Just to make sure we're not arguing a point past each other, I don't believe any branch of Judaism lives by the expectation that non-Jews will observe Jewish customs or commandments. If they elect to, I think the results are Jews for Jesus and quite a lot of people being sad.
Yep, I'm pretty clear about that. I'm not sure the people holding the signs have thought that far or have a clear sense of what anybody much else believes. (For instance, I know more about concordances with Reform than Conservative tradition just because I've dated more of one than the other, although in both cases I mostly know enough not to be a jerk rather than enough to know the details of what's going on.)
Really what I was surprised by a bit in the article where it seemed to me the writer was shocked that one faith wasn't being respectful of the traditions of another faith, when that seems like something that's a part of faith, if you think it's true that there's one god and you know what that god thinks. It would be kind of like me saying I respect someone else's position that evolution didn't happen. I don't think that's true; we're not going to compromise on it. I might not fight about it because I might not care whether someone believes in evolution, but I'm not going to say "hmmm, guess maybe they didn't evolve."
And yeah, is is a lot like "well, I think you're secretly straight." (In fact it is hard for me to shake my feeling that people are sexually fluid, whatever they might say, but I know that this is unreasonable and not relevant most of the time, and the only reason for me to try to persuade someone to that view is if I were trying to sleep with them, in which case I ought to take no for an answer.) There's a real limit to interfaith dialog; there might be stuff the religions agree on, but there's a ton of stuff they disagree on, and that stuff is not going to move.
no subject
Yep, I'm pretty clear about that. I'm not sure the people holding the signs have thought that far or have a clear sense of what anybody much else believes. (For instance, I know more about concordances with Reform than Conservative tradition just because I've dated more of one than the other, although in both cases I mostly know enough not to be a jerk rather than enough to know the details of what's going on.)
Really what I was surprised by a bit in the article where it seemed to me the writer was shocked that one faith wasn't being respectful of the traditions of another faith, when that seems like something that's a part of faith, if you think it's true that there's one god and you know what that god thinks. It would be kind of like me saying I respect someone else's position that evolution didn't happen. I don't think that's true; we're not going to compromise on it. I might not fight about it because I might not care whether someone believes in evolution, but I'm not going to say "hmmm, guess maybe they didn't evolve."
And yeah, is is a lot like "well, I think you're secretly straight." (In fact it is hard for me to shake my feeling that people are sexually fluid, whatever they might say, but I know that this is unreasonable and not relevant most of the time, and the only reason for me to try to persuade someone to that view is if I were trying to sleep with them, in which case I ought to take no for an answer.) There's a real limit to interfaith dialog; there might be stuff the religions agree on, but there's a ton of stuff they disagree on, and that stuff is not going to move.