The Life of Jesus

One miracle: The Calming of the Storm

One day Jesus and his disciples were in a boat, crossing a lake, and Jesus was sleeping on that boat. A storm whipped up around the boat and the disciples were scared. They woke up Jesus because they thought something would happen or their boat would tip over. Jesus then commanded the wind and the waves to be still, and all was calm again.

Crucifixion:

One of his disciples, Judas, betrayed Jesus, who was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane. Many people didn’t like him, and he was put to trial. He was beaten and whipped. Pontius Pilate didn’t want to hand over Jesus, but the crowd was against him. Jesus was made to carry the cross upon his shoulders, while soldiers mocked him and placed a crown of thorns on his head. He was nailed to the cross, with two other prisoners, and was left to die. This is important because by dying on the cross Jesus took all the sins of the world upon him so everyone can be forgiven. He took the punishment of everyone’s sin so people do not have to suffer, and he created a way for people to have a relationship with God the Father.

Resurrection:

3 days after he was crucified, Mary, Mary Magdalene and some other women went to visit his tomb to anoint his body with spices. When they got there, they saw that the stone usually placed across the entrance of the tomb was rolled away. They went inside, and an angel told them that Jesus has risen. He ascended into heaven to be with the Father and sits at his right side.

Jesus’ parents:

Jesus’ mother was named Mary. She was a virgin, but Jesus was conceived inside her by the Holy Spirit. An angel came to tell Joseph this, Jesus’ earthly father, who was a carpenter. Jesus is known as the Son of God.  

The New Testament: The Gospels

The gospels:

·         Matthew

o   A Jewish tax collector

o   Written between 50 and 70 AD

o   About Jesus being the Messiah

o   28 chapters

·         Mark

o   One of the 12 disciples

o   Written between 50 and 60 AD

o   About Jesus performing miracles

o   16 chapters

·         Luke

o   A well educated doctor

o   Written between 59 and 70 AD

o   Detailed events about Jesus’ life

o   Jesus has the authority

o   24 chapters

·         John

o   One of the 12 disciples

o   Written between 50 and 85 AD

o   Spiritual rather than historical

o   About Jesus, the son of God

o   21 chapters

The 7 Sacraments

• Baptism
• Reconciliation
• Confirmation
• Communion
• Matrimony
• Holy Orders
• Anointing of the Sick

Christianity

·         Christianity (Christ- literally means ‘the anointed one’) is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament.

·         Christians believe Jesus is the son of God, having become man and saviour of humanity. Christians, therefore, commonly refer to Jesus as Christ or Messiah.

Central Beliefs

·         There is one God

·         The Trinity- Father, Son, Holy Spirit

·         God created the world and it is good

·         Main is created in the image of God

·         Jesus, the son of God, was sent to save mankind

·         Belief in God brings salvation

·         The Holy Spirit directs the Church

·         Man has free will

Denominations/ Variants

Christianity contains three main branches which are:

·         Roman Catholicism

·         Orthodox Church

·         Protestantism

Catholic Church

The Catholic Church comprises those particular churches, headed by bishops, in communion with the Pope- Bishop of Rome- as its highest authority in matters of faith.

Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Church comprises those churches in communion with the Patriarchal Sees of the East, such as the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. In the 11^th century the Catholic Church in Rome split with the Eastern Church in Constantinople (known as Turkey today). This split is called the great schism, and as a result, the Orthodox Church was formed.

Protestantism

In the 16^th Century Martin Luther, Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin inaugurated what has come to be called Protestantism. There are many different forms of Protestant religions.

Protestantism is a branch within Christianity, containing many denominations with some differing practices and doctrines, which principally originated in the sixteenth- century Protestant Reformation.

Jewish Variants

A variant is two or more people or things that have slight differences in opinions. The three major variants or streams in Judaism are Conservative, Orthodox and Reform (Liberal or Progressive).

Orthodox	Conservative	Progressive
Traditional	Mix of traditional and modern	Modern
Women and men are separated in synagogue	Women and men sit together	No rules about where to sit
No driving on Saturdays	Allowed to drive to synagogue	Less strict
Don’t accept modern changes	Allow changes	Have made changes
Follow the Torah	Moderate	Don’t believe God wrote the Torah
No marriage to other religions		Allowed to marry people of other religion

Relaxed practice and fits in society- Progressive

Individual praying and occasional conversation in service- Progressive

Traditional beliefs but addressing contemporary needs- Conservative

Women and men sit separately in the synagogue- Orthodox

Women and men sit together and participate fully in service, prayers and rituals- Conservative, Progressive

Women do not participate in all rituals- Orthodox

English used for part of service- Progressive

Strict dress and dietary law- Orthodox

They always worship in Hebrew- Orthodox

Women can lead services and can become rabbis- Progressive

Orthodox Judaism:

Conservative Judaism:

Progressive Judaism:

Kosher

Kosher is the name for Jewish dietary requirements, which link back to the Torah and the rules that Moses received. Kosher food is allowed to be eaten. Treyfah food is not allowed to be eaten. The laws of the Kosher come from Leviticus, which says: “These are the animals which you are permitted to eat... anything which has a completely split hoof and chews the cud, this you may eat...” All plants are kosher, but only some animals, birds and fish are kosher.

In order to be eaten, the animals must be killed in a certain way and all the blood must be removed. This way is known as Shechitah, which means the slitting of the animal’s throat first so as to avoid causing the animal any pain. The sharp knife is meant to cut the carotid, causing the animal to lose consciousness so they do not feel any of the pain inflicted upon them.

Kosher	Non- Kosher
Chicken	Pig
Sheep	Rabbit
Cow	Camel
Fish with fins	Eel
Goat	Most birds

 All vegetables, fruit and dairy products are kosher. Jewish people do not eat dairy and meat together. To eat these things they must use different crockery, cutlery and cooking utensils. Strict Jews will wait for a long time after eating meat products before they eat dairy products.

Kosher Menu

Breakfast: A choice of scrambled eggs on toast with a side of grilled tomatoes and mushrooms or muesli and yoghurt (non animal rennet or gelatine).

Lunch: Vegetable fried rice.

Recipe (about.com)

Ingredients:

·         4 cups boiling water

·         2 cups white rice, uncooked

·         3 tablespoons canola oil

·         2 tablespoons sesame oil

·         1 onion, chopped

·         2 garlic cloves, chopped

·         2 carrots, chopped

·         2 celery stalks, chopped

·         3/4 cup frozen peas

·         3-4 eggs, lightly beaten

·         freshly ground black pepper according to taste

·         1/3 cup soy sauce

Preparation:

1. Cook rice in boiling water according to package directions. Set aside.
2. In large non-stick skillet, heat canola and sesame oils. Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrots. Stir-fry for about 5 minutes, or until the carrots are softened and the onions are transparent.
3. Add peas. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until peas are thawed.
4. Push veggies to one side of skillet. Pour beaten eggs into the empty side of the skillet.
5. When the eggs are just cooked, mix the eggs and vegetables together in the skillet. Season with pepper. Add soy sauce.
6. Add the rice into the vegetables and eggs. Stir-fry together until the dish is well-mixed and heated through.

Dinner: Roast chicken with roast vegetables- pumpkin, potato, zucchini, carrot and leek, Followed by fresh fruit salad.

Two Jewish Festivals

Hanukkah

• Hanukkah is a celebration of Jewish people gaining freedom. It is the most well known Jewish festival, but not the most significant as it is not written in the Torah.
• It is celebrated for eight days and nights.
• It begins on the 25^th of the  Jewish month of Kislev (late November/December)
• In Hebrew the word “Hanukkah” means “dedication.”
• Some of the Hanukkah traditions include: lighting the hanukkiyah, spinning the dreidel and eating fried foods.

·         Jews celebrate Hanukkah in replace of Christmas because they do not believe the Jesus is the Messiah.

·         Hanukkah means “Festival of Lights.”

·         This festival is observed for eight days, during which candles are lit

·         One on the first evening, another on the second, adding one more for every day in succession until eight candles are lit on the last day.

·         These lights symbolize growing faith.

Passover

·         Passover begins on the 15th day of the Jewish month of Nissan. It is the first of the three major festivals with both historical and agricultural significance. Agriculturally, it represents the beginning of the harvest season in Israel, but little attention is paid to this aspect of the holiday.

·         The primary significance of Passover is to commemorate the story of Exodus, in which ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt.

·         Passover is celebrated for seven or eight days, and is one of the most widely celebrated holidays.

·         You are not allowed to eat foods that contain yeast.