The Evolution of Jewish Belief in the Afterlife Essay

Introduction For the past three years, I have taught Scripture to our ninth grade religious education classes. Reading the Old Testament, there appeared to be a belief in an afterlife, but what those beliefs are was not clear to me at all. They used terms like â€Å"the world to come† and â€Å"going to be with our fathers†. There are several passages where people appear to be taken up without dying, like Elijah and Enoch, but it doesnt say where they went. In __________________, it talks about people going to the netherworld. I couldnt help but wonder - if Jewish people believe in an afterlife, why is the Torah so vague and how did their beliefs develop? The Jewish faith has lacked a central authority that governs doctrine since the†¦show more content†¦At death, the body ceases to function and decays, but the soul of everyone is immortal and will be judged immediately. The souls of those who are faithful to God will be purified and go to live with God in heaven. H owever, the soul of anyone who has denied God will spend eternity separated from God in hell. At the end of time, all of the dead will be bodily resurrected and each individual will be judged and either rewarded or punished according to the life that they led. Early Beliefs and References in the Torah Christians and Jews alike hold that death was not originally part of Gods plan for Creation. God gave Adam and Eve a clear commandment with death as the consequence for disobedience. The LORD God gave man this order: â€Å"You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and bad. From that tree you shall not eat; the moment you eat from it you are surely doomed to die.† (Genesis 2:16-17) After they disobeyed God, he pronounced His judgment upon them in Genesis 3:19. â€Å"By the sweat of your face shall you get bread to eat, Until you return to the ground, from which you were taken; For you are dirt, and to dirt you shall return.† In Genesis 5:2, Adams life is summed up with, â€Å"The whole lifetime of Adam was nine hundred and thirty years; then he died.†Show MoreRelated Nietzsches Superman Essay1056 Words   |  5 Pagesshould follow to lead a perfect life. The superma n is essentially his own society, determining his own values, finding his own happiness, and finding joy in being the one to control all of this himself. He doesn’t believe in a God or a soul or an afterlife, and therefore makes the most out of his life since he has no one else’s morals to follow. One interesting aspect of Nietzsche’s superman is his lack of compassion for the weak. 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