Beautiful Observance: I can’t claim Jewishness, but it makes me glad to be included by chabad.org

To those that are choosing observance; that is beautiful.  I encourage everyone who wants to observe to observe, while not trying to fit people into boxes, such as Jew and gentile.  I believe that everyone has a certain level of comfortable observance that if they choose to embrace confers a certain level of beauty.  As it is such that those proclaiming what it is that they do for the sake of observance, Hashem grants to them greatness due.  So, it is not that I seek a Jewish wife, but it is that I seek for folks, including my wife to embrace Judaism, if that is what their heart desires.

Folks know I like religion a lot and I try to encourage those that I know to a level of observance that feels comfortable for their souls, encouraging rather than discouraging.  Folks get enough challenges to their religion without intentional discouragement.

6th Craig: Of Me and Edom - A Comment Made to Chabad.org on Why Do Rabbis Discourage Conversions? by Aaron Moss

I talked to a very nice laid back Rabbi. I informed him that my ancestry goes back to Edom, as in the Middle Ages Jews referred to the kings of these times as Edom. He was nice and didn’t turn me away. We both agreed that Edom did have righteous men. Without correction I mentioned that the names of people in Torah are like chemical formulas for what these people are like and Zerah is listed among Edom as a chief, while Zerah is also a son of Judah by Tamar. Thus, Zerah is righteous because, "for all your people are righteous (Sanhedrin)." Another example of an Edomite mentioned both as being of Edom and of Israel is Jeush. I would think that the predicted destruction of Edom in the prophets means that those righteous in Edom will either convert (to Judaism) or be slayed.

Craig Hamilton
Sandwich