There is little question that history has not played favorable for the Jewish people. Although the Jewish people are referred to as God's Chosen People this has not come without many challenges. Considering the tragedies that have plagued the people of Judaism, they have always remained faithful to the truths that God has made available to them. There is no doubt that this has forced them to become a very resilient culture and one that has continued to practice there faith wholeheartedly. Through my reading I have learned that this level of obedience and faithfulness stems from a covenant that God created with the Jewish people. According to tradition, the God of creation entered into a special relationship with the Jewish people at Sinai. They would acknowledge God as their sole ultimate king and legislator, agreeing to obey his laws; God, in turn, would acknowledge Israel as his particular people and be especially mindful of them.1 To think about a people who have suffered and been scorned through events like the bondage in Egypt, persecution in the Middle Ages, the Holocaust and a continual struggle for existence without a homeland, bears an incredible amount of respect for the Jewish people's commitment to that covenant made several thousand years ago. Even up to the events of today with daily unrest in the Middle East the Jews could very easily fail to remain true, but their actions are quite contrary. .
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Although my Catholic religion is very similar, yet quite contrasting to the Jewish beliefs, I have a deep level of respect for the commitment and perseverance that the Jewish people have to their God and their faith.
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1 http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761556154/Judaism.html.
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I believe that the most important event in the history of Judaism is the Passover. It was at that time that the Jews were enslaved in Egypt and really did not have a religious identity for themselves.
