1 - How often is this blog updated?
- This blog is, unfortunately, now defunct. This blog has been a way for me to express the internal struggle of my spiritual journey, and I may still post periodically or return to regular blogging in the future. However, the blog Mamzer HaKodesh has now served it's purpose.
I continue to be fascinated by arcane Jewish ritual, odd bits of Judeo-Christian religious history, legend and other curious trivia. I am not, however, fascinated enough to cast aside other projects I am currently undertaking. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read it. It was my pleasure to engage you.
2 - What religion are you?
- I was born and raised in a Jewish family. In my teens, I started studying Neo-Paganism. I was particularly interested in Starhawk's books; "Truth or Dare" resonated with me deeply. At some point in my mid to late teens, I started to realize that I had a strong attraction to Jesus and Christianity. I think part of what attracted me were the ideas of unconditional love and God as a suffering mortal. I was also moved by the beautiful prose in the gospel of John. I was, however, horrified of my pull towards Christianity. Only more than a decade later can I grudgingly say I am "Christian, sort of, I guess." I still study a lot Judaism and find meaning in Pagan ritual and spiritual practice. In my opinion, Christianity is sort of a happy mixture of Judaism and Paganism.
3 - Are you a Jew for Jesus or a missionary trying to convert Jews?
- Yes and no. I am, I guess, a Jew for Jesus, but I do not belong to their organization, nor do I necessarily agree with their theology. I do not want to convert Jews to Christianity, because I've seen the same religious awakening happening in me being mirrored in friends who are drawn to Neo-Paganism as well as Orthodox Judaism. A person's actions and experience are generally more important than a particular religion. Take Christianity for example - are you going to feed the poor, stand up and demand justice for missing and murdered prostitutes, or are you going to kill people who don't agree with your ideology? Actions are stronger than words or text.
4 - Why don't you go be a Messianic Jew and accept Yeshua?
- Messianic Judaism is a phenomenon of people who hold that both the Old and New Testaments are religiously valid. Jews for Jesus would, in my opinion, qualify as such an organization. I am not a Messianic Jew for several reasons. One, I am not sure I believe the Old and New Testaments are "the only word of God". I'm not even sure Jesus was ever a person, since his story seems to be mirrored in many cultures in the guise of many similar gods such as Mithras or Krishna.
Second, I have no current desire to stop eating bacon and eggs.
Third, I find it deliberately misleading for people to label themselves are "Messianic" Jews and refer to Jesus as "Yeshua". Most Jews feel these terms are tactics used by missionaries to try and stealthily convert us. I have to say I agree. Any group that openly said, "Hey, we're Messianic Jews. By that we mean we are Jews who believe Jesus is God and follow the New Testament as well as the Old Testament," would immediately lose the attention of many unaffiliated Jews. But because most Jews don't understand much about Judaism, they can easily be drawn into discussions about "Yeshua" and other Hebrew-sounding words.
Yeshua, by the way, is Hebrew for Jesus/Joshua. Even the name "Messianic" is misleading, because traditional rabbinic Judaism has a lot invested in the coming of a Messiah. However, this Messiah will not be God any more than another person, and Jesus has not fulfilled the Messianic requirements to qualify as the Messiah. A more accurate term for "Messianic Judaism" would be "Christians Who Follow the Old Testament Laws". The fact that these organizations refuse to openly use the words, "Jesus", "Son of God" "Crucifixion" and "New Testament" lead me and many other Jews to be very uncomfortble with them.
Also, Jewish Christians, or Torah Observant Christians are different from Ebionites, in that Ebionites believe Jesus was a prophet, but not do believe he was God. You can read more about my thoughts on this subject here.
4 - What is your blog about?
- To find out more, just click here or go to the "about" page of this blog.
