Jewishness Defined

By: Comrade Ben-Yahushua  

English has a uniquely incorrect usage for words relating to the Jewish People.
The word Jew is incorrect as a word.
And in the plural for Jew which would be Jews, this is also incorrect.
Jewish must be used instead of Jew.
Jewish People instead of Jews.
Whenever the words Jewish People can not fit the flow of a sentence, the word Jewry is best for usage.

 

Jewishness

Jewishness is the description of what makes someone Jewish.
To go further into context of Jewishness the first question should be asked,
and this question is; What does it mean to be Jewish?

The first point to be made is that Jewish is not a homophone.
Jewish is not whatever you wish it to be.
There are those who are correct in their context of who is Jewish.
And there are those who are incorrect in their context of who is Jewish.

No one is Jewish without Judaism.
Although there are Nonobservant Jewish People.
Nonobservant Jewry do not negate themselves away from Judaism.
There are only two official ways of achieving Jewishness:
The first and more common is, being raised by a Jewish Mother since birth, being brought up with Jewish ideals, Jewish traditions, and Jewish logic.
The second and more difficult is conversion through Orthodox Judaism, and usually this means the Ultra-Orthodox but not always in the Ashkenazi context.

 The Bundists do not seek to make the entire Jewish People religious, rather Bundists would remind the Jewish People that Nonorthodox definitions of Jewishness are reactionary tenancies of a confused nature, this wide spread confusion being dangerous. The Jewish People are clearly one of the most Nonobservant of Peoples in the World, yet this does not allow for Zionism, Occident Secularism, Capitalism, or Americanism to be anything Jewish. The Jewish Bundist Diaspora Movement only accepts Converts from Orthodox Judaism, usually from the Ultra-Orthodox strain yet that may depend on the situation as in some cases Converts from the Modern Orthodox strand can be recognized as authentic.

There is nothing sectarian in the context of Jewishness, ethnic backgrounds are not tied to Jewishness, anyone can convert to Judaism if this is pursued well enough and with reason.

The Jewish Bundist Diaspora Movement respects Jewish Law, and so typically our political activities are not held on Shabbos nor on High Holidays, of course there are exceptions to this rule.

Jewishness is learned from the upbringing achieved by Jewish Mothers or by acquiring education through Orthodox Jewish Conversion; nowhere else can Jewishness be instituted.

As for the matters of Conservative Judaism, Reconstructionalist Judaism, and Reform Judaism;
the Bundists view these as less observant manifestations of Judaism, the Bundists have three requirements of off-shoot Judaism.
The first requirement is to be more respectful to Orthodox Jewish leadership, the second requirement is outright rejection of Zionism, the third is that the members of these off-shoot versions of Judaism be re-educated to gain an awareness of the correct context and more accurate definition of what constitutes our Nation.

In the past the members of Reform Jewry rejected any claims of Jewish Nationality because Nationalism confuses the proper context of what a Nation actually is.
Taking back Modern Orthodox Judaism from Zionism is the quest of the Bundists.
In the past Bundists and the Ultra-Orthodox clearly did not understand one another.
It is the highest desire of the Jewish Bundist Diaspora Movement to build bridges between Jewish Bundists and Ultra-Orthodox Jewry.

Anyone Jewish rejecting the traditions of Jewish ethics and customs should not have the right to claim any Jewishness. If someone is born of a Jewish Mother and yet does not care about his or her own Jewishness, then that person is someone who has defected from the World Jewish Community.

The root level of Jewishness is a type of Consciousness.

It is true that Islam is the closest religious tradition related to Judaism as far as other religions are concerned.
Yet to be clear Bundists hold no tolerance for dual religiosity, religiosity is a matter of orientation.
Dual religiosity is defamatory, if however someone has been brought up as both Jewish and Muslim, then this is a matter of self-identification and the question of who is the person's mother. Such persons may be encouraged to convert to Judaism, yet if such a person chooses Islam then there should be no hostility to such a person even though that person has chosen to not take on Jewishness.
Islamic religiosity rejects its Atheists and Agnostics, yet someone born Jewish could be Atheist or Agnostic yet still be grafted onto Judaism. Clearly Atheists and Agnostics are not ideal converts to Judaism, yet those Atheists and Agnostics that have been born of Jewish Mothers tend to take their Jewishness more seriously. The Bundist perspective of being Jewish requires correct conduct, both ethical and liturgical. Liturgical practices for Atheists and Agnostics of Jewish background are highly encouraged as this is the most genuine form of solidarity.

Judaism is a Cultural-Religion, not a race or ethnicity.

Jewishness is not based upon blood as a definition.