Essays for the Noahide from a Hirschian Perspective

It has been over a year since my introductory post. At that time, I had plans to begin posting on a weekly or even semi-weekly basis. And then—life. My life became enormously complicated. I and my family have been through quite a difficult time. But, it is my hope that now, after things have settled and despite a much busier schedule than I had at the time I had hoped to begin this blog, that I will be able to begin blogging on a somewhat regular basis.

This year has been one of much change. The biggest of these changes is that I have completed the process of becoming a Jew. But this has not altered my desire to write words of encouragement for those non-Jews who wish to serve HaShem faithfully through the observance of the Seven Laws. With HaShem’s help, I will have a post in the next week or two.

Ovadiah ben Avraham

It is a little late in the day to be adding another blog into the blogosphere. I do not know if people still read blogs—or anything that is longer than 250 characters. And, if they do, I do not know how they would possibly discover this blog, a drop in the vast ocean of the internet. But, if you have found your way here, I welcome you heartily, and I hope that you find something of benefit to yourself.

As suggested by the title of the blog, the posts here are aimed at Noahides, by which term I mean those non-Jews who believe that the Torah was given by God to the Jewish people and who undertake to faithfully uphold the Seven Laws given by God to all people, to wit:

1. The prohibition against idolatry
2. The prohibition against blasphemy
3. The prohibition against murder
4. The prohibition against adultery
5. The prohibition against theft
6. The prohibition against eating meat taken from an animal while it was yet living
7. The duty to establish courts of justice

By the term Noahide, I exclude Christians, because, while they do hold that the Torah was given to the Jewish people, they do not properly adhere to the Seven Noahide Laws, having invented their own religion.

Why Hirschian? Like many Noahides, I was once a Christian. Through investigation, I came to the realization that Christianity is a falsehood. Through further investigation, I concluded that the Torah is true. And, I realized that even though I had studied Tanach—what Christians call the Old Testament—all my life, I could not rightly say I knew it. I had read it through a distorted lens, and I would need to begin learning it from scratch, divesting myself of all prior conceptions. I thought it best to consult the works of the Jewish people, those to whom the Torah had been entrusted. I sought a Jewish commentary on the Torah and came across the commentary of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch. I bought it and began reading it, and his work has greatly informed my understanding of the Torah. I have, of course, read other rabbis since then, but it is Rabbi Hirsch who first opened the Torah to me. I owe him a great deal of gratitude. I have found his writings to be of such a salutary and enlightening nature that I wish to share his wisdom with those Noahides who may be unfamiliar with him.

The aim of this blog, then, is to share words of encouragement with the Noahide community around the world. Much of this writing will be based on the writings of R’ Hirsch. This is not meant to be a counter-missionary blog; I have written works of that nature elsewhere. However, I will touch on those topics occasionally, because they remain relevant to Noahides. Indeed, my next post—the first real post—will likely deal with the claim of Jesus’ resurrection. But the primary purpose of this blog is not to disprove Christianity. It is to serve as place to discuss Noahide outlook. If that interests you, dear reader, you are most welcome here.