Questions on Heidegger
It strikes me that if you are Jewish, the question can be made more easy to answer by narrowing it to "How does one live an authentically Jewish life?"
While there are Jews who do not care for Judaism and reject their traditions, the reasons are quite easy to discern: Judaism is too difficult, too restrictive and it is just easier not to be a Jew.
If we are able to make the admission that we want the easy way out, then life lived as a gentile beckons.
If we want to live as Jews, then we would have to follow the principles of Judaism, to think and do as a Jew, and to be identified by gentiles as such.
What if it becomes economically and socially inconvenient to be identified as a Jew?
Then the Jew must decide how important his Jewish identity is to him as a human being and what sacrifices he is prepared or not prepared to make.
Which kind of Judaism is more authentic? Orthodox Judaism or Reform Judaism?
Orthodox Jews are more observant of the principles of Judaism so can be said to be more authentically Jewish.
If convenience is more important to you than authenticity as a Jew, you would become a Reform Jew. Understandably, most people want to have the best of both worlds and this is evidenced by there are more Reform Jews than there are Orthodox Jews.
But instead of asking what is good for Jews, we should ask ourselves what is good for Judaism. If we cared about Judaism, we would want Judaism to preserve its integrity by remaining true to its principles.
Should gentiles care about Judaism and the integrity of the principles of Judaism?
The world is divided between Jews and gentiles. We also know that Christianity and Islam represent attempts by the gentile to adopt Judaism for himself to have the benefits of Judaism and presumably also to protect himself from the Jew who have been around for longer and must be assumed to be wiser or more cunning.
Should Jews care what gentiles think of them? Of course, since they will always be a minority if they live outside Israel, and Israel is only a small country with hostile neighbours.
How should Jews think of themselves?
How should gentiles think of Jews?
If you are Jewish and wish to live as a Jew, then you must logically and necessarily be an observant Jew.
If you are a gentile and have to deal with Jews, then you would logically and necessarily want only to have dealings with the better observant sort of Jew than the kind of Jew who wants to have his identity as a Jew but who is not prepared to make the necessary sacrifices and suffer the restrictions of being an observant Jew.
If you are a gentile afraid of being exploited by the bad and more cunning Jew, what can you do?
You might ask yourself why your religion and political system are failing to protect you from the predatory Jewish minority in your country. If you are Christian and complaining about predatory Jews, then clearly your religion is not what it's cracked out to be. If you are Muslim and complaining about bad Jewish neocons who advise their American overlords to invade your country and steal your oil, are you suffering from the same problem as Christians?
The New Testament states nothing clearly and is infamous for its vague extremist pronouncements. It cannot be denied that it was Christians that were responsible for the outbreak of two World Wars and are infamously schismatic. No other religion has had wars of religion on the scale of the European Wars of Religion.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_wars_of_religion
The Koran is said to be the directly revealed Word of God and states its principles clearly and succinctly. If Muslims suffer at the hands of Jews and Christians, could the problem be that Muslims themselves do not follow their own rules properly?
Which is worse? Being unable to follow the rules of your religion because your scripture is a contradictory mess or having scripture that is said to be the directly revealed Word of God but still being unable to follow it properly through some defect of intellect or character?
What prevents Muslims from following the Koran properly? Is it the evil policies they are compelled to implement imposed on them by their corrupt and rapacious Post-Christian overlords who want to impose gay marriage, usury and liberal democracy globally, egged on by the Reform Jews of America?
Are Orthodox Jews doing enough to preserve the integrity of Judaism? If not, what can they do about it?
Are Orthodox Jews more authentic than Reform Jews? Are Orthodox Jews afraid of Reform Jews?
Why should the more observant Jew be lower in status to the less observant Jew? Why is the more observant Jew lower in status to the less observant Jew?
http://www.world-religions-professor.com/orthodox-jews.html
Have Orthodox Jews omitted to practise some important principle of Judaism to become lower in status than the assimilated and liberal Jew, and are they being punished by God if He exists for this omission?
Are Orthodox Jews promoting the Noahide laws as part of their religious obligation?
If so, how successful and authentic are they in this exercise?
Are Orthodox Jews asking themselves whether Christianity or Islam satisfies the minimum moral requirements of the Noahide laws?
Are Orthodox Jews morally and religiously obliged to point out the idolatry of Christianity and suggest to the Post-Christian the reason why his religion and political system might have failed?
Is the doctrine of the Trinity a patent absurdity that no reasonable person not indoctrinated with the catechism since childhood would accept?
Are Orthodox Jews morally and religiously obliged to point out to the Post-Christian that Christianity must be replaced if it has obviously failed, and there is only one rational and moral choice?
Isn't this part of their duty to the gentile as God's Chosen People?
Do Jews have a duty to the gentile?
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-noahide-laws/
The late Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the last leader of Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidism wrote:
We must do everything possible to ensure that the seven Noahide laws are observed. If this can be accomplished through force or through other kinder and more peaceful means through explaining to non-Jews that they should accept God’s wishes [we should do so]…Anyone who is able to influence a non-Jew in any way to keep the seven commandments is obligated to do so, since that is what God commanded Moses our teacher (“Sheva Mitzvot Shel Benai Noach,” Hapardes 59:9 7-11, 5745)
