Easy Primer on Judaism

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Most Jews in our time do not believe in same sex marriage, is that a fair statement?
 
Thanks for sharing this primer. I enjoyed reading it. Regarding point 13, I’d like to share my own message to my Jewish elder brothers:

Your Messiah is Jesus Christ. He came to earth over two thousand years ago. He fulfilled the law. Jesus is waiting for the Jews to accept him and enter his Church. We know that the Jews will accept Jesus before his Second Coming.
 
Ought a caterpillar to become a butterfly ? YES
Ought a Jew to become a Christian ? YES
 
I suggested attention to point 13. Intellectually, the question is beyond me, but I’m wondering if St Paul had the Noahide code in mind as he addressed the questions of Gentiles joining the Church, i.e. to be a follower of Jesus Christ.

I just wonder how much of the OT we’re supposed to follow, because we obviously don’t follow the cultic practices of the Temple, for example. But we don’t ignore all of it, either. We Catholics study the Ten Commandments (Jewish “ten words”) for example.

Although Paul discouraged Gentile converts from Jewish practices like circumcision, he did not say anyplace that Jewish converts had to stop any practices, such as observing the Passover.
 
It’s hard to generalize, because Judaism does not have the equivalent of the magisterium of its faith, with a “pope” of sorts to settle questions with finality. I think there are leanings towards tolerance in all the main branches of Judaism in the US.

Judaism works something like Protestantism, where a congregation hires a rabbi that tickles their ears with what they want to hear.

There is a broad definition of Judaism that includes all Jews, no matter what they believe or don’t believe. Historically, the momentum for tradition arose when Jews came from foreign lands and didn’t recognize what they found in America. So, continuity was somewhat achieved by bringing over rabbis from Germany or any other country who transplanted the old system. It was sometimes difficult to do this, because the rabbi and his family had to give up the certainty of a job they had a lock on, and roll the dice about fickle American synagogues where they did not have such certainty and security as before. So, there’s pressure to conform to the secular trends, such as tolerance for same sex unions, rationalized as it may be.

You should browse the writings of the widely respect Rabbi Elliott Dorf on this issue of same-sex unions. He’s in favor of tolerating them.
 
Thanks for this. It is well written. It’s a pity they dont put the Word of God before seeking to fit in.
 
Rabbi Elliott Dorff is a Conservative rabbi, not Orthodox (or Reform, or Reconstructionist). Conservative Judaism is split regarding same-sex unions. Some Conservative rabbis may tolerate them but they surely don’t encourage them. Orthodox rabbis, in the vast majority, do NOT tolerate same-sex unions or marriages.
 
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But they do put the Word of G-d above all else, meaning ALL denominations. There are, however, somewhat different interpretations concerning what the Word of G-d says and means.
 
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“A congregation hires a rabbi that tickles their ears with what they want to hear.” In all my years attending Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform synagogues, I have NEVER experienced this. The rabbi tells us what we NEED to hear.

Nice primer, however.
 
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On this point, I’ve read that a Jew can visit different rabbis to get the answer they want to hear. I’ve read this someplace, in a Jewish book (it was not a polemical book attacking Judaism. The same thing has been known to happen in Catholicism, where people go to the priest who is most likely to give them the answer they want to hear.)

I have hundreds of dollars worth of Jewish commentaries and other Jewish doctrinal books, and i don’t recall the source where I read it. It’s not far fetched, because there are such different branches of Judaism where there is fundamental disagreement on various issues. The Jewish Publication Society book on Reform Judaism indicates that branch of Judaism does NOT even consider the Torah to be inspired. What I understand is that the Reformed synagogues meet to discuss what they can agree on, and there seems to be not very much that they do agree on.

There is wisdom in going from one rabbi to another, as there would be in going from one priest to another – if a person get the same answer each place, perhaps they will develop a conviction of the advice they are being given. It’s not a bad idea per se. If a person is playing games, especially word games, then they are just convicting themselves of error. One cannot arrive at truth on that path.

JPS has a recent book published on Orthodox Judaism and the idea of recruiting rabbis selectively is outlined there. Rabbis are “hired” if they appeal to the selection committee and they can be dismissed otherwise. There are itinerant rabbis for congregations that do not have a rabbi under contract.

It would be uncharitable to press you on the point, but since you brought it up, why were you going to these different types of synagogues except for “shopping” for the rabbi and doctrine that you wanted to hear? On christian evangelical radio stations I have heard of non-Catholic Christians doing exactly that. I hear of Protestants that just move around at free will to find “what suits them” and they are quite openly frank about it. JPS just published a book on Conservative Judaism and I’m going to try to fit that into my budget, to get that point of view.

My reading books is not the same as your experience of life, but it is the closest substitute and I respect the authors enough to spend the money to try to understand. “The rabbi tells us what we need to hear.” I need to read Jewish books. But, perhaps you could expand how or why you need to hear Conservative, Orthodox, AND Reform points of view – you don’t get what you “need” in one place? How does one assimilate these different points of view. I ask this with sincerity. Please do not flag my post, but give me some insight into your remarks.
 
otrrl said:
On this point, I’ve read that a Jew can visit different rabbis to get the answer they want to hear. I’ve read this someplace, in a Jewish book (it was not a polemical book attacking Judaism. The same thing has been known to happen in Catholicism, where people go to the priest who is most likely to give them the answer they want to hear.)

I have hundreds of dollars worth of Jewish commentaries and other Jewish doctrinal books, and i don’t recall the source where I read it. It’s not far fetched, because there are such different branches of Judaism where there is fundamental disagreement on various issues. The Jewish Publication Society book on Reform Judaism indicates that branch of Judaism does NOT even consider the Torah to be inspired. What I understand is that the Reformed synagogues meet to discuss what they can agree on, and there seems to be not very much that they do agree on.

There is wisdom in going from one rabbi to another, as there would be in going from one priest to another – if a person get the same answer each place, perhaps they will develop a conviction of the advice they are being given. It’s not a bad idea per se. If a person is playing games, especially word games, then they are just convicting themselves of error. One cannot arrive at truth on that path.

JPS has a recent book published on Orthodox Judaism and the idea of recruiting rabbis selectively is outlined there. Rabbis are “hired” if they appeal to the selection committee and they can be dismissed otherwise. There are itinerant rabbis for congregations that do not have a rabbi under contract.

It would be uncharitable to press you on the point, but since you brought it up, why were you going to these different types of synagogues except for “shopping” for the rabbi and doctrine that you wanted to hear? On christian evangelical radio stations I have heard of non-Catholic Christians doing exactly that. I hear of Protestants that just move around at free will to find “what suits them” and they are quite openly frank about it. JPS just published a book on Conservative Judaism and I’m going to try to fit that into my budget, to get that point of view.

My reading books is not the same as your experience of life, but it is the closest substitute and I respect the authors enough to spend the money to try to understand. “The rabbi tells us what we need to hear.” I need to read Jewish books. But, perhaps you could expand how or why you need to hear Conservative, Orthodox, AND Reform points of view – you don’t get what you “need” in one place? How does one assimilate these different points of view. I ask this with sincerity. Please do not flag my post, but give me some insight into your remarks.
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as above, please
 
Have no fear: I do not flag posts. Anyhow, there is nothing in yours that gives cause to be flagged. You are asking serious questions. I will concede that the different denominations or streams of Judaism have different philosophies concerning what Judaism is about. From there, there are technical differences regarding the interpretations of the Law. However, it is equally important to realize there are certain essential communalities to all the streams of Judaism despite their differences. Insofar as my “shopping around” for different points of view across different streams of Judaism, that is not exactly the case although I am curious about different ideas among rabbis. I was referring to my attending an Orthodox synagogue during my childhood, a Reform synagogue as an adult, and occasionally Conservative synagogues with family members and friends who are members of these synagogues. The basic services are not all that different although, as stated, the philosophies about Judaism may differ from one denomination to another.
 
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otrrl said:
On this point, I’ve read that a Jew can visit different rabbis to get the answer they want to hear
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How very wrong. The first decision stands until revised by the same authority who paskened originally. This is the law.
 
Would you mind expanding on six and twelve
I thought the Jewish people began with Abraham? Not true? It is mentioned that there is an oral Torah. I would assume then that the only way to know it is for someone to tell you. Is six and twelve based on the oral? Thanks for your time.
 
I personally was stuck for four years with a decision my former Rabbi once made. When I spoke to my current Rov shlita, who is a well known and highly respected Rov, and who was also the Rov of my former Rabbi, even he said he couldn’t overrule the first decision. So I was waiting until my former Rabbi flew in from Israel for a simcha, and I spoke with him, and he reconsidered.
This is not a pick and chose club.
 
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Yes, Abraham is recognized as the first Jew. The period of slavery for the Jews (Hebrews) in Egypt came later. The Oral Torah has been written down in what is called the Midrash and Talmud, so these books can be read by all. With regard to women as queens, it is correct that the birth mother is the criterion of who is considered Jewish, not the father, apart from those who convert to Judaism. Women also occupy a primary role in the home, including lighting the Sabbath candles, but also keeping a kosher home and raising the children for all practical purposes. It is also said that women have fewer Torah commandments (instructions), particularly concerning negative commandments, because they are less subject to wrongdoing than men.
 
Thank you so much for your answer. I wasn’t questioning women as queens but that a woman was first to hear the Torah.
When G‑d communicated the Torah at Sinai, he spoke to the women first.
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I had never heard that before reading it here, but maybe it means that women were first to truly UNDERSTAND what the Law meant as well as practice it. G-d may have known that women would be instrumental in keeping the Law.
 
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