ABSTRACT
The essence of the democratic ideal is the belief in equality. Just as a sharp distinction must be made between the accidental and the essential aspects of democracy, the same distinction must be made among the various aspects of Judaism. Judaism conceived of God as the creator and ruler of the entire universe: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth". The social ideal of Judaism was a community of scholars, where all would be companions. Judaism recognizes no profane virtues; all virtues are sacred; the social function is as religious as the religious function is social. The most graphic expression of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man is the statement in the Bible that man was created in the image of God. The injunctions in the Bible relating to the treatment of a brother were not construed as being directed only to the treatment of Israelites but of all mankind.
