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Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!hookup!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.aero.org!faigin From: faigin@aero.org (Daniel P. Faigin) Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish,news.answers,soc.answers Subject: soc.culture.jewish FAQ: Jewish Thought (6/10) Supersedes: <faq.6_778788423@solarium.aero.org> Followup-To: poster Date: 5 Oct 1994 18:07:07 GMT Organization: The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA Lines: 774 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Expires: 18 Nov 1994 18:07:04 GMT Message-ID: <faq.6_781380424@solarium.aero.org> NNTP-Posting-Host: solarium.aero.org Summary: Questions about Philosophy and Jewish Concepts Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu soc.culture.jewish:76740 news.answers:26880 soc.answers:1795 Archive-name: judaism/FAQ/06-Jewish-Thought Posting-Frequency: Monthly Frequently Asked Questions on Soc.Culture.Jewish Part 6: Jewish Thought [Last Change: $Date: 1994/08/06 18:07:05 $ $Revision: 1.12 $] [Last Post: Mon Sep 5 11:07:05 1994] This posting is an attempt to answer questions that are continually asked on soc.culture.jewish. It was written by cooperating laypeople from the various Judaic movements. You SHOULD NOT make any assumption as to accuracy and/or authoritativeness of the answers provided herein. In all cases, it is always best to consult a competent authority -- your local rabbi is a good place to start. The deceased sages described within are of blessed memory, (assume a Z"L or ZT"L after their names) and the sages alive today should live to see long and good days (assume SHLITA). May Hashem grant complete recovery to the ill. Individual honorifics are omitted. The FAQ was produced by a committee and is a cooperative work. The contributors never standardized on a {Hebrew,Aramaic,Yiddish,Ladino}-->English transliteration scheme. As a result, the same original word might appear with a variety of spellings. This is complicated by the fact that there are regional variations in the pronunciation of Hebrew. In some places, the common spelling variations are mentioned; in others --- not. We hope that this is not too confusing. This list should be used in conjunction with the Soc.Culture.Jewish reading lists that are posted separately. Similar questions can be found in the books referenced in those lists. Reproduction of this posting for commercial use is subject to restriction. See Part 1 for more details. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: Organization This portion of the FAQ contains answers to the following questions: 12.1. What is the Jewish concept of G-d? 12.2. Can one doubt G-d's existence and still be a good Jew? 12.3. How does traditional Judaism relate to modern science? 12.4. Does modern science contradict liberal readings of the Torah? 12.5. Can one be Orthodox and a scientist too? 12.6. What does "chosen people" mean? 12.7. What is the Jewish concept of the Messiah? 12.8. What happens when a person dies? 12.9. What was the job of a prophet? 12.10. Are there prophets today? 12.11. Who were the prophets? How many? 12.12. What is the Jewish view on the question of "free will." 12.13. What about angels, demons, miracles, and the supernatural? 12.14. What do Jews hope/expect of the future? 12.15. How can Jews reject (insert true belief here)? 12.16. Isn't it good enough to be a good person? 12.17. How does Judaism differ from (insert -ism here)? 12.18. Where can a Gentile learn about Judaism? 12.19. What does Judaism say about non-Jews? All portions of the FAQ are organized as digests, and should be undigestifyable by software such as Gnus or rn. Please report any difficulties. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: Archival and Credits Anonymous FTP: All portions of the FAQ and of the reading lists are archived on israel.nysernet.org [192.77.173.2] and on rtfm.mit.edu, and are available for anonymous FTP. The locations of parts of the FAQ on israel.nysernet.org are as follows: ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/01-FAQ-intro ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/02-Who-We-Are ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/03-Torah-Halacha ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/04-Observance ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/05-Worship ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/06-Jewish-Thought ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/07-Jews-As-Nation ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/08-Israel ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/09-Antisemitism ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/FAQ/10-Miscellaneous The locations of the parts of the reading lists on israel.nysernet.org are as follows: ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/general ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/traditional ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/chasidism ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/reform ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/conservative ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/reconstructionist ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/humanistic ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/zionism ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/antisemitism ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/intermarriage ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/periodicals If you are accessing the archives on rtfm.mit.edu, the pathname is pub/usenet/news.answers/judaism, instead of israel/lists/scj-faq. Mail: The files may also be obtained via Email by sending a message to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the following line in the body of the message: send usenet/news.answers/judaism/(portionname) Where (portionname) is replaced by the appropriate subdirectory and filenames; for example, to get the first part of the reading list, one would say: send usenet/news.answers/judaism/reading-lists/general WWW/Mosaic: The FAQ and reading lists are available by following the following pointer: http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/bngusenet/soc/culture/jewish/top.htm Comments and corrections are welcome. Note that the goal is to present a balanced view of Judaism; where a response is applicable to a particular movement only, this will be noted. Unless otherwise noted or implied by the text, all responses reflect the traditional viewpoint. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.1. What is the Jewish concept of G-d? QUESTION: What is the Jewish concept of G-d? Do Jews think of Him as an angry old man with a long white beard? ANSWER: No. That image is an anthropomorphism of an extreme application of judgment (seen as anger), and wisdom (associated with old men). The image is part of the "angry jealous Old Testament G-d" misconception, which ignores G-d's showing kindness and mercy throughout the Torah. Traditional Jews view G-d as omnipotent and unique, tempering judgment with mercy. The verse from Shemos [Exodus] 23:23 "And I will remove my hand and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen" is taken to mean that we will come to know G-d through His works, and through observing his commandments. See _Handbook of Jewish Thought_ by R' Aryeh Kaplan. Jews conceive of G-d as an absolutely simple Unity (implying absolutely no constituent divisions), beyond all constraints (including time and place), and beyond all limitations of human conception. To the extent that we are even able to refer to G-d, it is solely through our assignment of human-like attributes to what we perceive as G-d's interactions with creation. These attributes provide us with simple terms to which we can relate, but in no way limit or constrain G-d. All descriptions of G-d which involve human characteristics are attempts by human beings to understand the infinite. These human characteristics can only be crude approximations of the attributes of G-d, in the same way that a robot's hand, while fashioned in the image of our own, can only be a crude approximation of the complexity of a human hand. Likewise, we often ascribe to G-d the ultimate expression of desirable traits which fallible humans can only imperfectly attain. Thus the term "Rachman," as used to refer to G-d, is not "merciful" but THE MERCIFUL, and is the standard against which the human characteristic of mercy is measured. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.2. Can one doubt G-d's existence and still be a good Jew? What does it mean that one doubts G-d's existence? It rarely means that one does not believe that G-d exists ("no atheists in foxholes"), rather that a person does not understand what G-d does. That the way He runs the world is not comprehensible. (e.g. why does He allow things like famine or the Holocaust to occur?) G-d does not fit into our limited intellect. And defining G-d to be something that would fit into a human ideal of what G-d should be, would mean that we are denying what G-d actually is: something beyond our intellect. So the answer is: we all have questions about G-d, but it does not prevent us from being good Jews. Because being good is not an end-goal, rather a process. We struggle to get better despite any doubts. What a Jew does is more important than what he or she believes, even though Maimonides included belief in G-d as one of Judaism's key principles. Full and complete faith (emunah sh'laimah) in particular is a most difficult state to achieve, but the seeds of faith find fertile ground in the person of one who earnestly strives to live a Jewish life based on the Torah's prescriptions. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.3. How does traditional Judaism relate to modern science? QUESTION: Does modern science contradict traditional readings of the Torah? In particular, Big Bang theory, evolution, age of the world, etc. ANSWER: Probably, but science is getting better all the time and one can expect agreement eventually... Seriously, there are numerous neo-traditional readings that put new twists on various commentaries and are allegedly compatible with strict Orthodoxy. Rambam [Maimonides], for example, warns at the beginning of his _Mishneh Torah_ that the literal reading of the opening of Bereshis [Genesis] is for the masses. [The non-literal reading he had in mind was metaphysical, not Evolutionary. See _The Guide for the Perplexed_.] Most Orthodox Jews believe that Creation occurred 5750-and-change years ago and that it took six days. How long each of those days and years were relative to today's time intervals (considering that time itself is one of G-d's creations) is the subject of much discussion and commentary. While the basis for all their discussions is their belief in Torah, they also take into account (and sometimes seek to reconcile) the evidence offered by modern science and engineering. A rabbi in the Los Angeles area mused that perhaps the year count is based on the end of creation, when mankind had achieved intelligence. Certainly all of man's recorded history fits within the almost six thousand years. The time before "year 1" can be considered before the system was in multiuser mode :-). You should also consult section I.15 in the general part of the Reading Lists posted with this FAQ. There you will find books that explore the relationship of Judaism and science. That part of the reading list is available as ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/general or via Mosaic as: http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/judaism/reading-lists/general/faq-doc-17.html ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.4. Does modern science contradict liberal readings of the Torah? The liberal Jewish movements who do not hold the text of the Torah as a purely factual account don't need to reconcile it with science. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.5. Can one be Orthodox and a scientist too? Definitely! The Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists publishes a quarterly, _Intercom_, which deals with ethical, technical, practical, and philosophical issues. There is an institute in Israel devoted to using modern technology within Halachic constraints. One example of their products is a Sabbath telephone that doctors can use in an emergency without fear of violating the laws of the Torah. Tzomet (Tzivtei Mada V'Torah), a similar institute in Gush Etzion, can be reached at TEL +972-2-931-442 / FAX +972-2-931-889 Tzomet -- Alon Shvut, Gush Etzion 90940. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.6. What does "chosen people" mean? QUESTION: I've heard that Jews consider themselves "chosen." What does that mean? ANSWER: It's "chosen" to accept the Torah and its commandments. This does not imply superiority, since other nations can fulfill G-d's will with only seven commandments, rather than the hundreds required of Jews. The concept in fact is "chosen to fulfill a responsibility," and implies a harder task rather than a higher status in the world. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.7. What is the Jewish concept of the Messiah? Moses Maimonides (RaMBaM, see Section 4.6) says the following about the Messiah: "If a king will arise from the House of David who is learned in Torah and observant of the mitzvot [the Torah's commandments], as prescribed by the written law and the oral law, as David his ancestor was, and will compel all of Israel to walk in [the way of the Torah] and reinforce the breaches [in its observance]; and fight the wars of G-d, we may, with assurance, consider him the Messiah. "If he succeeds in the above, builds the Temple in its place, and gathers the dispersed of Israel, he is definitely the Messiah. ... "If he did not succeed to this degree or he was killed, he surely is not [the redeemer] promised by the Torah. [Rather,] he should be considered as all the other proper and complete kings of the Davidic dynasty who died. G-d only caused him to arise in order to test the many, as [Daniel 11:35] states; "and some of the wise men will stumble, to try them, to refine, and to clarify until the appointed time, because the set time is in the future." The Rambam then continues by explaining why Judaism has rejected the claims of other religions, notably Xianity, which "caused the Jews to be slain by the sword, their remnants to be scattered and humbled, the Torah to be altered, and the majority of the world to err and serve a god other than the L-rd." Since, he said, the required criteria [as described in the preceding paragraphs] have not been met, all messianic claims to date, such as Xianity or the the beliefs of the followers of Shabtai Zvi, have been proven false. The full text is in his _Mishneh Torah_, Sefer Shoftim, Hilchot Melachim U'Milchamoteihem, Chapter 11. This translation was done by Rabbi Eliyahu Touger, published by Moznaim Press, from Halacha 4. A translation, published by the Lubavitch organization "Sichos in English", can be found on israel.nysernet.org in directory israel/chasidus/info as Rambam.moshiach and is available for anonymous ftp. The Rambam's statement is probably the definitive rendering of the rationalist Jewish view on the subject. Others believe that the Messiah will usher in an age of miracles, and will come in a miraculous manner. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.8. What happens when a person dies? QUESTION: What do Jews say happens when a person dies? Do Jews believe in reincarnation? In hell or heaven? In general, and in contrast to some other religions, in day-to-day life Jews don't pay much attention to questions like this. The focus of Jewish life is living according to G-d's will as expressed in the Torah. What happens afterwards is up to G-d. That said, traditional Judaism does address this question. Keep in mind that there are dissenting viewpoints, though this is the dominant one: A living person consists of both body and soul. Both are complex in structure and this short answer can't possibly address the details. To summarize briefly, when the body dies, if the person merits it, a small portion of the soul remains with it to keep it connected with the soul's source, anticipating the general revival of the dead at the time that G-d decrees. Different parts of the remainder of the soul may go to different places. One might be reincarnated into a new body in an attempt to rectify another of its spiritual aspects, or for other purposes. One part might go to a level of Paradise. Another might go to Gehinnom for a period, to remove the sins of that life and prepare it for a future one. Another part might join temporarily with an already living person, to assist it with its rectification and in the process gather more merit. The reassignments of the soul continues until the time that G-d decrees. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.9. What was the job of a prophet? The primary job of a prophet was not to foretell the future, but to arouse the people and the government to repentance and observance. Next time someone bugs you about not being Jewish enough, and all sorts of nasty ideas float through your head, remind yourself that Jeremiah was killed for his preaching. Jonah did *not* want to be a prophet. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.10. Are there prophets today? QUESTION: It seems that prophecy was once central to Judaism; why don't we have prophets today? ANSWER: Prophecy was removed from the world after the destruction of the First Temple. Those prophets who are mentioned after that (such as Mordechai and Esther) were alive at the time of the destruction. There are several explanations as to why this is so. 1. The fact that the Jews did not heed the calls to repentance of the prophets showed that they were not worthy. When most of the Jews remained in exile after Ezra returned, they showed that they were still not worthy of that level of holiness. The second temple did not have the level of kedushah [holiness] of the first Temple even from the beginning. 2. This was actually a sign of G-d's mercy. Had the Jews had a prophet and continued to disobey (as was probable based on the behavior of the following centuries) even after the punishment of the exile, they would have merited complete destruction. Now they could say that had a prophet come they would have obeyed and thus mitigate the punishment (though our current exile is harsh enough). 3. After the destruction of the first Temple the sages prayed for the removal of the "Evil Inclination" of idolatry. Since the world exists in a balance, the removal of the low point (idolatry) necessitated the removal of the high point (prophecy). Another effect of losing prophecy is that we no longer know which specific acts cause which specific good and bad consequences. In the age of prophecy, a person undergoing misfortunes could learn from a prophet what he was doing wrong and how to do tshuva (repentance.) Nowadays, we can only guess, and may be wrong in identifying the source of difficulties. This is what galus/galut [physical and spiritual exile] is all about. [R' Y. Frand] Some feel that a tzaddik or a rebbe is particularly qualified to provide spiritual guidance and advise paths for repentance. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.11. Who were the prophets? How many? (Note: "navi" (pl: neviim) = "prophet") The Talmud (Megillah 14a) says that there had been twice as many prophets as the number of people who left Egypt (2*600,000) but only those whose messages were for future generations were recorded. This count was 48 male and seven female Prophets. Toward the bottom of the page the Talmud lists the seven females as Sarah, Miriam, Devorah, Hannah (mother of Shmuel), Avigail (who became a wife of David Hamelech), Huldah (from the time of Yirmiyahu), and Esther. One compilation of the male prophets (based on Seder Olam) lists the following: 1. Avraham (Abraham) 24. Hoshea 2. Yitzchak (Isaac) 25. Amos in the time of Yeravam Ben Yoash 3. Yaakov (Jacob) 26. Micha in the time of Yosam 4. Moshe (Moses) 27. Eliyahu (Elijah) 5. Aharon (Aaron) 28. Elisha 6. Yehoshuah (Joshua) 29. Yonah Ben Amitai 7. Pinchas 30. Yeshayah in the time of Menashe 8. Elkanah (father of Shmuel) in the time of Yoshea 9. Eli 31. Yoel (Joel) 10. Shmuel (Samuel) 32. Nachum 11. Gad 33. Habakuk 12. Nosson 34. Zephaniah 13. David Hamelech (King David) 35. Uriah from Kiryat Yearim 14. Shlomo Hamelech (King 36. Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) Soloman) 15. Aidoin the Golah 37. Yehezkel 16. Micha Ben Yamla in the time of Achav 17. Ovadiah 38. Daniel (second year of Darius) 18. Achiah Hashiloni 39. Baruch 19. Yehu Ben Hanani in the time of Asah 40. Neriah 20. Azaryah Ben Oded 41. Sharyah in the time of Yehoshaphat 42. Machsiyah from Divrei Hayamim 43. Hagai 21. Haziel from Bnei Masni 44. Zecharyah 22. Eliezer his cousin 45. Malachi 23. Morishah 46. Mordechai Rashi (Megillah 3a) suggests that Daniel wasn't a Navi and is to be replaced in the list by Shemaia, who told Rehavam not to go to war with Yeravam and the northern kingdom. Rashi closes with "two I don't know" (47 & 48). A commentator on the side says one is Oded & one is Hanani Haroeh. When a Navi is called by his name and his fathers name it is a sign that the father is also a Navi. Azriah Ben Oded, Yehu Ben Hanani, Zechariah Ben Yehoyada are given as examples. Rabbein Hananel and the Vilna Gaon start from Moshe and add in the sons of Korach. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.12. What is the Jewish view on the question of "free will." Can G-d make a stone so heavy that he cannot lift it? Yes: a Jew. (:-) One traditional Jewish view of free will is that in this phase of history, G-d's omnipresence is hidden from our awareness specifically to allow us free will. If we were fully aware of G-d's presence at all times, we would be incapable of sinning willfully. As it stands we are freed to assume or reject the Torah and its prescriptions for Jewish life and to be rewarded or punished accordingly. This will change at some future point when G-d's omnipresence is fully revealed. In Devarim (Deuteronomy) 30:19 "I [G-d] have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life." From this we learn that we have free will. Furthermore, reward and punishment only make sense if we have knowledge and free will. Angels cannot be rewarded because they do not have free will, and animals are not rewarded because they do not have knowledge. There have been a few notable exceptions to this last statement, but that is the general rule. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.13. What about angels, demons, miracles, and the supernatural? QUESTION: What do Jews say about Angels? Demons? Miracles? Astrology? Supernatural events in general? ANSWER: The Torah is full of what western secular culture would (somewhat derogatorily) call "the supernatural." Even the most fundamental of Jewish beliefs, that there is a Creator, falls into this class -- how much more so the Torah's recounting of events that include such out-of-the-ordinary occurrences as prophecy in its many forms, birth of children to very aged parents, the appearance of angels and their interaction with the physical world, the occurrence of narrowly focussed plagues, the revelation on Sinai with its attendant visions, talking mules, the falling of Manna, revivification of the dead, and many, many others. Traditional Judaism, in accepting Torah as G-d's word, accepts that these things happened, even though western science can't currently (and may never) explain them. As Rabbi Kaplan (z"l) wrote in his _Handbook of Jewish Thought_, paraphrasing Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman (z"l): "Science does not contradict, or even concern itself with miracles. Science deals with the laws of nature, while miracles are, by definition, exceptions to those laws. Any disbelief in miracles is thus not scientific, but is based on arbitrary prejudices in conformity to popular styles of thought. Such a disbelief can reduce a person's concept of G-d to a mere abstract philosophical idea, abolishing the obligation to serve and obey Him." In addition, there are traditional Jewish sources (primarily in the Kabbalah) that explain the roles that angels and demons play in the world, the Jewish version of astrology, and the mechanisms through which miracles occur. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.14. What do Jews hope/expect of the future? Traditional Jews hope for the arrival of the Messiah and the accompanying age. (See the above question on the Messiah.) Some liberal Jews reject the concept of a Messiah, but still hope that man will create the same type of moral world that the traditional Jews believe the arrival of the Messiah will usher in. Traditional Jews also expect the revival of the dead at the end of days along with G-d's presence manifested on Earth. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.15. How can Jews reject (insert true belief here)? QUESTION: How is it possible for Jews to reject the One True Way, belief in Jesus/Qetzalcoatl/Marx/Zoroaster/Muhammad/Zeus/Luther/Moon/Buddha? Because the beliefs of those religions contradict fundamental tenets of Judaism. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.16. Isn't it good enought to be a good person? QUESTION: Why do Jews need organized religion or Jewish laws -- Isn't it good enough to be a good person? How about gentiles? ANSWER: Traditional Jews believe in absolute morality backed by G-d's authority, and liberal Jews tend to hold similar moral principles, even if doubting their divine origin. Thus, "good" implies "observes those moral principles which one is obligated to follow." According to Judaism, gentiles have seven categories of mitzvot that they must follow, and do not need Jewish law or organized religion. But it's their privilege to organize to worship, should they so choose. See the answer to 12.19 for more information on these categories. ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.17. How does Judaism differ from (insert -ism here)? QUESTION: How does Judaism differ from Xianity, Marxism, Communism, Humanism and other -isms? ANSWER: Communism and Marxism are discredited fin-de-siecle (late 19th century) atheistic philosophies in which people are grouped by economic class, seen as the primary force of history. In contrast, Judaism postulates a set of overriding moral principles, which traditional Jews believe came from G-d, and recognizes the power of righteous and evil individuals. Humanism places man above all else. Judaism places G-d above all else, especially above mankind. "Jewish Humanism" usually describes the combination of elements of Eastern European (Jewish) culture and an atheistic absolute moral code which just so happens to be very similar to Judaism's. Judaism rejects the possibility of G-d assuming human form. (See Talmud Yerushalmi, tractate Taanis 2:1 (9a) from Bamidbar [Numbers] 23:19) Judaism also rejects the concept of a mandatory mediator between G-d and man, although it accepts the idea that one person can petition G-d on behalf of others. Branches of Xianity postulate salvation exclusively through faith, while Judaism requires observance of the commandments, irrespective of one's level of faith. For more detail, see question 4 in Prager and Telushikin's "The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism" (Simon and Schuster, 1981, page 77) ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.18. Where can a Gentile learn about Judaism? QUESTION: Where can a gentile learn about the basics of Jewish belief and practice? ANSWER: Read Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin's _The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism_, Simon and Schuster, New York, NY, 1981. Because major questions about Judaism are answered in this and other similar books, gentiles who post "I'm just curious about why Jews reject my faith" will be assumed to be missionaries until proven otherwise. Too many missionaries have posted, pretending to ask objective, curious questions, only to end up preaching to the group. Additional information may be found in the General Judaism Reading List, available as: ftp://israel.nysernet.org/israel/lists/scj-faq/reading-lists/general or ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/judaism/reading-lists/general ------------------------------------------------------------ Subject: 12.19. What does Judaism say about non-Jews? QUESTION: What does Judaism say about non-Jews and their role? What does G-d demands of gentiles to get to Heaven/world-to-come? ANSWER: The Rabbis in Tractate Sanhedrin [57a] [derive from the Torah] the six broad categories that G-d forbids all of humanity: killing, stealing, committing sexual immorality [such as adultery or incest], eating the flesh of a living animal, serving idols (particularly the sexual excesses and the killing of children which went along with idol worship), blaspheming against G-d, and the one positive category of establishing a system of legal justice (thus, the common expression of "seven" laws). According to the standard computation, these break down into 66 laws that non-Jews are obligated to observe. According to the Rambam, in order to merit the World to Come, non-Jews must observe these obligations specifically because they were commanded by G-d through the Torah (and not just on the basis of reason). [References: R' Shlomo Riskin, R' Nathan Cardozo _Torah, Masorah, and Man_, and Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Melakhim 8:11] A common question on s.c.j is "what are these laws". The following is a condensed version of a summary of the laws and categories put together by Shlomoh Sherman and posted by Moshe Shulman: The Seven Noachide Categories I. Idolatry is forbidden. Man is commanded to believe in the One G-d alone and worship only Him. II. Incestuous and adulterous relations are forbidden. Human beings are not sexual objects, nor is pleasure the ultimate goal of life. III. Murder is forbidden. The life of a human being, formed in G-d's image, is sacred. IV. Cursing the name of G-d is forbidden. Besides honoring and respecting G-d, we learn from this precept that our speech must be sanctified, as that is the distinctive sign which separated man from the animals. V. Theft is forbidden. The world is not ours to do with as we please. VI. Eating the flesh of a living animal is forbidden. This teaches us to be sensitive to cruelty to animals. (This was commanded to Noah for the first time along with the permission of eating meat. The rest were already given to Adam in the Garden of Eden.) VII. Mankind is commanded to establish courts of justice and a just social order to enforce the first six laws and enact any other useful laws or customs. These categories are felt to be implicit in God's commandment to Adam and Eve in Gen. 2:16-17: GEN 2:16-17 RABBI YOCHANAN'S EXPLANATION IN THE TALMUD: ============================ ============================================= And the Lord This implies the prohibition of blasphemy. As it says in Lev. 24:16, "He who blasphemes the name of THE LORD (Hashem) shall die." God This is a reference to idolatry for it says in Ex. 20:3 "You shall have no other Elokim before me". commanded This is a reference to laws of justice for it says in Gen. 18:19, "For I have known him so he will COMMAND (Yitzaveh) his children after him to keep the way of the Lord and righteousness and justice." the man This is a reference to the prohibition of murder. God explicitly commands Noah (Gen. 9:6), "If one sheds the blood of THE MAN (Ha Adam), by man shall his own blood be shed." saying, This refers to sexual misconduct or adultery, as the prophet Jeremiah (3:1) says, "Saying (laymor), if a man divorces his wife..." From all the trees of This is an implicit prohibition of theft. It the garden shows that permission is needed to take something that is not explicitly yours. you may freely eat. This implies that there are things which may not be eaten (the limbs of a live animal). From this are derived the following 66 laws: I. THEFT: (1) against stealing; (2) against committing robbery (3) against shifting a landmark; (4) against cheating; (5) against repudiating a claim of money owed; (6) against overcharging; (7) against coveting; (8) against desiring; (9) a laborer shall be allowed to eat of the fruits among which he works (under certain conditions); (10) against a laborer eating of such fruit (when certain conditions are not met); (11) against a laborer taking of such fruit home; (12) against kidnapping; (13) against the use of false weights and measures; (14) against the possession of false weights and measures; (15) that one shall be exact in the use of weights and measures; and (16) that the robber shall return (or pay for) the stolen object. II. JUSTICE: (1) to appoint judges and officers in each and every community; (2) to treat the litigants equally before the law; (3) to inquire diligently into the testimony of a witness; (4) against the wanton miscarriage of justice by the court; (5) against the judge accepting a bribe or gift from a litigant; (6) against the judge showing marks of honor to but one litigant; (7) against the judge acting in fear of a litigant's threats; (8) against the judge, out of compassion, favoring a poor litigant; (9) against the judge discriminating against the litigant because he is a sinner; (10) against the judge, out of softness, putting aside the penalty of a mauler or killer; (11) against the judge discriminating against a stranger or an orphan; (12) against the judge hearing one litigant in the absence of the other; (13) against appointing a judge who lacks knowledge of the Law; (14) against the court killing an innocent man; (15) against incrimination by circumstantial evidence; (16) against punishing for a crime committed under duress; (17) that the court is to administer the death penalty by the sword; (18) against anyone taking the law into his own hands to kill the perpetrator of a capital crime (this point is disagreed upon by different writers: "The Noahites are not restricted in this way but may judge singly and at once.") ; (19) to testify in court; and (20) against testifying falsely. III. HOMICIDE: (1) against anyone murdering anyone. IV. ILLICIT INTERCOURSE: (1) against (a man) having union with his mother; (2) against (a man) having union with his sister; (3) against (a man) having union with the wife of his father; (4) against (a man) having union with another man's wife; (5) against (a man) copulating with a beast; (6) against a woman copulating with a beast; (7) against (a man) lying carnally with a male; (8) against (a man) lying carnally with his father; (9) against (a man) lying carnally with his father's brother; and (10) against engaging in erotic conduct that may lead to a prohibited union. [Note: There is some dispute as to what the correct wording it for (8) and (9), as it seems to be covered by (7). If the text is based on Lev. 18:8, the standard prohibition derived therefrom is covered in (3). Note that this is in the context of noachide prohibitions. If anyone has specific corrections that should be made to this, please email them to me. -- Your Editor (faigin@aero.org)] V. LIMB OF A LIVING CREATURE: (1) against eating a limb severed from a living animal, beast, or fowl; and (2) against eating the flesh of any animal which was torn by a wild beast ... which, in part, prohibits the eating of such flesh as was torn off an animal while it was still alive. VI. IDOLATRY: (1) against entertaining the thought that there exists a deity except the Lord; (2) against making any graven image (and against having anyone else make one for us); (3) against making idols for use by others; (4) against making any forbidden statues (even when they are for ornamental purposes); (5) against bowing to any idol (and not to sacrifice nor to pour libation nor to burn incense before any idol, even where it is not the customary manner of worship to the particular idol); (6) against worshipping idols in any of their customary manners of worship; (7) against causing our children to pass (through the fire) in the worship of Molech; (8) against practicing Ov; (9) against the practice of Yiddoni; and (10) against turning to idolatry (in word, in thought, in deed, or by any observance that may draw us to its worship). [Editors Note: We need translations/meanings for Molect, Ov, and Yiddoni.] VII. BLASPHEMY: (1) to acknowledge the presence of God; (2) to fear God; (3) to pray to Him; (4) to sanctify God's name (in face of death, where appropriate); (5) against desecrating God's name (even in face of death, when appropriate); (6) to study the Torah; (7) to honor the scholars, and to revere one's teacher; and (8) against blaspheming. The term "Noachide" describes groups, generally founded by rabbis, for the purpose of making non-Jews aware of their obligations *according to Torah*. These groups observe the commandments in the seven categories, and do not follow the tenets of non-Jewish religions. See "The Root and Branch Noachide Guide," a 104 page paperback by Aryeh Gallin (gallin@jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il), that can be ordered from: The Root and Branch Association, Ltd. 504 Grand Street, #E51 New York, NY 10002-4101 Suggested donation is $10. There is a mailing list to discuss the Noachide Movement. To subscribe, send a message to listserv@jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il with the following as the body of the message: sub rbranch your_full_name Also see _The Path of the Righteous Gentile_ by Chaim Clorfene and Yakov Rogalsky, Targum Press/Feldheim, 1987. In Northern New Jersey contact Rabbi Saul Zucker at the Frisch Academy in Paramus. In Athens, Tennessee contact Rev. J. David Davis. The best known Noachide is archaeologist Vendyl Jones, model for the "Indiana Jones" character of movie fame. Like his fictional counterpart, Vendyl Jones is also trying to locate vessels from the Temple, especially near its site in Jerusalem. ------------------------------------------------------------ -- Please mail additions or corrections to me at faigin@aero.org. End of SCJ FAQ Part 6 (Jewish Thought) Digest ************************** ------- -- [W]: The Aerospace Corp. M1/055 * POB 92957 * LA, CA 90009-2957 * 310/336-8228 [Email]:faigin@aero.org, faigin@acm.org [Vmail]:310/336-5454 Box#68228 "Socks are just like expectations....one always gets away" Amanda McBroom, "Heartbeats"