Mitzvot and free will
Most Jews believe that when God created them, he gave them free willThe idea that humans are free to make their own moral choices.. This is the idea that people are able to make their own decisions and distinguish right from wrong. Therefore, Jews believe that it is an individual鈥檚 responsibility to follow the mitzvotCommandments or laws in Judaism..
After setting out the terms of the covenantAn agreement or promise. with Israel, God said: I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live.
This shows that the people with whom God made the covenant were free to accept or reject it. This is true today as well 鈥 Jews believe that they are free to choose whether to accept the covenant.
Jews believe that, by following the mitzvot, they will live a good life, meaning that they will be closer to God. Some Jews believe this will also help them to be judged well in the afterlifeLife after death. and achieve a place in Gan EdenThe garden of Eden, used by Jews to mean heaven or paradise..
The story of Adam and EveThe first human beings according to Judeo-Christian and Islamic traditions. shows how God gave free will but also that there are negative consequences if that free will is used to go against God.
Orthodox JewsJews who live by the Torah and rabbinic law (halakhah) and who only accept changes that can be supported by the Torah. obey the mitzvot strictly. However, some laws cannot be obeyed as they refer to the Temple (Judaism)The central place of Jewish worship in Jerusalem from biblical times until AD70., which no longer exists.
Question
What is free will?
Free will is the ability to make choices for oneself. Jews believe that God has given people free will and that sometimes they will choose to do good and sometimes they will sin.