In the third chapter of his Hilchot Teshuva (Halacha 5; listen to audio for precise citation), the Rambam (Rabbi Moshe Maimonides, Spain-Egypt, 1135-1204) cites the famous rule of "Kol Yisrael Yesh Lahem Helek La'olam Ha'ba" – that all Jews, even those who have sinned, have a share in the World to Come. This principle is inferred from a verse in the Book of Yeshayahu (60:21) which declares, "And your nation – they are all righteous; they shall forever inherit the land." The term "land" is used here allegorically as a reference to the eternal life of the next world, and this verse thus establishes that all Am Yisrael are assured a share of that world. Righteous gentiles, the Rambam adds, are likewise guaranteed a portion of the eternal life.
In the subsequent passage (Halacha 6), the Rambam lists the exceptions to this rule, the various categories of sinners who forfeit their share in the World to Come. The first category is that of the "Minim" (literally, "apostates"), which the Rambam proceeds to define in the next Halacha (7). This category, he writes, consists of the following groups of people:
1) Atheists, who claim that there is no Supreme Ruler over the earth.
2) Polytheists, who believe that there are two or more Supreme Rulers over the earth.
3) Those who affirm the existence of a single, Supreme Ruler, but ascribe to Him physical attributes.
4) Those who believe in a single, non-physical Supreme Ruler but deny that He preceded the universe. We are to believe that all of creation, including the "raw materials" from which the earth was fashioned, came into existence as a result of God, and thus He necessarily preceded the universe. Those who believe that any part of the universe had always existed and was not created by God have no share in the next world, even if they affirm God's existence, unlimited power and non-physical essence.
5) Those who worship entities or objects other than God to serve as intermediaries. Ancient pagans, for example, would worship the stars and constellations in the belief that the celestial bodies could intercede on their behalf before God. Judaism demands that one pray to the Almighty directly, not through intermediaries, and anybody who prays to alleged intermediary forces loses his share in the next world.
