Judaism and Christianity Essay

Judaism and Christianity are two of the oldest forms of religious expression that are currently in existence. But though both express belief in the same God, there are different ways that they express their devotion and interpreting God in their religious ways. But we first must see and define the two before we delve into differentiating them. The central belief of practicising Christians is the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that Jesus is an integral part of the Holy Trinity, and the promised Messiah, or savior (Conversion to Judaism). But Judaism, or the practices and beliefs in religion as practiced by the Jews (Charles Henderson, 2003), insists on the unitarian view of God (Judaism). Suffice it to say that the Jews believe that there is only one God, indivisible, being only one as opposed to Christianity’s of one God in three Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Judaism). To the Jews, no matter what the accomplishments of Christ, He is only a human being, not the Son of God (Judaism). Judaism is a term that was coined by the â€Å"Hellenized† Jews of the â€Å"Second Temple Era† to put definitives on their practice (Henderson, 2003). The Jews trace their lineage to the patriarch Abram, called out of his Mesopotamian homeland to jouney to Canaan and begin the nation of Israel (Judaism). But there is a development that bridges the differences of the Judaistic and Christian divide, the messianic Jews, or â€Å"Jewish Christians† (Philosophy, Theology and Religion). These Jews uphold the practice of the customs and traditions of Judaism while acknowledging the deity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God (PHILTaR). They profess acceptance of the â€Å"one God† doctrine of Christianity, the Holy Trinity, and adhere to the Old Testament, or Tanach, and the New Testament, or Brit Hadshah, as the complete Word of God (PHILTaR). As such, they reject the authoroty of the teaching of the Rabbis, or â€Å"Rabbinic literature (PHILTaR).