Purpose questions in Judaism
For Higher, there are 5 ‘purpose’ questions we could see in the World Religion section for Judaism. These are all 10-mark questions – with 6 Knowledge and Understanding (KU) and 4 Analysis (A) marks available:
Analyse the purpose of living according to the Commandments
Analyse the purpose of Yom Kippur (Appeared in 2024)
Analyse the purpose of Rosh Hashanah
Analyse the purpose of Shabbat.
Analyse the purpose of the Synagogue in the lives of Jews. (Appeared in 2023)
You would not be asked to analyse the purpose of worship as there is far too much content for a 10 mark question. Equally, you would not be asked about the purpose of any of the beliefs. So let’s just focus on the first of these and look at structure.
Whilst this question could absolutely include detail about the 613 mitzvot – the Torah, the Talmud, the Halakah etc. You can simply focus on the ten commandments and go for a simple – KU – A structure.
The ten commandments were given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai as the basis of the Mosaic Covenant. (KU) The first commandment that is found in the Torah is “You shall have no other Gods before me.” (KU) This shows that the purpose of living according to the Commandments is to honour god through action and to ensure that He is central. (A)
Another commandment that is found in the Torah,”Thou shall not commit adultery” (KU). This means that people who are married are not allowed to have a sexual relationship with anyone other than their partner (KU). As adultery involves deception, betrayal, and broken promises, you can see that the purpose of this commandment is to set a moral standard that emphasises integrity and responsibility. (A) It also shows that there should be trust and respect within relationships, which in turn, should result in lasting and stable relationships. (A)
Another commandment that is found in the Torah is: “Thou shall not kill.” (KU) But this is more accurately translated as ‘Thou shall not murder.’ as there are things in Torah that prescribe death as a punishment. (KU) The purpose of this commandment is to show life is incredibly valuable and as it is given by God, no one has the right to murder another person unjustly. (A)
You can see that this would take you up to 6KU marks and 4A marks – but if you couldn’t think of a second analysis point for a particular commandment, it wouldn’t hurt to add another and add a separate analysis point.
In the example above, I have focused on describing how one might live according to the commandments, but you are also free to describe ‘the purpose’ and then to analyse the implications of those purposes. For example:
Jewish people believe they are part of a special relationship (covenant) with God that began with Abraham and was renewed through Moses. (KU) The purpose of living according to the Torah is how they honour their side of that covenant. (KU) The Torah is understood as God’s guidance for the best possible life, so the purpose of living according to it is to live in harmony with God’s will. (KU) Judaism teaches that holiness is not just for religious spaces. The purpose of living according to the mitzvot is so that ordinary actions like eating, resting, or working become sacred. (KU) Many Torah laws focus on justice and the purpose of living according to those laws is to ensure people are dealt with fairly and the vulnerable are protected. (KU) Another purpose of living according to the Torah is to preserve Jewish identity strong across time and place, the laws and rituals connect Jewish people to their ancestors as well as the worldwide Jewish community. (KU)
This has a number of implications: Jewish people have a clear moral framework given by God – as He is all-knowing – they can be confident that it is a good way to live. (A) It also means that they will be living a life of meaning, discipline, and spirituality – with a clear purpose of honouring God. (A) Living by the Torah shapes a community built on responsibility and care – and reflects God’s qualities of justice (tzedek) and kindness (chesed). (A) Connection with other Jewish people also then results in the community being strengthened so that it is more likely to continue for generations to come too. (A)
You could use the second structure for the first approach too i.e. describing ways in which Jewish people live according to the Torah for 6KU marks and then exploring how that shows the purpose for 4A marks. In short – a structure is a good structure – find which one works for you. If you’ve got any questions – feel free to add a comment or just DM me on Instagram!
