Question about the jewish people?

Question

Judaism is a religeon, but is it also a race?

Answer 1

Christ started the entire charistian religous adventure. Would it be fair to say the Christianity is a religion and a race. A race that is poulated by blood descendants of jesus? Unlikely.

Or, the first jew was Abraham who took the commandment from God outside of the cty of Ur, check out the old testament for this. Before that Abraqham was not a Jew, just like Christ was Jewish befor he converted to Christianity by his death by some charistians account. Therefore the only true members of the Jewish race would be blood descendants of Abraham. Again not a likely defintion or race event.

But to be precise here is the definition of race(noun)
a group of persons related by common descent or heredity.
2. a population so related.
3. Anthropology. a. any of the traditional divisions of humankind, the commonest being the Caucasian, Mongoloid, and *****, characterized by supposedly distinctive and universal physical characteristics: no longer in technical use.
b. an arbitrary classification of modern humans, sometimes, esp. formerly, based on any or a combination of various physical characteristics, as skin color, facial form, or eye shape, and now frequently based on such genetic markers as blood groups.
c. a human population partially isolated reproductively from other populations, whose members share a greater degree of physical and genetic similarity with one another than with other humans.

4. a group of tribes or peoples forming an ethnic stock: the Slavic race.
5. any people united by common history, language, cultural traits, etc.: the Dutch race.
6. the human race or family; humankind: Nuclear weapons pose a threat to the race.
7. Zoology. a variety; subspecies.
8. a natural kind of living creature: the race of fishes.
9. any group, class, or kind, esp. of persons: Journalists are an interesting race.

The only definitions for race that come close are"
4. a group of tribes or peoples forming an ethnic stock: the Slavic race.
5. any people united by common history, language, cultural traits, etc.: the Dutch race

Jews may or may not have developed from a common tribe or ethnic stock. If you believe they did, the 12 tribes of Israel...then Yes Jews are a race.

If you believe that jews are united by a common history...you are making a wek argumenbt as Jews can be found in many countries and cultures are are unrelated by a common history, language or culture.

No...jews only have a religion in common. They are a very diverse froup of individuals spread arounfd the world living within cultures and speaking diverse languages so they are not tryuly a race as such.

Answer 2

A beit din (panel of three Orthodox rabbis) is the FORMAL way for anyone to be determined Jewish or not. Yes, even those who were BORN Jewish must be able to PROVE it if they ever want to be married or buried in ISRAEL. Anyone can get on an anonymous internet board and SAY that they are JEWISH, but I assure you if Shuckles (whatever his name), ever went to Jerusalem, Rechovot, Ashdod, Petach Tikva, or any other kosher beit din, spouting his drivel, I assure you he would be thrown back out the door. How do you prove you are Jewish? You must prove at the least that your mother and your mother's mother are both Jewish (or that your mother, or you, have converted). You can show a ketubah, signed by an Orthodox Rabbi/ Witnesses, along with your birth certificate, or if they converted their conversion documents, signed by a recognized Orthodox court. If your father was your mother's second husband then you MUST provide a Get signed by an Orthodox Rabbi (otherwise you could be a mamzer). What if you don't have these documents? You can show records of a burial in a Jewish cemetery; donations or dedications they made to a synagogue. All hearings are conducted in Hebrew; you and your witnesses are interviewed in Hebrew (you can bring a translator to help); all documents must be in Hebrew. The court will contact people that know you and will confirm the information that you provide. They are very thorough and it is getting stricter with each passing year. Edit to Sylvia C. [This is your whole friggin' problem; you place being Jewish on some freaky pedestal (is it because you worship a Jew instead of G-d?) Why are there no Xtians for Allah?? Mohammedan Xtians? Jewish is just a fact, or for some, a choice. Either way you do not HAVE to be Jewish/ Bnei Israel/ or anything else. If you really believe that Jesus/ Yeshua/ Yosel is the Messiah and 'died for your sins' then be a proud unadulterated Xtian].

Answer 3

One can be born into a Jewish family -- meaning that a child raised in a Jewish family never has to *prove* s/he is a part of the Jewish covenant with God, and will never have to complete a conversion process. On the other hand, Jews have accepted converts from all around the world (except during the time when Roman Catholics were killing Jews and other heretics).

Jews have been in a 2000 year diaspora all over the world and have accepted thousands of converts. Therefore, Jews from the Middle East look like Arabs or Persians, Jews from Europe look like Europeans, Jews from Africa look like Africans, Jews from China look like Chinese, Jews from Latin American look Hispanic.

I don't know about you, but I generally list myself as Caucasian. I don't recall ever being given the racial choice of "Jew." But then I live in the USA where we have the right to designate our own race -- perhaps in your country, others designate your race for you.
God bless the USA!
.

Answer 4

I think Judaism is a religion. Not a race. Israeli is a nationality where the people are mostly Jewish.

Answer 5

Judaism is a religion, Jews are the ones that practice said religion.

one can be a descendant of the Israelites who are identified mostly today as Jews, but its not the same thing.

The fact that one can convert to Judaism and be a full Jew shows this.

Answer 6

Being Jewish is a race in the same way being Armenian, Kurd, or Croatian is a race. It's a group of people with mostly common ancestors. I wouldn't call it a race unless you called Greeks a "race".

Answer 7

Yes Jewish is a religion and a race. Jewish is the modern term for Hebrew. Jesus is Hebrew/Jewish.

Answer 8

Judaism is a religion - not a race.
DNA tests shows that.
The Aryan is a race - you can see that with you own eyes: blue eyes, blond hair and so on.

Answer 9

It is a people who share a common religion. There are Jews of every shape and size (including Indian, Chinese, Ethiopian, etc...)

Answer 10

This is a question that has never been settled to satisfaction. I just call it both, although I tend to think of it more in religious terms.