whose stories are they?

[nextian]

This is a personal essay I have been trying to write for a very, very long time. It isn't sparked by one thing in particular, but it comes in response to, and accord with, things I've read by chopchica and miriam_heddy and roga and dafnap and abyssinia4077 and xiphias and kita0610 and ... yeah

Comments

[sleepinbeast]

I second thingswithwings's comment. I am a German student with a Christian background, and your essay pointed out to me how little I actually know about Judaism.

I've noticed before that there aren't ANY Jews around me (except media people like Marcel Reich-Ranicki, Paul Spiegel, and Michel Friedmann), and it makes me feel strange, because, well, the reason there are so few Jews living here is obviously that they emmigrated or were killed by my great-grandfather's pals. :-(

We covered stories from the pentateuch and the NT in grades 1-5, then did a little bit about Islam in 6th grade, and then we got a new teacher for religion and everything went downhill from there. So we learned hardly anything about Judaism in school, and I don't think people around me know more than I do. Which is especially sad since the people around me are the well-educated already.

So assuming I managed to take some time away from studying for my legal exam, and wouldn't want to spend it on Wikipedia, is there some literature you could recommend? Something along the lines of Judaism for Dummies? Judaism - A Overview for People Who Don't Really Have Time To Spare And Don't Even Know Enough About Their Own Religious Background?

Any suggestions are appreciated.

[nextian]

Well, I've seen Torah 101 and Judaism 101 linked pretty heavily around the threads -- and may I had, the url jewfaq.com? My new favorite thing. I can't remember all the books people have recommended in these comment pages, but most of the people who did so are people I know and trust, so take a look around and see what you want.

There's also the two sages story: Hillel and Shammai were two of the most respected rabbis ever, although we like Hillel a lot better now; he was warm and friendly, while Shammai was prickly and strict.

One day a Gentile comes up to Shammai's hut and says, "Hey, Shammai! If you can teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot, I'll convert."

As he balances, grinning, Shammai puts out a hand and shoves him over. "Torah takes a lifetime of study," he growls. "Stop wasting my time. I wouldn't convert you even if you were sincere."

The Gentile, no whit daunted, proceeds down the road to Hillel's hut and makes him the same offer.

Hillel smiles at him beatifically. "Of course I can," he says, and as the guy gets up on one foot, he says, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. The rest is commentary."

The Gentile would later become a rabbi.

[sleepinbeast]

Thank you! I'll read the rest of the comments in a few days :-)

[drgaellon]

My favorite work on these lines is This Is My God, by Herman Wouk (the author of The Winds of War).