Two questions about Judaism

[saruchan]

First, we are homeschoolers and are about to do a study on the Jewish people and holidays. Where can I find a pronunciation guide? The books we got from the library don't have any pronunciation.

Second, dh is ethnically Jewish but religiously Christian, so in Jewish thought, would he have to follow all the mitzvah to get into heaven?

[Magelet]

saruchan, I just wanted to let you know that your question might not get answered for a few days, since most jews are busy with last minute preparations for/with rosh hashanah, a two day holiday in most places, which starts at sundown tonight.

Hebrew when transliterated into english letters, is basically phonetic. That is, they have different letters and different sounds, but when it is written in the same letters in english it is essentially phonetic (maybe not entirely, but they'll get by just fine pronouncing it phonetically).


the second question, as far as I know, is incredibly complicated, due to coming at it from a totally different point of view. Partly, to me at least, there is a certain about of huh? because its rather alien to most jewish thought. Partly, it depends. Is his mom jewish or dad (he isn't jewish if his dad is). Partly it depends on who you ask. Partly many other things, but far far too complicated for a not well jewishly educated lady like myself to answer oh 45 minutes before the holiday starts!! lol. I'll give it a try to my best when I get back, and I'm sure some other ladies will help you out.
take care and have a good new year.

[zech13_9_goforgold]

I'm not Jewish, but I can answer the Jewish, but practicing Christianity question. It's not by works that you, your husband, or anyone else can do that will get you to heaven. You don't have to be curcumsized; you don't have to do good things. We can't do enough to make us holy. In the Jewish Bible, the constant sacrificial system provided the blood to cover our sins. The New Testament book of Hebrews conferms that idea when it says, "without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins." Jesus came as the final sacrifice. If you're practicing Christians, perhaps you could ask your pastor for more explanation.

I think, though, that it is important for Christians to study Judaism. So many of the Jewish holidays are foreshadows of Jesus. For example, Passover foreshadows Jesus as the perfect Lamb of God, thought spot or wrinkle. In the Passover, Jesus is also the matzoh- the Bread of Life that those who take him in may never hunger again. The Day of Atonement also foreshadows Jesus. As does the Year of Jubalee (sp?). In every way, Jesus fulfills and excedes the Jewish holidays. So, learn about them as a Christian, but also teach your children how Jesus fits into them.

[smeisnotapirate]

Originally Posted by zech13_9_goforgold

I'm not Jewish, but I can answer the Jewish, but practicing Christianity question. It's not by works that you, your husband, or anyone else can do that will get you to heaven. You don't have to be curcumsized; you don't have to do good things. We can't do enough to make us holy. In the Jewish Bible, the constant sacrificial system provided the blood to cover our sins. The New Testament book of Hebrews conferms that idea when it says, "without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins." Jesus came as the final sacrifice. If you're practicing Christians, perhaps you could ask your pastor for more explanation.

I think, though, that it is important for Christians to study Judaism. So many of the Jewish holidays are foreshadows of Jesus. For example, Passover foreshadows Jesus as the perfect Lamb of God, thought spot or wrinkle. In the Passover, Jesus is also the matzoh- the Bread of Life that those who take him in may never hunger again. The Day of Atonement also foreshadows Jesus. As does the Year of Jubalee (sp?). In every way, Jesus fulfills and excedes the Jewish holidays. So, learn about them as a Christian, but also teach your children how Jesus fits into them.

I'm not sure that answers her question - from a Christian perspective, maybe, but not a Jewish one.

I'll agree with Caroline - that this is a complex question. If your husband has renounced Judaism by actively practicing and believing in Christianity, then it really doesn't matter what Jews think about him going to heaven, right?

If he's not anything really - his mother was Jewish but he's never stepped into a synagogue and doesn't practice any other religion, then he has different requirements, because he is, at default, a Jew.

In Jewish thought, for a Gentile to get into heaven, they must follow the 7 Noachide Laws.

As for the pronunciation, check out this site: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/hebrew.htm

One warning that isn't going to make me popular here, I think. If you are really interested in teaching your children about Judaism, go talk to a rabbi. A non-Jew, no matter how well-intentioned, will never be able to convey the richness of Judaism without letting their own religious bias color the discussion. If you don't mind the religious bias, or you plan on teaching your kids "about Judaism" to connect it with Christianity, by all means. Just know that what you're talking about is not authentic Judaism. It's Judaism through Christian glasses, which is a different beast and will teach your children nothing about your DH's family's actual faith.

Just my , take it or leave it.

[saruchan]

Dh's mother was Jewish, so I guess technically he is too. I know it doesn't matter if someone Jewish would think he was going to heaven, I was just curious is all. I was reading that converts are discouraged because it's difficult to be a Jew because you have to follow all the laws to get into heaven, so that made me think, hey, dh is ethnically Jewish so from a Jewish perspective is he supposed to follow all those laws too or does it not matter because he's never practiced, and honestly neither one of us know much about the religion at all. I went to a bat mitzvah (sp?) once and that's all. I think it would be neat to talk to a Rabbi, I wonder if there are any close to us. I've never seen any synagogues around, but I'm going to look into it.

[merpk]

Originally Posted by saruchan

Dh's mother was Jewish, so I guess technically he is too. I know it doesn't matter if someone Jewish would think he was going to heaven, I was just curious is all. I was reading that converts are discouraged because it's difficult to be a Jew because you have to follow all the laws to get into heaven, so that made me think, hey, dh is ethnically Jewish so from a Jewish perspective is he supposed to follow all those laws too or does it not matter because he's never practiced, and honestly neither one of us know much about the religion at all. I went to a bat mitzvah (sp?) once and that's all. I think it would be neat to talk to a Rabbi, I wonder if there are any close to us. I've never seen any synagogues around, but I'm going to look into it.

No, that's incorrect. You don't have to "follow all the laws to get into heaven."

EVERYONE goes up, in Jewish thought. Everyone. Jews, nonJews, everyone. It's just that folks with less on the good-deeds-scale start from a lower rung on the ladder than those with more. And (since Jews believe in reincarnation) the lower on the ladder you are, the more likely it is that you'll need to come back to get it right.

[saruchan]

Originally Posted by merpk

No, that's incorrect. You don't have to "follow all the laws to get into heaven."

EVERYONE goes up, in Jewish thought. Everyone. Jews, nonJews, everyone. It's just that folks with less on the good-deeds-scale start from a lower rung on the ladder than those with more. And (since Jews believe in reincarnation) the lower on the ladder you are, the more likely it is that you'll need to come back to get it right.

Wow I had no idea that Judaism teaches everyone goes to heaven and in reincarnation. That is very interesting!

[imnottelling]

What merpk said. We're humans. We're not perfect. We do our best. Try to do what's right...

[Mommal]

Judaism leaves the "Olam ha'Ba" (The World to Come) very open. There are a lot of different interpretations about what Olam ha'Ba will be like, but what is pretty much agreed on is that everyone goes to the Olam ha'Ba. There's no need to "earn your way" into the Olam ha'Ba, and that's why Judaism often is more focused on how to be a good person in your daily life than on how to get into "heaven". When you perform mitzvot (good deeds), you're not trying to buy your way into the Olam ha'Ba, or escape from punishment in the afterlife. You are performing the mitzvot out of a sense of love and duty. The Pirkei Avot (a book of the Mishnah) puts it this way: "Be not like servants who serve their master for the sake of receiving a reward; instead, be like servants who serve their master not for the sake of receiving a reward, and let the awe of Heaven [meaning G-d, not the afterlife] be upon you."

Totally in agreement that if you want to teach your kids about Judaism, talk to a rabbi or read a Jewish book, and not a book about Jews written by non-Jews. I can't count the number of times I have been shocked by the way non-Jews (mis)characterize Judaism! I once had a Christian neighbor tell me that Judaism is only about laws while Christianity is only about love. How she characterizes Christianity is up to her, but her characterization of Judaism was way off.

[Smokering]

Is belief in reincarnation part of mainstream Jewish thought? Or is it only some branches of mystical Judaism which believe it?

[lilyka]

:

I knew Jews weren't worried about "getting into Heaven" but i had no idea about reincarnation.

I am no expert on Judism but the here is what I have taken from every discussion here on this topic. As well as my own interpretation.....The law was never about salvation. God gave humanity the law so that we might be blessed by it and we might bless Him by it. There are covenants and prophasies that served/served a specific purpose. We choose to recieve those blessings or we choose not to. We choose to be a blessing or we choose not to. we choose to enter into this covenant or that with God or we choose not to. we choose (chose) to head a prophetic warning or promise or we choose (chose) not to. God loves us and didn't want to leave us hanging. inside the law are things that will help keep us healthy, preserve families, preserve relationships, preserve sanity minimize disease, and heartbreak and troubles. and more importantly reveal the heart of God towards us and show us how to bask in Him. The question is do you want Gods blessing and fullness of life right here, right now or not? its entirely in your hands. you have the law, what you do with it is up to you. The law is not for redemtion. it is a gift for the redeemed. God saved His people first and delivered them THEN he gave them the law. he did not give them the law and then say "as soon as you get realy good at or check off enough good stuff, then I will deliver you". he delivered them and said "Now that you are free lets live like the beauiful people you are" something to think about.

[merpk]

Originally Posted by lilyka

:

I knew Jews weren't worried about "getting into Heaven" but i had no idea about reincarnation.

I am no expert on Judism but the here is what I have taken from every discussion here on this topic. As well as my own interpretation.....The law was never about salvation. God gave humanity the law so that we might be blessed by it and we might bless Him by it. There are covenants and prophasies that served/served a specific purpose. We choose to recieve those blessings or we choose not to. We choose to be a blessing or we choose not to. we choose to enter into this covenant or that with God or we choose not to. we choose (chose) to head a prophetic warning or promise or we choose (chose) not to. God loves us and didn't want to leave us hanging. inside the law are things that will help keep us healthy, preserve families, preserve relationships, preserve sanity minimize disease, and heartbreak and troubles. and more importantly reveal the heart of God towards us and show us how to bask in Him. The question is do you want Gods blessing and fullness of life right here, right now or not? its entirely in your hands. you have the law, what you do with it is up to you. The law is not for redemtion. it is a gift for the redeemed. God saved His people first and delivered them THEN he gave them the law. he did not give them the law and then say "as soon as you get realy good at or check off enough good stuff, then I will deliver you". he delivered them and said "Now that you are free lets live like the beauiful people you are" something to think about.

Well, first, hi, lilyka.

Second, well, hmmm. I've heard it described that way by Christians, never by Jews. It all sounds too Christian for me. Maybe it's a matter of semantics to some, but the whole feel of it is off. The whole "blessed" thing feels off to me. Nothing to do with "saving" or anything like that.






G!d took the Jews out of Egypt because he told their great-grandfather Avraham that he would. And G!d keeps His promises.

We made promises, too ... "we will do and we will listen." We keep ours, too. Might take us a few lifetimes to get around to keeping all of them, but eventually we do.

[smeisnotapirate]

I think reincarnation is a mainstream Jewish thought. I know it's talked about in my (reform) synagogue as well.

[lilyka]

maybe blessing was not the right word to use. I have always understood the word mikvah (? that could be way off) to mean more or less what I understand blessing to mean.



is the reincarnation thing a universally held Jewish belief? because that does change my understanding of things. i have never heard that before,

[imnottelling]

Originally Posted by lilyka

maybe blessing was not the right word to use. I have always understood the word mikvah (? that could be way off) to mean more or less what I understand blessing to mean.

I think you mean mitzvah which is a commandment. Mikvah is a ritual bath

is the reincarnation thing a universally held Jewish belief? because that does change my understanding of things. i have never heard that before,

I believe it is a mainstream Jewish belief, but it's not focused on as much as other aspects and it's not focused on as much as other religions will. What we do in this world isn't done with the thought of needing to come back to earth. What we do in this world is to serve our purpose now. But I do believe that it's an underlying principle that there are souls that come back to earth for whatever purpose that soul has; we don't try to figure out the whos/what/where/whys but just take what we are given in our life to do the best we can with the tools we're given to fulfill whatever mission we think we need to be doing....

[lilyka]

yes, thats what I meant. Thanks.

that makes a lot of sense.

[imnottelling]

Originally Posted by lilyka

yes, thats what I meant. Thanks.

that makes a lot of sense.

You understood my rambling? I'm impressed

[Smokering]

I can't count the number of times I have been shocked by the way non-Jews (mis)characterize Judaism! I once had a Christian neighbor tell me that Judaism is only about laws while Christianity is only about love. How she characterizes Christianity is up to her, but her characterization of Judaism was way off.

On the other hand Jewish women on this forum have characterised Judaism in a similar way to your neighbor. I recall a discussion a while back in which a few Jewish mamas stated quite clearly that a personal relationship with Ha'Shem is gravy, the "point" is to obey the mitzvot; that Judaism is not about salvation (as someone said upthread) or even about agreeing with or feeling blessed by performing the mitzvot (although it's good if you do), but Just Doing It. Obey the laws because God commanded you to - end of story. In fact, someone even said that belief in God isn't strictly necessary as long as you still obey the rules (this came up in a discussion about whether atheism or Christianity was more antithetical to Jewish thought). Now, the opinions expressed were presumably not speaking for all Jews, but if your neighbor heard such opinions I can see how she'd come to the conclusion that Judaism is "all about rules". (Although I'd disagree with her on the "Christianity is all about love" part myself, so there you go.)

[merpk]

Originally Posted by Smokering

On the other hand Jewish women on this forum have characterised Judaism in a similar way to your neighbor. I recall a discussion a while back in which a few Jewish mamas stated quite clearly that a personal relationship with Ha'Shem is gravy, the "point" is to obey the mitzvot; that Judaism is not about salvation (as someone said upthread) or even about agreeing with or feeling blessed by performing the mitzvot (although it's good if you do), but Just Doing It. Obey the laws because God commanded you to - end of story. In fact, someone even said that belief in God isn't strictly necessary as long as you still obey the rules (this came up in a discussion about whether atheism or Christianity was more antithetical to Jewish thought). Now, the opinions expressed were presumably not speaking for all Jews, but if your neighbor heard such opinions I can see how she'd come to the conclusion that Judaism is "all about rules". (Although I'd disagree with her on the "Christianity is all about love" part myself, so there you go.)

Um ... gravy?

You may recall such words, but you've entirely mischaracterized the point.

The point is G!d. Period.

[lolar2]

Smokering, what you (and, possibly, that other poster you recall!) were missing is the belief that doing the mitzvot will naturally lead a Jewish person closer to G-d. Of course a Jewish atheist would not believe that. But that's why, for example, an Orthodox rabbi would have no hesitation in officiating at a Jewish wedding for two Jewish atheists, assuming the wedding otherwise conformed to his practices; Jewish marriage is a mitzvah no matter what the actual beliefs of the Jews in question, and is thought to bring Jews closer to G-d whether they think it will or not.

Does that help?