Being a Jew is Enough for Me

Anyone who has been on Ricochet for any period of time knows that I am Jewish. My preoccupation with Israel and Gaza, Jewish practice and Judeo-Christian values pretty much seals the deal. Recently I became motivated to explore my relationship with our Christian members at Ricochet in a new way. I thoroughly enjoy my conversations with you and consider many of you to be friends.

The stimulus for my motivation emerged from the dominant cultural dialogue following Charlie Kirk’s assassination, in particular his Christianity. Since I watch Fox News quite a bit, the focus from almost all of their personnel has been to declare their relationship not just with God, but with Jesus Christ, their savior. For a non-Christian, it’s a lot to take in. So, I mentioned in the Comments of The Ricochet Podcast my reaction to this focus:

Susan Quinn (View Comment):

“I especially enjoyed your conversation with Josh Hammer [to the hosts]. As a Jew, and although I’m delighted with Charlie Kirk’s influence on young men regarding religion, I can’t help feeling a bit uneasy with the commitment of evangelical Christians towards non-Christians. On the one hand, I understand they respect someone like me; on the other hand, I wonder if they are just waiting for me to see the light. I suppose there’s no harm in that perspective, since no one is pressuring me.” [slightly edited]

I received this comment in response:

With all due respect, that sounds like a “you” problem, not a “them” problem.

I was surprised by this response, since I wasn’t describing a “problem” at all, but simply my reaction. I liken my response to any situation that I find myself in that’s perplexing but not intimidating or unacceptable.

But I realized I wasn’t finished with this train of thought. I mentioned in my comments that there are many Jews who reject Christians because they believe all of them want converts (a true overreaction by the Jews); their fears border on the paranoid. When I thought about it further, I realized that my Christian friends, especially here on Ricochet, are almost always kind and curious about my beliefs, and I feel quite at ease in dialoguing with you. But then I thought about it further, and I wondered how you felt, as Christians, about my Judaism: are you indifferent? Do you feel a kinship? Is there a part of you who would like to ensure my salvation by my accepting Jesus? Are you at peace with my being Jewish and fine with my choice?

I’m also reminded of the time when Dennis Prager spoke about his old radio show with other religious leaders. They were wonderful people and cared a great deal about each other. In discussing salvation, they were much more concerned with Dennis’ soul than he was. That’s kind of how I feel.

I’ve always believed that if I try to live as a good person and make good choices, there's no point in worrying about the afterlife. You may not agree, but that’s my perspective.

I’d like to suggest we avoid a theological discussion in this OP. I’ve been told many times that Isaiah in the Old Testament explains that Jesus is the Messiah. No offense, but I’ve never found that convincing. So, I think avoiding that particular discussion will keep the conversation moving.

Would you like to share your perspective on Jews as related to Christianity? I promise that unless you intentionally insult me, I will not criticize any comment. But I’m so darned curious, since many of you are friends.

What do you think?