Yenta

During the 40 years' wandering, the people lived in tents -- all close to each other -- so I can see how you could have fellowship easily in that circumstance. Just walk a few steps to the neighbor's & have coffee & mannah-bagels & study Torah.

But the law of rest was meant for in The Land, too, when people wouldn't live quite so closely together. Did He want people to fellowship more with Him (than each other) on that day after they'd arrived in The Land ?

People didn't go to a synagogue on sabbath in the times before the Exile to Babylon, so why did they start afterwards? esp. when they still had a Temple to go to ?

is this just another custom retained (perhaps without realising it) from Constantine the sun-worshipper?

research has shown that people are more receptive to ideas in evenng than in morning; maybe that's partly why "revival" meetings at night have such success. (speaking as a non-early riser, myself, LOL !)

Again, why do so many christian churches push the "morning time" practice ?

If you consider "Jewishness" to be an inherited quality, and consider that before the Exile to Babylon it was inherited from the father, it would appear that Ishmael qualifies to be called "Jewish".... unless Ishmael rejected the God of Abraham (did he ?) ..... anyone able to set me straight ?

(no insults are necessary, thanks very much)

I'm addressing anyone interested, but thinking of goys in general and christians in particular.

I'm finding that most christians honestly have no clue, whatsoever, about their anti-semitic heritage.

And many goyim (christians or not) have no grasp of what it does to a person, & to a people, to be hunted everywhere. In my experience, (at least, in the US) Native Americans & black people are the most understanding of Jewish attitudes & tendencies, because they've experienced some of the same tragedies...

Why couldn't they have been made by being formed in a mold, or by carving/engraving?

Maybe hammering produces better-sounding trumpets -- but then why hammer a menorah ?

I think there must be some significance, in addition to the immediate possibilities.

I know the Bible mentions them; I think I recall reading about sailors long ago boasting of seeing all 7 seas & all 4 corners of the earth. Where are the "corners" on a globe ? are they the north pole, south pole, & 2 more ???

I'm told that if a muslim converts to another faith, they are supposed to be killed (by a muslim).

What do you do, if the "apostate" wants to return to islam ?

Is there any way the death penalty could be annulled ? like, if an imam declares the apostate is mentally unbalanced, is that a valid excuse to let them live ?

just wondering if there's any room for mercy in the Koran...

I'm not being rude or sarcastic; it just puzzles me very much, when Islamic imams call for violence against non-muslim people who just want to live in peace & tolerance. It seems to me that the muslims view a desire for life & peace, as being proof of weakness; Arabic TV broadcasts, especially, teach this view. They say that a desire to live is proof of cowardice. & even before the state of Israel was born, muslims were being incited to kill jews.(the Mufti of Jerusalem admired Hitler.) So, what I wonder is this: supose christians were to stop "turning the other cheek" and showing mercy to their enemies; suppose the jews were to stop "making painful concessions" & instead kill 100 arab muslims for every one jew wounded or killed; THEN would the muslims respect the jews &/or the christians, and let them alone ?

I've heard that the Noachide code (named after Noah) is a set of 7 expectations that apply to all humans, regardless of race, class, etc. The Jewish rabbis have said that a non-Jew really is only expected to keep these 7, not necessarily the 10 Commandments.

Looking at the 7, I was surprised to note that lying is not prohibited ! I want to be able to trust the people I deal with; I think I would've included lying somehow.

(see http://www.ahavat-israel.com/am/goyim.php)

If you were establishing 7 rules for mankind, what rules would you have ?

I know Muslims are told they only HAVE to honor an agreement made with another Muslim; honoring agreements with non-Muslims is optional. But now I'm hearing that Mormons are taught they don't really HAVE to be totally honest with non-Mormons. Is this true ? (answer honestly !! <grin>)

...I heard this from a relative who was swindled by a Mormon banker for almost half a million dollars.

i read my bible every day, go to church and take notes there, and i have read 'the case for faith' and 'share: a field guide to sharing your faith' but i want to learn more. i want to be certain of christ and christianity. i want to know the deeper answers so i can debate without question with my nonbelieving friends. questions about satan, why wicca is wrong, why homosexuality is wrong, deep questions about God and fate, questions about heaven and hell.i know the surface answer to all these things but i want to be sure without a shadow of a doubt and extremly knowledgable on these answers. are there any books you can reccomend to help me learn?

He's about the age of my only other brother; we "click" just like I do with my "real" (biological) brother; his family background is similar to mine; & I really think he'd fit in with my family, both my "natural" (original) family, and my "own" family (spouse, kids, & in-laws). His parents are still living, but were divorced when he was 3. He's 35 now. Is it legally possible to adopt someone in these circumstances? We all live in Minnesota. I just want to know if it's even possible before I broach the topic to my various relatives.

He's a resident of Minnesota, so it'd be nice if the lake (river, mountain, etc) in question was in Minnesota.

I didn't attend this school (Hill Murray High School, in Minnesota). A friend did, & he graduated in 1989, but couldn't afford a yearbook then. I want to give him one, but where do you get them?