<\/p>\n
In most biblical writings, divine protection guards against the dangers in this world and applies more to the Jewish people as a whole rather than to individuals. But while observation of the laws is the responsibility of each person, the notion of collective liability, emphasized by the Prophets, creates an uneasy social pressure towards religious conformity. The idea of individual reward and punishment in the hereafter appears relatively late in Judaism and could very well have been introduced from the outside. Halacha pervades just about every aspect of Jewish life. Over its long accretionary evolution, Judaism has become a tight amalgamation of spiritual, ethical and social precepts, and historical detritus. As in any complex system, it is often easy to miss the forest for the trees; the gap between religious ordinance and actual behaviour varies widely.<\/span><\/p>\n One of Judaism\u2019s deepest thinkers, Moses Maimonides (~1135\u20131204), postulated that God\u2019s existence is manifest only through his actions, and any other divine attributes are purely human constructs.7<\/a><\/span><\/span> If we accept that people have been created in God\u2019s image,8<\/a><\/span><\/span> then it follows out of symmetry that a person\u2019s godliness expresses itself only by his or her deeds, not by thoughts or words. Thus, Judaism is a religion of doing rather than talking. <\/span><\/p>\n Prime among Jewish tenets is the requirement that God has to be approached with humility and in purity9<\/a><\/span><\/span> \u2013 both spiritual and physical. Thus, an observant Jew may pray or read the Torah even without the benefit of a synagogue \u2013 but one may not do so in a state of impurity; for purification one needs a ritual bath (mikvah).10<\/a><\/span><\/span> The ritual bath is particularly crucial in maintaining \u201cPurity of the Family,\u201d a modest cir\u00adcum\u00adlo\u00adcu\u00adtion of cleansing rituals related to reproductive function \u2013 particularly for women. An unassuming ritual bath therefore has a higher priority in a Jewish community than a prominent synagogue.11<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a07<\/a><\/span>Maimonides and Friedl\u00e4nder, “The Guide of the Perplexed”, 185; Bujis, \u201cAttributes of Action in Maimonides,\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a08<\/a><\/span>Cf. Gen. 1:27.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a09<\/a><\/span>BT, Shab. 104a; Ber. 10a.<\/p>\n