What constitutes the true word of God and why Karaite Jews insist they are right

 The definition of the "true word of God" is the central point of dispute between different faiths and even within the major branches of Judaism.

Karaite Judaism's insistence on its own correctness stems from its radical rejection of the tradition accepted by the majority of Jews.

---

📜 What Constitutes the Word of God?

In the context of the Abrahamic faiths (Judaism and Christianity), the "Word of God" is typically understood as divine revelation preserved in scripture.

In Rabbinic Judaism (Majority View)

The "Word of God" is composed of a Dual Torah:

1. Written Torah (Torah Shebichtav): The Five Books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy), which are the foundation of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). This is universally accepted.

2. Oral Torah (Torah Shebe'al Peh): This is a body of detailed legal rulings, interpretations, and applications of the Written Torah. Traditional Rabbinic Judaism holds that God gave this Oral Law to Moses at Sinai, and it was transmitted orally from generation to generation until it was eventually written down and codified in the Talmud (Mishnah and Gemara) and later legal codes.

In this view, the Oral Torah is divine and necessary to correctly understand and apply the commandments in the Written Torah. Both together constitute the full and true word of God.

In Karaite Judaism (Minority View)

The "Word of God" consists exclusively of the:

• Written Torah (Tanakh) alone.

Karaite Judaism views the Talmud and all subsequent rabbinic works as man-made traditions, not divine revelation. Their approach is called Scripturalism (from the Hebrew Kara'im, meaning "Readers of Scripture").

---

⚔️ Why Karaite Jews Insist They Are Right

Karaite Judaism arose as a movement in the Middle Ages (circa 8th-9th century CE) in direct opposition to the growing authority of the Rabbinic tradition. Their arguments for being the "correct" form of Judaism revolve entirely around the rejection of the Oral Law.

1. The Principle of Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone)

• The Claim: Karaites believe that if God intended for the Oral Law to be binding, He would have included some mention of a "second Torah" in the Written Scripture.

• The Proof-Text: They frequently cite biblical warnings against adding to or subtracting from God's commands, such as Deuteronomy 4:2: "You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you."

• The Conclusion: They see the vast body of the Talmud and Rabbinic enactments as an unauthorized addition by men, making the Rabbinic system fundamentally flawed and contrary to God's express command.

2. The Problem of Disagreement

• The Claim: Rabbinic Judaism claims the Oral Law was transmitted perfectly from Moses. If this is true, Karaites ask, how could there be so many major disagreements and debates (machloket) recorded among the ancient Sages in the Mishnah and Talmud?

• The Argument: If a tradition is truly divine and perfect, it should not be subject to such wide human interpretation and argument. The very existence of extensive rabbinic debate proves that the chain of transmission was broken, fallible, or man-made from the start.

3. The Need for Personal Responsibility

• The Claim: Karaism holds that religious responsibility rests with the individual, not with a central rabbinic authority. Their famous motto is: "Search the Scripture well, and do not rely on my opinion."

• The Argument: By relying on the Talmud, Rabbinic Jews are relying on the rulings of human authorities (Rabbis) rather than God's own words. The Karaite believes every individual is obligated to personally study the Tanakh and derive his or her own understanding (peshat—the plain meaning) of the commandments.

4. Literal or Plain Interpretation (Peshat)

In many cases, the Karaite application of law differs sharply from the Rabbinic one, and they see their method as superior because it is closer to the original text:

Commandment	Rabbinic Interpretation (Based on Oral Law)	Karaite Interpretation (Based on Written Law)
Boiling a Kid (Ex. 23:19)	Prohibits mixing any meat with any dairy product.	Prohibits only boiling a young goat in its mother's milk.
Fire on Shabbat (Ex. 35:3)	Prohibits kindling a fire, but permits an existing fire (like a stove or candle) to burn.	Prohibits any fire (kindled or existing) from being lit or left burning in a Jew's dwelling on the Sabbath.
Counting the Omer (Lev. 23:15)	Begins counting the day after the first day of Passover.	Begins counting the day after the literal Sabbath (Saturday) during Passover week, meaning the start day is always a Sunday.

For Karaites, these differences are proof that the Rabbinic tradition corrupted the simple, original meaning of the Torah.