Usenet 1994 October/usenetsourcesnewsgroupsinfomagicoctober1994disk1.iso/answers/judaism/FAQ/06-Jewish-Thought

Internet Message Format | 1994-10-05 | 41KB

Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!hookup!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!news.aero.org!faigin
From: [e-mail] (Daniel P. Faigin)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish,news.answers,soc.answers
Subject: soc.culture.jewish FAQ: Jewish Thought (6/10)
Supersedes: <[e-mail]>
Followup-To: poster
Date: 5 Oct 1994 18:07:07 GMT
Organization: The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA
Lines: 774
Approved: [e-mail]
Expires: 18 Nov 1994 18:07:04 GMT
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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
  [e-mail] 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 [phone] / FAX [phone] 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
([e-mail])]

  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 ([e-mail]), 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 [e-mail] 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 [e-mail].


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]:[e-mail], [e-mail]         [Vmail]:310/336-5454 Box#68228
"Socks are just like expectations....one always gets away"
                                                  Amanda McBroom, "Heartbeats"