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and if so why does he hate me?and does anybody really have a chance,? and yes i know that god had chosen people dont play that off as a metaphore,

2007-03-22 08:23:45 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture Religion & Spirituality

10 answers

The Chosen People
by Rabbi Shraga Simmons
Appreciating an often-misunderstood idea.
The Jewish nation is often referred to as "the Chosen People."
Many people (including Jews) are uncomfortable with this idea. They perceive the concept of a "Chosen People" as racist and mindful of the Nazi concept of a supreme "Aryan" nation. It appears to contradict the accepted Western ideal of all people being equal before God.
Is the Jewish concept of choseness racist?
When the Torah refers to the Jewish people as "chosen," it is not in any way asserting that Jews are racially superior. Americans, Russians, Europeans, Asians and Ethiopians are all part of the Jewish people. It is impossible to define choseness as anything related to race, since Jews are racially diverse.
Yet while the term "Chosen People" (Am Nivchar) does not mean racially superior, choseness does imply a special uniqueness.
What is this uniqueness?
Historically, it goes back to Abraham. Abraham lived in a world steeped in idolatry, which he concluded was contradicted by the reality of design in nature.
So Abraham came to a belief in God, and took upon himself the mission of teaching others of the monotheistic ideal. Abraham was even willing to suffer persecution for his beliefs. After years of enormous effort, dedication and a willingness to accept the responsibility to be God's representative in this world, God chose Abraham and his descendents to be the teachers of this monotheistic message.
In other words it is not so much that God chose the Jews; it is more accurate that the Jews (through Abraham) chose God.
Choseness was not part of God's "original plan." Initially all of humanity was to serve the role of God's messengers, but after the fall of Adam, humanity lost that privilege, and it was open for grabs. Only Abraham chose to take the mantel. If others would have (and they were offered the choice), they too would have joined in this special covenant which was sealed upon the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.
If a privilege is offered to everyone willing to pay the necessary price, nobody can protest that those willing to make the extra effort are being shown favoritism. For example: It is reasonable that an employee who agrees to work overtime, attend training seminars, and manage special projects, should be entitled to a performance bonus -- particularly if each employee was given the same opportunity.
The essence of being chosen means responsibility. It is a responsibility to change the world -- not by converting everyone to Judaism, but by living as a model community upheld by ethics, morals and beliefs of one God. In that way, we can influence the rest of mankind, a "light unto the nations" (Isaiah 42:6).
Judaism is Universal
Further, Judaism is not exclusionary. A human being need not to be Jewish to reach a high spiritual level. Enoch "walked with God," and Noah had quite a high level of relationship, though neither were Jewish. Our tradition is that all of the 70 nations must function together and play an integral part in that "being" called humanity.
According to Judaism (Talmud - Sanhedrin 58b), any person can achieve a place in the World to Come by faithfully observing the seven basic laws of humanity. These seven laws are named the "Laws of Noah," since all humans are descended from Noah:
1) Do not murder.
2) Do not steal.
3) Do not worship false gods.
4) Do not be sexually immoral.
5) Do not eat the limb of an animal before it is killed.
6) Do not curse God.
7) Set up courts and bring offenders to justice.
Torah is for all humanity. King Solomon built the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, he specifically asked God to heed the prayer of non-Jews who come to the Temple (1-Kings 8:41-43). The Temple was the universal center of spirituality, which the prophet Isaiah referred to as a "house of prayer for all nations." Non-Jews were welcome to bring offerings to the Temple as well. In fact, the service in the Holy Temple during the week of Sukkot featured a total of 70 bull offerings, corresponding to each of the 70 nations of the world. In fact, the Talmud says that if the Romans would have realized how much they were benefiting from the Temple, they never would have destroyed it!
Most other religions say that non-believers are condemned to eternal damnation. Even the calendar systems of Christianity and Islam reflect an exclusionary philosophy; each begins with the birth of their respective religion. The Jewish calendar, on the other hand, begins with the creation of Adam, the first man, teaching us the intrinsic value of every human, even though the Jewish religion was not yet born.
For this reason, Jews do not proselytize in search of converts. One can still merit a place in heaven, no conversion necessary.
Conversion
An important component of Judaism's non-exclusionary approach is that any person -- regardless of national or racial background -- can choose to accept the Torah and become part of the Jewish nation. Indeed, some of the greatest names in Jewish history - Ruth, the ancestor of King David, and Onkelos the Talmudic Sage -- were converts to Judaism.
According to the Code of Jewish Law (the "Shulchan Aruch"), there are three requirements for a valid conversion (paralleling the Jewish experience at Mount Sinai):
1) Mitzvot - The convert must believe in God and the divinity of the Torah, as well as accept to observe all 613 mitzvot (commandments) of the Torah. This includes observance of Shabbat, Kashrut, etc., as detailed in the Code of Jewish Law, the authoritative source for Jewish observance.
2) Milah - Male converts must undergo circumcision by a qualified "Mohel."
3) Mikveh - All converts must immerse in the Mikveh, a ritual bath linked to a reservoir of rain water.
All of the above must be done before a halachically-valid rabbinical court of three Jewish men who themselves believe in God, accept the divinity of the Torah, and observe the mitzvot.
Author Biography:
Rabbi Shraga Simmons spent his childhood trekking through snow in Buffalo, New York. He has worked in the fields of journalism and public relations, and is now the Co-editor of Aish.com in Jerusalem.
http://tinyurl.com/y2tymh

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2007-03-22 08:38:58 · answer #1 · answered by Hatikvah 7 · 1 0

It is not about "like" - it is about "love." God loved you so much that He chose a certain people group (the Jews) because of Abraham's faith (he believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness) to bring God the Son (Jesus) into the world to pay your debt that your sin could be forgiven and eternal life be granted to you. He does not hate you or anyone else - God is LOVE. The "chosen people" were chosen because of Faith and they were "chosen" to do a job (bring in the Messiah). You are also "chosen" but have you answered your call and fulfilled your task given you by God? Your first "chosen" task is salvation - what have you done about that? There will be other "chosen" tasks to follow once that one is accepted.

2007-03-22 15:38:58 · answer #2 · answered by wd 5 · 1 1

Chosen = chosen for a specific purpose, not that God loves them more. Jews were chosen so that God would bless the world through them.

2007-03-22 15:29:45 · answer #3 · answered by peacetimewarror 4 · 1 1

Abraham was so obedient to God and he loved Him so much that God promised Abraham and his descendents a land full of milk and honey. He also chose for His Son, Jesus, to be descended from him (Jews). But His own people disowned Him and did not believe in Him. They turned their back on Him and had Him crucified. God loves us all the same and Jesus died for all of us. All any of us have to do is accept His gift of salvation to be saved. We all have the same chance. It's so easy. Jesus paid the price for all of us. All we have to do is believe in Him and ask for forgiveness for the sins He has already paid for, and ask Him into our heart. Just accept the gift. God bless you!!!

2007-03-22 15:41:13 · answer #4 · answered by country nana 3 · 0 0

God's chosen people refers to the Jews. From my understanding of Judaism it means they were the people God chose to test with hardships, and wouldn't mean God likes them better than you.

2007-03-22 15:29:11 · answer #5 · answered by l m 3 · 2 0

Jehovah God selected the Jews to be His people because of the faithfulness of their ancestor Abraham. God promised him that his seed would multiply and that ultimately the Messiah would come from his line. God gave the Israelites laws that would protect them and set them apart, in order to keep the bloodline clean until Jesus was born. But after Jesus' death, the way was opened up for people of all nationalities.

There will be 144,000 that go to heaven, but countless millions of others will be able to enjoy life on earth forever in paradise. That hardly qualifies as being "left out." Perhaps the answerer above me should learn more about Jehovah's Witnesses before making comments about us.

2007-03-22 15:30:06 · answer #6 · answered by shibboleth839505 2 · 0 3

God has chosen certain people to fulfill a purpose directly written of in scripture. He loves everyone who goes to Him in search of their purpose. We all have one, a unique one just for us. If you think He hates you, perhaps you have a guilt weighing you down. Take that to Christ, He will lift it.

2007-03-22 15:29:21 · answer #7 · answered by rezany 5 · 0 2

god is not suppose to be human so why do people assume god is a walking talking person is beyond belief. god is more of a concept than a tangible being,

2007-03-22 15:41:48 · answer #8 · answered by rpm53 3 · 0 2

According to Jehovah's Witnesses, there's only 144,000 chosen ones. That sure does leave a lot of folks out, doesn't it?!

2007-03-22 15:27:26 · answer #9 · answered by Bunny Lebowski 5 · 0 3

Traditionally, each god has a group of people s/he is associated with.

The error is when people assume their tribal god is the only god.

2007-03-22 15:26:46 · answer #10 · answered by LabGrrl 7 · 1 2

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