S_SH7+FAQ

Sam Hughes FAQs. 3) __**Do you think that animals would have rather lived and died or never lived?**__ I think that the animals should have lived and died rather than never lived, I think this because without some animals, the food chain in the world would collapse. All other creatures would die with the exception of the creatures at the bottom of the food chain. We humans, would die as well. To the animals point of view however, the animal may have rather never lived for its short, boring, painful life in human captivity. There is a way for these animals to have a worthy life by allowing them to roam freely, let them go outside as well. The business would make the same money. Also, it could support more jobs for people as well. People would watch the animals to make sure the animals don't get away. This would give some jobs to people.
 * Question || 2 Sentence Answer ||
 * 1) How can you be moral if you don't believe in God? || You can be moral if you don't believe in God because you can tell right from wrong from your own conscience. You don't have to be religious to know what is right and wrong. For example, I believe that murder is wrong and helping others is right, and I don't believe in God ||
 * 2) Difference between knowing and believing, || The Difference between knowing and believing is that knowing is being sure about something but believing is thinking that something is correct. ||

4) **How can you be Jewish if you don't believe in God?** You can be Jewish by sharing the same values and a similar culture, and by having a common set of experiences. Being Jewish means to value peace and equality as well as social justice. Also, all Jews have a blood tie. (All Jews, (other than people who converted) are all related). Being Jewish is not relevant to believing in God because if you are Jewish, you value freedom, and if you are free, you can believe what you want, and don't have to believe in God. Also, believing in God is just a small part of being a Jew, you don't have to believe in God to be a Jew, also the fact that Jews have been discriminated throughout history unifies us as Jews.

Short - Being a secular Jew means that you value peace, equality, freedom, and social justice, and that I am related to all Jews through genetics and history.

__**INTERVIEW WITH MYSELF**__- Sam Hughes

Sam Hughes WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR YOU TO BE JEWISH? For me, being Jewish is becoming part of the family line. It is being part of a community, or joining a team. Being Jewish means to care about and honor freedom, to fight for it. It means that I’m different, I am unique. It means that I am a part of a whole. It gives me a responsibility towards my community. It means to think of the past, the present, and the future. It means to believe in you and to believe in others. WHY ARE YOU JEWISH? I am Jewish because I am free. I am Jewish because I feel responsible. I am Jewish because I am proud. I am Jewish because I feel that I am part of a whole. I am Jewish because I am important. I’m Jewish because I have dignity. I am Jewish because I care. I am Jewish because I am important. I am Jewish because we are diverse. I am a Jew because I remember what happened in the 1940’s and do not want to see or hear anything of it. I am Jewish because I was born into a Jewish family, and my family is mostly Jewish. I think that I am Jewish through genetics; I feel that I am connected to all of my Jewish community by the fact that we are all related to each other.


 * __INTERVIEWS WITH STEPDAD AND MOM ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS; “WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE JEWISH” AND “WHY ARE WE JEWS__?”**

__JOSH –__ To be Jewish means to be always aware that I am part of a large and diverse community of fellow and sister Jews: that my blood runs with the same blood as my ancestors: that I am integrally linked to the flow of shared Judaic history, that includes the production of Philosophical genius as well as countless incidence of violent anti-Semitism. To be Jewish means, for me, to always look over my shoulder for anti-Semites and to be sensitive to anti-Semitic words. To be Jewish furthermore means to rejoice in the intellectual maelstrom of left-wing politics, of solidarity with other oppressed peoples such as American blacks, the Indians of Central America, the Chechen's, the Palestinians, the Native Americans, the Gypsies, and from a class perspective, the working class and the poor. To be Jewish means to be willing to fight to my last breath for the right of each and every Jewish community to practice Judaism as they see fit, whether secular or religious. To be Jewish to me means to spend Sundays reading newspapers, to eat bagels and drink coffee with my family, to discuss important issues with my wife and stepsons. Being Jewish for me also means to look forward to Jewish holiday celebrations and to spend them with my extended family. Being Jewish means to take special note of other Jews in my community, at my workplace, at the gym, and in our travels, and to find ways to connect with them, whether in a simple conversation, or a friendship. Being Jewish means to learn more about the details about Jewish history, and to preserve the best aspects of our Jewish communities in the future – such as coaching my stepsons in their Jewish history studies, and in their Bar Mitzvah preparations. Being Jewish to me means remembering Yiddish words and phrases taught to me by my grandfathers and my mom – and in feeling warmed and happy when I find myself in a Yiddish speaking environment.

We are Jews because we are part of a blood line based community that shared common experiences over the course of the past 3000+ years. We are Jews because we all came from the same place (greater Palestine) and are related to each other by our initial belief in the ancient mythology of the Torah.

__MOM -__ I am very proud to be Jewish. Jews have struggled though the centuries and always maintained their identities, culture, beliefs, ideas, pride, and dignity. I am proud to carry this sense of pride, strength, and courage that my grandparents felt coming to America to start a new life away from persecution. Although not religious, their Jewish identity was important. At my Bar Mitzvah, I felt the pride my remaining grandmother felt in me. To me, being Jewish is being a survivor; it’s embracing the quest for freedom for all, the respect for the environment, commitment to family, and education. We are Jews because our ancestors were Jews. We are Jews because we choose to be Jewish and pass our Jewish values and beliefs to future generations. My Venezuelan grandfather, who converted to Judaism from Catholicism to marry my grandmother, who was proud to be Jewish. For all of these reasons, I am proud to continue the pride of being a Jew that my ancestors felt. A link to the past, feeling a part of my ancestral heritage, I enjoy the intellectual side of Judaism, questioning, and always learning. What it means: to carry on.

Jewish Tribes symbols and what they mean about God

Beni-Yisrael tribes -- totemic animal Gods -- nothing Reubenites -- Dragon spitting fire -- coat of arms Reuben gives his mother flowers Reuben had a picture of of bull charging at a shepherd. Reuben, the son of Leia, (that means wild cow) was the first born of the wild cow. That is why the emblem is such. Judah -- yellow lion -- Lion on shield, symbolizes power. The lion is the strongest, it is smart, and has the ability to guide and lead. It was where the royal line was to come from. Yehudim (Judah) -- lions with women's heads (winged sphinx). Joseph -- bull. This probably came from the people from the island of Crete (Minoans). (Got it from Cretans(Minoans)) -- was the principle tribe of southern Israel, and the sheaf symbolized fertility. The sheaf holds the wheat plant together, which is why it symbolizes fertility. Danites -- (Beni-Yisrael) Nehushtan snake/serpent -- scales of justice, it was blessed for the people to be judges. Benjaminites -- wolf god -- wolf, because the Benjaminites were a "predator" war-like people. They also have the sign of a dying antelope giving birth to a fish. The fish symbolizes offspring. Asherites (Asher) -- Ashotoreth (mother goddess) -- ears of corn, fertile land. -- a centaur bending over with his bow aiming with his arrow to shoot. The arrows represent the achievement of goals. Also, the lower half of the centaur was a stallion who represented fertility. Levites -- Yahweh the thunderer. This comes from the people of the Sinai. -- emblem of a high priest. They were mostly religious priests. Issachar -- worshiped the sun and the moon and sewed them into a black banner -- suns and stars, for they were supposed to have an understanding of time, supposed to have come from a god. Also, the donkey and the laden camel reflect their dependence on the Phonecians for transporting the items (by donkey and camel) that they traded with them. Simon - The picture of the city of Shechem's gates are shown as their symbol. It was always within the borders of Simon until it was absorbed into the mighty JUDAH. Manasseh - 2 Fishes swimming in opposite directions. The crossing of the fishes represents the crossing of the hands of Jacob who his blessing his 2 children. It is not the apple tree representing Asher, but the centaur. It represents fertility, and Asher means prosperous. It is also acquainted with the god Ashur, a man shooting a bow.

Each tribe had it's own tribal gods and goddesses long before Moses. For at least 2 or 3 hundred years before Moses, the tribes only believed in their own tribal gods. Moses lived about -900 to -1000 BCE, but they did not believe in Yahweh until 725 BCE. They believed in Yahweh from 725 BCE and forward from then. They believed in Moses, but, they kept their other gods to be on the safe side. Even after Moses, they still each believed in their own tribal gods. They believed in their tribal gods until approximately 450 BCE, after which they were presumably monotheistic.

Each god probably symbolized an important aspect of the culture in each tribe.

HOW ARE THE SHJ AND THE CSJO SIMILAR AND DIFFERENT?

The Congress of Secular Jewish Organization (CSJO), and the Society of Humanistic Jews, (SHJ), and both similar and different. They are similar because both the CSJO and the SHJ support secular Judaism. Both also are attempting to spread secular Judaism and mourning the death of Sherwin Wine. However, they are also different. The SHJ had a leader that made the decisions for the group, and in the CSJO, the members of the group make the decision.

PHILSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS!!!


 * __JUDAISM -__** Judaism is as much as a culture as it is a religion. It is a memory of history, and a line of family that we have to remember. It is a heritage we can never forget. It is a lot more than what you can look at.


 * __JEWISH PEOPLEHOOD__** __–__ We are not superior to others, but we are different, just as all others. We are not better than any other, although we may believe differently than they do. We have our own unique history, cultural background, beliefs and values. We contribute to the world in a very unique way.

WHY AM I A SECULAR JEW -

I am a secular Jew because, when I heard about it from Josh, it sounded exactly like what I believed. I also think that I am a secular Jew because I didn't like going to Hebrew school and I thought that what they were teaching me was completely impossible. I joined because I feel much better about being part of a group that I believe what they believe and value what they value.

ACTION/BELIEF I believe that action is far more important than belief because if you believe something, that's great but, what's going to happen because of that? If you take action, it far more likely will have an affect. People who protest in Washington DC have more effect than people who sit in their homes all day, even if they support the cause, how will anyone know? If you simply believe in something, you won't have any effect on what you believe in. People who act are believers who take a few steps further.

For the cancer research, I would give a small amount of money to the people there, to get them out of my way, or simply say, NO. I would then give some donations to cancer research via fund raisers and other methods.

BRANCHES OF JUDAISM

The reformed Jews are a group that is not as serious in religion as most others. They are a group that does not always go to temple on every Saturday, or Friday night, but does go for the important holidays and such. They were originally founded less on tradition but more founded on reason. They are now, however, becoming more traditional and closer linked to the conservative. The people who are reformed, however, have seemed to me as if they were more secularists than anything else.They are different from Secularists because the rabbis in the reformed society are taught the real truth of the world, but instead, teach the lies of religion. They are like the secularists because some don't believe in God, but go to Temple anyway because they are reformed and they have to.

The Conservative Jews go to the synagogue every sabbath for worship but are not as serious about religion as the orthodox. They are, however, more religious than the reformed Jews. They are very ritualistic and think that the religious belief is very important. They differ from secularists because they do not believe in the ways of science and instead believe in God and the Torah, other words, far more ritualistic. They are like the secularists because of there belief in humanism.

The Orthodox Jews are the super-religious Jews that go to temple every night. They are far more ritualistic and traditional than any of the other groups and are completely devoted to God. To them, religion is the most important thing in their lives. They are FAR more serious about going to temple than any other group. They are not that like secular Jews other than their humanistic beliefs and their values.

The Reconstructionist group broke off of the conservative Jewish culture because they did not believe in the reformed way of religion. They weren't all that serious about religion and were not that quite different from the reformed branch itself. They were also a lot less religious than that of the conservative and Orthodox Jews. This branch is not ritualistic, and they were also were similar to the secularists. They had almost the same humanistic beliefs and are almost secularists themselves.

The Hasidic Jews, are the most Ritualistic of the Jews, and are by far the most careful about how they pray and take their religion very seriously. They are unlike all but the Orthodox, who are also very ritualistic. They enjoy singing very joyfully, and they are very traditional as well. They are not very similar to the secular Jews other than their humanistic beliefs. The secular Jews, although they don't keep kosher, would also want their meat to be killed humanly.

Is Israel a Theocracy? No, Israel is not a Theocracy, although it is affected by religion, I do not think that God is an all powerful might in the government of Israel. The religious Jews do however have more power than they should, because of their chief rabbis.

What is a chief rabbi? Why does Israel have two? A chief rabbi is the religious leader of the Jews in an area. There are two in Israel because of the large Jewish population and to satisfy the people who don't like one.

The chief rabbis only represent about five percent of the population and have about 25% of government power.

__What do you think is the long-term fate of the Jewish People?__

I think that the Jews, in the future, will be a very small group of people who thrive in middle class communities. I believe that we will be a very successful group that will remain similarly as we are today. I think that we will continue to be based in Israel, but have other settlements elsewhere as well. I think that the Jews will change when their environments changes and change our culture when something seems to fit the ideas of Judaism. I think that we will prosper in Israel, and in other places, we may find that our population is decreasing because of inter-marriage.

__Quote__

I think that he means that the Jews continue facing antisemitism wherever we are and that it is a constant challenge for us to remain a united people. Different cultures see the world a different way. All people have to accept everyone else's beliefs. That is a right of all people. If we don't that entitles them to disrespect the others. It ends up as war after war and people being killed for pointless ideas. I think that people should either respect each other, or be disrespected themselves.

He says that we want to have a united people, but have their way. Each person want a united earth, but only if EVERYBODY believes what they want them to believe. That is what he says. I think that this is true. By saying this, he means that everybody has basic human rights that no one can take away, rights that you get at birth.

My answer to that question is a not a compromise, nothing like that. It is very simple, in fact, it is that all of the people that agree with one culture or religion goes to one area, others go to another area of equal value. There should be a group of representatives that meet and decide upon conflicts between groups. Other than this, they should be completely isolated from each other. Unless, of course, they are on vacation, or just want to visit someone. It should be ILLEGAL for someone to criticize another's culture or beliefs.

__Folkshul__

I really don't know how inclusive folkshul is, but the mere fact that I was allowed entry means that it must be fairly inclusive. Everybody should be welcomed, regardless of race or ethnicity. I think that folkshul should be very inclusive, but not allow people that are potentially dangerous to other members. If someone like that is entered, I don't think that many people would like to stay a part.

__What do you like about being a secular humanist__

I like being a secular humanist in many ways. For example, I like the humanistic and secular way of thinking. I like that being secular means being more science viewed. I also like the humanistic view about how to treat animals, with respect and honor. I believe that the Jews are all humanistic, but not all are secular. This is, of course, their decision, and I can't say anything about that, is a great, but I like the secular ideas and values. I think that peace is probably the most important aspect of life, other that it preservation. I believe that all aspects of the secular and humanistic line of thought are agreeable.