...So please, don't be on the defensive ...
Your questions seem perfectly reasonable. I don't know what there is to be defensive about. But thank you for the consideration.
... Jewish race vs. Jewish religion? Is the G-d of Judaism the G-d and father of all nations...?
Generally speaking, the predominate belief in Rabbinic Judaism (that is, the Judaism we recognize as our Judaism, which is centered on Torah study, prayer, and the observance of the commandments as interpreted by the Rabbis of the Talmud and their successors; as opposed to Israelite Judaism, which is, loosely speaking, the religion of the Tanakh, and had slightly different theologies, and was centered on the practice of sacrifices in the Temples) has been that there is only one God. In ancient times, the theology tended to dictate the idea that ours was the only true God, and the gods of other peoples were all false gods. However, over the centuries, there have been evolutions in Rabbinic thought on this matter, and generally speaking, the bulk of Jews today believe that other religions are, at best, God's covenants with other peoples, and represent Him asking different things from them; or, at worst, represent the attempts of other peoples to worship God, even if they end up distorting some of the ideas. Many if not most non-Orthodox Jews, and some Modern Orthodox Jews, hold closer to the former idea. Many if not most Ultra-Orthodox Jews hold closer to the latter idea.
That said, it is important to note, not only in this matter, but in every matter, that there is not necessarily one correct set of opinions in Judaism. Judaism is a religion of questions and debates, not a religion of catechistic answers and dogmas. There is an old joke that says that where there are two Jews, there will be three opinions. Most Jews I know add "...at least!" There is room for this in Judaism, because we have a concept called
machloket l'shem shamayim, which literally translated means "dispute for the sake of Heaven," but idiomatically, it means that different authorities can have different interpretations of text and Jewish law, and if their intent is to come closer to God, to observe the commandments properly, and to do right by their fellow people, then the dispute must be tolerated and respected, and both viewpoints are held to be fair and potentially correct: one need only commit to one of them and follow it.
The religion/race thing is a tough question, because it doesn't happen much. Judaism is what is sometimes called a socioreligious ethnicity. It is both a religion-- that is, a philosophy of life and path to spiritual awareness and advancement-- and also a people, with common customs, language, and folkways, drawn out of Jewish law and tradition. Granted, within the people of Israel are many subcultures or sub-ethnicities, which can vary widely in their particular customs and linguae franca and even appearance. But Hebrew is the Jewish language, Jews all celebrate the same holidays, and observe many of the same customs and rites. The religion and the peoplehood are intertwined inextricably. One cannot be one or the other: one is always both (one's religious practice might be incomplete, or lacking, or even transgressive, but according to Jewish law: once a Jew, always a Jew).
This is why there are only two ways to acquire Jewish identity: either one must be born a Jew (by which we mean that one's mother is a Jew; the Reform movement holds that it is also enough if one's father is a Jew, but other Jews do not share this idea, and it is the source of considerable friction in the Jewish world), or one must go through the prescribed ritual of conversion to Judaism. This ritual involves three or four things: one must engage in a course of study, to learn what is needful (basic Hebrew, prayer skills, how to observe the commandments, etc.) and commit to further learning later, one must appear before a court of three rabbis (or, in an emergency, any three scholarly members of the Jewish community) and abjure all other religions and commit oneself to the covenants of Abraham and Sinai, one must immerse oneself in the mikveh (a ritual bath filled with "living water," usually filtered rainwater or melted glacial ice-- it can be heated!), and if one is a male then one must be circumcised (if one is already circumcised, a single drop of blood is ritually drawn from the circumcision scar).
... Why if G-d is G-d to everyone, are there a different set of rules? Aren't Christians violating or blaspheming against G-d by believing Jesus is also G-d? How do Jews view other religions, Abrahamic and non?
There is no agreement among Jewish authorities, historically, as to why God permits or even encourages multiple religions. The most general consensus is that it has to do with human free will. The overall historical viewpoint of Jewish authority has been that the set of rules God gave to the Jewish people, which we call Torah, were only ever intended to bind the Jewish people. So what is forbidden to us may be permitted for others. Thus, we say that other religions are appropriate for other peoples, and do not represent blasphemy; but if a Jew were to adopt such beliefs and practices, it would be prohibited and blasphemous for that person.
Historically, the belief in Jesus as god has been very problematic for Jews. The great medieval Jewish authorities decreed that, because even trinitarian Christians believe that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are merely three parts of a single whole, Christians therefore are also monotheists, and must be treated as such. The traditional opinion about Jesus as god is that it is simply an error, and that Christians, in seeking to worship the One God, have had their views distorted, and eventually it is to be hoped that their theology will evolve to return to a purer monotheism. Modern Jews generally feel that, since the prophets tell us that deeds of lovingkindness and justice are of paramount importance, the problematic nature of the belief of Jesus' divinity is of less significance than whether individual Christians are people who do good deeds; and since, in my experience at least, most are, we usually shrug it off, unless missionaries try to convert us, which we really hate.
In general, many non-Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jews today try to take the viewpoint that God may choose very different aspects and messages to reveal to different peoples.
Are there any recommendations for a Tanakh that is well translated and not difficult for a lamen to understand?
Let me come back to this.
What emphasis is put on the Talmud and why is it important?
The Talmud is of key importance. We traditionally understand that the Written Torah was always intended to be interpreted in light of an oral tradition. That oral tradition was finally set down in writing itself, lest it be lost during the chaos of the Roman conquest and persecutions. That Oral Torah is centered in what we call the Talmud, which is a collection of many disparate writings by many rabbis over many centuries. The first part is a legal code called the Mishnah, written in Hebrew, which was edited into its final form around 225 CE; the second is an amalgamation of commentary, exegetical parables, moral teachings, and legal precedents and debate, written in Aramaic, called Gemara. The Gemara was edited into something akin to its final form around 500 CE. Together, they not only teach us the foundations of what the laws in the Torah are supposed to mean, but they teach us the methodology for continued exegesis and debate, and the eternal refinement of interpreting the Torah. In a certain sense, modern Judaism is a religion of the Talmud far more than of the Tanakh.
What is the Jewish understanding of the purpose of life? Is there an "afterlife" concept in Judaism?
There are dozens of different views on this. Generally speaking, the "purpose of life" is twofold, according to the main stream of Jewish thought: first, to perfect the world into just and peaceful world wherein none are oppressed and God is worshipped freely by all; second, to perfect ourselves and become more just and full of lovingkindness, and draw spiritually closer to God. How one does these things, what it looks like to do them, and other such details can vary immensely from authority to authority and community to community.
Most Rabbinic Jews, historically, have believed in some kind of afterlife. There is an afterlife called
Olam ha-Ba, "the world to come," which is more or less Heaven. Pretty much everyone traditionally has believed that good people go there; but there is considerable disagreement over whether evil people's souls are just reabsorbed into the Divine and cease to exist as individuals, or whether there is some kind of purgatory-type place where they can work off their sins, or whether there is some kind of reincarnation, where one can come back and learn more wisdom and do more good deeds, until one is qualified to enter the world to come. Typically, such debates are seen in the main stream of Jewish thought as being of relatively secondary importance, since what is of primary importance is how one behaves in this world.
