Ask me anything (almost) about Judaism

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Much appreciated. One further point about the Messiah: although a man of action, he has to be a pious learned Jew as well.
 
Okay, one more question. It’s about Ultra-conservative Jews, is it haredim or hasidim?

From what I understand they don’t learn basic things most people learn like math and science, and basically live inside their house their whole lives. Do you know why they do so?

Is there laws or customs in all of Judiasm that might the reason for this? Or it is only in that sect?
 
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The categorization is a bit complicated. Haredim is a more general term that includes several types of strictly Orthodox Jews, such as Hasidic Jews. The term sometimes used to describe Haredim is ultra-Orthodox but this term is regarded as pejorative by members themselves. To them, their beliefs and practices are the only true form of Judaism. There are Orthodox Jews who do not identify as Haredim but rather Traditional Orthodox or Modern Orthodox, perhaps because of the derogatory use of the term ultra-Orthodox, but more likely because they do not hold with some of the observances or political views of certain Haredim. And then there are several streams of Haredim as well. I said it was complicated!

Some Haredim fit your description, but not all. I don’t think they spend their whole lives indoors since they do go to the synagogue to pray and worship. But for some, their primary job is studying the Torah rather than engaging in secular activities of any kind, whether work or recreation. For other Orthodox Jews, this behavior is not in keeping with traditional Judaism, which states that one must involve oneself with the world for the purpose of making it a better place to live. For these Orthodox Jews, probably the majority, prayer is also very important, but it must be complemented by repairing the world (tikkun olam).
 
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What is your opinion of Jewish/Muslim relations, given that we’re sort of “brothers from another mother” and all? In general, do Jews consider Muslims to worship the same God in the way we consider you guys People of the Book? I know that there is a lot of tension among some populations of Muslims regarding Israel, so unfortunately we have more than our fair share of antisemitic jerks running around. I’m curious as to how things look from the other side.
 
Thanks for keep this thread about questions on Judaism and not turning it into apologetics
I don’t see why asking a Jewish person if they believe Christ was crucified, died, and buried is off-topic. Nor is why they believe his disciples did believe he was resurrected. That’s not apologetics, but if @meltzerboy2 prefers not to discuss it, that’s his choice. It is his thread. I respect that. It’s just not apologetics.
 
I think the Third Temple can only be built during the Messianic era or by the Messiah himself. If it were to be constructed before that time, this would cause even more aggravated war, violence, and bloodshed in the region. In sum, not a good idea given the present circumstances in Israel and globally.
Do the majority of Jews have to reside in Israel before the Messiah arrives?
 
Using the name “Jesus” doesn’t imply anything.

For instance. I’m a Sephardic Jew and I speak the Jewish language Ladino. “Jesus” is also a common way in Ladino to say Yeshua or Joshua, though it is pronounced similar to how you would hear it in Spanish. I normally speak in Ladino daily and use the name “Jesus” when English speakers use Joshua and Hebrew speakers use Yeshua.

So you might need to think a little more “three-dimensionally” when it comes to names and language. Jesus is not an English name. It Is Latin-based.
I am sorry, but I still believe that the use of the Latinized name of “Jesus” does relate to Christian theologies that are unacceptable to Judaism. Using the ancient rabinical name of Yeshu ben Pantera for that person immediately signifies the rejection of a certain Christian theology, and, thereby, implies the rejection of other objectionable theologies as well.
I have read that, in the End Times, Jews will come to understand that Yeshu ben Pantera was, in fact, the Jewish Messiah. But I feel that it is way too much to ask Judaism to accept those parts of Christian theology that Jews find objectionable. If Jews are going to recognise their Messiah as the ancient ben Pantera, they must do it on their own terms and with Jewish theology.
Therefore, in this thread only, I refer to that ancient Rabbi as Yeshu ben Pantera.
 
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It’s so hard to generalize about Jews’ feelings concerning Muslims. It depends on so many things: the level of education and understanding of Muslims’ beliefs on the part of the Jewish person; the cultural background and personal experiences of the Jewish person with Muslim people (that is, whether the Jew is American, European, Sephardic from North Africa or Iran, Israeli, and so on); the degree of orthodoxy or liberalism on the part of the Jewish person; younger vs. older Jews; and several other factors, I’m sure. To take one example, I would say that many, too many older American Jews are ignorant of Islamic beliefs, ignorant of Christian beliefs, even ignorant of Jewish beliefs. Many are secularized and cultural, JINOS (Jews in Name Only). When they hear Muslim or Arab, which are interchangeable in their minds (even though, as you well know, not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs), they think “the enemy of Israel” since, although secular, this kind of largely uneducated Jew is often a supporter of Israel, no questions asked. (I do not mean to imply that educated Jews do not support Israel as well, but they ask questions at the same time.) Likewise, certain sects of Orthodox Jews have little sympathy for Muslims, not only because of the latter’s threat to Israel (although some of these Orthodox Jews do not support the Zionist founding of Israel), but more fundamentally because they are not Jewish. However, more informed Orthodox Jews, secular Jews, and those in-between (Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist) know that Muslims are our brothers-in-arms based on their religious beliefs. In some essential ways, Muslims and Jews have more in common than Christians and Jews or Christians and Muslims. A case in point is that it was always permissible for a Jew to enter a mosque, because Orthodox Judaism considers Islam a truly monotheistic religion, which was traditionally not the same viewpoint regarding Christianity and entering a church. Even today many Jews consider Christianity a non-monotheistic religion.
 
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Cohen is a common name; would it follow that any male bearing the name Cohen (so presumably a direct descendant of Aaron) could be eligible for the priesthood? Wondering whether there are inherent problems in restoring the priesthood due to lost genealogical records.
 
Do you still sacrifice goats and other animals as sacrifice if you sin?
 
@Gab123
Please remove your posts. They are against community forum rules. And they are not on par with the discussions.
 
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Honey I am not afraid to talk about Jesus. But I do know when there is a time and place. And this thread is not it.
 
If that is what you read online, you are not reading the Talmud but rather distortions of the Talmud composed by hate groups who are anti-Semitic such as Stormfront. The Talmud is not about Christianity; it is about better understanding the Torah (Written Law) by filling in the missing details. You are no doubt aware of what online writings and commentaries say about Catholicism. Do you believe them because they are online?
 
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Thank you, Kathleen18, for your kind words.
 
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Thank you, TigerLily-1, for reminding the other member of his responsibilities.
 
In theory, I suppose that a Cohen, if a Jewish male, could resume the priesthood of Aaron. But it is not going to happen due to probable past discrepancies or omissions in the genealogical record. Moses613 no doubt knows much more about this topic than I do. I would wait for his response (after Passover).
 
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