(I don’t like the word “faith” applied to the Jewish people, but still)
I’m confused, why don’t you like the word “faith” applied to Jewish people? Not trying to pick a fight or anything, genuinely want to understand your reasoning behind that
Because Jewishness, above all else, is a tribal identity, versus a religious one. That’s not say that Judaism isn’t a religion, because it certainly is, but we, the Jewish people (or Am Yisrael) are an ethnoreligious group, which is distinct from most other major religions, and doesn’t function on faith alone. One can be definitively Jewish without being actively religious in a way that isn’t applicable to, say, being Presbyterian or Sunni Muslim. This applies to the way one joins the Jewish people, as well. Instead of declaring that you “believe” in the religion, you work with a Rabbi for an extended period of time to learn about all aspects of Jewishness, from religious to cultural, as a way of being immersed and initiated into the tribe. One does not just declare that they’re Jewish because they have “faith” in Jewish tenets, they work incredibly hard to establish themselves as part of our peoplehood.
Moreover, the tenets of Judaism, as a religion, are not really centred around the concept of “faith” in the traditionally implied context. One practices Judaism by fulfilling Mitzvot (prescribed commandments), and while God is certainly ever-present in our texts, faith in God—actual belief—is not a prerequisite for carrying out Mitzvot. There are actually two branches of Judaism (Reconstructionist and Humanist) that allow for practicing without the belief in a deity, and I even know people who choose to live in the Orthodox community and follow Jewish law very strictly, but consider themselves more or less atheist or agnostic.
80% Of Jews Vote Democratic — Far More Than Other Faiths
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