Questions On Judaism

[Draupadi]

@Flankerl- the modern Israeli state.

 

[Draupadi]

May I ask which sentence. Perhaps it was poorly worded.

No it wasn't poorly worded. I just read it wrong. I have realised both after re-reading it.

 

[Flankerl]

@Flankerl- the modern Israeli state.

A religious Zionist would say yes.

I would say no.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

1. Why do some rabbis refuse to convert people?

Please offer a specific example.

2. Why can't a child be a Jew if the mother is not? I think the father is equally important since he also has given his gametes.

The idea of matrilineal descent is the product of post-exilic Israel. See Matrilineality in Judaism. Note that the Reform and Reconstructionist movement now recognize patrilineal descent.

3. I knew that the Jews had a common culture. But do you all want a common nation too like Israel? Can a Jew be say Bangladeshi? I think my question is silly but I hear that the Jews want to identify as one nation. I just wanted to verify it.

Judaism is the theology of a continental people. The issue is not whether we wish to "identify as one nation" but, rather, whether this people has the right to a nation-state, i.e., whether Jews have the right to self determination.

4. Is Israel the land that God had promised the Jews in the Bible?

The current state of Israel occupies land which the Torah asserts was promised to the Jews.

5. Why don't the Jews consider Jesus Christ as the Messiah other than for the fact that His teachings were completely different?

Jesus fulfills none of the criteria suggested in the Tanakh. See, for example, aish.com.

6. Did the Bible specify any particular time for the arrival of the Messiah? Why is he/she so important?

The Tanakh did not. It is not particularly important to many Jews.

7. The Bible says that working on Sabbath days are forbidden because He had rested on this day after creation. What other reasons are there? Please mention extra-Biblical reasons if any.

It is said that He set aside the seventh day and made it holy. Why would there be "extra-biblical" reasons.

BTW, an excellent booklet on the Sabbath is The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel.

 

[Akivah]

Here I go.

1. Why do some rabbis refuse to convert people?

Judaism is a burden and a life long committment. The rabbis weed out people that they don't think can handle it. They are actually doing a favor for those people.

2. Why can't a child be a Jew if the mother is not? I think the father is equally important since he also has given his gametes.

We didn't make it up, the reasoning is all in the Tanakh. If any non-Jew wants to be Jewish, then they can attempt to fomally convert into the religion.

3. I knew that the Jews had a common culture. But do you all want a common nation too like Israel? Can a Jew be say Bangladeshi? I think my question is silly but I hear that the Jews want to identify as one nation. I just wanted to verify it.

Jews are citizens of various states all over the world. It really isn't one nation that Jews are part of, more of one tribe. The tribe's homeland is biblically based in Israel.

4. Is Israel the land that God had promised the Jews in the Bible?

Yes. Specific place names appear throughout the Tanakh.

5. Why don't the Jews consider Jesus Christ as the Messiah other than for the fact that His teachings were completely different?

Other than being different??? The Tanakh explicitly tells us to reject someone whose teachings are different.

6. Did the Bible specify any particular time for the arrival of the Messiah? Why is he/she so important?

No specific time noted. There is a tradition that attempting to predict the time is a fools errand.
Also the messiah is not particularly important within Judaism. It is the Messianic Age which has more importance.

7. The Bible says that working on Sabbath days are forbidden because He had rested on this day after creation. What other reasons are there? Please mention extra-Biblical reasons if any.

It's nice to get a day off. Working without any break at all wears a person down.

 

[LuisDantas]

Why make guesses?

I will hold my opinions regardless, such is human nature.

I thought it would be fair and proper to express them in such a context as to encourage those who know to explain how and why they are wrong.

But never mind that, I gave up on the idea already.

 

[Draupadi]

We didn't make it up, the reasoning is all in the Tanakh.

I never said that the Jews made the point up. But I wanted to know the reasons behind it. And some here have answered them well.

 

[Draupadi]

It is said that He set aside the seventh day and made it holy. Why would there be "extra-biblical" reasons.

There are many religious laws that the Scriptures don't explain. That's why the scholars are there for that. You may say that God just ordained it that's why. But maybe there are benefits behind it which the Bible didn't mention? So I said that if anybody has opinions from scholars and the likes they can offer. I haven't read the whole Bible yet so maybe there are other reasons than the ones I have mentioned in my OP? So I asked to let me know the ones I may be missing.

As for providing specific example for the first point I have read a case in another forum and I can't find it. I apologise.

 

[Akivah]

There are many religious laws that the Scriptures don't explain. That's why the scholars are there for that. You may say that God just ordained it that's why. But maybe there are benefits behind it which the Bible didn't mention?

This is true in Judaism as well. As a rabbi told me once, we can rationalize anything, but we ultimately don't know G-d's total reasons for anything. We basically follow G-d's Laws because He asked us to.

 

[CMike]

There are many religious laws that the Scriptures don't explain. That's why the scholars are there for that. You may say that God just ordained it that's why. But maybe there are benefits behind it which the Bible didn't mention? So I said that if anybody has opinions from scholars and the likes they can offer. I haven't read the whole Bible yet so maybe there are other reasons than the ones I have mentioned in my OP? So I asked to let me know the ones I may be missing.

As for providing specific example for the first point I have read a case in another forum and I can't find it. I apologise.

In Judaism it's all explained.

You just have to know how to find it.

 

[Zardoz]

...
5. Why don't the Jews consider Jesus Christ as the Messiah other than for the fact that His teachings were completely different?...

I'll give this a minority opinion.

First off, his name was not JC. Secondly, his teachings were not 'completely different', what was different was the teachings of the Roman named Paul, whom he never met. Those teachings became the core of a completely different faith. Thirdly, he did not fulfill the prophecies relating to the expected Davidic Messiah. (such as world peace)

 

[dantech]

I'll give this a minority opinion.

First off, his name was not JC. Secondly, his teachings were not 'completely different', what was different was the teachings of the Roman named Paul, whom he never met. Those teachings became the core of a completely different faith. Thirdly, he did not fulfill the prophecies relating to the expected Davidic Messiah. (such as world peace)

Zardoz, aren't you Messianic?

 

[Zardoz]

Zardoz, aren't you Messianic?

I could say that any Jew who awaits the Messiah is Messianic... but I know what you're asking...

Even though I do post in the MJ DIR, it's a poor fit at best, but better than posting on that topic here.

See, I'm an Ebionite; and as the saying goes - That's a Horse of a Different Color...

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

See, I'm an Ebionite; and as the saying goes - That's a Horse of a Different Color...

… and perhaps one deserving of its own Abrahamic Religions DIR.