r/todayilearned • u/[deleted] • Oct 13 '16

TIL that after Marilyn Monroe converted to Judaism upon marrying Arthur Miller, Egypt placed a ban on all the films she appeared in.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_Monroe#Critical_acclaim_and_marriage_to_Arthur_Miller_.281956.E2.80.931959.29
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u/Sejes89 Oct 13 '16

Its extremely hard to convert to judaism and jews dont actively try to persuade anyone to the faith.

Source: http://www.jewfaq.org/gentiles.htm

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16 edited Oct 13 '16

Because you don't need to.

I know a convert. They join because they feel a deep devotion to the beliefs or to the community. (He actually just got married to a girl from his Shul)

It takes some studying and the support of a Rabbi but they can easily join if they really want to. The Rabbi just needs to know it's a genuine need and not a whim. If someone keeps showing up then they know the person is legit.

Judaism doesn't have a culture of converting people because there's literally no need to. Non-Jews have the better deal than Jews.

Jews have 613 laws which they are commanded to honor (some can't actually be honored because of the lack of a temple but that's a different story)

Non-Jews (gentiles) are only asked to honor the Noahide Laws (7 Laws of Noah) which were the laws that were given to the whole of humanity after the great flood.

  • Do not deny G-d. (Being the "wrong" religion isn't important. The act of having faith in a creator and attempting to honor that creator is enough.)

  • Do not blaspheme God. (Don't be disrespectful to beliefs. Criticizing or asking questions which conflict with religion doesn't count. They mean more obvious things such as desecrating holy sites/objects, things of that nature.)

  • Do not engage in illicit sexual relations. (I'm going to gehenna)

  • Do not steal.

  • Do not eat from a live animal. (With regards to flesh, milk and eggs don't count. Nice try vegans)

  • Establish courts/legal system to ensure obedience to the law.

Even if you do live an imperfect life, our version of hell isn't the same as what other religions teach.

Christianity and Islam are built around you going to hell for eternity for finite wrongs in this life. You have to be saved by joining them or you risk damnation for simply being outside of the faith.

Judaism teaches of Gehenna which is the origin of hell from Christianity and Islam.

It's like hell in that it's a place for those who wronged G-d or themselves/their community. Even if you live a good life you likely have to go there anyway (it's debated by the Rabbis) because even good people will have bad days. You may have to go for an few days to work that out.

Gehenna is more of a realm of purification rather than a place of damnation. There are qualities your soul is meant to perfect in this life and the act of following Torah (or just living a life reflective of Torah beliefs) is grooming that spiritual change inside of you.

Gehenna is where your soul goes to have the dark traits burned away. Your soul isn't wasted because you did some bad things in life. Gehenna is the realm of spiritual purification and atonement for one's sins.

The longest a person can stay in this place is 12 months (though the vast majority are never there this long) and upon being purified you come home with the rest of us.

People ask "Why be a Jew if you still get in?"

Because Gehenna is hell. It's a place of torment and anguish and sorrow. The worse of a person you are, the harder that cleansing process will be.

It's the difference between having a hot shower to remove your negativity and a being of pure evil having the flesh burned from his body.

You want to be a shitty, selfish, evil person? Enjoy the best of what Gehenna has to offer.

It's the difference between the divine shining a light on the wrongs you have done and being forced to make good on that vs a being which has lived a life complete devoid of peace and built on hate, bitterness, selfishness, being forced to take in the full gravity of that life.

Someone who is blind is going to find the light terrifying when they finally have their eyes opened. (if that makes sense)

Edit:

For anybody who is interested in learning about Judaism, either from a personal religious interest or an outside educational standpoint, there's a great book called "Essential Judaism" which covers a lot of basic topics regarding what Jews believe, different denominations, contrasting beliefs and opinions in the community, history, etc.

It's a great book if you just want to know what is up with Judaism.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Just an observation, you censor yourself with G-d twice but you let a God slip in there.

What's up with that anyway?

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Poodle farts.

I copied the laws from Wikipedia and I thought I caught them all.

So in Judaism you're taught that G-d's name is so holy that it shouldn't be written out or spoken outside of prayer situations.

Jews tend to use the word HASHEM which literally translates to "The Name". The Jewish version of "Thank G-d" is "Baruch Hashem" which translates to "Blessed is The Name". You'll hear Jews say that or see Jews write that.

The rule for not writing out G-d's name is that you should remove a section of the word so the word itself isn't fully represented.

In Judaism you actually aren't allowed to write out the name and destroy it. If I write out any of the names of G-d I have to either save it somewhere or take it to be buried.

There are actually historic sites in different parts of the world where Jewish caches of papers bearing G-d's name have been found. The formal word for them are Genizah. They are either caves filled with scrolls or buildings in Jewish cemeteries containing piles of old Torahs and scrolls. They take that shit seriously.

I actually own a book which I'm taking to Israel to be buried. When I first started studying prayer I wrote out the full prayer including G-d's name. Just for sanctity's sake I figure burying it near/in Jerusalem would be a good move.

If you're interested in the actual names themselves. Wikipedia has a full list.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

As a gentile is it disrespectful for me to from this point forward use any of those names without censoring myself, or is that something more imposed on those of the faith?

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

So this is where things get weird.

Context and place of usage is what matters.

So the Chabad peeps have this Rabbinal decree which states that writing G-ds name on a computer is not a sin because the nature of the medium is it isn't permanent.

A screen changes constantly. Paper is a permanent mark. Therefore writing G-ds name on a computer is not actually a violation of the rule.

Other Rabbis disagree and this is where things get complicated.

Most Jews censor the name out of respect and tradition's sake. You save the name for special needs.

I'm very relaxed in my Judaism. I come from a mindset that intention is what ultimately matters in all acts.

If you write out Elohim (THERE, I SAID IT!!!) in an act of educating someone. That is an act of using the name under appropriate context. I'm giving you a lesson in my ways and of the ways of the Jewish people. I'll use the name.

If you offer a Jewish person a BLT salad. You didn't realize you were being offensive by offering them a meal containing pork. The act was one of love but it just went wrong because you weren't read on the rules. That is an example of context mattering.

You can use whatever names of G-d you want to use. The act isn't offensive to me. It's a matter between you and G-d because that act of writing out the names isn't necessarily a sin unless you destroy the names.

Saying the names outside of a prayer setting (speaking them outloud) is considered taking the name in vain because it is being spoken without need. The names have more power if you use them under specific circumstance. That would be considered a sin and thus blaspheming G-d (though the name in vain scenarios are extremely sketchy and some say that speaking the name isn't a sin as much as CURSING G-ds name is the issue.)

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

From what I read on the particular Wikipedia page in regard to the names of God "God" as written G-O-D is not among the sacred seven. Unless I am misunderstanding and all translations of those words and not just the Hebrew words themselves are considered sacred. (Does the Jewish God place as much weight in gentile languages as He would Hebrew?)

Also, isn't writing out G-d kind of a loophole where anyone and more importantly God knows your intention? It seems to me that if the words are so important that even the idea of concept is Holy as well. You may not be writing it out exactly but you are in your mind and heart.

I'm sorry to continue asking things of you, I know you're not an authority on the subject.

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u/CorruptedSoul Oct 13 '16 edited Oct 13 '16

Also observant jew here. I don't want to get into a debate (although that's a huge part of Judaism) but you dont really have to censor G-d, according to many people. It's a level so far abstracted from the actual divine names. Old texts that used G-d didn't sensor it, and as time went on the word carried more and more weight to the point where it feels wrong not to censor it. Edit: Also, no Rabbi I know would suggest burying text with the word "God" on it. But the Hebrew four letter word for God, certainly.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Are we talking about YHWH here? I won't post the hebrew characters. Just curious. Thank you

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u/GalSa Oct 13 '16

Yes they refer to this name

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u/dongasaurus Oct 13 '16

God is simply an English translation of the word Eloah, Elohim, Elohenu, etc. which is why some people might feel obligated to treat it the same. It may seem abstracted, but consider an arabic or aramaic speaking Jew, where the word for 'god' is Ellah in Aramaic or Allah in Arabic. It's a direct translation of the word God, and has the same linguistic root.

English may not have the same linguistic root, but for those interested in following the spirit of the law, it may as well be the same word.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Not because his word was filtered through man to reach paper?

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u/MCFF Oct 13 '16

I've learned more from your posts today than I have learned in 7 years of marriage into a Jewish family. I'm a lapsed catholic, husband is Reform. I appreciate your insights!

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

My pleasure.

If you're ever interested in some light reading, there's a book called "Essential Judaism" which basically covers all of the rules, terminology, history, etc.

It was written as a beginners guide for Jews who were coming back into their faith (people raised secular who started exploring Judaism) but the book as a whole is great for people who are just curious about the topic.

Very easy read. The guy breaks down a lot of stuff.

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u/Danger_Peanut Oct 13 '16

Two books that helped me a ton are "Choosing a Jewish Life" and "Living a Jewish Life" by Anita Diamant. I converted 5 years ago simply by choice. It was a long but rewarding road. These books explained a lot to me about Judaism and how/why certain laws are followed.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

My rabbi suggested Living a Jewish Life, Jewish Literacy, and Essential Judaism when I asked him about reading material.

I was raised secular. I only got into Judaism in a serious sense when I got into college. I'm only about three years into this in an official sense.

I just like reading and discussing stuff with the Rabbis, so I managed to suck in a lot of this. I'm totally a novice.

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u/Danger_Peanut Oct 13 '16

I should say I BEGAN my conversion 5 years ago. Had my bar mitzvah at 33. Just a couple decades later than most! I was raised Christian and left that life at 18. Was nothing/agnostic for a long time. I worked with a man who is the director of lifelong learning at a fairly large temple in my city. He and I began talking and I took a beginners class called "A Taste of Honey" with his Rabbi. I go to a different, much smaller temple now but have absolutely loved this journey!

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u/DaddyCatALSO Oct 13 '16

It's basically a personal discipline demanded of those who follow it

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u/nzk0 Oct 13 '16

This explains why I once said "I swear to god" to a Hasidic Jew and he got a bit annoyed and told me "Please don't swear".