torah and tefilah

23, she/they || noahide || belief in g-d and the torah

[troybarnesbucky]

it’s 5786 and we still have a major agunah crisis in our community and it’s getting to the point where if jewish women are not given a seat at the table — meaning, if we’re not given any autonomy or voice in discussions of matters that PARTICULARLY affect us, like gett refusal — we will see more and more jewish women refusing to participate in the system as a whole.

i say this not to be pessimistic or not as a casual observation but rather as a fact that i was told from a long-time agunah activist: if the system cannot be reformed as it has been in the past to meet our needs and realities, jewish women will, in time, refuse to participate in the jewish system as a whole, and will stop believing in its importance.

and why should we? why should we accept a system that chains women to marriages at the will of any man? how is that acceptable? how is it that divorce proceedings were more lenient towards women in the medieval era than they are now?

lastly, free adeena and ALL agunot! i support any and all women that participate in the tsniut protest.

[slyandthefamilybook]

[penrosesun]

If you’re Christian and reading this and feeling touchy about the fact that we Jews are saying that you don’t meaningfully follow the same Bible that we do, here’s an excellent breakdown from a Christian perspective:

The key thing to notice when asking this question of white evangelicals in America is that they don't usually try to answer it. They don't r

Tl;dr: the Christian categories of “moral” and “ceremonial” law that are used to justify Christians invoking Leviticus while simultaneously following none of Leviticus are extra-textual, inconsistent, and clearly self-serving on their face.

“Rules about my money and my property become optional. Rules about your genitals and your sexuality do not.”

You do not follow ours laws. You do not consider yourselves to be bound by our sacred texts. We do not consider you to be bound by our sacred texts. Stop invoking them to further your agenda; they are irrelevant to your faith and to your behavior, both according to your own doctrine and according to ours.

[bl00d-f3t15h]

also a little note about the jewish observance of levitical law: we have evolved substantially as a people and religion since the writing of Lev 18:22. we no longer have a priestly class and no longer sacrifice animals on yom kippur (the entire previous chapters of Leviticus are detailing these practices). the notion of christians invoking levitical law to justify homophobia is ludicrous because even Jews dont observe all levitical law the way its written (even tho Leviticus is still Very Important to modern Jewish life)

[magnetothemagnificent]

I mean. We do still have a Priestly class. We still have Kohanim and we still have Levi'im. That is very much still a thing. As far as I know, the Reform movement doesn't afford much special status to Kohanim (Reform Jews correct me if I'm wrong but that's what I've heard/read), but Orthodox and Conservative Judaism definitely still do.

The Kohanim still bless the congregation (in many communities in Israel, every day, and in the diaspora either every Shabbat or on Yom Tov depending on community tradition), the Levi'im still wash their hands. Every day that there is Torah reading, a Kohen (if present) still gets the first Aliyah, and a Levi (if present) still gets the second (or the first if there are no Kohanim present). Kohanim are still bound by the special laws of impurity and marriage. They can't come in contact with the dead (outside of immediate family) (and if I understand right this is still observed by Reform Judaism) and they still aren't supposed to marry divorcees or converts (I'm actually unclear on what Conservative Judaism's ruling on this one is, I've seen some fascinating responsa about it, but I haven't found a conclusive official ruling (I'm sure it's out there I just haven't found it), and this is something that definitely still gets debated in Orthodox Judaism even if overall mainstream norms haven't changed yet). Non-Kohanim and non-Levi'im still redeem their firstborn sons to a Kohen. Kohanim and Levi'im are still often given honours at weddings, feasts, and other life cycle events. There are still very much privileges and restrictions to Kohanim and Levi'im in contemporary Judaism.

It's true that we don't have a Temple and we don't have animal, incense, or produce offerings there anymore (although Terumah and Maaser still must be taken by produce grown in the land of Israel, Challah must still be taken, (although anything designated for a Kohen is instead disposed of rather than given to them in a post-Temple world) Shmita is still observed by observant Jews around the world), and Kohanim and Levi'im are allowed to own (in as much as "ownership" is a social construct, where private land ownership is much different on a governmental level and anyway most private ownership isn't permanent) land in Israel. But we still recognize the classes of Kohanim and Levi'im and they are still treated, at least in some capacities, as distinct and sacred classes. We still recognize the lineage of Kohanim and Levi'im.

We absolutely have changed as a people, but there are plenty of Jews who still consider themselves bound by the Halachot of Leviticus. Yes, we don't do animal offerings on Yom Kippur (or any day of the year) but that's because we don't have a Temple, it would be impossible to do so. But just because some Jews don't do something, doesn't mean that it's universal. There are still plenty of Jews that try to observe all the laws of the Torah to the best of their abilities except for the ones that require a Temple. But plenty of Mitzvot don't require a Temple.

I understand what you're trying to say in terms of LGBTQ acceptance but that argument is moot when there are absolutely Jews who do still do these things, including LGBTQ Jews. Hi, hello, I'm one of them, I'm queer and I consider myself Orthodox, and I go to an Orthodox synagogue where I am not ostracized or treated as anything lesser. There are absolutely ways to include and affirm LGBTQ Jews without throwing out the entirety of the book of Leviticus or indeed all of Halacha or disparaging Jews who still follow it.

It's a dick move when Orthodox Jews act like they're the sole inheritors of Judaism, but it's just as bad when Reform Jews do it as well. Reform Judaism isn't the "final form" of Judaism, and neither is Orthodox Judaism. Orthodox Jews aren't archaic, less-evolved Jews.

You know who believe that Jews are archaic and less-evolved? Supersessionist Christians. Let's not act like that about any fellow Jews.

[slyandthefamilybook]

[penrosesun]

If you’re Christian and reading this and feeling touchy about the fact that we Jews are saying that you don’t meaningfully follow the same Bible that we do, here’s an excellent breakdown from a Christian perspective:

The key thing to notice when asking this question of white evangelicals in America is that they don't usually try to answer it. They don't r

Tl;dr: the Christian categories of “moral” and “ceremonial” law that are used to justify Christians invoking Leviticus while simultaneously following none of Leviticus are extra-textual, inconsistent, and clearly self-serving on their face.

“Rules about my money and my property become optional. Rules about your genitals and your sexuality do not.”

You do not follow ours laws. You do not consider yourselves to be bound by our sacred texts. We do not consider you to be bound by our sacred texts. Stop invoking them to further your agenda; they are irrelevant to your faith and to your behavior, both according to your own doctrine and according to ours.

[bl00d-f3t15h]

also a little note about the jewish observance of levitical law: we have evolved substantially as a people and religion since the writing of Lev 18:22. we no longer have a priestly class and no longer sacrifice animals on yom kippur (the entire previous chapters of Leviticus are detailing these practices). the notion of christians invoking levitical law to justify homophobia is ludicrous because even Jews dont observe all levitical law the way its written (even tho Leviticus is still Very Important to modern Jewish life)

[magnetothemagnificent]

I mean. We do still have a Priestly class. We still have Kohanim and we still have Levi'im. That is very much still a thing. As far as I know, the Reform movement doesn't afford much special status to Kohanim (Reform Jews correct me if I'm wrong but that's what I've heard/read), but Orthodox and Conservative Judaism definitely still do.

The Kohanim still bless the congregation (in many communities in Israel, every day, and in the diaspora either every Shabbat or on Yom Tov depending on community tradition), the Levi'im still wash their hands. Every day that there is Torah reading, a Kohen (if present) still gets the first Aliyah, and a Levi (if present) still gets the second (or the first if there are no Kohanim present). Kohanim are still bound by the special laws of impurity and marriage. They can't come in contact with the dead (outside of immediate family) (and if I understand right this is still observed by Reform Judaism) and they still aren't supposed to marry divorcees or converts (I'm actually unclear on what Conservative Judaism's ruling on this one is, I've seen some fascinating responsa about it, but I haven't found a conclusive official ruling (I'm sure it's out there I just haven't found it), and this is something that definitely still gets debated in Orthodox Judaism even if overall mainstream norms haven't changed yet). Non-Kohanim and non-Levi'im still redeem their firstborn sons to a Kohen. Kohanim and Levi'im are still often given honours at weddings, feasts, and other life cycle events. There are still very much privileges and restrictions to Kohanim and Levi'im in contemporary Judaism.

It's true that we don't have a Temple and we don't have animal, incense, or produce offerings there anymore (although Terumah and Maaser still must be taken by produce grown in the land of Israel, Challah must still be taken, (although anything designated for a Kohen is instead disposed of rather than given to them in a post-Temple world) Shmita is still observed by observant Jews around the world), and Kohanim and Levi'im are allowed to own (in as much as "ownership" is a social construct, where private land ownership is much different on a governmental level and anyway most private ownership isn't permanent) land in Israel. But we still recognize the classes of Kohanim and Levi'im and they are still treated, at least in some capacities, as distinct and sacred classes. We still recognize the lineage of Kohanim and Levi'im.

We absolutely have changed as a people, but there are plenty of Jews who still consider themselves bound by the Halachot of Leviticus. Yes, we don't do animal offerings on Yom Kippur (or any day of the year) but that's because we don't have a Temple, it would be impossible to do so. But just because some Jews don't do something, doesn't mean that it's universal. There are still plenty of Jews that try to observe all the laws of the Torah to the best of their abilities except for the ones that require a Temple. But plenty of Mitzvot don't require a Temple.

I understand what you're trying to say in terms of LGBTQ acceptance but that argument is moot when there are absolutely Jews who do still do these things, including LGBTQ Jews. Hi, hello, I'm one of them, I'm queer and I consider myself Orthodox, and I go to an Orthodox synagogue where I am not ostracized or treated as anything lesser. There are absolutely ways to include and affirm LGBTQ Jews without throwing out the entirety of the book of Leviticus or indeed all of Halacha or disparaging Jews who still follow it.

It's a dick move when Orthodox Jews act like they're the sole inheritors of Judaism, but it's just as bad when Reform Jews do it as well. Reform Judaism isn't the "final form" of Judaism, and neither is Orthodox Judaism. Orthodox Jews aren't archaic, less-evolved Jews.

You know who believe that Jews are archaic and less-evolved? Supersessionist Christians. Let's not act like that about any fellow Jews.

[magnetothemagnificent]

I'm gonna say something which might be controversial, but it needs to be said:

The tendency in *some* spheres of Orthodox Judaism to venerate figures in Tanakh and Chazal, the Geonim, Rishonim, and Acharonim (as well as more modern Rabbis) and to treat every anecdote and statement they ever made as Halacha and as something good, and to accuse anyone who tries to humanize them and point out their character flaws or statements they made that are factually wrong, of heresy.....that tendency borders on uplifting human beings to godhood which is tantamount to Avodah Zara. *Especially* post-Tanakh figures in a post-Neviim world.

You can't go around treating the Rabbis like they were omniscient and all-knowing. They were incredibly intelligent and skilled people but they were still people, and sometimes they did or said things that were outright stupid or wrong. And that's okay! Because a Rabbi in Talmudic times saying something factually wrong about astronomy or goats or women doesn't negate their expertise in other realms of Halacha, just like some Nobel Prize winning physicist shouldn't be taken as an expert on botany or psychology or anything outside of their realm of expertise, and it doesn't negate their intelligence or accomplishments to say that. I say this as someone who grew up Orthodox and still considers himself Orthodox. I am a Rabbinic Jew. Rabbinic Judaism is what allowed us to survive as a people in a post-Temple world. I love Rabbinic Judaism!

The Rabbis who made Rabbinic Judaism happen were incredibly knowledgeable about many things, but they were still people, and they still got things wrong. I'm not even talking about things relating to morality or social attitudes (such as racial and gender relations), I'm talking about verifiably untrue statements about anatomy or biology or geology or astronomy. And I think when we encounter these Rabbis's false statements, it's extremely unhelpful to either pretend they didn't say them, or to try and rationalize them in a stream of apologetics. Sometimes people are just wrong. It's okay. It doesn't change their contributions to Halacha and to Judaism as a whole, it doesn't mean we should throw out everything they've ever said, but it's actually quite possible for someone to either repeat the false science of their time or to just make an ignorant statement that comes from a lack of experience in whatever subject they're discussing. I think it's theologically dangerous to accuse people of heresy when they point out that the Rabbis weren't perfect. I think it's theologically dangerous to act like the Rabbis were infallible- that's how we get messianic cults.

[troybarnesbucky]

the time between pesach and shavuot (aka the omer) is the best because it’s springtime and you start to feel alive again and by the time summer starts to roll around you get to celebrate the torah (because that’s what it’s all about babyyyyy) AND eat cheesecake. and also jewish men have nice beards…. jews stay winning, springtime is Thee Jewish Season.

[yurimom]

MY FRIEND IS FINDING OUT THAT HES COLORBLIND AND WE’RE ALL HELPING HIM THROUGH IT LMAOOOOOO

[yurimom]

[yurimom]

UPDATE WE HAVE TWO COLORBLIND BITCHEZ IN THE SERVER

[yurimom]

what the fuck is going on

[alwaysabeautifullife]

On the last one Deuteranomaly and Protanomaly are identical though

[azzandra]

What I’m getting from this is that there are a lot more colorblind people in the world than even colorblind people know.

[sheepolypse]

Share to save [shame] a friend

[waywardmorgann-deactivated20240]

WAIT! DEUTERANOMALY AND PROTANOMALY IS THE SAME! IT’S THE FUCKING SAME! WHAT ARE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT?????

[audliminal]

The deuteranomaly and protanomaly ones are very similar but they are different. The purple section ranges out a little farther to the right in the protanomaly one. Not seeing the difference between might not indicate color blindness but rather difficulty with color differentiation.

[sanctuaryforalluniverses]

The green is also slightly more vivid in the protanomaly strip than it is in the deuteranomaly one.

[ninahufflepuff]

@skeletal-spire-man-aka-overfit

um

these are not the same

[skeletal-spire-man]

They’re… They’re identical…

What’s… What’s the difference-?

[i-put-the-hyper-in-hyperfixated]

welp. one of the moots has tritanomaly colour blindness!

[finicillium]

I’m not colourblind, but like, on the last one, deuteranomaly and protanomaly are identical to eachother- so are protanopia and deuteranopia-

[naviofortido]

They aren’t different?

[sofakingcurious]

I feel like I should add this

https://www.keithcirkel.co.uk/whats-my-jnd/?r=AOkgKP__79w8

[lilbit-of-kizzy]

I got a good grade at color definition, something that is both reasonable and attainable to do

[pathtothemikvah]

it's been a while - a little life update and where i stand with wanting to convert

the last time i was really actively posting on here must be around two years ago at this point, if not longer. a lot has happened since then.

first and foremost, i stopped converting orthodox. my sponsoring rabbi leaving the community hit me hard, as did my only close acquaintances in the community who are my age moving away too. suddenly it felt like i was back at square one. the rabbi who took me on was the rabbi for a community 2h away by train, and he didn't even live in that city, he lives in berlin.

plus, my mental health got increasingly worse with the stress of university and my financial problems. as a result, i simply couldn't continue the process. i had no support system within my local community anymore, it was a finacial undertaking i simply couldn't manage, and i didn't feel comfortable with my new sponsoring rabbi.

it was for the best, still is.

i eventually stopped going to shabbat prayers at my synagogue in 2024 once i moved into my own apartment. i now live outside the city center and can't easily reach my community anymore, plus i started to work part-time in retail, which meant a lot of times i had to work on shabbat.

while it was a huge blow that i had to give up so much ritual and structure i'd built my life around, it was a change i needed at the time.

in 2025 i finally quit uni for good, and i'm now doing an apprenticeship to become a warehouse specialist. i still work in retail, so until my apprenticeship is finished, i probably won't return to the giur process.

i also started dating a friend in 2025, and we officially got together at the beginning of january this year. he's not jewish, now lives in a different city (with a more liberal community which even has two rabbis), and he's a great source of energy, happiness, and comfort for me. he's one of the people i trust the most, and he knows that me becoming jewish is still a possibility.

and it is, still a possibility. the pull hasn't left. it was dormant for a while, but it's there. my local community has shlichim currently, and maybe i'll actually make it to shabbat dinner on friday for the first time in ages. i would like to.

i also want to visit the community in my boyfriend's city soon, get an impression of their shabbat. maybe meet some people there.

i don't know yet where i want to live after my apprenticeship, where i want to work, what exactly i want to do. maybe my boyfriend doesn't want to stay there, maybe he does, i don't know yet. a part of me does hope he wants to stay in that city for a while. so that maybe i can eventually move there too. especially if i like the community.

i don't think an orthodox giur is the path for me, for now at least. i know in my soul that one part of my true happiness-needs is to become jewish. whether everyone would accept my giur is secondary. i think... what matters most is to find the right community, the right people who will support me, and who will accept me.

because i'm serious about my boyfriend. i'm not giving up on him just because he's not jewish and has no intention to convert. and i feel like i'd had have to if we stay together and want to build a life and a family together, but i'd also "insist" on an orthodox giur.

the pull is still there. i sometimes read the parasha if i remember to. and i still Love reading my favourite tehillim. i feel that spark, that deeply rooted Love for hashem and judaism and i do yearn for a jewish life.

and i do hope, still, that one day it is meant to be, g-dwilling. i do trust in hashem. if it is meant to be, it will happen when the time is right.

i needed the giur process for a while, i needed that initial experience. i grew from it so much, learned so much from it and because of it, i just wasn't meant to complete it at that time.

i'll see what the future holds. maybe i can. make shabbat prayer and dinner in my community this week. maybe i can visit the community in the city where my boyfriend lives soon. maybe i'll just have to go from there

[pathtothemikvah]

oh! also! i finally got my adhd diagnosis recently and i'm actively pursuing treatmeant (therapy and getting on meds).

once i got that going and settled i hope i'll also feel another wave of improvent when it comes to my mental health. because while it has improved a lot, especially over the course of 2025, there are still lots of things i gotta tackle before i'll consider reaching out to a rabbi for giur again.

mainly also because in the diagnostic process, apparently there were also signs pointing towards some slight depression. nothing to officially diagnose for now because that wasn't the focal point, but enough to be noted in the report.

[pathtothemikvah]

it's been a while - a little life update and where i stand with wanting to convert

the last time i was really actively posting on here must be around two years ago at this point, if not longer. a lot has happened since then.

first and foremost, i stopped converting orthodox. my sponsoring rabbi leaving the community hit me hard, as did my only close acquaintances in the community who are my age moving away too. suddenly it felt like i was back at square one. the rabbi who took me on was the rabbi for a community 2h away by train, and he didn't even live in that city, he lives in berlin.

plus, my mental health got increasingly worse with the stress of university and my financial problems. as a result, i simply couldn't continue the process. i had no support system within my local community anymore, it was a finacial undertaking i simply couldn't manage, and i didn't feel comfortable with my new sponsoring rabbi.

it was for the best, still is.

i eventually stopped going to shabbat prayers at my synagogue in 2024 once i moved into my own apartment. i now live outside the city center and can't easily reach my community anymore, plus i started to work part-time in retail, which meant a lot of times i had to work on shabbat.

while it was a huge blow that i had to give up so much ritual and structure i'd built my life around, it was a change i needed at the time.

in 2025 i finally quit uni for good, and i'm now doing an apprenticeship to become a warehouse specialist. i still work in retail, so until my apprenticeship is finished, i probably won't return to the giur process.

i also started dating a friend in 2025, and we officially got together at the beginning of january this year. he's not jewish, now lives in a different city (with a more liberal community which even has two rabbis), and he's a great source of energy, happiness, and comfort for me. he's one of the people i trust the most, and he knows that me becoming jewish is still a possibility.

and it is, still a possibility. the pull hasn't left. it was dormant for a while, but it's there. my local community has shlichim currently, and maybe i'll actually make it to shabbat dinner on friday for the first time in ages. i would like to.

i also want to visit the community in my boyfriend's city soon, get an impression of their shabbat. maybe meet some people there.

i don't know yet where i want to live after my apprenticeship, where i want to work, what exactly i want to do. maybe my boyfriend doesn't want to stay there, maybe he does, i don't know yet. a part of me does hope he wants to stay in that city for a while. so that maybe i can eventually move there too. especially if i like the community.

i don't think an orthodox giur is the path for me, for now at least. i know in my soul that one part of my true happiness-needs is to become jewish. whether everyone would accept my giur is secondary. i think... what matters most is to find the right community, the right people who will support me, and who will accept me.

because i'm serious about my boyfriend. i'm not giving up on him just because he's not jewish and has no intention to convert. and i feel like i'd had have to if we stay together and want to build a life and a family together, but i'd also "insist" on an orthodox giur.

the pull is still there. i sometimes read the parasha if i remember to. and i still Love reading my favourite tehillim. i feel that spark, that deeply rooted Love for hashem and judaism and i do yearn for a jewish life.

and i do hope, still, that one day it is meant to be, g-dwilling. i do trust in hashem. if it is meant to be, it will happen when the time is right.

i needed the giur process for a while, i needed that initial experience. i grew from it so much, learned so much from it and because of it, i just wasn't meant to complete it at that time.

i'll see what the future holds. maybe i can. make shabbat prayer and dinner in my community this week. maybe i can visit the community in the city where my boyfriend lives soon. maybe i'll just have to go from there

[amaditalks]

This is my annual reminder that if you are fasting on Yom Kippur, you should begin to reduce your caffeine intake and increase your hydration today in order to minimize the risk of withdrawal headaches and misery that can interfere with your davening.

And if you have any health condition, physical or otherwise, which makes fasting unsafe, unwise or untenable, talk to your rabbi. It is not a mitzvah to fast at the expense of your health.

[ketubahring]

So excited for Rosh Hashanah!! Happy new year, and Shabbat shalom 🤍

Copyright © 2025 Ketubah Ring. No reproduction, printing, resale, or use without permission.

[magnetothemagnificent]

Literally every conversation with a colleague/peer in the academic field I'm in (anthropology, with a focus on human prehistory and human evolution) upon them learning I'm an observant religious Jew goes like this:

Person: "Sorry if this is a personal question, but how do you.... y'know......deal with it?"

Me: "Deal with what?"

Person: "Y'know...... y'know......your religion......"

Me: "Meaning?"

Person: "Well, um, how old do you believe the earth is?"

Me: "I follow the geological consensus, which is approximately 4.5 Billion years"

Person: "But......but.....your Bible says that it's 6,000 years old....."

Me: "Technically 5,783 years, so you're wrong there, haha"

Person: "Okay but how do you....how do you reconcile that with science?"

Me: "I don't need to reconcile it. They're not in opposition."

Person: "??"

Me: "The plain text in the Tanakh states that it has been 5,783 years since the creation of Adam, and consequently the world. Judaism has never been about taking the text in the Tanakh plainly, there's always deeper meanings. Who's to say that the 5,783 years aren't just the years since a couple named Adam and Eve met and copulated, triggering the begining of the lineage of Abraham, Moses, and the entire Jewish lineage, and that the six days of creation aren't six phases which are actually pretty in-line with our understanding of evolution?"

Person: "But.....some people believe that it's literally been 5,783 years since the earth was literally created!"

Me: "Okay..... that's what they believe. I don't see how it should bother me, especially considering we're in the field of anthropology where we try to study other patterns of belief, not cast judgement upon them."

Person: "But other Jews believe that!!!"

Me: "Again.....why should that affect my religious and academic senses of self? Judaism has never been a monolith of belief, anyway."

Person: "But-"

[jewish-kulindadromeus]

Jewish Paleontologist who has this exact Discussion with Others and I Feel You

[postingtreyf]

We were taught in Sunday school that the 6 days weren’t days as we see them because god has a different perception of time.

As for Abraham and Sarah being old as balls, we were told that people measured years differently back then. This seems more dubious as an adult, but given how many “birthdays” we celebrate (trees, animals, etc.), I can see the math mathing in a symbolic way.

[jewish-kulindadromeus]

When evolution was first posited in the western world and Jewish people reacted to it, the primary method of doing so was to fit Jewish ideas into evolution, and not to discredit it

in fact, many rabbis saw evolution as proof of gd's power through creation, not disproof

and the four worlds that were created and destroyed prior to ours in Kabbalah were assigned to the Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic!

[magnetothemagnificent]

Yeah, hell, even just for the concept of human evolution, there are Kabbalistic and spiritual ideas about the Adam that preceded Adam, either the animalistic Adam (via Rav Soloveitchik) or the Spiritually Previous Adam (via Chassidut), which both acknowledge the existence of people in some capacity before the dawn of Adam HaRishon. I mean even the Tanakh itself describes humans existing outside of Adam and Eve's family structure who copulated with the Bnei Elohim, so if they didn't come from Adam and Eve they had to have come from *somewhere*.

[beatrice-otter]

The whole “taking the six days of Creation literally” thing is a thing Christians do. It’s really prominently a Christian thing. Christians have been really loud about it, as in ‘trying to force schools to teach the literal creation story instead of evolution and the Big Bang’. Not all Christians! My own denomination doesn’t interpret the six days literally, but quite a lot of Christians do, and tend to be very vocal about it.

So why are these people assuming that Jews would interpret the Bible the same way as many Christians do? Are they just assuming that Jews are “Christians without Jesus”? Because at best that’s extremely ignorant.

[ninjakittenarmy]

@jewish-kulindadromeus it’s funny you mention that because that was also how Darwin saw it. He actually opposed the idea that evolution discredited religion even after becoming agnostic (which has more to do with his brother’s death than science). The Vatican also recognizes evolution. 6-day literalism has been on the decline for a fair bit, but the people who push it a LOUD, and have a lot of pull.

[killthelantern-raisetheghost]

i miss seeing this on twitter every friday so

SHABBOS IS COMING! WE'RE SO HAPPY! WE'RE GONNA SING AND SHOUT OUT LOUD. SIX DAYS A WEEK WE WAIT FOR SHABBOS A GIFT FROM HASHEM AND WE'RE SO PROUD. SING IT TOGETHER: SHABBOS.

whisper it together: shabbos.

SHOUT IT TOGETHER: SHABBOS.

TELL IT TO THE WORLD: SHABBOS KOYDESH!

[hermthejewishwyrm]

This is your daily reminder that if you are jewish and live in an area with a decently sized jewish community (especially an orthodox one) and you are struggling

YOU CAN GET HELP

Speak to the rabbis of the shul/shuls

There are Gamachs for food, clothes, medical tools, judaica, furniture etc and most of these places will either be free or pay what you can

Many shuls give out packages of expensive specialty foods that you may need for yomim tovim like wine and matzah.

If you need money for rent, medical costs, school etc shuls will raise tzedaka for you if you reach out

Many communities have people in them who do car repair, home repair, plumbing etc and if you ask the rabbi those people may do that work for you at a decreased rate

There are specialty organizations if you need help with mental health services

If you need help with post mortem care for a loved one or elder care

SPEAK TO A RABBI

REACH OUT

YOU ARE NEVER ALONE

[hindahoney]

One of the amazing things about Jews that makes us so resilient is our community support networks. We have a plethora of programs for Jews who need assistance, and we encourage people to use them. Chances are we have a relevant program to help whatever situation you are in.

[hailruth-deactivated20260123]

things you need to understand about jewish conversion

i've been seeing confusion about these things here on tumblr, and i thought this would be a good PSA. jews are welcome to add on to this.

conversion to judaism is a process of complete ethnic assimilation. i don't think this point needs elaboration.

the want to convert does not give you extra access to judaism. it changes nothing about your status or the fact that our practices are not open to you, you are not a jew until you have completed the conversion studying process as directed by a capable rabbi (i see the need for a final project/essay becoming more common these days as well), undergo a beit din ("questioning" in front of a rabbinic court), and finally submerse in a mikveh. the moment of submersion is the only point you become a jew. (yes, once you begin the formal conversion process you must begin to interact more and more with judaism and the jewish community. the range of what is opened to you becomes wider. but there are still many boundaries.)

if you are a pagan/neo-pagan/"witchy," etc., you cannot take these practices into judaism. especially if you are thinking about or planning on "synchretizing" your religion with judaism. it can never happen. monotheism is an absolute requirement, idolatry is an absolute "no." it is not up for debate. i cannot even begin to describe just how deeply it demonstrates a lack of understanding of the core of judaism to try and argue otherwise. (judaism has its own mysticism, but that is extremely closed and takes a very large amount of learning and dedication once you are a jew.)

being a noahide does not mean "being jewish without having to convert." there are seven laws expected of all humanity to follow and that is it (other than some general principles like being kind).

[zionistgirlie-deactivated202512]

Your daily reminder that you technically can be a Jew and engage in whatever sinful behaviours. The question of "Can you be a Jew and be/do X?" Is irrelevant. The question is "Should you be a Jew and be/do X?"

Our Torah and our Jewish law detail pretty extensively what you can be and do, and what you shouldn't. As Jews, we should aspire to follow what Hashem wants from us. Not what makes us comfortable, not what we've grown too accustomed to to change. Judaism doesn't always fit perfectly with your life and values, particularly if you're a Baal teshuva or a convert. Again, we didn't come to the world to do what we want. We came here with a very specific manual.

Being a Jew means being signed on a contract, a a covenant. It means being there at Har Sinai and saying "We'll do and we'll hear." I don't recall us adding an Astrix: *but only when it's convenient.

This is particularly true with converts. You didn't have to convert. Judaism doesn't seek to convert people, we don't believe that only Jews will be redeemed, or that non Jews will burn in hell. You don't have to be a Jew, and that's okay. And when you already are a Jew, because you made this difficult, admirable step, and chose to leave your old culture and religion behind, some of it means agreeing to take on the Jewish culture and way of living. For entirety.

Some of us are still here for the covenant. All if it. Even when it's hard.

Especially when it's hard.

[captainlordauditor]

blood is not kosher

assuming vampires breathe, and are therefore alive, what do they do

[animatedamerican]

If they’re alive and they need it to survive, it’s permitted (provided they don’t kill people in so doing).

If they’re not alive, halacha doesn’t apply to them.

Either way, there is no reasonable halachic restriction on a vampire drinking blood.

[captainlordauditor]

but would it need to be from a kosher animal can they drink, like, dolphin blood

[animatedamerican]

Okay now that gets interesting and I would want to actually ask a rabbi whether that would be a thing.  like, if one must consume the blood of living things to survive, does it make a difference whether one limits it to the blood of kosher animals or not.  I could see it being ruled either way.  (I would think if there is only one type of blood one can metabolize or if only one type of blood is available, one can consume it regardless.)

[acleverforgery]

I remember learning that human blood (not sure about animal blood) is permissible to consume if it has not been “poresh” (”separated”) from the body (in the context of “if you cut your lip or your finger and immediately and instinctively put it in your mouth, you don’t have to spit out the blood”).

So 

Drinking blood out of a goblet or vacuum-sealed bag would be assur, but sinking your teeth into someone and drinking directly (so that the blood never touches the air or is in a vessel) would be okay.

[animatedamerican]

I know that applies to one’s own blood, but I don’t know if the principle applies to someone else’s.  But it may count as a possible precedent!

[alternativetodiscourse]

Okay, so I asked my rabbi about this (… yes, my actual rabbi). Short answer, @fenrisesque​, is that the ideal situation is for the vampire to intravenously ingest blood that was donated by a human in order to stay alive, assuming that donation doesn’t kill the person. If homemade intravenously doesn’t work, then storebought oral ingestion is fine too. This applies whether or not the vampire can drink animal blood. Long answer, which I find fascinating but is long so under a cut:

Keep reading

[iregulargremlin]

Stuff like this is why I love Judaism

[robot-roadtrip-rants]

This. This is what Judaism is for. This is my people.

[labelma]

A fun fact about me is that I can trace my family lineage (on my mother’s side) back to Rashi, and according to rabbinic tradition, Rashi could trace his lineage to King David. While this means I’m ineligible for the kingship of Israel (on account of being a descendant through my mother), I do however believe it gives me license to continue naming the gay fanfiction I write after King David’s poetry.

And you know what? I think Great Grandpa King David (was famously in love with his childhood best friend Jonathan) would be proud of me 🫡