Messianics, especially in the One Law, Two House, and independent variety, tend to have poor knowledge of Judaism and Jewish culture, sadly. (And, no exaggeration, I really am the worst of the lot.)
I’d like to see that changed; our Master Yeshua was a Jew, his disciples were Jews, and the faith he practiced was, I am fully convinced, Judaism. We ought not be ignorant of this stuff, whatever variation of Messianic theology you adhere to.
To that end, I’m helping to get a great Jewish site off the ground: judaism.stackexchange.com
The site is a question-and-answer site. Each question and each answer can be voted on. Good answers rise to the top. For example, in the following image, the most up-voted question, marked as the answer by the person asking the question, has risen to the top, with other answers following:
The site is not Messianic, to be clear. It’s currently in beta form, with the potential for full release if things go well.
Here are some Q&As to pique your interest:
- Why are angelic icons not prominent in Judaism as they are in Christianity? Did you know that some Jews take issue with the traditional song Shalom Aleichem because it’s borderline praying to angels? I, too, have felt uncomfortable with that song; nice to know I’m not alone!
- Are there any Jewish people alive today who can identify themselves as coming from a particular tribe? This question contains 2 quotes from the New Testament to assert there was knowledge of tribal identity in the first century.
- Where did matrilineal descent come from? Is it true that this practice comes from the Roman period where gentile rape of Jewish women was prevalent? I add a few comments to the discussion, suggesting that it is a viable alternative viewpoint that membership in Israel can be traced through the father.
- Is it lawful to steal a thief's stolen goods? An amusing post that makes one think about the Torah-legality of taking the law into one’s own hands.
Personally, I’m blown away by some of the questions. Things are way over my head. It’s made me realize just how dumb I am. Hahah. Here’s to changing that.
Check it out! judaism.stackexchange.com
Good shabbat!