swords-and-hashem

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may rabbi jonathan sacks’s memory be a blessing

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frum girl fall! frum girl fall! frum girl fall!

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it’s my hebrew birthday today (14 tishrei). I can’t wait to see what new experiences and mitzvot the next year of my life brings

#jumblr #judaism #jew #jewish #queer jews #yehudim #jewish wlw #hebrew birthday

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Let the Good in me connect with the good in others, until the world is transformed through the compelling power of love. - Rabbi Nachman of Breslov

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Sheri Dinardi

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gmar chatima tovah to everyone observing yom kippur! i hope you have a meaningful day and a safe and easy fast if you choose to fast ❤️

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you cant do kaballah if youre not jewish.

you cant wear a tallit if youre not jewish.

you cannot hold a passover seder if youre not jewish.

you cannot celebrate yom kippur if you are not jewish.

the tanakh ('old testament') is about jews and its commandments are for jews.

you cant practice judaism if youre not jewish because judaism is meaningless if you are not part of the jewish people.

our traditions arent here to make you look more interesting or ✨exotic✨.

fuck you.

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forever not going to get over @violetforest buying one of my designs ahdjsjsj 🥺🥺

#she’s so amazing and sweet aaaa #literally so kind #judaism

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Iranian ceramic tile depicting a Jewish woman.

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Shoutout to all the patrilineal Jews.

Shoutout to all ethnic Jews who have never been particularly religious.

Shoutout the the ethnic Jews who were raised in a secular home and have now decided to explore Judiasm as a religion.

You are all valid, and you aren’t any less Jewish for it.

Goyim can reblog, just don’t add anything.

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Something that drives me crazy about bad analysis of other religions is when outsiders assume that there isn't an explanation for the more fantastical or mystic aspects of the religion, like religious people are just dumb and have never thought about that.

The way more interesting questions are: what is the explanation? What does that explanation mean and do within the confines of that theological framework? What does it do for the people who believe it? What does it propel those people to do to the people who don't?

It's not about whether you believe it, but rather what the people who do find it spiritually meaningful get out of it, and who (if anyone) it hurts, and how, and why.

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September 19, 2020 - 1 Tishrei, 5781

It’s 5781!

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the Jewish year, and the anniversary of creation.

Observances of the holiday include the sounding of the shofar, a ram’s horn, baking the challah into a circular loaf to signify the cyclical nature of the year.

Greetings for the holiday include  “L’shanah tovah”—“To a good year,” and “G’mar chatimah tovah”—”May you be inscribed in the Book of Life”

Rosh Hashanah begins the High Holidays, which culminates in Yom Kippur, the day of atonement. Today also begins the Ten Days of Return during which Jewish people will begin repentance leading up to Yom Kippur.

L’shanah tovah!

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wait not the gematria for 5780 being “stay at home” and 5781 being “change”….. maybe everything will be okay

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Shana tova u’metuka / Good and sweet new year this Rosh Hashanah

(I recently learned griffins were of great symbolic importance to medieval German Jews and I want to bring them back)

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hi zo, i believe in Hashem but i find it incredibly difficult to not doubt, and to trust Hashem even though i've never met Hashem. i sometimes feel like i'm doing it all for nothing, or otherwise being skeptical which i feel bad about. do you have any advice for me?

 This might just be the most Jewish thing. Doubt is normal, in fact, it’s encouraged by our constant questioning of everything. But also, HaShem isn’t someone you meet. HaShem is One, meaning HaShem is part of everything, the Source. Think of it like this: do you ever have a moment where you think, “the universe will take care of it?” That is HaShem. “The Universe got her back for being mean”. That is HaShem. HaShem is everywhere.

There is also a story of two great Rabbis who fought through the night about whether or not HaShem actually exists. When the dawn came, they had decided that HaShem didn’t exist. One Rabbi stood and begun to put on teffilin. The other Rabbi said, “but didn’t we just agree that HaShem doesn’t exist?” so the Rabbi replied, “what does this have to do with HaShem?”

Many of our great scholars were atheists who believed that there was no HaShem, in any form or interpretation. The point of Judaism is not to believe, but to be a good person. Our doctrine centers on the idea that we must be good people, for our goodness brings more good to the world. Even if you do not believe in HaShem as the Creator of the Universe, our doctrine forces us to reconcile our actions, our beliefs, and our impact on the world. 

I hope this helps in some way.

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“The purpose of Jewish existence is not to eat Jewish foods, or to tell Jewish jokes, or to use Yiddish words. It is to fight evil and to reduce suffering in the world. It is a source of deep pain to me to recognize how few people know this.”

Telushkin

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a list of don'ts for goyim in regard to jews and jewishness

do not ever ever compare jews or a jewish person to vermin. i don’t care what the context is. it is an incredibly historically loaded thing

do not under any circumstances alter our magen david or call it something dirty or awful. it is a symbol of all jews, and if you call it something like “satanic”, you are hurting all jews

do not insert israel or palestine in conversations about jewishness or jews when it has nothing to do with either subject

do not blame the actions of israel on world jewry

do not think knowing a jew gives you authority on anything. having a jewish SO or friend gives you authority on nothing

do not think that your country does not have an antisemitism problem.

do not think that antisemitism is isolated to one region or one people

do not think that antisemitism today is harmless or dead or a “political tool”

do not ever source nazi/neonazi material for any of your social justice work. i don’t care how “spot on they are for this one issue”, if you do that, you are trash and your social activism is trash too.

do not celebrate our holidays because you think it would be a fun thing to do. would you think it’s fun or interesting to walk into a synagogue surrounded by cops on yom kippur, weak from fasting, knowing that your chances of experiencing violence on this holy day have increased a hundredfold because of your jewishness? 

do not respond to accusations of antisemitism with “i bet you’re a zionist”. 

do not ever speak over a jew on jewish identity. 

do not erase or ignore our suffering

do not call our genocide a white people’s genocide

do not use our genocide against us. genocide is never a lesson for the victim

do not forget the various genocides and suffering of jews outside of europe and the holocaust. 

do not forget that we are as subject to various -isms as gentiles. your social activism is not intersectional if you forget jews. 

do not forget the jewish history of various social movements

do not forget that we are a varied people—jews are never a monolith.