“The Thin Jew Line”

The Daily Show had a segment last week about a controversy about an eruv in Westhampton Beach, NY.

If you have no idea what an eruv is, you were like me. Apparently, an eruv, a practice observed by orthodox or observant Jews, is an enclosure around a community that allows for the carrying of things — as in, the transportation of objects — on the Sabbath. Which apparently you’re not supposed to do.

Interestingly, the segment focuses on the disagreement about the eruv between orthodox Jews and at least one, apparently reformed Jew. I personally think there is nothing wrong with the eruv, for as the segment explains, even the orthodox are content with this so-called enclosure consisting of a near-invisible string that couldn’t possibly inconvenience or bother anyone.

But from an atheist’s perspective, this is definitely one of the best examples I’ve ever seen of how silly the convoluted and absurd rules of religion can be. I’m quite surprised I’ve never heard of it before, actually, as the comedic potential in this is so great that the Daily Show couldn’t resist it and indeed, made a very funny segment out of it.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Thin Jew Line
www.thedailyshow.com
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Why do you think the more devout among us continue to feel a need to follow these rules? Do they really think they matter, that they are handed down by God, or are they simply trying to preserve a cultural heritage that, for some reason, they think rules like this are a vital part of?

“Nevermind, the Jews didn’t kill Jesus” says Pope.

I kid, that’s not a direct quote - but that’s the sentiment, pretty much. That’s right, after a few thousand years of explicitly claiming or implicitly implying that the Jews killed Jesus, Pope Benedict XVI has officially said that this is an inaccurate interpretation of scripture. The Pope has commented specifically on St. Matthew’s Gospel,

in which ‘the Jews’ demand the execution of Jesus and shout to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate: ‘Let his blood be on us and on our children.’

The passage has been described as a ‘rallying cry for anti-Semites down the centuries’.

But the Pope said when St Matthew wrote ‘the Jews’ he meant the mob in Pilate’s courtyard and not the Jewish people in general.”

Thus continues the strange history of the Catholic Church, which claims to represent the gospel of Christ and yet, goes back on forth on precisely what that gospel entails.

Excuse the sarcasm — I should fully acknowledge that this is a good thing, and I’m glad the Church has taken this step. It would have been nice to couple it with an extensive apology for all the Antisemitism they’ve helped stir-up over the centuries but, definitely better than nothing. I actually just watched a very thoughtful documentary about Antisemitism in the Catholic Church and current day Protestant churches called Constantine’s Sword, and I highly recommend it for a further exploration of the issue.

San Francisco may ban circumcision

Self-described “civil rights advocates” say that a ballot proposition to ban circumcision is on track for gathering signatures, meaning that San Franciscans may vote on the measure this November.

Read More.

This is not without adamant protesting by some other organizations. You can read more about those against the measure here. Circumcision exists in Islam, via the Hadith, and obviously in Judaism via the Torah.