Thus, the verse is seen as promoting universal monotheism, not monolatry, an interpretation that stuck forever after. The idea is that Jews are the ones who acknowledge God in the present, while in the future, the hope is that all humanity will. They wrote, "the Lord is our God" applies to the present and "the Lord is one" to the future. In the Talmud, a compendium of rabbinical commentaries gathered between 200 and 500 C.E., the rabbis offered a new interpretation of this verse. Monolatry recognizes that there are other gods, but that the Israelites believe in the God of the Hebrew Bible. Monotheism holds that there is only one God for all peoples, in this case, the God of the Hebrew Bible. Though this opening verse is now taken as the ultimate affirmation of monotheism, it seems likely that the ancient Israelites originally saw it as a declaration of monolatry. Hear (Shema) Israel! the Lord is our God, the Lord is one TJE asked Kimelman, a leading scholar on the Jewish liturgy, to provide a translation and line-by-line analysis of the first passage, which is the best known. It consists of three separate passages taken from the Hebrew Bible: Deuteronomy (6:4–9) and (11:13-21) and Numbers (15:37-41). when it was recited as part of regular services in the ancient temple in Jerusalem. Thoughts are to be focused, words are to be spoken, and deeds are to be done." The prayer dates from the first millennium B.C.E. Professor of classical rabbinic literature Reuven Kimelman said the Shema summons Jews to feel "an all-consuming love of God." "It's a love that is unreserved, all-demanding, at all times, in all places and in all circumstances," he said. Jews often recite the prayer as their dying words, including Jewish martyrs who, throughout the ages, made it their final profession of faith before being put to death. It serves as the climax of the liturgy on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year. It is traditionally recited twice a day, as part of the morning (Shacharit) and evening (Arvit or Ma'ariv) services. The prayer expresses belief in the singularity of God, that is, in God's oneness and incomparability. Shema Yisrael, or the Shema, is the central affirmation of Judaism. Heller School for Social Policy and Management
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