HEY JEWS

And thank you for saying sorry, Andy the Grasshopper.

I saw you saying we can disagree. I just wanted to do so. Considering this is nation-wide news and involves insane anti-semitic conspiracy theorying, I don't think it's a NYC question.

... worldwide.

The bigots are having a field day with this tunnel story. I am glad you answered the way you did.

https://podcasts.apple.com/ro/podcast/marilynne-robinson-on-biblical-beauty-human-evil-and/id1548604447?i=1000648054080

I thought some of you guys might appreciate this right now (despite the headline, most of it isn't directly about Israel). Very much Christian author argues that the Old Testament is much more full of mercy, forgiveness and grace than it is given credit for, and made kind of a lightbulb go on for me about it that my views of Judaism have sometimes been colored by self-serving Christian spin on Judaism (wherein Christianity sets it self up as the merciful new religion and Jesus as the merciful new version of God in contrast to the more vengeful and primitive old one)

Purim Sameach!!

Thanks for recommending that episode. I think my friend who is an Anglican minister (and whose kids are Jewish) might have sent me that as well.

And yes, Chag Sameach!

Honestly never under-estimate what Christians don't understand about Judaism. Christians think it's mostly Christianity minus believing that Jesus was the Messiah. They don't know that there's no Jewish hell or that it's not evangelical (and in fact discourages conversion) and lots of other things. I can speak for Christians, I feel comfortable with that. :D

So apparently what I'm describing was once (like 1800 years ago) called Marcionism, but at least officially has been mostly rejected by various Christian sects. I swear I have heard that sort of view expressed before though. Not really thinking of the average Christian so much though.

I mean I was always drawn to the stories of mercy in the Torah - the angel sparing Isaac from sacrifice, Abraham pleading for Sodom and Gommorah, the covenant after the flood. It's not like I grew up thinking God in the Torah was not merciful, but I feel like I have heard it described that way in popular culture, literary analysis, and probably theological arguments as well.