Judaism and Non-Jews
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Reiki
Is the practice of Reiki permitted? According to the International Center for Reiki Training (reiki.org), “While Reiki is spiritual in nature, it is not a religion. It has no dogma, and there is nothing you must believe in order to…
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Proselytizing
What is the Jewish perspective on proselytizing? Is there a written law, or an accepted law that Jews are not a missionary people (although I know that we once were.) What caused the change, and why do we maintain this…
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Matrilineal Descent, Source
Why doesn’t the father determine the religion of the son? The Talmudic and Biblical sources for matrilineal descent is: Mishnah (Kiddushin 3:12), which says that the child of a gentile woman is like her. This is derived from the passage…
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View of Non-Jews
Can you explain how Jews view Christians, especially from the standpoint of an afterlife? Thank you for your time. We believe that the righteous all have a share in the World to Come, regardless of birth. For a non-Jew, the…
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Converting
Is there somewhere that I can find out exactly how to convert to Judaism? Thank you for your time. To read up on Orthodox conversion, I recommend starting with a book like To Be a Jew by Chaim Donin, Becoming…
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Save the Jew or the NonJew?
If a both a Jew and a non-Jew were drowning in a lake (they do not differ in any other respect), are you obliged to save the Jew? If all things are indeed equal and there is no option of…
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Respect for Converts
What is the proper response to people who refer to converts as converts and imply a second-class status? Some people insist on making this distinction regardless of the length of time since the conversion. I get angry but do not…
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Maternal Judaism
My father’s side of the family is jewish. My mother was Christian. Why is the mother’s faith the predominant predictor of naturalized religion? In other words, why can’t I consider myself a jew? Is there strict doctrine that says your…
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Dealing With Missionaries
Also, if you can give me some advice on how to deal with people who try to convert you. For some reason in my life I am constantly being approached by Christian missionaries who want to convert me. Usually I…