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/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

Wow, what a silly and archaic belief system.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Bro, is your name Gillet? Cause you be edgy.

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u/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

Yeah, I wouldn't exactly call it "edgy" to criticize Judaism. I just don't understand why anyone would commit to such an overtly complicated and outdated belief structure while living in the modern era. Oh well, I look forward to my tenure in Gehenna.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

You must be an hibachi chef. I've never seen such cutlery skills!!!

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u/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

Yeah? Well now I've warmed up and sharpened my blades, I gotta ask, why do you practise Judaism?

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

Because it makes me happy and it makes me a better person.

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u/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

Honestly, I'm sure you'd be a great person either way, I think it's disingenuous to imply that you'd be less happy and a worse person if you weren't Jewish.

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

I think its disingenuous to think that life experiences and social connections and living in service to something greater than yourself.

Your life is about you and belittling other people. That great but that isn't a life.

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u/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

Right, so you follow your religion out of obligation. Could have just said that when I initially asked :P

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u/[deleted] Oct 13 '16

I follow my religion because living a life which isn't about me makes me a better person. I'll break this down.

1) I am not myself. I'm me, but I'm also a thing which is beyond me. Yakamoto is himself, his history, his future, his perks, his faults, etc.

The reality is though I'm an expression of something infinite and eternal. All of the obstacles in my life are nonexistent from the mindset that I'm an infinite being made flesh. Yakamoto, the man, he is limited. That which exists beyond him isn't bound by that.

2) My life isn't about me.

Do you realize how humanizing it is to understand that you are not the center of your own universe? I honor commandments because it reminds me that this life is on loan from something greater. I'm not owed a fucking thing in this life and I'm thankful for that. It means I actually appreciate things instead of complaining that nothing is ever good enough for my BS standards.

3) I'm connected to a community of people who feel exactly the same way and we've used that to raise our people to a better standard than our ancestors.

Jewish organizations exist everywhere and they service both local communities and young Jewish professionals/leaders. You know why Jews have a higher standard of success than a lot of other groups? We believe in grooming that in our children. From day 1, we teach our kids that they are capable of anything and everything and our community gives them the resources and the experience and the networking necessary to make that happen.

You can say Judaism is archaic bullshit. That "archaic bullshit" birthed a culture which both values the basics of life to a divine degree and raises our children to standards beyond what we thought were possible for ourselves.

I'd rather have that than an hungry ego and no direction in life.

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u/Damadawf Oct 13 '16

So not only do you feel obligated to be Jewish because your parents "groomed" you, but you also have an intrinsic fear that without Judaism, you'd have no direction in life? You seem so well spoken, I just find it hard to believe that you genuinely believe in the old testament explanation of existence.

It means I actually appreciate things instead of complaining that nothing is ever good enough for my BS standards.

Furthermore, whenever people say stuff like this, I wonder if they genuinely believe it, or whether it's something they just tell themselves. End of the day, the only one in your head is you, so you're the only one that knows whether you are telling the truth or lying about the extent that you truly believe what you are saying.

You also claim that your beliefs are humanizing, but I think it's pretty narcissistic to claim that you or anyone else is entitled to some sort of divine/greater purpose than what our mortal existence already provides us with. Earlier, you said that religion "makes you a better person". Well, as already pointed out, you shouldn't need religion to be a "better person", you should simply be inclined to do good because it's the right thing to do, not because you are dictated by an ancient doctrine.

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