Repentance Paper Rel 210

Judaism revolves around the concept of mitzvot, commandments, that help define the relationship between both an individual and God, and an individual with another person. Since the time of Adam and Eve, people have had the ability to make choices, discerning from right and wrong. This free will means that no person can live life without committing sin as people are not perfect; the bible explains this in Isaiah 53:6, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way” and then again in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Judaism believes that people are capable of change, and that life is about assessing decisions and taking the proper steps to correct any wrong doings. God must be willing to forgive us for our sins, but in order for an individual to be forgiven one must follow certain guidelines. There are six guidelines that are important for an individual to follow if they are to repent for a sin. These six steps include: recognizing the sin that has been committed, feeling remorse for those who have been affected by it, repairing the misdeed, relent from sinning and do not repeat it, resolve with God, and then one must rely on God's forgiveness.

The Bible is full of sinners from adulterers to murders, many of which never repent for their sins. Even one of the most highly regarded prophets in Judaism, Moses, committed sins that he never repented for. In order to fully understand the practice of repentance, it is important to walk through the steps necessary to receive forgiveness from both God and other people. Moses is an ideal candidate for critique as he committed a sin that God deemed as an insult to himself and mistrust in his word.

Moses had successfully lead his people out of Egypt, following the commandment God had given him to free his people of slavery. Now Moses and his followers were nomadic people, traveling the desert with no place to call home. The desert poses many threats to the...