Hierarchy of Gender Roles in the Traditional Jewish Religion Essay

Hierarchy of Gender Roles in the Traditional Jewish Religion - Essay Example I found that atmosphere to be more family-oriented and comfortable for the crowd that gathered. There were several differences that caused me to have a negative reaction. First, in the traditional Jewish religion, there is a strong and obvious hierarchy of gender roles in which the men and women engage. While some might dismiss that as chauvinism, others think differently and truly appreciate the importance of the different gender portrayals. Regardless of personal preference, Judaism has a particular set of laws that have not changed; nor will they change any time soon. One of these laws indicates clearly that women are forbidden from holding the holy Torah book, and are not allowed to lead the ritual ceremony. Without getting into the theological explanations of why these laws are important, I would simply like to point out an idea which I believe all religions have in common; follow the laws as they are given to you. While individuals can interpret these laws differently within certain parameters, the main idea should stay the same. That is why a Jewish woman should not walk around holding the Torah book or, prior to that, go to the arch where the book is placed and open it. Yet, they do this at Temple Sinai. Another negative exp... So, once I entered the temple, I turned off my cellular phone and got into the mood of that special holiness that a synagogue provides whenever I attend a service there. I found it particularly ironic that, during the service, the Rabbi who lectured us about the importance of keeping the Shabbat, as it was written specifically in the Torah, was violating the Shabbat by using a microphone to deliver his speech! According to the Jewish faith, he was committing a great sin, and he made other Jews join in that sin as well. To makes things worse, and even bizarre, there was a man next to him that played the keyboard (again, on Shabbat and inside a synagogue!) which made me feel that I was taking apart in a mass, in a church on a Sunday morning. Further, I wore my "yamaka" (a small hat that Jewish men put on their heads when they pray), and put on my "tall" (a special cloth that Jewish men put on top of their clothes at the time of prayer) as is the requirement for men who attend the service. Some of the male participants that morning did not respect even this simple requirement of covering their heads during the reading of the Torah.  Ã‚