#jewish thought

[tikkunolamresistance]

As a heads up, the Western propaganda machine is going to be much worse. Now that there's confirmation that South Africa are preparing to take Britain and the United States to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for complicity in the State of Israel’s war crimes and genocide on Gaza- we think that it's important to note that it's almost like clockwork that the propaganda machine will skyrocket with new anti-Palestinian resistance defamation and unfounded allegations levied to further hostility within our already divided communities.

Read more on South Africa's proposal here:

News sourced from Anadolu Ajansı.

It’s a no-brainer that we’ll see a sharp rise in pro-Israel propaganda, and it’s highly likely that there’ll be a crackdown on pro-Palestinian and anti-Zionist rallying. You see, the Capitalist hegemony is almost ridiculously predictable once you figure out how it functions and operates; the historical cycle of committing atrocities and subsequently excusing themselves with absurd lies of brainwashing propaganda. The United States and United Kingdom will certainly not take kindly to South Africa's intention to charge them in this international lawsuit- thus they will need a retaliation that gains more favour for them from the general public.

Expect more confounded accusations of antisemitism and Jew-hatred imposed on celebrities, organisations, journalists, even nations. Expect more fascist laws passed to silence Palestinian resistance support, and more Islamophobic fear-mongering.

Propaganda is not always easy to spot and deconstruct, so be sure to stay vigilant and think critically in context of current events. However the Imperial core are growing weaker, with such incredible numbers, millions of people, showing support to Palestine internationally- we are no longer easily fooled by their usual tactics. In the putrid face of propaganda, the Palestinian resistance persists.

#free palestine #palestine #anti capitalism #anti imperialism #jumblr #jewish thought #tikkun olam #jewish antizionism #jews for palestine #propaganda machine

[mental-mona]

One of Judaism’s most distinctive and challenging ideas is its ethics of responsibility, the idea that God invites us to become, in the rabbinic phrase, his ‘partners in the world of creation’. The God who created the world in love calls on us to create in love. The God who gave us the gift of freedom asks us to use it to honour and enhance the freedom of others.

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z"tl, To Heal a Fractured World, p.3

#rabbi lord jonathan sacks #judaism #jewish theology #jewish thought #ethics of responsibility #jumblr

[fromgoy2joy]

I think it’s good to use your platform to advocate. I think it’s valiant to call for things, like a ceasefire, earnestly and in the pursuit of peace for all.

I will never not be bitter that a Jewish college student has to constantly be on guard of how their very feelings of being unsafe are seen as “genocidal” while all a famous person has to do to be accepted is wear a small pin on a designer dress.

#fromgoy2joy thoughts #jumblr #jewish #jewish convert #jewblr #jewish tumblr #tw antisemtism #antisemitism #Oscars and Jewish people #jewish thought

[matan4il]

Hi, all! I know I have some asks to reply to and I will, but this weekend is Rosh Ha'Shana, the Jewish New Year, and I will be with my family. I hope you can be patient with me until I can reply to you.

To all Jews who see this: may a year and its curses end, may a year and its blessings begin.

As we watch antisemitism rise, as hatred in general intensifies, I am going to choose to intensify my love. I will love you, my fellow Jews, more than ever, and I will love you, my fellow humans, more than ever. May we all find the blessing that exists in each day.

Adding a Yemenite Jewish traditional song for Rosh Ha'Shana performed in a modern (and lovely IMO) arrangement. Shana tova u'metuka!

#personal #judaism #jewish #jew #jews #jumblr #frumblr #rosh hashanah #antisemitism #jewish music #music #jew stuff #jewish stuff #jewish culture #jewish things #jewish thought #jewish tradition #love is the answer #Youtube

[gay-jewish-bucky]

Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.

— Rabbi Rami Shapiro, Wisdom of the Sages

#jumblr #jewish #judaism #social justice #jewish thought #this has wide applicability

[thejewitches]

#jewish #jewitches #judaism #jumblr #rebbe #the rebbe #jewish thought

[jewishthings]

From Emunah Affirmations on Instagram

#jewish #judaism #jumblr #israel #jew stuff #jews and judaism #jew #jewish thought #torah #israel forever #antisemitism #shabbat #good week #jews #idf #jerusalem #jewish art #amisraelchai #passover #pesach #chag sameach #affirmations

[thatjewishzionistscout]

Bro, I am so tired of seeing posts like “Punch a Nazi” or “I hate Nazis” and having to wonder if,

This person means it in a way that they would punch any Nazi, no matter the skin color, religion, or political affiliation,

Or

If they would only punch old white conservative Christian men Nazis, and that they ignore or don’t care about any other Nazis.

#jumblr #jewblr #jewish tumblr #jewish things #jewish tag #jewish thought #the jews are tired #like bro I shouldn’t have to wonder #antisemitism #punch a Nazi #that should mean all Nazis even brown Palestinians Muslims

[magnetothemagnificent]

Hi first off, I love your blog thank you for creating it and making it such a welcoming space!

"Everything happens for a reason" Is a statement ive really struggled with and wanted to hear your thoughts on. Thank you!

First off, whether someone believes in Divine Providence or not, it is inappropriate for them to say "everything happens for a reason" so someone who is going through a hardship.

Hashgacha Pratit is a concept in Judaism that is often translated as "Divine Providence", and what this term means has a wide spectrum of interpretation across Jewish thought. Some interpret it as meaning that "everything happens for a reason", or "actions have consquences, good or bad", or "there is a divine plan", or "G-d is there to catch you if you mess up", or "there are no coincidences", etc. As with most concepts in Judaism, there's no consensus on the meaning.

I found a really interesting article on the subject, which defines Hashgacha Pratit as "partaking in Divine overflow"- thus having a bit more of G-d's interference in life than normal, rather than G-d pulling the strings for every aspect of life. Honestly it's hard for me to describe this article without suggesting that you read it yourself, so here it is:

Personally, I see Hashgacha Pratit as when there are little coincidences in life where paths coincide or one deviation from the norm leads to something better. It helps me with my anxiety in regards to being very rigid in my plans and breaking down when something unexpected happens- because sometimes, deviations from the plan are good in the end.

But again, regardless, "everything happens for a reason" should never be weaponized against people who are suffering. It's not helpful and not something anyone wants to hear.

#jumblr #judaism #theology #jewish thought #rambam #religion

[insane-control-room]

dreams sometimes dont come to life

A short essay on why Buddy Lewek's characterization was the worst thing to happen to me during all my time of loving Bendy and the Ink Machine.

My excitement for DTCL was a simmering, cautious hope. 

A Jewish character? In a period right after WW2? Could there be, for once, proper religious representation in the media? My mind was full of ideas for how DTCL could approach his Yiddishkeit, how easy it would be for them! His name is Daniel? Have a cute little scene where he corrects someone’s pronunciation from DAN-iel to dah-NI-el. Negotiating to not work on Saturday, or feeling guilty or conflicted over it. Bringing home a nice tichel for his mother, who as a seamstress would appreciate fine fabric craftsmanship. Yiddish falling into conversation. A Rabbi mentor to show the difference between the two environments he was in. There were so many wonderful options, but I knew not to hope too hard. 

Just like the JDS itself, it was too good to be true. 

I had not read the book until today, because I had been gut punched by the information my friends had given me that there was hardly any mention of his Jewishness at all. The bite was worsened by it’s advertizing as a Jewish character. Which… barely.

The reality of the book hurt.

A lot.

So much so that it is what turned me away from the canon lore at all. 

I could not even read it because I did not want my disappointment to be worse, as it already stung like a wasp had managed to get into my heart. So for three years, this has just been sitting on my mind. This little nagging feeling of loss. The loss of something I never should have even hoped for.

But hey, we all want to be represented. 

It’s only so disappointing when it's simply a brownie card. 

I will go in order of the book of how it is written, and only focus on the Jewish side of things, despite my qualms with the writing itself as well, and other historical inaccuracies, and of those there are many. Nor will I mention my personal opinions on ‘shoulds and woulds’ of the personality of a Yid. No matter how hard that is for my critical mind. 

Right off the bat, we’re treated to the lovely Lower East Side! I have personal friends whose family is from that location during that time period, back when it was a whopping 70% Jewish population. Funnily enough, there is not a single reference to any synagogues or Yeshivot or klezmer bands or gemachs or… anything that was very prevalent in the area. In fact, it subtly pushes the whole concept of “Dirty Jew” in a way that tries to sugarcoat it with “look at how unfortunate Buddy’s situation is!” instead of the actual perceptions that have for so long followed the footsteps of almost any Jewish person. Antisemitism forced many Jews in the 1880s to move into slum like areas, and the entire conception had evolved from such a constricted environment. It is true that hygiene was an issue, however, when you take thousands of vastly poor, largely unsecularly educated, mass immigrants and try to cram them all in one place because no one could afford to travel- you get a lack of cleanliness. Such is life. The fact that the book does not touch on the reason aside from a causal reference that the people there were hard workers about a hundred pages later leans even heavier into that assumption. 

Assuming that Mr. Schwartz was Jewish (or even not) the garment industry of the time would not have cared if a delivery boy would have quit. There was, again, a massive influx of fresh and desperate workers who would work for little wages and long hours. It bothered me because one is to assume Mr. Schwartz was Jewish due to the time period and how prevalent Jews are in the garment industry, especially historically. During this time period especially, Jewish disunion in said industry were at record highs, so one person quitting would mean nothing. There would always be another person to fill the gap… and likely at a lower wage. 

Buddy’s knowledge of the war is also constantly shifting and disturbing in the way that it glosses over the Holocaust part of the Holocaust. He mentions that he knows about the War, hell, his father died in it, but he makes no reference to knowing why. In every single Jewish community, religious or otherwise, the Holocaust was a major issue. People excused FDR’s inaction due to the good he was giving to Jews already in America. Everyone knew about what was going on, even little kids. There is no reason he should be surprised about his Grandfather’s arrival. There is no reason that he would recognize his Grandfather’s accent, either, as there is no mention of anyone else with such an accent. As a child of immigrants, I cannot hear their accents, and that’s something I have noticed a lot of other first generation Americans do as well. So even if Buddy’s mother had a Polish accent, then it is still very unlikely that he would have recognized it. On the term of Grandfathers, how the hell does he not know the term Zeyde living in a community that, even today, dominantly speaks Yiddish? Especially considering the fact that Zeyde is a word that any schmuck off the street would know. 

Let’s consider Buddy’s nickname now. As Dot mentions, yes, Danny (pronounced dah-NI) or Dan would be more likely. But it’s because he was a little helper! Surely nicknames like Buddy would suit that purpose well! If he had been purely Polish, then maybe. But because he is a Yid in the LES, that is a hard no. The nickname would have been Ah klineh Menchie. A mensch is a boy that is very well mannered and always looking to help. Menchie is a very common nickname for such a personality even today. Being called “Buddy” makes no sense in such a community. 

The word “Jew” is not used in the book at all. There are only two uses of the word “Jewish”, all the way on page one hundred. Removing this from the book would have changed nothing. In fact, I would have found it a far more enjoyable read, reminding people that it was not just Jews who had been massacred and murdered in the camps. It would have gotten rid of the question. 

The question.

That question. 

“You’re Jewish, right?”

First and foremost, due to Buddy’s portrayal, Dot had absolutely no reason to assume that he was Jewish. Everyone knew that all those against the Nazis were put into the camps or simply murdered. This is what nailed the coffin shut for me. I wish they would have made him Polish, and Polish alone. I already knew what to expect thanks to my friend’s warning three years prior, but I still could not help but feel utter disappointment and hurt with Buddy’s defensive response. Defensive. This trait would not come up in Jews for many more years since the 1880s, all the way until the 1980s. As a frankly completely non Jewish boy who happens to have Jewish blood, he would have shrugged it off. Instead, the book uses both mentions of, not even Judaism, but Jewishness, to bring up antisemitism in a historically inaccurate and nauseating way. No Jewish pride. No casual agreement. Not even confusion before recognition. Defensive and angry. 

Soul crushing. My disappointment is immense and my lack of surprise is larger. 

Needless to say, my motivation to finish the book had been axed sharply, and the next chapter, chapter 10, was the last I managed to read with a critical eye, especially because it is the end of any possible hope. The rest of the book fails to have anything else historical or cultural of value. 

Buddy displays no Yiddishkeit. He does not wear a kippah, he does not wear tzitzit, he does not even recognize Yiddish. No kosher, no Shabbat, no chagim or zmanim. Hell, he eats out with Mr. Drew at a restaurant, and even if the steak somehow had been kosher, he eats cheesecake directly after. Nebach. No hashkafa at all.

The end of the chapter is what turned off my brain, however.

Using the term ‘Never again’ with said not kosher food. 

Well. 

Do I even have to explain how belittling that is? Do I have to say why this leaves me numb? Do I have to continue reading with thought, only for more pain?

Dai li. Enough for me. 

I finished the book. Of course I did. I haven’t left a book unfinished in years. 

The rest I read hollowly. There was nothing for me in it. It had an okay story, fine plot points, and tied into the game. More or less. Mainly just used the names and slapped on a BatIM sticker.

Dreams come to life, sometimes.

Not this time, Control. Keep dreaming. 

Thank you for reading this rant that has been on my chest for three years. 

#bendy and the ink machine #batim #batim opinion #jewish characters #jewish thought #jewish media portrayal #buddy batim #buddy lewek #dreams come to life #dtcl #garment industry #yiddishkeit #historical fiction #historical research #antisemitism #brownie carding

[tikkunolamresistance]

“How can you be Jewish and support Palestine???”

It’s easy really. Other than having a soul, it’s because when the Nazis had our people in ghettos, when we were sent to death camps, when we asked for help and nobody listened. We know what it’s like to be begging for someone to listen. Because we know what the pain of loss, of starvation, of losing your home, of being mocked and dehumanised and othered feels like. Because we know that no life is above anothers.

#free palestine #palestine #anti capitalism #anti imperialism #jumblr #judaism #jewish thought #israel #jewish #socialism #antizionism #jews for palestine #antizionists unite

[mental-mona]

Chanukah is about the freedom to be true to what we believe without denying the freedom of those who believe otherwise. It's about lighting our candle, while not threatening or being threatened by anyone else's candle.

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z"tl, From Optimism to Hope p.94

#chanukah #hannukah #hanukkah #rabbi lord jonathan sacks #judaism #jewish thought #jewish theology #jumblr

[fromgoy2joy]

Milk Cartons and the Question of Man

Today I bought a liter of milk. It was in one of those paper boxes, where you have to pinch the top inwards, making a triangular opening. I’m making it sound more complicated than it is, but I was able to open it with an unusual amount of ease as I poured it in to my 12 PM coffee.

It reminded me, suddenly, that for the past few months on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I’d been volunteering at an elementary school in the afternoons. Where kids from 5 to 7 would line up with their little milk cartons from the cafeteria, patiently waiting as I fumbled with each box. I’m not a very graceful person, and it took me a few dozen times to be able to open it properly without making a tear. But by the holiday party we had, by gosh could I open those milk boxes.

I’m not very clear and this message is very basic. But a key part of my religion will always be we learn from man- by helping others, by willing to be the person people will turn to with complete trust for even the most menial tasks, we learn to help ourselves.

So this isn’t about milk cartons- or at least it mostly isn’t. GD doesn’t *seem* to give us much in the modern day- no parting of the Red Sea, no bread from heaven- but He certainly has given us each other.

#hope you like my title #fromgoy2joy thoughts #jumblr #jewish #jewish convert #jewblr #jewish tumblr #jewish thought #judaism #judaism stuff

[matan4il]

Jewish Representation

I’ve been having a lot of thoughts about Jewish representation in film and on TV for a long while, and I guess I’m finally at the point where I want to write down some of them.

It wasn’t immediately obvious to me, but something that I’ve come to notice over the years is that Jewish representation in the US (and to whatever degree I got to see Jewish rep in film and TV from other countries, such as the UK) falls into one of two categories (when it even exists):

The “positive” Jewish rep: This is when a Jewish character is the one we’re rooting for, usually a protagonist or a part of the main cast. They’re generally likable. The most notable thing about this is that they are never too Jewish. They don’t use Jewish terms too often, Jewish tradition isn’t too present in their lives, they are not guided nor shaped by Jewish thought and values. The degree to which the audience is even aware the character is Jewish may vary: it can be more present or it can be something people aren’t aware of almost at all in canon. IMO Jake Peralta from Brooklyn 99 is on the “more present” end of this spectrum, while Rachel Green from Friends is someone that I learned just a couple of years ago was meant to be Jewish. From an interview with one of the Jewish show creators. You can argue that it’s implied on screen that she’s Jewish, but why is it never said? Why isn’t it present in any way? We meet her parents, we meet both of her sisters. We see her almost getting married in s1, getting drunk married in the s5 finale. We see her talking about her dream wedding to Ross (who’s also Jewish) and nothing in her description in any way relates to any Jewish traditions she’d like the ceremony to include. We also see her make the decision to have a child with Ross, and again there’s not a single word expressed related to possibly wanting to educate the kid as a Jew, wanting to pass on to Emma Jewish traditions, etc.

The “negative” Jewish rep: This is when either the character itself is Jewish and in some way repulsive or reprehensible, or the situation the character is in is repulsive or reprehensible. Unlike with the “positive” Jewish rep, you can’t miss the Jewish identity/context in the “negative” version. If we’re talking about the character itself being repulsive or reprehensible, the spectrum runs between being utterly annoying and nerdy (many times the annoyance and repulsion other characters feel towards this Jewish character is treated as a comic relief), to downright creepy or even worse. In these cases, the character will be very explicitly Jewish, for example they will use Jewish terms a lot, they will reference Jewish traditions quite often, and they will sometimes even have very explicitly Jewish names. More often than not, they will also be played by a Jewish actor (usually with a more stereotypical “Jewish look.” For example, on Glee, Diana Agron and Lea Michele are both Jewish, but it’s Lea who’s cast as Rachel, the explicitly Jewish character who starts out being incredibly annoying and overbearing, even immoral at times during s1, while Diana is cast as the WASP cheerleader Quinn. On the same theme, actors are more “known” to be Jewish when they play comedic characters than when they are romantic leads. Comedic actors like Andy Samberg, Larry David and David Schwimmer are more often known as being Jewish than people like Harrison Ford. And I can’t think of a single explicitly canonically Jewish character that Ford has played).

If it’s the situation that’s repulsive or reprehensible, we’re usually talking about one of two scenarios: either we’re following a character in the ultra-orthodox community where being Jewish is depicted as being oppressed by one’s own people, or we’re watching a story from the Holocaust, when being Jewish proved to be exceptionally dangerous.

I wanna make it clear, none of these is problematic in itself. Jews are just like everyone else, no better and no worse, so some Jews will be less connected to their Jewish identity. Some Jews will be annoying, or even creepy. Some Jews will very much suffer within their ultra-orthodox communities and will feel oppressed by them. And representing the Holocaust is absolutely vital. It’s the fact that there’s nothing else, nothing between being hardly-Jewish and being very-Jewish-but-it’s-bad-news, that’s the problem. Where are the characters who are proudly Jewish and who find it important to be, who actively engage in being Jewish, who are enriched by being Jewish, and we still cheer for them? The ones whose weddings are held under a Hupa? The ones for whom their Jewish values matter and shape their decisions? The ones who enjoy Jewish food and Jewish culture? Who love celebrating Jewish holidays and find pleasure in getting to know Jewish history? The ones for whom being Jewish isn’t just a throwaway joke about embarrassing stuff that happened at their bar/bat mitzvah? Where are the Jews who talk about it being important to them (not to their “outdated / narrow-minded” parents) to pass on their Jewish heritage to their kids? Without becoming a caricature or the target for mockery? (and not just in one episode out of 235 over the course of ten seasons...) There’s so many Jews like that in real life. People who occupy this huge spectrum of Jewish existence and experience. Why do they hardly exist on our screens?

And maybe this will sound a bit self-contradicting, but... why do we almost never hear about antisemitism outside of the Holocaust and Nazis? I know, I know, this would seem to easily fit into the “negative” Jewish representation, and yet I’m bringing it out because it seems like such a glaring omission to me that I have to wonder about it. If we don’t represent this, it makes it seem as if antisemitism had died at the end of WWII. It didn’t. By erasing current antisemitism in its many different forms, there’s an implication that unlike other minorities, Jews aren’t that impacted by bias against them. But antisemitism is on the rise globally. This trend isn’t even new. That does impact Jews. But you wouldn’t know it from watching Jews on screen. Which also deprives us from seeing Jews being empowered by fighting back against current antisemitism, who look this hatred straight in the eyes and choose their Jewish identity. Narratives about the Holocaust are often stripped of that because the magnitude of destruction was so great, that simply staying alive is the triumph. We hardly see the triumph over anti-Jewish hate that comes from lovingly embracing one’s own identity, history, community and values. Think about the sense of triumph delivered by telling the story of a girl overcoming sexist obstacles and learning to be proud of who she is. We miss out on that with Jewish characters, in addition to missing out on telling the real stories of current Jewish lives and the hardships they face for being Jewish. When I guide Jewish families in our Holocaust museum, you have no idea how many stories about contemporary antisemitism I hear. For better and for worse, this is a significant part of the Jewish experience of many, it should be represented, and it isn’t.

Whether people (audiences and creators alike) realize it or not, I think the sum of all the parts that have been making up this Jewish representation for decades is, “It’s okay that you’re a Jew. Just don’t be too Jewish.” That’s not real acceptance. It’s equivalent to telling gay people it’s fine to be gay, as long as they’re not being gay in public. It’s the same as having people of Latin American descent in a movie or a show, without giving any real presence or meaning to their culture (other than making quinceañera jokes). And when it comes to this issue with Jewish rep, it goes unnoticed. I think that’s unintentionally harmful. And because it’s so unnoticed, it also goes unchecked. Which is a part of the problem, we can’t make something better when we’re not even aware it is currently wrong.

#jew #jumblr #frumblr #jewish #jew stuff #judaism #jews #jewish representation #jewish rep #social justice #jewish movies #jewish films #jewish cinema #jewish tv #jewish things #jewish tumblr #jewish thought #jewish thoughts #jewish film #jr

[marlowe1-blog]

Job Chapter 28

Wisdom

I feel like Job is going to contradict this statement

And he said to the human race,     “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,     and to shun evil is understanding.”

The rest of this chapter is rather beautiful. Where does wisdom come from. Iyov really goes into a major discourse on how humanity digs into the earth for all the metals, all the diamonds. Food comes from the ground.

It sounds like a very humanist chapter. Like Job is praising humanity for being able to find sapphires, grow food and dig into the earth.

But wisdom? How the fuck do you find that? It's not like you can just go exploring. It's not in the ocean. It's not in the sea. You can't buy it. "A pouch of wisdom is better than rubies."

It's an interesting question since there's an entire book of the Bible dedicated to the aphorisms of the society (Proverbs) and then a book of wisdom when you understand that life isn't about all the nice sayings (Qoheleth). And of course, the section of the Bible (Tanakh) is calls Kethuvim so all of it is considered Wisdom (basically Wisdom is everything that isn't Torah or Prophets. Prophets is history plus the Prophetic works - major and minor).

And unlike in Dungeons & Dragons, intelligence and wisdom tend to be inversely proportional. Grow up gifted and you think you know everything. That is the opposite of wisdom.

But yeah, G-d makes rain and wisdom. G-d knows everything, so fear G-d. What does that mean on a symbolic level? Fear everything or fear whatever makes the rain and the waters.

Fear G-d. Because G-d is beyond the rest. If you fear G-d, you don't have to fear anything else - not fire, murder or zombies. G-d is running things.

Also, it's ironic in the context of this book since G-d can always fuck with you, so you better fear g-d.

#Job #The Book of Job #wisdom #G-d #Judaism #Jewish #Jewish thought #monsters #diamonds #pearls #iron #bronze #nubia #topaz #silver #ophir #gold #rain #winds #natural world

[thejewitches]

The Kotzker Rebbe compared death to 'moving from one home to another'

Read about death in Judaism

#jewish #judaism #jumblr #death #theology #jewish theology #religion #jewish thought #jewish wisdom #yiddish wisdom