I want to debate the question of Jewish identity. Here is my post on CMV.

If someone had to push a stroller, but can't do it because of her beliefs, than it is a mental constraint, not a physical one. It then become a mental struggle.

But they're not struggling. It's just normal life. That's like saying "They can't eat bacon! That's a mental struggle." Jews don't eat bacon, they don't care.

Could you explain me how God operates differently in Judaism than Christianity? They both seems pretty much keep notes on what we do right or do wrong.

Judaism doesn't keep points. It's not as though God sits up in heaven thinking "Uh oh Shmuley ate a cheeseburger, -1 Jew points."

Christianity is entirely about achieving salvation. It's about doing what you have to in this life, worshiping the way you have to, etc. All of your life should be lived to achieve it. You have a scorecard, baptism erases all sin, and then you have to live a life where you minimize the marks on your sin card. Repentance can erase a mark or two and believing in Christ helps a lot too.

Judaism is not about salvation. The reason Jews follow the laws of the Torah is not for the goal of reaching heaven. Keeping score isn't necessary. Jews do not think "Oh crap I carried my keys on Shabbat, I guess I have to ask my rabbi to prescribe some forgiveness." Judaism is, as I said, a law based religion. It's got laws on ethics, lifestyle, and just about everything. It's not unethical to carry your keys on Shabbat, it's just not allowed.

The main difference in how God operates is just that God wants 2 things from Jews.

  1. Believe in God

  2. Follow the laws

If you can find a loophole which allows you to follow the law, even by technicality, you're still following the law.

Everyone has his own definition of a fulfilling life. It's natural to have divergence of opinion and have arguments about it. I'm arguing that someone ought to do X and some people are arguing that we ought to do Y. It's part of the natural conversation human being have about life.

So why worry about Orthodox Jews? They're not forced to be Orthodox Jews. In fact, many Jews today are becoming Baal Teshuvot (Masters of return). This means they're turning from Secular life towards Orthodoxy. They are choosing to live their life that way because they find it fulfilling.

Judaism is all about challenging your beliefs. That's why there's so many Jewish lawyer jokes, or the old joke around here "2 Jews 3 Opinions". We challenge ourselves on our beliefs everyday, thinking about what we believe critically. For some that leads to leaving Orthodox Judaism, for others that leads to returning to it.

/r/Judaism Thread Link - reddit.com