Do you consider "Jews/Jewish" a religion or a race?

Question

On the one hand there is the religious aspect, but also the fact that most Jews are encouraged to marry other Jews, or are rather discouraged from "inter-marriage."

Answer 1

Chuckle... ask that of 12 Jews & you will get 12 different answers & 2 of them will ask you for funds to build a new temple.
To some sects it is parentage that counts, to others it is religion.

Answer 2

I think XX answered the nuts and bolts pretty well.

Intermarriage is discouraged for many reasons. Often the jewish partner may dilute his faith and practice by making a family with a nonjew. The belief is that it can affect the jewish spouse in the heavenly realm for eternity since participation in jewish things raises ones spiritual level in this world and the world to come. It is not just a matter of whether they eat pastrami or ham for lunch.

It also gets more complex with children as the more each parent knows about the religion, the more they see how the beliefs contradict each other. It's an added difficulty that couples will have to work on.

There is a line from Fiddler on the Roof when one of the daughters wants to marry a Russian who is not jewish. The father who is upset says, "A fish can fall in love with a bird; but how can they build a home together?" (something like that)

In a quick comment to the previous poster, it is quite significant and not a generality that is meaningless that Ethiopian jews are considered to be from the tribe of Dan. Also, very recently, Jews from India, looking exactly like any other Hindu Indian, were found to be practicing "jewish only" rituals and believed to be from the tribe of Menashe. So much was the evidence that they were given the right of return to Israel.

Jews are a subcategory of a race whether some want to acknowledge some of the definitions of not.

Answer 3

This is always the thing: each and every group of people in the world want to marry their own kind. Jews/Jewish is a nation or, if you will, a select group of people. Judaism is a religion, the precursor of Christians and Muslims. One of the reasons why Jews are encouraged to not marry outsiders is because two people who sincerely believe in their own religion will, for the most part, "fight" with the other about religion. The Bible says to not be "unequally yoked", so also says that a Christian should marry only another Christian.
For outsiders, it is difficult to separate the people from their religion.

Answer 4

Judaism is a religion, period. The fact that intermarriage is discouraged is related to the continuance of Judaism *as* a religion. Although many Jews share cultural and geographical traits, the exceptions make any generality useless (for example, there are large Jewish communities in China; the Ashkenazic and Sephardic Jews have different customs and even different ways of pronouncing some Hebrew letters; etc.).

Answer 5

Very interesting question. I consider the Jews to be a race and Judaism to be a religion.

The dictionary says there are many subcategories of race under the umbrella of "human race".

Two definitions are: a group of people sharing the same culture, history, and language, and any division of humankind sharing physical characteristics.

Jews are the most unique and longest surviving people around today. Jews are found in all skin colors dating their origins back thousands of years. Regardless of their country of origin, native language, physical looks, or secular culture, all jews on every continent share a history (i.e. bible), culture (laws, holidays, and traditions), language (Hebrew), physical traits (medical/genetic issues that pertain only to jews, as well as verified bloodlines to a particular ancestor, namely, Aaron), and they share a common destiny in the future when the belief is acutalized that the true messiah, that the entire world accepts and sees as such, beyond the shadow of any doubt, becomes known.

An interesting comment or two is that if a jew does not live as a jew and even starts a new religions or experiments with other beliefs, they are still a valid jew. Further, anyone who converts to judaism, is considered as if they were there at Mt Sinai for the giving of the Ten Commandments and it is not a coincidence they converted in this life.

Great question!

Answer 6

it's both there is a distinct ethnic group that can be traced back to before the biblical Exodus that's the Jewish "race"

there is also a religion know as Judaism that you could convert to if you wished the two are strongly connected but are not the same thing parents raise there kids following there own religion it's a big part of culture and that is a big part of what an ethnic group is so things get real fuzzy but in this case the distention is clear enough to be made.

Answer 7

it's a religion. Just because many Jewish families encourage their children to marry other Jewish people does not mean it's a race. Catholics have a very similar habit, as do Orthodox Greek and many other religions. I believe it's simply a way for the family to ensure that the couple understands each other it's a good way to continue family traditions.

Answer 8

A marriage between a protestant and a catholic is considered a 'mixed marriage'.

It is a salient fact that a religion is not a race. Any belief system appears nowhere on the human genome. Judaism is a religion, Jew is not a race!

Answer 9

They are a religion and an ethnic group. They have a culture (a civilization originally) that goes back over 4,000 years and may go back up to 6,000 years. Read the Bible and start with Abraham. As for intermarriage, that is a personal choice. It doesn't bug me either way. Marry whoever you want. If it is easier for a dedicated Orthodox or Hasidic Jew to choose inmarriage, that is his or her right. Sometimes, non-Jews will convert.

Answer 10

Jewish origin can be traced back using genetics. Arabs and Jewish share a common genetic ancestor... So they can be called a race not only a religion. Must not forget that judaism religion is the oldest on this planet that is still widely exercised, so by keeping a close kin relationship, it could have contributed to the speciation of their genes through milleniums...

Answer 11

It is a "Nation" and ever since the diaspora the nation has grown to encompass the world just as God would allow. There is only one race, the human race. Ever since I first heard that I've always agreed with it.
So ...the religion is not a race but a binding force of a nation, the nation of Israel. The land is in the mid east, but the nation of Israel, is wherever the Judaic practise is found.
Hope this helps.