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the idea was that he was too strict for his standard to be effectively maintained and, unlike hillel, failed to speak to people in a way they could understand. i don't think you can speak of an ideology here, only a degree of stringency. it is for such reasons that when a halakhic decision is at...

i'm not so sure what about this is supposed to be "hard science"; the anecdotes are inevitably conjectural, as all we have is the examination of remains. however, the anti-G!D squad would presumably argue that it is a "natural law" that "natural laws" are designed to be broken through...

ok, but sheol is *never* used as synonymous with the world to come. it is the *grave* in particular, the end-of-life, a place of stasis and imprisonment as opposed to a new life - see psalm 49:15-16 here, also jonah's description of his time in the fish as the "belly of sheol". i think your...

sorry, ben, but that quite simply doesn't make sense; if the "world to come" is the grave (normally, the word used for that would be "sheol") then why the fuss about the righteous of all nations inheriting a portion in it - if we all go "without distinction", why are the sages obviously making a...

philo's not important as a religious source in judaism, as he represents a hellenizing stream, but obviously he is of interest to historians and of course christians seeking a context. up to a point - judaism expects you to make good anything you have done and seek forgiveness before you start...

dude, i really can't figure you out. on one hand you give no impression whatsoever of being traditionally-minded or observant, then on the other you come out with this. then why is it an entirely respectable position for numerous great sages? haven't you heard the phrase gilgul nefashot? i'm...

not only has thomas been here a good long time, his views are in no way the sort that either you and i ought to find objectionable; furthermore they are without exception backed up by impeccable sourcing in catholic doctrine. if you want to go ahead and critique the "messianic" and more...

perhaps you might ask yourself why i would bother to think that defending myself was necessary unless there was an assumption by people such as yourself that judaism had some sort of case to answer in respect of the obvious truth of christianity. how very *dare* we be so stupid and perverse as...

this really is a weird remark. what on earth do you mean by it? it's not immaterial to *me*. i don't care for your tone: "the jew", forsooth. for me, it is his death that is immaterial, sad and tragic though it was. you seem to be reverting back to the "christ-killer" trope that...

@servetus: i probably haven't been very clear about what i meant by that (i also have the minkin, it's a jolly good book, i also recommend the work of fred rosner and especially menachem kellner and david hartman or, if you fancy a really controversial take, david bakan) but it was not about...

my first reaction on reading this thread is: ben masada, why do you insist on getting everyone all riled up in this confrontational way? i'm hardly a roman historian, but i'm pretty sure that they were more worried about the germans, the parthians, the dacians and the britons than us in purely...

seriously? ok, mr "brad the teacher": 1) i like "blackadder". 2) if you like. 3) i think you'd be amazed what actually doesn't bother me. 4) gosh, i am soooooo busted. seriously, mate, you're not really making a great first impression by being obsessive and using a shouty font. as i...

no reputable "kaballist" (sic) does gematria in english. this is really nonsense. etu malku makes a more interesting point, but i'm not sure what "coincidence?" is meant to imply if not "aha! gotcha!" of course it could be convergent evolution, or simply that we don't see it like that...

so, how do the baha'i and sikhs react to you dismissing baha'ullah and guru nanak, then? sheesh. b'shalom bananabrain

thank feck for that - and there was me thinking this thread would be a waste of time. so you've got his name? great - what's his skype address? how wonderful that the Real Thing (TM) has finally shown up after all those charlatans and con artists... b'shalom bananabrain

*claps loudly for seattlegal, who as usual gets it* aha, now i understand; thanks for clarifying. a reasonable point and, i think illustrates that both extreme praise and extreme condemnation are not all that helpful when you're trying to understand something in a measured, reasonable way...

so, if i understand this correctly, you're saying that in activating the "choice" module, that thereby brought the tree of life into the firing line, but the "eternal life" module was not available in the way the tree of knowledge was? remember, we still cling to the "tree of life" outside eden...

i'm intrigued, ilmawaqa. what tradition are you part of? b'shalom bananabrain

*claps loudly for dream* b'shalom bananabrain

indeed, but that is not what i said. indeed, but that is not always related to partzufic configurations. perhaps, but that doesn't follow from an explicit mention in the talmud. certainly not. "keneseth yisrael", you might have a case for, but that is just one interpretative aspect. you're...