What are /r/exjew's favorite Products & Services?

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I wish.

On the men's side if you're lucky they'll just thank you for the money, if you're unlucky it just stops them cursing at you.

Anyway, I prefer to buy my magical 100% red string straight from Amazon! It's an Amazons' choice so it must work.

Considering the uncertainty of the circumstances, if anyone needs some resources to help deal with stress and anxiety, Calm published a list of guided meditations: https://www.calm.com/blog/take-a-deep-breath

My family wasn't too strict about it either (my siblings are strict about not brushing though). I recall using a more liquidy toothpaste in my childhood which was apparently better. They also make Shabbos toothbrushes, which apparently are better as well, though I somehow doubt that they are effective.

And yes things have gotten a lot stricter over the last number of years. For example, when I was very young, people were never strict about bugs on fruits and vegetables, but then suddenly lettuce, spinach, strawberries, cabbage, etc. became Assur because of bugs. My family was never thankfully never strict about bugs either and we always ate these fruits and vegetables.

This guy wrote a whole book about it https://www.amazon.com/Reasonable-Doubts-Breaking-Second-Son/dp/1690831723 . I will be honest, I haven't read it, but my pretty smart friends have and they loved it. It's very intellectually honest.

I'm currently converting. I'd like to move to Israel at some point to improve my Hebrew, and because I suspect there'd be good teachers there.

Khan Academy is pretty fun - their "hierarchy of concepts"-idea, of tying exercises together is smart.

You should be able to work through literally all their material in half a year, and it'll last you if you're the kind of student who takes notes and looks up external sources for gaps in background information.

It's a bit light (for me, having been in the secular system all my life) on background, but the focus on exercises provide a good skeletal structure, and a basic reward system and overview of all the materials. And it's nice that the lectures use a very easy-to-read blackboard, have clear sound, and are consistent in quality.

I can also recommend reading "Godel, Escher, Bach", and working through the exercises - I didn't make it until the end, wasn't ready for it by the age of 20, I suppose. I kind of hope to get around to it some time after I've completed my conversion.

G.E.B. is a very lively introduction to formal logic (and grammars!) and computational theory. Explains things such as "why a closed system of logic cannot prove itself", and teaches you to build your own systems of formal logic.

The Trivium is also something you might enjoy, I have it hardcover myself:

https://www.amazon.com/Trivium-Classical-Liberal-Grammar-Rhetoric/dp/1632864967

I've just thumbed through it, you could have a lot of fun with it and it'd provide you with a good birds-eye view of classical fields of knowledge.

I could also provide recommendations for computer programming/coding/hacking, but that's more specific than what I can glean from your post.

Advice that i wish someone had given me at your age: Read The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

Simple, practical, common sense material that will set you up financially. If you can't afford it, pm me and I'll buy it for you.

Definitely. Still do. I don't understand how people can think its ok. Took out this book Is the Good Book Bad? to see how they would answer that. The book skipped over a lot of the immoral passages. It annoys me when people just brush it off as "Oh, Hashem said so."

you know I'm going to go on a limb and say perhaps you don't know what "brutal" or "cruel" means.

To the dictionary!

Brutal: > 1. Extremely ruthless or cruel. 2. Crude or unfeeling in manner or speech. 3. Harsh; unrelenting 4. Disagreeably precise or penetrating

Cruel: >1. Disposed to inflict pain or suffering. 2. Causing suffering; painful.

So, hopefully we don't have to argue about the fact that indeed surgically removing one of the most sensitive areas of the body is indeed painful.

Will the baby actually remember? That's up to debate, but there was literal pain and suffering involved.

But that's not really the main issue is it? Do you not find some sort of problem/issue with the fundamental problem of actually removing a piece off your sexual organ that actually provides you with protection, out of your own will?

I think people can go ahead and circumcise themselves if they wish so in the end; there are many kinds of body mutilation out there that people do. But to do that, to a baby, that has no say in the matter?

I dunno... it just doesn't seem like a fundamentally correct thing to do.

But hey, to each their own. I guess if you have kids/sons and you want to do that to them, they are your kids, and I suppose as the law stands now you have the right to remove a piece off their sexual organ without their consent.

>This is not referring to legitimate intellectual discussions on the validity of Judaism

I grew up modern orthodox. Studied in a MO yeshiva my entire life up until 17 and then went to Israel for a year followed by college where I enrolled in a part time yeshiva after college so I can relate to the first part of your story. I saw the beauty of our tradition but eventually I was then confronted by the validity and truth claims and could never really get on board while being completely intellectually honest. If I wanted to stay in, I would need to perform mental gymnastics and turn a blind eye to all the inherent fallacies found in apologetic rationales. I studied Rambam's moreh nevuchim through the work of Jose Faur as I attempted to adopt a more rationalistic approach but there too I was required to accept certain axioms and assumptions (the 13 principles of faith). I eventually dropped it all because it felt too contrived and narrow to see reality/life through a theistic lens.

Sweet Like Sugar by Wayne Hoffman is a charming book about the friendship of a rabbi and a gay guy.

It is a sweet piffle in a "feel good" kind of way - good summer reading. The kind of somewhat predictable story line but well done

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005CRY958/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?\_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Nice work. I see you cite Richard Elliott Friedman, who wrote a book about this topic: https://www.amazon.com/Exodus-Richard-Elliott-Friedman/dp/0062565249

I haven't read that book but last year I read another book of his that I found very interesting (and seems like it should recommended reading for everyone in this subreddit!): https://www.amazon.com/Who-Wrote-Bible-Richard-Friedman/dp/150119240X

Are there other books or resources you recommend that discuss the early history of Judaism or the Torah?

Keep in mind that I'm not going to do any of these justice in a comment box, but in short:

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> The apparent lack of irreconcilable contradictions in the tanach

That's not a thing. I mean, if you can reinterpret pesukim to mean anything you want, sure, you can reconcile anything. But if you take it at its word, Tanach is constantly contradicting itself. Right at the start, there are two creation stories in Bereishis.

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> the survival of the jewish people

This is remarkable, but not supernatural. It has a lot to do with Christianity seeing Judaism as its parent religion, with Christian laws that prevented us from assimilating, and that discriminatory laws pushed (some of) us into being merchants, and later, lenders, which made us useful to people in power.

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> the endurance of judaism up until modern assimilation

Do you mean Judaism the religion? The people/culture is the line above.

Judaism has changed radically over the millennia. Part of the reason it survived was becuase it was adaptable - which stands in direct contradiction to current frum dogma, which holds that Orthodox Judaism today would be recognizable to any Jew from any place and time.

> the chains of transmission

The short answer to that is that they don't exist.

This is my long answer: https://www.amazon.com/Reasonable-Doubts-Breaking-Second-Son/dp/1690831723/

There are many sources in the Torah and gemara that prohibit lying. There are also plenty of instances in Tanach, the gemara, and later works of people lying, especially when they're trying to get other people to do what they think they should.

This is an excellent book on the subject: https://www.amazon.com/Changing-Immutable-Orthodox-Judaism-Rewrites/dp/1904113605

Spinoza is great but he is a dense read, especially if you try to dive into his original 1600s writings, even translated.

Steven Nadler is a writer who has a few books on Spinoza. This is a good one.

https://www.amazon.com/Spinoza-Life-Steven-Nadler/dp/0521002931

Awesome. If you'd like, you can book a meeting with me here and we can talk more about what it's like and what you'd be looking to get out of it: https://calendly.com/shalom-shore/30-minute-free-hypnosis-consultation

This is a question for a cult expert. Few people here are experts in that. Here is my favorite cult expert:

https://www.amazon.com/Combatting-Cult-Mind-Control-Best-selling/dp/0892813113

Cults exist and they tend to be legal. The law cannot take care of every problem so citizens and neighbors will have to care for one another.

This guy seems to be surprisingly popular. https://www.similarweb.com/website/divineinformation.com

My faith in humanity meter keeps on dropping.

The guy he was debating admitted to not having once read the Torah.

This explanation comes from Micha Goodman's podcast (in Hebrew)

Another good place to understand the haskalah more generally is the biography of Ahad Ha'am - Elusive Prophet: Ahad Ha'am and the Origins of Zionism . This only touches on Hareidism because Ahad Ha'am was raised Hareidi, but it's an excellent start for understanding the haskalah (as well as Cultural Zionism which evolved from it).

He's a biblical scholar who wrote the book how to read the bible, which is considered a must read to anyone interested in the composition of the Torah. And yet he's a self-identified Orthodox Jew.

I call myself an ex-Jew. Judaism is a religion. If you don't adhere to the religion, then you're not a Jew in any real sense.

Or at greater length:

https://www.amazon.com/Once-Jew-Always-David-Dvorkin/dp/1517373514/

BTW, I highly recommend his book Good Without God: What a Billion Nonreligious People Do Believe. It is one of the best books that I have read on the topic of humanism.

Disclaimer: I haven't read this book but based on its accolades should be an accurate account. https://www.amazon.com/Genesis-Science-Christian-Scientific-Revolution/dp/1596981555

Alternatively find a syllabus for the history of science at a good university.

In my opinion, it's a religion. There is no distinguishing racial or ethnic characteristic. "Secular Judaism" is a meaningless phrase.

Self-advertising alert! I made this argument in some detail in a short book:

https://www.amazon.com/Once-Jew-Always-David-Dvorkin/dp/1517373514/

Nope. I freed myself from religion. In addition, I freed myself from the need to pretend that I'm still part of the Jewish people.

More here:

https://www.amazon.com/Once-Jew-Always-David-Dvorkin/dp/1517373514/

https://www.amazon.com/Badei-Penina-bedikah-Cloths-40-Pack/dp/B0092TAFFK

Yes and Yes. Think it's a great way of further suppressing a woman. If a woman doesn't consult with the rabbi frequently on the cloth and niddah laws that means that she's not observing it! The horror! She is making choices on her own body!

I wonder if there is something about ultra-orthodox who aren't hassidim. But there are a few works on hassidim including "Hasidism Incarnate: Hasidism, Christianity, and the Construction of Modern Judaism (Encountering Traditions): Magid, Shaul: 9780804791304: Amazon.com: Books" https://www.amazon.com/Hasidism-Incarnate-Christianity-Construction-Encountering/dp/0804791309

No, I don't keep any Jewish customs at all. My son is an atheist; had he become religious, I would have been very unhappy and disappointed.

No, I'm not technically ethnically Jewish because that phrase means nothing. DNA does not have a religion. For a longer answer to that, see this:

https://www.amazon.com/Once-Jew-Always-David-Dvorkin/dp/1517373514/

Not to self-promote (too much) but I actually just published a queer "Haggadah" exploring real freedom along these same lines. There's a lot of irony in being told exactly how to celebrate being free, especially when you don't want what Hashem is offering

In my opinion, there is no better discussion of Megillat Esther than that found in Adele Berlin's The JPS Bible Commentary: Esther.

Berlin writes,, in part:

>Esther may not be a play but it is surely carnivalesque literature. Its secret identities, gross indulgences, sexual innuendos, and nefarious plot against the Jews are part and parcel of the carnivalesque world of madness, hilarity, violence, and mock destruction. Indeed, violence is very much a part of this world, and it is in this framework that we should understand the slaughter of the enemies in chapter 9 (see the Commentary to chapter 9). The killing is no more real than anything else in the plot, and it is completely in chapter with the story's carnivalesque nature.

and, later:

>The author was not trying to write history, or to convince his audience of the historicity of his story (although later readers certainly took it that way). He is, rather, offering a burlesque of historiography. He is imitating the writing of history, as he knew it from earlier books of the Bible and perhaps also from the Greek historiographers (whose motifs about Persia he shares). The archival style, like the verbal style, makes the story sound big and fancy, official and impertinent at the same time -- and this is exactly the effect that is required for such a book. All these stylistic features reinforce the sense that the story is a farce. They lend an air of comic burlesque to the description of the Persian court and to all that happens in it.

I read a book called סודותיו של מורה נבוכים (Secrets of The Guide for the Perplexed), written by Micah Goodman (I read the Hebrew version, but there's also an English version) - which is essentially a more digestible version of the Guide, plus interpretation and commentary on the Guide's text.

It was the book that ignited my journey towards truth (and eventually out of religion).

It's not exactly a light read, however. I would typically recommend reading it if you're religious and unable to make sense of things (i.e. "perplexed"), or if you're getting unsatisfactory answers to your questions. But if you say you're interested in philosophy and/or theology (this book is essentially Rambam's attempt to reconcile the two), then you might find this book interesting as well.

Also, here's a discussion we recently had in one of the threads, where I described some of the main ideas in the book. You might find this interesting as well.

The story didn't start with Moshe, there weren't millions of people, and the account in the Torah doesn't describe any miracles.

https://www.amazon.com/Reasonable-Doubts-Breaking-Second-Son/dp/1690831723/

It's not a sure thing but see if any therapists specialize in or at least know about "religious trauma syndrome." It's a specific separate concept in mental health that's becoming more and more recognized. Google it and see if it fits

There are books about it too. Guide for fundamentalist s leaving the fold self help book

It's closer to a form of ptsd than depression, but I'm not sure how a regular ptsd psych would take the idea (rts is controversial because many don't want to admit religion can harm someone).

For insurance reasons you might need to be diagnosed depressed or anxious though.

Rabbi Dovid Meisels : Shabbos Secrets, Rosh Hashanah & Yom Kippur Secrets, Succos Secrets, Seder Secrets, and Shavuos Secrets. https://www.amazon.com/Shavuos-Secrets-Rabbi-Dovid-Meisels/dp/1931681902/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Geral Schroeder PhD might be a good place to start. I don't really jive with his theories (too God/Bible centered for me), but he might be a good compromise for you. He's an orthodox Jew who takes the Biblical account of creation and connects it with modern scientific theory (specifically in his book The Science of God)

> I've heard the argument that people are actually more isolated on the internet - so atheists will only read r/atheism, Christians will only read Christian blogs, both will only have friends on Facebook of the same religious orientation as themselves, etc.

There's a well-regarded book (that I haven't read) about this sort of demographic self-segregation called The Big Sort.

> I don't think the internet will bring down the Ultra-Orthodox (I think that economic pressures will force the Ultra-Orthodox to evolve or revolt, especially in Israel), but I do believe it does present a threat to their walled garden.

I was very intrigued by what you say about the haredim in Israel. My impression--which I have gleaned almost entirely by reading Haaretz in English, Ynet, Jpost, and longer form journalism--is that their vice-like grip on privileges extracted from the body-politic (e.g., no military service, no work) shows no sign of loosening. There used to be a party Shinui and a politician Tommy Lapid but when he was vanquished both Shas and United Torah Judaism metaphorically pissed on his metaphorical grave. (Isn't UTJ part of Bibi's coalition?)

You make an excellent point.

I have heard the argument made--although w/o any evidence--that the endless introduction of new technology actually intensifies the attraction towards "Truth" and other Permanent Things like religion. If you're interested, it's laid out in the last couple of chapters of this book.