What is the difference between the Catholic and the Jewish faiths?

Answer 1

Jews don't believe Jesus was the true Messiah, whereas Christians (Catholicism) do believe in Jesus as well as the Trinity. Jews also still follow various ceremonial laws (such as not eating ham), whereas Christians don't follow these laws.

________

Answer 2

Not eating pork, or any of the other forbidden food items is not "ceremonial law". God gave us Jews the Torah as the guidebook that outlines how we as Jews can live righteously, a part of that are the rules about what we can and can't eat.

The majority of core tenets found in Christianity/Catholicism completely go against the teachings of Judaism.

Examples of differences are that Judaism doesn't accept:

• The Christian concept of salvation and grace
• The concept of original sin
• The concept of eternal damnation
• The Christian concept of the devil
• The Christian concept of messiah
• The concept of the trinity
• Praying through intermediaries
• The concept of a literal child of God
• The idea that one man can atone for the sins of another

These are just some examples, there are far more differences between Judaism and Christianity.

Answer 2

There are two types of answers to this question: Those that hold that there are similarities and those that hold that there are no real similarities. Starting with those that advocate that there are similarities:

Similarities:

Answer 1

There is much similarity, providing one is prepared to look beyond the dogma of either faith;

- Easter / Pentecost / Whitsun is a derivation of Passover / Counting of the Omer / Shavuot

- Catholic theistic cosmology is a development - tending to notions of Greek Tartarus - of Jewish cosmology; the notion of Sheol, that has parallels in Greek Hades; Catholic notions develop further into the middle ages;

- As, similarly, Jesus' Jewish birth gives him a foundation in Jewish culture, so Catholic culture develops from Jewish culture, the incorporation of a redacted version of the Hebrew Bible as the Old Testament is a prime indication of the foundation; it is considered that Jesus' Essene cult was an ascetic - influenced by greek philosophy - contemporary reinterpretation of Judaism

- An astute reader of the Bible may notice strong parallels suggesting the way the story of Jesus appears in the Bible bears strong similarity to the story of Moses; an infant miraculously saved from an infanticidal slaving imperial power, redeeming / saving a people, the notion of the people needing to follow his instructions to reach their salvation, crossing water miraculously safely, time in the desert involving temptation / discarding harmful behaviors, close relationship to the Lord, etcetera;

- given that for instance parchments of the Lord's Prayer have been found that are definitively placed several hundred years BC/BCE, it seems that at the very least some editing has happened; even so it is very possible that the Life stories of both are a truly miraculous way of teaching us how to behave, even a strict rationalist may be persuaded to see that there is a chance, that as a multiple of the number of people who have ever lived, grows to a significant probability, of such events happening for real; then the validity of the lesson makes the story famous.

- a careful reading of the Hebrew Bible gives us a strong feeling that at least one of the Lord's main emphases is the importance of Life, so even the contemporary Catholic Church's famous support of the sanctity of human Life has its parallel.

- while the actual history of the Catholic Church as the 'state religion' of the Roman Empire, has clearly caused some major differences in its path, as you may see its foundations are basically identical, its aspirations are virtually identical, even much of its prioritization / value system is very similar. So then when you look at it that way, then the difference, whether stated from either side, is mainly dogma. The only question then, when you notice a difference, is "whose is the dogma this time?"

Answer 2

• They both worship God alone.
• They are both Abrahamic religions.
• They are both monotheistic religions.
• Catholics originated out from Judaism. Jesus was Jewish and he taught using the not only parables but the scriptures. Jewish people converted to Christianity.

Catholicism is nothing other than Judaism fulfilled, in other words, the all the first Christians were Jews who recognized that Our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ, was the promised Messiah who had been promised by God for centuries. The entire bedrock of Catholic morality is based on the revelation that God made in the Old Testament. St. Thomas Aquinas explains in the Summa Theologicae that of the 613 commandments in the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible), they are all broken down into one of three kinds:

Moral Laws (example would be the Ten Commandments): these are valid for all people at all times, and are equally valid for Christians after the coming of Christ. It would always be a serious sin to violate any of the moral commandments.

Ceremonial Laws (example would be dietary laws and the Passover): these were specifically given to the Chosen People to foreshadow Christ, like the figure of a serpent lifted up on the pole in the desert by Moses for the people to look upon and be saved from the deadly bite of the insects - which was an obvious foreshadowing of Christ being lifted up on the cross for our salvation. To follow the ceremonial laws after Christ's resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit is a serious (mortal) sin as it is to say that you don't believe that the Messiah arrived in the person of Jesus. It would always be a serious sin to observe them.

Civil Laws - these were laws which were written for the Chosen People to live as a nation apart from other nations (not in expectation of the Messiah, just to govern them as a nation - Exodus 21 is full of these). These laws no longer bind the believer after Christ's resurrection and ascension but may be enforced by their local civil government. So they may or may not be binding depending on under what government you currently live, but it is not a sin to observe them.

NO Similarities

Answer 1

Jews do not follow the 'old testament'. The OT is the Christian version, Church-edited, mistranslated and incorrectly organised version of the Jewish Tanakh. The Tanakh = Jewish scriptures.

Judaism and Catholicism are not remotely similar. Core Catholic belief violates Jewish beliefs. In Judaism, G-d never, ever takes human form. And no mortal can be 'divine'. There is no such thing as 'virgin birth' and there is no such thing as 'original sin'.

JUDAISM

- says that no human can ever die for the sins of others

CHRISTIANITY

- says that Jesus died for the sins of mankind

JUDAISM

- says that all humans are born pure, and innocent

CHRISTIANITY

- says that all humans are born with 'original sin'.

JUDAISM

- says that G-d would never allow/enable a 'virgin birth'

CHRISTIANITY

- says that Mary gave birth, though a virgin

JUDAISM

- says that no man gets a 'second coming'

CHRISTIANITY

- says that Jesus will have a 'second coming'

JUDAISM

- says that every human should speak directly to G-d

CHRISTIANITY

- Jesus claims in the 'New Testament' that the 'only way' to G-d is via him

JUDAISM

- says G-d is one, indivisable, cannot be separated into three aspects/incarnations

CHRISTIANITY

- speaks of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit

JUDAISM

- says that we are ALL equally G-d's children

CHRISTIANITY

- says that Jesus was 'god's son' above all others

JUDAISM

- has no concept of 'hell' or 'purgatory'

CHRISTIANITY

- *some* Christians non believers to 'hell'

Catholics say only those who do not want to be with God with every part of their being choose to go to hell. Purgatory is a "place" to cleanse the souls of those who still want to be with God but are not pure enough to be with him yet.

JUDAISM

- has no 'devil', the Jewish 'Satan' is just an ordinary angel, under G-d's control

CHRISTIANITY

- describes 'Satan' as a devil and 'fallen' angel

JUDAISM

- the 'messiah' will be a normal, mortal man who must fulfill all the Jewish messianic prophecies in one normal, mortal lifetime

CHRISTIANITY

- Jesus was the 'messiah' and will fulfill the prophecies when he 'returned'

JUDAISM

- says that the righteous of ALL faiths will reach 'gan eden' or 'garden of eden'.

CHRISTIANITY

- *some* Christians insist that only those who 'know Christ' can reach heaven

*some* is right! Catholics see the good in everyone, they will all reach heaven, some sooner than others, except for those who don't want to with every part of their being.

JUDAISM

- forbids Jews from trying to convert anyone to Judaism

CHRISTIANITY

- believes in actively 'witnessing' and encouraging people to convert to Christianity

JUDAISM

- believes that life begins only after the baby is born and can survive independently of the womb.

CHRISTIANITY

- believes that life begins with conception.

Clearly the two religions differ on many core beliefs. Again, remember there are many other differences; this is only a partial list.

It is, of course, true that Christianity began life as a tiny fringe sect within Judaism. But the followers of Jesus were not 'christians' in the sense that we use that word today. Many of the Christian doctrines did not develop until much, much later, by which time Christianity was already an entirely non Jewish faith.

The final and irrevocable parting of the ways between the faiths came when Christians deified Jesus. At this point, Christianity was endorsing a belief that is blasphemy for any Jew, because in Judaism, no human can ever be 'divine' or on a par with G-d.

**************************************...

The religions also disagree on the concept of 'maschiach' or 'messiah'.

this is one thing that Judaism and Christianity can never, ever agree on.

Judaism has always been clear on its idea of 'maschiach'. The Jewish messiah is just an ordinary Jewish man, he is not 'divine' and he has no 'supernatural' powers; he won't be walking on water or performing miracles. Rather, he will epitomise the best in honour and integrity. And to even qualify as the maschiach, he must fulfill all the Jewish messianic prophecies. Every single one. And he must do it *before* he dies. There is no 'second coming' for the Jewish Maschiach.

Christianity, meanwhile, says something very different. Jesus is portrayed as a part divine 'son of god' who died in order to carry the sins of the rest of mankind. He is 'god incarnate', part of the 'trinity' and, according to many Christians, it is only by accepting Christ that any human can connect with G-d and reach 'heaven'.

Thus we have, effectively, two entirely different messiahs.

And neither religion is going to change its view. Jesus can never be the Jewish messiah: he didn't fulfill any of the Jewish messianic prophecies before he died. And Jesus will always be the Christian messiah; the entire religion is predicated upon his being precisely that.

What, then, are the Jewish messianic prophecies? They are as follows, and it is empirical *fact* that nobody has yet fulfilled them:

• He will be descended from King David (Isaiah 11:1) via King Solomon (1 Chron. 22:8-10)
• The Moshiach will be a man of this world, an observant Jew with "fear of God" (Isaiah 11:2)
• Evil and tyranny will not be able to stand before his leadership (Isaiah 11:4)
• There will be no more hunger or illness, and death will cease (Isaiah 25:8)
• All of the dead will rise again (Isaiah 26:19)
• The Jewish people will experience eternal joy and gladness (Isaiah 51:11)
• He will be a messenger of peace (Isaiah 52:7)
• The ruined cities of Israel will be restored (Ezekiel 16:55)
• Weapons of war will be destroyed (Ezekiel 39:9)
• The Temple will be rebuilt (Ezekiel 40) resuming many of the suspended mitzvot.
• He will then perfect the entire world to serve God together (Zephaniah 3:9)
• Jews will know the Torah without Study (Jeremiah 31:33)
• He will give you all the desires of your heart (Psalms 37:4)
• He will take the barren land and make it abundant and fruitful (Isaiah 51:3, Amos 9:13-15, Ezekiel 36:29-30, Isaiah 11:6-9).
• Once he is King, leaders of other nations will look to him for guidance. (Isaiah 2:4)
• The whole world will worship the One God of Israel (Isaiah 2:17)
• The peoples of the world will turn to the Jews for spiritual guidance (Zechariah 8:23)
• Nations will end up recognizing the wrongs they did to Israel (Isaiah 52:13-53:5)
• He will include and attract people from all cultures and nations (Isaiah 11:10)
• Knowledge of God will fill the world (Isaiah 11:9)
• The Sanhedrin will be re-established (Isaiah 1:26)*
• All Israelites will be returned to their homeland (Isaiah 11:12)

Judaism and Catholicism are profoundly different. Core Catholic/Christian beliefs equal blasphemy for any Jew.

But Judaism states that all righteous souls will reach 'heaven' and also Judaism does not claim to be the 'only' path to G-d.

Answer 3

The two religions are quite different. In fact, there are very few similiarities. Jews do not believe in things such as Jesus, the trinity, sacraments, abstinence, confession to priests, transsubstantiation (blessing objects), hell, Satan as a power independent from G-d, and many other things.

The following answer is a Christian perspective, not held by Jewish People. The actual core philosophies of Jews and Christians are completely different.

Catholic AnswerCatholicism and Judaism are basically the same religion, in actuallity there is no difference. Catholics are just Jews who acknowledge that the Messiah arrived in and died in Jerusalem in the first century. Everything that Catholics believe is based in the Old Testament (the Jewish Bible), and all the ceremonies and beliefs of Catholics are found, in embryo, so to speak, in Judaism. The Jews of today, are the descendants of the Pharisee party who rejected Jesus' resurrection and divinity and are still awaiting the Messiah ( a belief no longer held by most non-Orthodox jews). Remember that at the time of Jesus the Jews had been assaulted by so many other "religions" over the centuries which threatened the very foundation of what they believed that they were hard pressed to see the fulfillment of their faith in Jesus' teaching. [actually, Jews have a completely different definition of a messiah, which is not connected to sacrifice].

from The Catechism of the Catholic Church, second edition, English translation 1994

576 In the eyes of many in Israel, Jesus seems to be acting against essential institutions of the Chosen People: - submimission to the whole of the Law in its written commandments, and for the Pharisees, in the interpretation of oral tradition;

- the centrality of the Temple at Jerusalem as the holy place where God's presence dwells in a special way;

- faith in the one God whose glory no man can share.

Answer 4

Catholics (and Christians in general) believe that Jesus was the Messiah, as well as being God incarnate.They thus believe God made a New Covenant with the people of the Earth, one which fulfilled and superceded the Old.

Jews believe that Jesus was not a Messiah, nor God and that the Old Covenant in still in effect.

__________

Additional differences.

Judaism does not accept the following Catholic beliefs and concepts:

- The trinity

- Original sin

- The Catholic concept of sin

- The devil

- Heaven and hell

- The idea of eternal damnation

- The Catholic concept of messiah

- The virgin birth

- That G-d can be man or son of man

- The need to pray to G-d through intermediaries

Answer 5

Christ.

______

The above is just one item of difference between Catholicism and Judaism. Judaism does not accept the following Catholic beliefs and concepts:

- The trinity

- Original sin

- The Catholic concept of sin

- The devil

- Heaven and hell

- The idea of eternal damnation

- The Catholic concept of messiah

- The virgin birth

- That G-d can be man or son of man

- The need to pray to G-d through intermediaries

JESUS, the Jews are still waiting for the Messiah.

Answer 6

The sole difference in Jewish and Catholic faith is their beliefs in Jesus Christ. Catholics believe that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the savior of not onlt the Jews but also of the Gentiles. Jews, however, believe that the Messiah has not yet come; and Jesus Christ is just another great prophet.

Correction:

Jews do not consider Jesus a prophet, he plays no role in Judaism at all in fact.

Judaism does not accept the following Catholic beliefs and concepts:

- The trinity

- Original sin

- The Catholic concept of sin

- The devil

- Heaven and hell

- The idea of eternal damnation

- The Catholic concept of messiah

- The virgin birth

- That G-d can be man or son of man

- The need to pray to G-d through intermediaries

Answer 7

Catholics believe that Jesus Christ is the messiah, lord, son of God while Jews consider him to have been a false prophet at most.

Some examples of Catholic beliefs and concepts that are not accepted by Judaism are:

- The trinity

- Original sin

- The Catholic concept of sin

- The devil

- Heaven and hell

- The idea of eternal damnation

- The Catholic concept of messiah

- The virgin birth

- That G-d can be man or son of man

- The need to pray to G-d through intermediaries

Answer 8

Catholics believe that Jesus is the Messiah the Son of God that died for man's sin's thereby removing original sin and taught the way to salvation with God. Jews that did not believe this did not become Christians and remained in the Jewish faith.

The Jewish Faith is more based on how you act, there are over 600 rules that one need to follow. However, the beliefs are subject to interpretation. One example is the afterlife, different Jews will believe different things about what happens after they die, but they are still all considered Jews, since they follow the rules set out in the Torah.

The Christian faiths are more based on sharing a belief. At least originally. They had meetings to set forth a set of things that Christians believed and to be a good Christian you had to agree with these beliefs.

___________________

Catholicism' focus is on what a person believes while Judaism's focus is on what a person does in life.

Judaism has the Tanach (Jewish Bible), which is made up of Torah (Teachings), Nevi'im (Prophets), K'tuvim (Writings). Catholicism has the Old Testament, which is based on the Tanach but has been altered to support the teachings of Catholicism, and the New Testament.

Catholicism has very specific beliefs as to what happens after death. Judaism has theories about what might happen after death but barely touches on the subject which isn't really discussed even in the Tanach. Judaism focuses on the current life with the goal of helping HaShem (The Creator) complete creation.

Catholicism teaches that humans are born in sin and have to be saved from this. Judaism teaches that humans are capable of doing both good and bad but when we were created, HaShem called us good and that humans are intrinsically good. The word most commonly translated as 'sin' in the Tanach is an Archery term meaning 'to miss the mark'. Judaism teaches that without the ability to do bad, we cannot choose to do good. By doing good we become closed to HaShem and when we make a mistake, it gives us a chance to correct that mistake and grow as a person and in the end, we become closer to HaShem.

Within the Torah there are 613 mitzvot or guidelines which are the basis for Jewish belief and law. These mitzvot provide the structure by which Jews can live righteously. Of the 613 mitzvot, many are specific to tribe, geographical location, the existing of the Temple, gender, and profession. No one person has to meet the requirements of all 613.

Judaism does not accept the following Catholic beliefs and concepts:

- The trinity

- Original sin

- The Catholic concept of sin

- The devil

- Heaven and hell

- The idea of eternal damnation

- The Catholic concept of messiah

- The virgin birth

- That G-d can be man or son of man

- The need to pray to G-d through intermediaries

- The Catholic concept of salvation and grace