All humanity − each and every ethnic group − is the image of God

Submitted by AV (United States), Feb 21, 2021 at 18:35

There appears to be some agreement, and fortunately, it is the most important point. "The God of Israel is the Infinite. All humanity can share in this celebration of the Infinite." The rest discusses the clarification details.

A point that I emphasize is, one doesnt need to be a Jew, in order to celebrate the God that is Infinite. Judaism believes that Nonjewish religions are legitimate. Jews never require Nonjews to convert to Judaism. The relationship between God and a Nonjew is authentic.

The difference between Jews and Nonjews is, Jews do Tora. God requires Jews to only relate to God by means of Tora. But other humans, being Nonjewish humans, lack the obligation of the Tora. Therefore, Jews debate continually about how Jews can best to do Tora in order to obey the Infinite. But Jews are more agnostic about what other ethnicities should be doing to relate to the Infinite.

The Tora itself has the socalled "seven laws of Noakh" that appear to apply to all humanity. The principles need updating for modern times, but they relate, to appreciate the Infinite, to prioritize human life, to have a fair legal system, to have sexual ethics, to have environmentalist ethics (that avoids cruelty to animals), and so on. But even these "universal" principles have more to do with the Tora being able to formally recognize a Nonjewish spiritual tradition, thus enter a kind of mutual alliance with the Jewish people who do Tora. Ultimately, the relationship between God and Nonjews is direct. Even each Nonjewish spiritual tradition that does all seven principles can being doing them in a radically different way that is unique to the culture of that tradition.

For example, the Buddhist concept of Nirvana might even sound atheistic − no god, no self, no soul, no thing. But the Tora can recognize how it is appropriate to describe the transcendent imageless Infinite by means of this language that negates any image. The negation even relates to the Rabbinic concepts of the "cancellation of the soul", Bitul Ha'Nefesh, because there are aspects of each human that are beyond a sense of self, that identify as all creation (Khiya), and even as the Infinite (Ykhida). Even God is called "no-thing-ness", En. The point is, each Nonjewish culture has its own language to understand these seven laws in its own way.

Another example is Islam. Jews recognize that Muslims clearly love the imageless Infinite. In my personal opinion, modern Islam can develop Sharia mechanisms to prioritize and safeguard human life. Nevertheless, Islam is already recognizable to the Tora as meeting the requirements of the seven principles.

I assume, that each Nonjewish "kinship" (Am) who makes pilgrimages to the Temple, will enjoy the blessings of the Tora, while the Tora is able to recognize how each kinship does the seven priniciples in their own way. Each ethnicity will love and celebrate the Infinite. But probably, most ethnicities wont do this in an ethnically Jewish way.

Ultimately, all humanity − each and every ethnic group − is together one being that is the image of God. If any ethnicity is missing, if any individual human is missing, then the continually self-transcending image of the Infinite remains incomplete. And if the image of God remains incomplete, then this universe remains darker. God is Infinite light.

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