Posted on 01/04/2006 9:39:06 AM PST by SirLinksalot
I know a couple who were among the first Americans to visit China once it was opened up to tourism (back in the 80's). Some of their restaurants were not quite primed for the tourist trade and hung a curtain to separate the native Chinese diners from the visitors. As my friends were eating, someone accidentally pulled aside the curtain. A Chinese family sat at a large round table with various delicacies served up on plates. In the middle of the table sat a monkey. At a certain point, the waiter removed the monkey's skull and cut a slice of living brain.
That is not kosher.
I do the same with gingerbread cookies. (Oh no! Not the gumdrop buttons!)
But I'm not Jewish so maybe I'm wrong about that.
You are, indeed, wrong. Some of the greatest Jewish scholars throughout history were converts, including the Roman Onkelos, one of the most prominent rabbis in the Talmud. "Righteous" converts (i.e. legitimate and sincere ones) are - in fact, must be, under Jewish law - treated as full Jews.
Judeo-Christian America bump.
People have been cannibals, and have also sacrificed their own children to some "god" or other, so don't be too surprised. We are not such a nice species of animal.
By the way, the sacrifice of children continues to this day - the Islamofascists regularly send their children to be killed "for Allah" while also murdering innocents (preferably Jews).
Interesting. I'm looking forward to this series. Of course I knew there were exceptions, though I had forgotten specifically. I meant my comment more generally. Still, if I'm wrong I'm wrong.
Maybe in part. But officially if someone approaches an Orthodox rabbi (not sure about Conservative) seeking to convert, the practice is to discourage the prospective convert three separate times. In Judaism, a righteous Gentile is as worthy in all meaningful ways as a righteous Jew, so there's no benefit to him in converting, as opposed to the teachings of Christianity.
That's the truth ... and you needn't look to islamofascists in the Near East for examples. American worshippers of the "Ba'al of Convenience" sacrifice their children at a rate of about 4000 per day.
The Seven Noahide Laws actually come out to about to 230 of the 613 Mitzvot (obligations)which Jews must fulfill.
"I would think that those who are Jewish by conversion are always less than those who are born Jewish. "
It is all over the Old Testament that converts must be treated fairly and accepted as equals.
"The Torah informs us of Hashem's great love for the ger (convert). Since we are required to emulate Hashem, it follows that we must also love the ger."
http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/parsha/leff/archives/eikev.htm
Yes that is true. But I just didn't think it was all that true in practice except for cases involving marriage -- and even then sometimes ????. So I learn soemthing.
Question: If a convert converts back then what are they? I mean, an ethnic Jew is always a Jew, but obviously not so with a convert. So in that way they are always lesser. Aren't they?
I suppose I get it and then again I don't.
Oh, ICK!
>Yes that is true. But I just didn't think it was all that true in practice except for cases involving marriage -- and even then sometimes ????. <
My father inlaws second wife was going to convert until he found out she had to bathe in front of the elders and he called it off.
Conversion in Judaism is dealt with in a strange way. I know because several people in my family are converts. First, we don't call you, you call us. You have to come to us of your own accord (us being a rabbi, or some sort of religious authority), and want, of your own free will, to become a Jew. Next, the rabbi will try to dissuade you from being a Jew, under the guise of questioning whether or not you are serious about it. This weeds out the ones who aren't serious about it or have substantial doubt (some of these restart the process at a later date, though). Then, if you are sure, and the rabbi is sure that you are sure (although yours is the final word, so long as you continue to insist), then you have to be purified in the mikveh (ritual bath, for Christians, a baptism kind of works as an analogy, and does in fact stem from this tradition. Men have to be circumcised. And some prayers are said, most important of which is the Shema (Hear O Israel, the Lord our G-d, the Lord is One). After that, you're a Jew. A full Jew. And no other Jew should disparage your Jewishness (for lack of a better word) due to your origins, since you are now a full member of the community and it is as it might have always been.
Oh. Thanks. Very interesting.
My uncle is like that. He converted, though, and the kids are being raised as Jewish. In fact, he taught them some of the prayers. Adorable.
No problem. ;)
Some folks would disagree with this statement. Moab was northeast of the Dead Sea and went all the way to the mountains in the east. Moab was the first country the Israelites conquered after their 40 years in the desert. We read in Numbers 21:26, [Heshbon was the city of Sihon, king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken from him all his land as far as the Arnon].
In verse 29 we read, [Woe to you, O Moab! you are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He has given up his sons as fugitives and his daughters as captives to Sihon, king of the Amorites]. Verse 30, [But we have overthrown them; Heshbon is destroyed all the way to Dibon. We have demolished them as far as Nophah, which extends to medeba].
Verse 31, [So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites].
Deuteronomy 2:32-34, [When Sihon and all his army came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz, the Lord our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army. At that time we took all his towns and completely destroyed them men, women and children. We left no survivors].
Ruth 1:4, [They married Moabite women....] These women were not racial Moabites....they were geographical Moabites. Remember Numbers 21:31, [So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites]. This land had been taken by the Amorites from Moab and there were no survivors after Israel had defeated them.
My racial heritage is Scandinavian...but my geographical heritage is American. Ruth was an Israelite living in the territory of Moab. Same type of situation.
You'll read in Judges 11:12-26 that three hundred years later Israel still occupies and has settled the entire area that was called Moab. In Ruth 1 you will read that a man from Bethlehem in Judah with his family went to live for a while in the country of Moab....not among the Moabites, but the country. The Moabites were all dead but the place still retained the name.
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