Observant Judaism: A way of life

[Jewscout]

This was brought up in a previous thread and i thought it would be good for me to explain why i feel that Judaism is a way of life, not just a religion. You can take this and compare it to other faiths to see the similarities and differences.

First i am talking about living an observant Jewish lifestyle. There are many jews who live in varying degrees of observancies so if you know a jew don't be surprised if he or she doesn't follow every little thing as i am about to describe to you.
Lets begin by talking about one of my favorite topics, food. Food is a big part of jewish life, anyone who's ever been to a Shabbat meal can tell you that, Jews know how to throw down! But for an observant jew even a simple task such as grocery shopping is an exercise in mitzvot. You can't just buy what you want. First, as i'm sure you all know, there are certain things an observant jew can't buy. Of course no meats from non-kosher animals (pork, shell fish, etc.) but not just non-kosher animals. For all meats (except for kosher fish, fish with both scales and fins) they must be kosher meats. That means they were butchered in a kosher manner and this butchering was administered by someone who is knowledgeable in the practice. Now let me tell you living in Richmond, VA, kosher meats can be hard to come buy and very expensive. Secondly you have to be very careful about what sort of foods you buy. Often times there are animal by-products in foods and you don't even friggen know about it! Did you know that Now & Laters and Starbursts have pig gelitin! Do you know how much i LOVE grape Now & Laters! Did you know that until the 1980's both M&M's and Oreos weren't kosher! They had pig snouts in the mix. My rabbi said that in the late 1980's a rabbi from Jersualem wrote an article about the greatest event in American Jewry in the past 20 years was when oreos became kosher. And don't think because a product has a "K" on it it's kosher. Jello does and it's not! I can't even eat friggin jello! Alot of marshmellos aren't kosher either. You have to be very careful to check what you buy. Of course if it has the OU or the hebrew letter "Kaf" on it those are reputable organiztions and you can be sure that the product is Kosher.
Then you get home and you can't just stuff it all in the fridge, no you need 2 fridges. One for meats, one for dairy. Most people just have a freezer and keep their meats in the freezer and their dairy products in the fridge. Then you sit down to eat you have to make sure you are using the right dishes, your going to need 2 sets, one for dairy one for meat and 2 sets of each of those, one for the week and nice ones for Shabbat. Then you have to remember you can't mix the 2 in a meal. If you want to have dairy you have to eat it before you eat the meat or else get ready to wait 3-6 hours before you get to have dairy again. you also have to make sure the cooking untensils you have are the right ones for each food type.
Lets say you want to go out to eat. Well that's great...if you live in Israel or New York. There is 1 kosher restaurant here in Richmond VA, and guess what it is...............Krispy Kreme on Broad St. THAT'S IT. If i want to go out to eat i have to go to Krispy Kreme it's the only certified kosher restaurant in Richmond. And i can't go to other Krispy Kremes i can only go to that one! It's the only one certified kosher by the Orthodox Union (OU)!
Now i can go to DC/Baltimore area and further north there are kosher places to eat...but south of here...the closest place is in Atlanta, GA! I can't even eat food at my mother's house or with any of my friends because i don't know if what they got is kosher! Oh there are certain things like fruits and vegtables that i can be sure are ok to eat but one still has to be careful.

i'm not even getting into things like cooking on shabbat, passover and unleavened bread or the prayers. This is just to friggin eat!

[Jewscout]

now marriage...
again this is for an observant jew

an observant jew would only marry either a)another Jew (usually just as observant) or b) (and this is iffy) a convert but only if that convert were converted orthodox. Why, do you ask? because it is to maintain a jewish home and jewish identity and heritage for the family. Intermarriage has often been the deathnell for Judaism (now their are some families that make it work but it can often be hard to keep an observant family if one or the other parent is not jewish). More importantly the wife and mother HAS to be a Jew or else the children will not be halachically considered jews! I'm presently converting orthodox, rachel was not born jewish but converted conservative. Our Rabbi at the shul we go to will NOT marry us. Why? Because her conversion is halachically questionable. She would have to reconvert. And let me tell you converting to orthodox judaism is a hard and difficult task, but for another discussion. my best friend alex is one of the most jewish looking people i know, it's scary, but he is not halachically considered a jew, because his mother is a non-jew. Not 2 generations ago his family was in the holocaust because they were jews, and now he's goyim! If, G-d forbid, me and rachel were to not marry, i would have to find, date, and marry a jewish girl. That's it. In order to fulfill my obligations as a Jewish man that's the way it is. I have to do it. And if i fell for a non-jewish girl she would have to convert and the orthodoxy is very sceptical for those who are converting simply for marriage purposes. Then after marriage comes babies. skipping over circumcision and a bris as well as bar and bat mitzvahs, lets get to education. As an observant jewish parent i am obligated to give my children a religious education. That means sending them to day schools and yeshivahs for education, which can be very expensive. This also means living an a jewish neighborhood which is close to the shul, again very expensive.
This goes also to being engaged in the community, being an active member in activities. This is especially true for men because they are the ones obligated to pray 3 times a day at the prescribed time and are often the ones who run things at orthodox shuls.

[Jewscout]

jew-wear

there are also things which one, especially men, wear which signify the sign of the covenant. Oh no we don't just wear lil necklaces around our necks like the average joe. One of the signs is tzitzit. These are strings that were sown to the corners of clothes back in the olden days, they were specifically sown on 4 cornered garments. Today the 4 cornered look isn't in but you can by undershirts w/ 4 corners that have tzitzit on them. They are to hang down from your shirt and are to be visible. If you are wondering where this comes from it is Numbers 15:37-41. Another thing is called Tefillin. These are leather straps, 2 of them, with black boxes on them that have the "Shema" written on scrolls inside of them. You place one on your left arm (or right one if you're a lefty) and another on your head so that the box is positioned between your eyes. This is another sign of the covenant that is worn during weekday morning prayers. Have i mentioned that they can be almost $300?(now you see why jews make so much money lol). There are also Mezuzahs, which are things you put on the right side of doorposts. This, like Tefillin is taken from the Shema which starts on Deut. 6:4. Mezuzahs have the shema written inside of them as well and are a sign of the covenant as well.
Now, as far as clothes go, for an observant jew modesty is always the key. This is most true for women. An observant jewish woman would usually wear a blouse or shirt that would not expose anything lower than her collarbone (sometimes not even that) and nothing on the arm higher than the elbow. The back and shoulders are not exposed at all nor is the stomach. Also observant orthodox women would not wear pants. Usually they wear long skirts that go below the knees. Women who are married also tend to cover their hair, but this is most true at the shul or synagogue during services.
again this is true for orthodox observant jews (and i know some jewish women at my shul who would prefer a nice pair of jeans to a skirt any day)

[Jewscout]

More than anything it's about trying to put G-d and Mitzvot as a part of your everyday life. It's about finding work where you can get off in time for shabbat during the year, the time of which changes as the days get longer and shorter. It also means not working on saturday even for quadruple overtime pay. And it means being Shomar Shabbat, completely observant of the Sabbath. No messing with lights and electronics, no driving, no answering the phone, no cooking, no carrying, no creative work whatsoever. The thing that enters my mind is, "Is this what HaShem wants from me?" in my everyday activity. Even down to the clothes i buy, that i can't wear clothes that have wool and linen mixed in the clothing. And to act kindly to my fellow man, whether jew or non-jew, and to deal honestly in business practices at all times.
It means being observant of the Festivals and to not engage in forbidden practices, such as forbidden sexual relations, idolitry, etc. Technically going to christmas for me is off limits as it is rooted in paganism (the christmas tree definetly).

And most importantly to engage in Torah study, the conduit that exists today that connects us to haShem. Studying and understanding His words connects us to Him, perhaps better than in the days of the prophets.

It's about knowing that everything you have today you got from G-d and only by His will.