Question about Jewish people

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1. Because the faith has quirky rules as do many other faiths.

2. They can indeed convert to Judaism. They would need to do an Orthodox conversion to be accepted all Jews.

Protestant churches, anyone can join. Most you don't even need to be baptized but anyone can if they want. That is one factor to why Judaism remains a minority religion.

[Anonymous]

Double posting. I am not Jewish, but am married to a Jew so have some understanding of the faith. I'm a woman so my kids are in the same situation. That doesn't make Judaism a race.

[Anonymous]

I also think of being Jewish as a cultural idea. So many Christians are only religious on Sundays & holidays. Religions, like Judasim, often permeate all facets of that person's life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm asking because I grew up in an area where I wasn't around a lot of Jewish people, I don't meant this to be snarky, offensive or ignorant, although I'm sure it'll be taken thay way. Here goes:

Is Jewish a race or religion?
Are you considered white, as in do you check that box for demographics?
Explain to be Jewish jokes, as in what is the generalization behind them. I really don't get them, although I can draw inferences.
Where did the term anti-Semite come from?

And anything else I should know would be appreciated too.

Noticed that while your first question got answered, the others didn't.

"Semite" refers to this (from Wikipedia)
In linguistics and ethnology, Semitic (from the Biblical "Shem", Hebrew: ???, translated as "name", Arabic: ??????) was first used to refer to a language family of West Asian origin, now called the Semitic languages. This family includes the ancient and modern forms of Ahlamu, Akkadian (Assyrian-Babylonian), Amharic, Amorite, Arabic, Aramaic/Syriac, Canaanite/Phoenician/Carthaginian, Chaldean, Eblaite, Edomite, Ge'ez, Hebrew, Maltese, Mandaic, Moabite, Sutean, Tigre and Tigrinya, and Ugaritic, among others.

Over time, the phrase antisemitism came to specifically refer to hatred of Jewish people.

As others have suggested, some of the genetic components are related to people of a specific region (i.e. Eastern Europe) who happened to also follow the same religion.

The Ashkenazim Jews are usually what Americans think of when they are referring to Jews, but that is due to the fact that at the turn of the century, many Eastern European Jews immigrated to America. As others have mentioned, the Jewish religion spread just as other religions spread, and as a result their are many different ethnic groups that include Jewish members.

Throughout the Middle Ages, Judaism was considered a religion, not a race. With the breakdown of the Roman Empire, the Church became the dominant political force on the continent. Jews were regarded as a threat by the Church because they were essentially rebelling against their rule. If a Jew converted, they were accepted into the Christian community, and were no longer subject to persecution. So while antisemitism existed, it was based on religion, not a concept of "race".

In the 20th century, the Nazis promoted the idea of "Aryan" as the superior race, and Jewish as not only inferior, but a dangerous race. In Nazi ideology, your religious practice had no real bearing. German Jews who had converted or were not regularly practicing Jews could be considered Jewish under Nazi racial laws.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why don't they accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior?

Because most Jews don't believe the Messiah has come. However, Messianic Jews do believe Christ returned 2000 years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If Judaism is a religion not an ethnicity, then how come my nieces and nephews who were born to a Jewish father and Christian mother and all had bar and bat mitzvahs, are not considered Jewish by many temples or by the state of Israel? Why were they rejected by several temples when they were young because their mother is not Jewish? Why can't they "convert" to Judaism?

And why are such people rejected when many Jewish people simultaneously complain about being a minority? Why not accept kids like the ones above into the fold and therefore grow a larger commuity rather than rejecting them?

Answer?
("Quirky" rules, explain nothing.)

[Anonymous]

If they are not an ethnic group, why were they identified as such in the USSR? Why did the Nazis also kill Jews who had converted to other religions or were not religious?

[Anonymous]

sorry about the ???? in my last posting. I was copying text directly, and it lost some of the Arabic and Hebrew characters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
It is not so clear cut. For example, the children of a Jewish woman are automatically considered to be Jewish, without any baptism or similar process, suggesting being Jewish is being part of a race and/ or ethnic group, beyond a religion per se.

The Jewish religion does not require a ceremony akin to baptism in order to be a member of the religion. If you are born Jewish, you are Jewish; that doesn't mean it's a race, it means that it's a religion with customs that are different from some other religions.

Well, that is your interpretation. To me the "If you are born Jewish, you are Jewish" sounds much more like a race or ethnicity than a religion.

Try this...how would these statements sound:

"If you are born Buddhist, you are Buddhist."
"If you are born Catholic, you are Catholic"
"If you are born atheist, you are atheist."

I am the PP you are quoting and these sound fine to me. When you grow up with the belief that you are born into your religion, it is the "other" custom that sounds odd - a baby or child must be officially welcomed/initiated into the religion in order to be a part of it. My children already have this belief - they are girls and they know their unborn children will be Jewish because they are. They don't think it is odd, just as Christian children likely don't think it is odd that their siblings or future children will have to be christened/baptized/etc.

To the PPs who asked about seemingly Jewish children being asked to convert, well, that's a difference between levels of observance. In Israel, the Orthodox run things. Traditionally, Judaism is matrilineal because you know who the mother is; historically, determining paternity is a more difficult task, while seeing a baby emerge from its mother's body is pretty clear-cut. In modern Orthodoxy, this has turned into a law - Judaism is matrilineal, and if your mother wasn't Jewish, you must convert. American Reform and sometimes Conservative Jewish leaders will "accept" as Jewish children who are born to a Jewish parent, mother or father, and raised in the religion. So you could easily grow up in this country with a Jewish father and a non-Jewish mother, attend services and religious school, celebrate your Bar or Bat Mitzvah (which recognizes not that you are a Jew, to address another PP, but rather that you have assumed the responsibilities of a Jewish adult), and then have an Orthodox rabbi require your conversion if you wanted to marry another Jew, emigrate to Israel as a Jew, etc. You are who you are, you believe what you believe, but sometimes the people in charge follow different rules. No one particularly likes the reality of that, especially the Jews who aren't of matrilineal descent, and I have friends who have experienced this. All religions have people who are more or less rigid in their beliefs and practices; Judaism is no different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If Judaism is a religion not an ethnicity, then how come my nieces and nephews who were born to a Jewish father and Christian mother and all had bar and bat mitzvahs, are not considered Jewish by many temples or by the state of Israel? Why were they rejected by several temples when they were young because their mother is not Jewish? Why can't they "convert" to Judaism?

And why are such people rejected when many Jewish people simultaneously complain about being a minority? Why not accept kids like the ones above into the fold and therefore grow a larger commuity rather than rejecting them?

Answer?
("Quirky" rules, explain nothing.)

Many Jews DO accept/welcome these kids. But the ones in charge in Israel are Ultra-Orthodox. To them, the rules were handed down from God and there are no exceptions. Jewish mother or convert. End of story. Having the ultra-Orthodox in charge of things in Israel causes many issues; this is only one of them. But the kids you are talking about are welcomed in most American Jewish communities - that is exactly how they were able to celebrate their bar/bat mitzvahs in a synagogue - having a Jewish parent and being raised as a Jew is good enough for most non-Orthodox Jews.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also think of being Jewish as a cultural idea. So many Christians are only religious on Sundays & holidays. Religions, like Judasim, often permeate all facets of that person's life.

Why are my "kosher" friends, kosher only at home?

Cheap shot, 12:17.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
It is not so clear cut. For example, the children of a Jewish woman are automatically considered to be Jewish, without any baptism or similar process, suggesting being Jewish is being part of a race and/ or ethnic group, beyond a religion per se.

The Jewish religion does not require a ceremony akin to baptism in order to be a member of the religion. If you are born Jewish, you are Jewish; that doesn't mean it's a race, it means that it's a religion with customs that are different from some other religions.

Well, that is your interpretation. To me the "If you are born Jewish, you are Jewish" sounds much more like a race or ethnicity than a religion.

Try this...how would these statements sound:

"If you are born Buddhist, you are Buddhist."
"If you are born Catholic, you are Catholic"
"If you are born atheist, you are atheist."

I am the PP you are quoting and these sound fine to me. When you grow up with the belief that you are born into your religion, it is the "other" custom that sounds odd - a baby or child must be officially welcomed/initiated into the religion in order to be a part of it. My children already have this belief - they are girls and they know their unborn children will be Jewish because they are. They don't think it is odd, just as Christian children likely don't think it is odd that their siblings or future children will have to be christened/baptized/etc.

To the PPs who asked about seemingly Jewish children being asked to convert, well, that's a difference between levels of observance. In Israel, the Orthodox run things. Traditionally, Judaism is matrilineal because you know who the mother is; historically, determining paternity is a more difficult task, while seeing a baby emerge from its mother's body is pretty clear-cut. In modern Orthodoxy, this has turned into a law - Judaism is matrilineal, and if your mother wasn't Jewish, you must convert. American Reform and sometimes Conservative Jewish leaders will "accept" as Jewish children who are born to a Jewish parent, mother or father, and raised in the religion. So you could easily grow up in this country with a Jewish father and a non-Jewish mother, attend services and religious school, celebrate your Bar or Bat Mitzvah (which recognizes not that you are a Jew, to address another PP, but rather that you have assumed the responsibilities of a Jewish adult), and then have an Orthodox rabbi require your conversion if you wanted to marry another Jew, emigrate to Israel as a Jew, etc. You are who you are, you believe what you believe, but sometimes the people in charge follow different rules. No one particularly likes the reality of that, especially the Jews who aren't of matrilineal descent, and I have friends who have experienced this. All religions have people who are more or less rigid in their beliefs and practices; Judaism is no different.

If those absurd statements "sound fine" to you, we must have very different understandings of the world "religion" and of Buddhist/ Catholic/ Atheist beliefs.

And I struggle to see how you can fit the "If you are born Jewish, you are Jewish" statement into any definition of Religion provided by the Merriam-Webster dictionary -- as all three are based on belief or behavior instead of genes:

Religion is...

"- the belief in a god or in a group of gods"

"-an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship a god or a group of gods"

"-an interest, a belief, or an activity that is very important to a person or group"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If Judaism is a religion not an ethnicity, then how come my nieces and nephews who were born to a Jewish father and Christian mother and all had bar and bat mitzvahs, are not considered Jewish by many temples or by the state of Israel? Why were they rejected by several temples when they were young because their mother is not Jewish? Why can't they "convert" to Judaism?

Actually, anyone can convert to Judaism through a prescribed process. The issue that arises in these situations is that the families do not think their children should have to "convert." Also, please note that the Reform movement would recognize your nieces and nephews as Jewish and would welcome them.

My children will face a similar issue because I converted to Judaism but through the Reform movement, which is not recognized by the Orthodox who control such matters in Israel. Although I followed the requisite process, the conversion would not be recognized and therefore my children won't be recognized as Jewish in certain settings. I am fine with this because I don't spend any time in Orthodox circles (unless necessary) and since Israel's Right of Return WOULD recognize the kids as Jewish for that purpose (but not citizenship, etc) that's enough for me. If they want to move to Israel and become citizens, then they can go through whatever process is deemed necessary.

[Anonymous]

So, it all depends on what kind of Jewish? And how things get interpreted and by whom?

Anything at all, which makes one definatively Jewish, or not? Can this differ for males and females? Or does it depend?

[Anonymous]

OP, you are asking questions for which there is no clearly defined answer. Is Judaism a race, a religion, or an ethnicity? That is a question that books have been written about. Why do people feel they have been "born" Jewish if Judaism is not a race? Again, books are written about this topic.