I know I said that the 10th would be my last day here, but seeing as I have nothing left to say, I bid ye farewell!!
Until we meet again Tumblr!!
velcroturnips:Gooseforever
I’m not sure if anyone even sees these backgrounds, but if anyone wants to use these feel free to use any of them, they all tile perfectly.
“A Traditional Jew keeps ALL the traditions”
As far as practice is concerned, the Traditional Jew is commited to 100% of the Torah. A Traditional Jew will keep all traditions without deviating one iota. Praying three times a day isn’t good enough, it has to be with a minyan. Being careful what to say and what not to say is also central to the tradition. Gossip is forbidden, and idle talk is frowned upon. Sexual practices are regulated, and any deviation is considered tantamount to pagan practices. The list continues, both on the positive and negative side. The Traditional Jew doesn’t reject the words of the Rabbis-he understands their importance. In fact, he realizes that without them, the Torah would not be understood. He also realizes that the Rabbis who derived the codes from Torah were G-dly people, totally committed to the words of Torah. They were living examples of Torah and its codes.
These are the fundamental principles of Traditional Judaism. Without them, one can not call oneself a Traditional Jew.
(“To Be Chasidic: A Contemporary Guide” By Rabbi Chaim Dalfin)
Do you think converts have a place in Judaism?
Without a doubt. I don’t consider them of a different status, in fact, I’ve said this before and I’ll always say it again, Geirim are on the level of the Yidden at Mattan Torah. When you’re born into Judaism, you’ve already got the Torah whether you like it or not, whereas a Ger gets to make a choice and say “This is what I want. This is for me, I happily and willingly accept the Torah and Hashem’s commandments.”
Growing up, my next-door neighbours were a Jewish family, a man from New York, Jordan, and his wife, Stella and their four children. Stella is a Japanese-American Jewish convert (along with two of her children whom she had prior to her conversion). Their family and our family were like one. She was like a second mother to me. NEVER EVER did the fact that she is a Giyores make any difference at all. If you’ve had a halachic conversion, and you adhere to the Torah, you’ve already attained a special place in Olam Haba.
If anyone says, Chas V’Shalom, that Gerim don’t belong, or that they are of lower status, or aren’t really Jews, then I say to you, “If you think that, then YOU don’t belong. YOU are of lower status, and YOU aren’t a Torah true Yid.”
