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The Jewish Community Center

Yeshuasdaughter

You know, that one lady we met that one time.
V.I.P Member
First of all, I would like to state that this thread is not the place for preaching or conversion.

I'd like to create a thread for people of Jewish ancestry to schmooze and pass around the challah. Also welcome at my humble Shabbat meal, are Goyim (Gentiles) who kvell (obsess proudly) over Jewish culture or religion.

I guess I could be called a Jew, under the Law of Return, because my mother's mother's mother's mother were all Jewish, but the rest of my ancestry is all British, German, etc. And the culture I grew up in is reflected in that. Although we did have some Yiddish words and traditions from Alsatian Jewry. So I just consider myself part Jewish.

Anyway, enough talk about religion! I'm hoping this will be a nice place to get to know one another.
 
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When i saw the title I just thought you were going to talk about your local JCC lol

I am Jewish and I kinda do my own thing? I love the rituals and traditions but there is a lot that makes my OCD flare up and at least for me don't fit in my life in a healthy way. So I take the spirt of it and find ways that connect me without mentally harming me.

Shabbos means I don't clean or cook or get into internet debates or use social media (twitter, instagram, tiktok etc), I won't try to solve problems or think too hard just to rest really. But within the 39 prohibited activities there are things I do that are restful for me. Just the way I fidget tends to include making two loops and tying and untying but meltdowns are not good for shabbos. Grocery stores are also one of the most restful places for me and though that tends to be a sunday thing I won't turn it down on saturday if it comes up . I will pray and reflect and rest. It is a time every week where I don't have to exist for others. Yeah my view is kinda convoluted (and would come across more clearly if I was not so tired and also was not so stressed the whole day) but it works for me and the mental part is still there I have just found guidelines that don't feed into my mental illness(es). (I will also turn on/off lights I spend too much time in my room for that to be in anyway practical)

That's kinda how I do all of it.
After walking away entirely at 11 I feel more Jewish than ever. Turns out I need accommodations everywhere lol. But again I feel connected and I feel like I have a good healthy relationship with religion now and for that I am grateful.

(Just like the OP states not a place for preaching. You can speak for yourself of what you do or how you think but not for anyone else! <3)
 
I follow Torah best as I can but I also know that it is not me but Yeshua in me which will get the final victory. It will be his blood not mine.
 
Secular humanist Jew who grew up with a different religion (and Yiddish!) but later found traces of Judaism in my family history -- including my father's badly anglicized surname. Probably my great-grandmother also, I found her maiden name on a Sefardic surname list. I now belong to a Reconstructionist shul that is weirdly accepting of me. They're a bit heavy on the Hebrew and the G-d talk, but highly inclusive and gender-neutral overall.

Like others have said, I do my own thing and usually choose to disengage from negativity, social media, and things involving too much work. However, I have kids and elderly, so that last part is "in moderation." I love the sound of Hebrew, I find it very comforting -- but pronouncing it for too long just tangles my brain up. Likewise focusing on an external male god, serious issues with that -- but that's why I'm secular. I love the connections of seasons, cycles, stories, renewal, change, transformation, healing, how it all flows together. Judaism is always teaching me something new, inspiring me. It gives me strength and hope, so I can give to others also. To me it's more a way of life and mindset than a religion. It's how I live, not a belief system.

Shavua Tov
Shula
 
What are your plans for the High Holy Days?
This is sad so I am sorry but I will be touring the school I might go to. I need to get in as fast as I can and this was when they were open. I have never missed a rosh hashanah but I will be back for yom kippur at least and that good. I hope to maybe listen to some of a service that is being streamed or pray on my own.
 
What are your thoughts on the mitzvah of the Kol Nidre prayer? I am trying to prepare myself for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but I always feel like I miss the mark. I always hold onto things I swear to release myself from. Could holding onto past trauma or holding on to anger count? Could someone please explain?
 
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What are your thoughts on the mitzvot of the Kol Nidre prayer? I am trying to prepare myself for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but I always feel like I miss the mark. I always hold onto things I swear to release myself from. Could holding onto past trauma or holding on to anger count? Could someone please explain?

I've been working on this a lot over the years. I'm a HuJew (humanist Jew), so I have a different approach, maybe. I've learned to accept for myself that wounds and anger will heal with time, reflection, and meditation/self-care/acknowledgement. That it can't be rushed, and it's not a one-shot moment. But it does heal, it can be slow, and sometimes I just notice it's gone. Even some pain that i swore would never end. Having compassion for ourselves is also a mitzvah/mitzvot.
 
I've been working on this a lot over the years. I'm a HuJew (humanist Jew), so I have a different approach, maybe. I've learned to accept for myself that wounds and anger will heal with time, reflection, and meditation/self-care/acknowledgement. That it can't be rushed, and it's not a one-shot moment. But it does heal, it can be slow, and sometimes I just notice it's gone. Even some pain that i swore would never end. Having compassion for ourselves is also a mitzvah/mitzvot.
This is so kind and encouraging. Thank you.
 
We are watching a service from river shabbat, for Sabbath yesterday the kids made shofars. We also bought the fall feasts activity book from bible pathway adventures that the kids will do. Other than that and trying to learn to blow a real shofar we will treat Trumpets like a Sabbath Day.
 
I've been working on this a lot over the years. I'm a HuJew (humanist Jew), so I have a different approach, maybe. I've learned to accept for myself that wounds and anger will heal with time, reflection, and meditation/self-care/acknowledgement. That it can't be rushed, and it's not a one-shot moment. But it does heal, it can be slow, and sometimes I just notice it's gone. Even some pain that i swore would never end. Having compassion for ourselves is also a mitzvah/mitzvot.
I'm very neurologically autistic !may I ask how do people who have no faith at all in the God of Avraham Yitzak and Yaacov think they are Jewish ?from reading Torah this is what I memorised: don't take foreign wives (think that means non believing wives)and if you don't live by the Torah praying certain amount of times a day, I'm not Jewish at all so I just don't have the in to the world of judaism! thanks!
 
!may I ask how do people who have no faith at all in the God of Avraham Yitzak and Yaacov think they are Jewish ?from reading Torah this is what I memorised: don't take foreign wives (think that means non believing wives)and if you don't live by the Torah praying certain amount of times a day, I'm not Jewish at all so I just don't have the in to the world of judaism! thanks!

Take a look at Secular Humanistic Jews, Jew Belong, and also Secular Synagogue (among others). There are many of us, this is not unusual at all. SHJ (dot) org, Jew Belong (dot) com, and secular synagogue (dot) org are all active and growing organizations that are dedicated to Jewish people (and converts, and "maybe's") who are atheist, secular, agnostic, post-denominational, no-denominational, questioning, etc. Sorry for the links, this is only to help answer your questions. There is no "one" way to do Judaism.
 
I'm very neurologically autistic !may I ask how do people who have no faith at all in the God of Avraham Yitzak and Yaacov think they are Jewish ?from reading Torah this is what I memorised: don't take foreign wives (think that means non believing wives)and if you don't live by the Torah praying certain amount of times a day, I'm not Jewish at all so I just don't have the in to the world of judaism! thanks!
Jewish is a race, an identity, and a religion.
 
Take a look at Secular Humanistic Jews, Jew Belong, and also Secular Synagogue (among others). There are many of us, this is not unusual at all. SHJ (dot) org, Jew Belong (dot) com, and secular synagogue (dot) org are all active and growing organizations that are dedicated to Jewish people (and converts, and "maybe's") who are atheist, secular, agnostic, post-denominational, no-denominational, questioning, etc. Sorry for the links, this is only to help answer your questions. There is no "one" way to do Judaism.
Do you pray and read Torah I'm not very perceptive!
 
I just learned if you go to Israel today and you tell people happy Yom Terauh most will not know what your talking about that is how far we have strayed.
 
I would describe myself as Jew-ish. I grew up Jewish, went to an Orthodox Jewish primary school, but I had no choice but to reject what I felt as indoctrination before I ever finished it.

When I lived in Israel after I became an adult, on three different kibbutzim, none of which were religious, I felt a part of the overall 'family', and the feeling of coming home when I first arrived was strong. The majority of Jews I encountered would be better described as secular, and yet they were no less Jewish as far as I was concerned.

I had a conversation with an Orthodox rabbi last year, and for the most part, just as I have found with any true believer, genuine and sincere words came out of him. But at some point the conversation could go no further, because while I could understand the comfort that comes from the bubble of belief, something I was unable to appreciate as a kid, so he had no real understanding of what it was like to live in the world as a lone secular Jew. Without community or congregation.

I also had the chance to attend an orthodox religious service last year in London. In a converted pub of all places. While I was completely unfamiliar with the service ( last time I'd been in a shule was for my barmitzvah 44 years ago), and made no attempt to participate other than to be present and allow the service to happen around me, I knew I would not be back, as it felt like there was too much rigidity for me in holding onto the past and repeating it constantly, and not allowing a shift to take place that would allow for a more modern approach. I understand why that would never happen, and why it needs a breakaway aspect to accommodate that. Tradition!!!

I do love watching the film 'Fiddler on the Roof'. It always brings tears to my eyes.
 
Thanks I don't want to annoy people but my perception over the last 14 years has become very very limited I think if I hadn't of been ill I might have understood hujew but after the infection then panic disorder I'm like a balloon just as empty
 
I just learned if you go to Israel today and you tell people happy Yom Terauh most will not know what your talking about that is how far we have strayed.
Interesting you say that! as I watching someone asking questions about 9\11 on a pavement in California, the people were categorised as millennials and very few! had any idea what he was asking .
 
Thanks I don't want to annoy people but my perception over the last 14 years has become very very limited

I'm not annoyed. I gave a short answer because you asked a complicated question. There was no way to answer your question in this forum (or anywhere, really) in a concise, linear fashion, and without people arguing over it. So, I just said yes. You're fine -- the subject is complex. However, the subject of your question is outside the scope of this forum, but is sometimes debated on some Jewish forums.
 

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