jews the chosen ppl??(jews preferably..but any other insight is good)?

Question

where does it even state that jews are the chosen ppl? and why cant a jew marry a non jew? because the souls are different and cant connect?

Answer 1

A Jew cannot marry a non-Jew because it usually leads to a Jew not practicing Judaism. We are to be fruitful and multiply and to multiply with a non-Jew means that there are not any more Jews, usually.

The chosen people thing you will have to talk to the Xtians about. They are the ones that claim this in the sense you mean. (IN THE SENSE YOU MEAN) We believe we are the "chosen" people in the sense that when G-d offered the Torah to all nations, only the Jews 'chose' to accept it. Xtianity takes this verse and all of a sudden, we're the Chosen People and extra holy or something. You will have to ask them, because in Judaism, we are no different than any other people, just we have more commandments and so have more opportunities to please G-d.

Those verses refer to the fact that SINCE we accepted the Torah, we are the "holy nation" and that we now have more commandments to follow, but also an extra opportunity to please G-d.

So, the person below me is wrong....

Answer 2

Jews cannot marry non-Jews for the same reason Mormons shouldn't marry non-Mormons, and Catholics shouldn't marry non-Catholics...

It is a way to keep the population of the religion up....2 jews have kids, they'll be Jews...a Jew and a Catholic have a kid...the parents could either have the kids Jewish or Catholic, then one of the religion loses possible members.

As far as the bible saying that, look in Exodus 19:5, 6, Deuteronomy 7:7, 8, Book of Amos 3:2, and Deuteronomy 14:2....they all talk about it.

Deuteronomy 14:2 says "You are a holy people unto the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a peculiar people unto Himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth."

So, the person above me is wrong....

Answer 3

In the Jewish understanding, chosenness leads not to arrogance, but rather to humility. If it were some human king that chose us to be his special people, then your assumption would be correct -- we would become elitists. When a mortal power shows favoritism towards a subject, that subject will become more arrogant as a result -- the closer you are to the king, the more significant you are, and the more significant you are the higher respect you feel you deserve.

But we were chosen by G-d. And the closer you are to G-d, the more you sense your insignificance. While being buddy-buddy with a human leader inflates your ego, a relationship with G-d bursts your selfish bubble. Because G-d is an infinite being, and all delusions of petty self-importance fall away when you stand before infinity. Being close with G-d demands introspection and self-improvement, not smugness.

This is the idea of the Chosen People -- a nation of individuals who have been given the opportunity to sense G-d's closeness, hear His truth and relay his message to the world. All agree that it was the Jews that introduced the world to monotheism and a system of ethics and morals that has shaped the modern view of life and its purpose. And it is the survival of Judaism to this day that attests to the eternal value of this system.

To say that this is ethnocentric is absurd for one simple reason: anyone from any ethnic background can convert to Judaism and become chosen. Jewish chosenness is not a gene, it is a state of the soul. Anyone wishing to take it upon themselves is welcome -- as long as they are ready to have their bubble burst.

So the arrogant person is not acting chosen. The true test of chosenness is how humble you are. You, Margaret, have passed this test with flying colors. Your humility is so deep, it doesn't allow you to accept that you are chosen. While most other religious groups are quite comfortable claiming that they are the best, we Jews will do anything to say that we are nothing special. Now that's what I call a Chosen People!
----------------------------------
According to the Hebrew Bible, Israel's character as the chosen people is conditioned by obedience to God's commandments. "Now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people. For all the earth is mine: and you shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:5, 6). "The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because you were more in number than any people; for you were the fewest of all people; but because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your ancestors." (Deuteronomy 7:7, 8).

The obligation imposed upon the Israelites is emphasized by the prophet Amos (Book of Amos 3:2): "You only have I singled out of all the families of the earth: therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities." This idea is also expressed in Deuteronomy 14:2: "You are a holy people unto the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a peculiar people unto Himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth."

Answer 4

Not true.Read Gal.3 and Hebrews.Then,with regards to Jews read John 8 and Revelation 2:9 and ponder the slaughter of Palestinians.The Jews-whether they admit it or not-are taught in the Talmud that non-Jews are goyim.

Answer 5

Two places I can think of are Deuteronomy 7:6 ("...thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth) and Deuteronomy 14:2 ("...thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth". And there are others that use different terms that mean essentially the same thing.

Personally, I see the history of the Jewish people as told in the Old Testament (and other Jewish writings) as an experiment designed by God...and the Jewish people were the test subjects. He wanted to see if he gave his favor to a group of people and then gave them a set of rules to follow (the covenant of the law) if they could obey and thereby bring themselves closer to him. ...and the OT makes it clear that very few people were capable of following the law 100% of the time. (actually, I think God knew the experiment would fail...he did it to demonstrate to all of us the folly of believing we could reach God through our behavior.

When he sent Jesus, he opened the door for the whole world to join him if they would simply accept the forgiveness offered through grace not through works.

Answer 6

GibbJaw wrote:
<<
.The Jews-whether they admit it or not-are taught in the Talmud that non-Jews are goyim.
>>

LOL. Whether we admit it or not? LOL
Yes, non-Jews are goyim -- the Yiddish word for a non-Jew. It comes from the Hebrew word "goy" -- nation. Yes, it's true: non-Jews are non-Jews! But it's in no way way degrading or insulting.

Answer 7

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
.