that modern science actually confirms a literal interpretation of Torah. All of them accept the scientific evidence that the age of the Earth and the age of the universe are on a scale of billions of years, and all of them acknowledge that the diversity of species on Earth can be explained through an evolutionary framework. However, each of them interprets certain aspects of evolution or the emergence of modern humans as a divine process, rather than a natural one. Thus, each of them accepts an evolutionary paradigm, while rejecting some aspects of Darwinism. Shai Cherry writes, "While twentieth century Jewish theologians have tended to compartmentalize science and the Torah, our Modern Orthodox physicists synthesized them.^[8] It has been suggested that Tawrat be merged into this article or section. ... This article is about Earth as a planet. ... Shai Cherry is a professor of Jewish Thought at Vanderbilt University. ...

• Nathan Aviezer, a physicist who trained at the University of Chicago, allows for divine guidance within an evolutionary paradigm in the transmutation of species over time, including the emergence of modern man from homo erectus. As a physicist, he interprets the six days of creation as broadly referring to large periods of time, an interpretation for which he cites rabbinic sources, including Maimonides and Nachmanides. For Aviezer, the evolutionary framework applies, except where the Hebrew verb bara (create) is used. To Aviezer, "It is particularly meaningful that Modern Man is intellectually and culturally so vastly superior to his closest relative, the extinct Neanderthal Man, even though both species are very similar." He explains this through a literal interpretation of Genesis 1:27 — "And God created Man in His image."^[9]

• Gerald Schroeder, an MIT trained physicist, believes that modern science contains nothing inimical to a literal reading of Genesis. Indeed, modern science allows one to understand the "true literal meaning of the Creation narrative." To Schroeder, it is Einstein's relativity, the "distortion of time facing backwards in a forward rushing cosmos," that accounts for the compression of time in a 15-billion year-old universe into six days of creation. To Schroeder, the emergence of modern man can be dated to the beginning of writing. Archeologists date the first writing, he notes, "at five or six thousand years ago, the exact period that the Bible tells us the soul of Adam, the neshama, was created." To Schroeder, who cites the Targum of Onkelos, Adam was the first man who could write, and the creation of Adam from more primitive man was a divine ensoulment.^[10]

• Judah Landa, a high school physics teacher at the Yeshivah of Flatbush, takes a completely different approach. To Landa, genetic mutation is not a random process, but a divinely guided one that only appears random to humanity. "Evolution was designed and guided, just as the putting together of words and sentences into book forms is accomplished only by design and guidance. A book is designed by its author, evolution was (and continues to be) designed by the laws of nature (which in turn, were designed, we believe, by God). ^[11] Where Landa differs from Darwin is in his rejection of the Darwinian notion that evolution has no purpose. Landa does not claim that there is proof of a final purpose for life; he merely asserts that science cannot rule one out. He writes, "God may very well have designed the laws of the universe and the earliest forms of matter and energy with particular life-forms as end-products in mind. Evolution and natural selection may be the vehicles he chose and designed to achieve His purposes."^[12] Like Aviezar and Schroeder, Landa reconciles science with the biblical account of Genesis, taken literally, but he does so through literary interpretation.

Shai Cherry, Professor of Jewish Thought at Vanderbilt University, remarks that these Modern Orthodox scientists have rejected the approach taken by Jewish theologians. Theologians have tended to use later writings, such as Midrash and Kabbalah, to reconcile modern science with Genesis. The Orthodox scientists, by comparison, have largely ignored Jewish theology, in favor of a fundamentalist and literalist interpretation of Genesis. Yet in their writings, each of them seeks to reconcile science with Genesis. Cherry speculates, "They were targeting an American Jewish community that privileges science over Torah as a source of scientific knowledge. If Genesis could be shown to have anticipated Darwin or Einstein, then the Bible would regain an aura of truth that it had been losing since the advent of biblical criticism and modern science."^[13] Nathan Aviezer is an American-born physicist who writes on creationism, evolution and cosmology from an Orthodox Jewish perspective. ... The University of Chicago is a private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. ... Binomial name (Dubois, 1892) Synonyms † Sinanthropus pekinensis † Javanthropus soloensis † Meganthropus paleojavanicus Homo erectus (Latin: upright man) is an extinct species of the genus Homo. ... Commonly used image indicating one artists conception of Maimonidess appearance Maimonides (March 30, 1135 or 1138–December 13, 1204) was a Jewish rabbi, physician, and philosopher in Spain, Morocco and Egypt during the Middle Ages. ... Nahmanides is the common name for Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi; the name is a Greek translation of the Hebrew Ben Nahman, meaning Son of Nahman. He is also commomly known as Ramban, being an acronym of his Hebrew name and title, Rabbi Moshe ben Nahman, and by his Catalan name... Binomial name Homo neanderthalensis King, 1864 The Neanderthal or Neandertal was a species of genus Homo (Homo neanderthalensis) that inhabited Europe and parts of western Asia from about 230,000 to 29,000 years ago (in the Middle Palaeolithic, early Stone Age). ... Dr. Gerald Schroeder is a former professor of nuclear physics at MIT and former member of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. ... “MIT” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Soul (disambiguation). ... A targum (plural: targumim) is an Aramaic translation of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) written or compiled in the Land of Israel or in Babylonia from the Second Temple period until the early Middle Ages (late first millennium). ... Onkelos is the name of a famous convert to Judaism in Talmudic times (c. ... The Yeshivah of Flatbush is a Modern Orthodox private Jewish day school located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, New York which includes both an elementary school and a high school. ... This article is about mutation in biology, for other meanings see: mutation (disambiguation). ... Shai Cherry is a professor of Jewish Thought at Vanderbilt University. ... Vanderbilt University is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational research university in Nashville, Tennessee. ... Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... This article is about traditional Jewish Kabbalah. ...

According to Cherry, the books of Aviezar, Schroeder, and Landa have each sought to strengthen Orthodox Jewry in a time of mounting secularization. Aviezar and Schroeder sought to prove that Genesis anticipates the findings of modern science, and thus increase its status. By contrast, Landa sought to remove a barrier to Orthodox commitment, by proving to secular Jews that Orthodox Judaism and modern science are compatible. At the same time, he sought to persuade students in his own Orthodox community that the study of science is not incompatible with commitment to Orthodoxy.^[14]

Jewish reactions to intelligent design

Main article: Jewish reactions to intelligent design

The movement for intelligent design claims that an intelligent creator is responsible for the origin of life and of humankind. Its proponents claim that their hypothesis is a scientific theory that challenges the Darwinian view of evolution and its modern synthesis. Jewish theologians, organizations, and activists have maintained that intelligent design is not valid science, that it is a religious concept. Although some have expressed support for a theistic interpretation of evolution, they have generally rejected the tenets of the intelligent design movement itself. To Rabbi Brad Hirschfield, President of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, intelligent design is "their attempt to confirm what they already believe."^[15] Jewish organizations in the United States have been steadfast in their opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in public schools, charging that to do so would violate the separation of church and state.^[16][17] The reaction of Jewish leaders and organizations to intelligent design has been primarily concerned with responding to proposals to include intelligent design in the public school curriculum as a rival scientific hypothesis to modern evolutionary theory. ... For other uses, see Intelligent design (disambiguation). ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Rabbi Brad Hirschfield is the President of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, an interdenominational leadership training institute, think tank, and resource center for the Jewish community. ... Founded in 1974, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership (also CLAL) is a leadership training institute, think tank, and resource center. ... Constantines Conversion, depicting the conversion of Emperor Constantine the Great to Christianity, by Peter Paul Rubens. ...

References

1. ^ Rabbinical Council of America. Creation, Evolution, and Intelligent Design.
2. ^ Menken, Yaakov (Dec 22, 2005). Rabbi Avi Shafran on Intelligent Design.
3. ^ Feinstein, Moshe (5742/1982). Iggorot Moshe, Yoreh De'ah. Noble Press, 323. 
4. ^ Menken, Yaakov (Dec 22, 2005). Rabbi Avi Shafran on Intelligent Design.
5. ^ Parshat Bereshit (Torah Commentary on Genesis). Torah MitZion.
6. ^ Parshat Bereshit (Torah Commentary on Genesis). Torah MitZion.
7. ^ Rothenberg, Jennie (Oct, 2005). The Heresy of Nosson Slifkin. Moment Magazine.
8. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 168.
9. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 169-172.
10. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 173-177.
11. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 179.
12. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 180.
13. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 185.
14. ^ Cherry, Shai. "Crisis management via Bilbical Interpretation: Fundamentalism, Modern Orthodoxy, and Genesis." in Geoffrey Cantor and Marc Swetlitz (editors) Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press (2006). 186.
15. ^ Hirschfield, Brad. The Origins of Life: A Jewish Perspective. National Public Radio.
16. ^ AJC Applauds Court Decision against Intelligent Design in Pennsylvania Schools. American Jewish Committee (December 20, 2005).
17. ^ Religion in the Science Class? Why Creationism and Intelligent Design Don't Belong. Anti-Defamation League.

Sources

• Abrams, Nancy Ellen, and Joel R. Primack. "In a Beginning...: Quantum Cosmology and Kabbalah." Tikkun, Vol. 10, No. 1, p. 66-73.
• Aviezer, Nathan. In the Beginning: Biblical Creation and Science. Ktav, 1990. ISBN.
• Carmell, Aryeh, and Cyril Domb (editors). Challenge: Torah Views on Science New York: Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists/Feldheim Publishers, 1976. ISBN
• Cantor, Geoffrey and Marc Swetlitz, (editors). Jewish Tradition and the Challenge of Darwinism. University of Chicago Press. 2006. ISBN 9780226092768
• Kaplan, Aryeh. Immortality, Resurrection, and the Age of the Universe: A Kabbalistic View. Ktav, 1993.
• Schroeder, Gerald L. The Science of God: The Convergence of Scientific and Biblical Wisdom. Broadway Books, 1998. ISBN-X.
• Tigay, Jeffrey H. "Genesis, Science, and 'Scientific Creationism.'" Conservative Judaism, Vol. 40(2), Winter 1987/1988, p. 20-27.

January/February 2007 issue Tikkun is a bi-monthly English-language magazine, published in the United States, that analyzes American and Israeli culture, politics, religion and history from a leftist-progressive Jewish viewpoint, and provides commentary about Israeli politics and Jewish life in North America. ...

External links

• "Age of the Universe" Aish haTorah
• Various Orthodox Jewish views Usenet, the Soc.Culture.Jewish FAQ
• Evolutionary creationism by Susan Schneider
• Rabbi Ari Kahn and his evidence for evolution in the Torah

See also

• Jewish opposition to evolution