#jumblr
I got a question DM’d to me by someone asking about the messiah/Moshiach ben David within Judaism, and given the massive differences between the theological conception of a/the messiah between Judaism and Christianity I thought the topic merited its own post!
Because given the way our cultural understandings of words like “messiah” were shaped by Christianity in the west, it’s easy to think, “Oh, Jews believe in a messiah too, they just don’t think Jesus was the one, but it’s not so different.”
So team, let’s roll up our sleeves and dig into Jewish theologies around a messiah and the differences between Judaism and Christianity in that regard.
To all those who celebrate it, a very merry Christmas!
To all those who don’t, have a wonderful weekend!
To my fellow Jews who, like me, do not typically observe Christmas: I hope your movie is awesome and your Chinese food delicious!!
A break from usual programming:
A giant shout-out to Darker Hues Studios’ Haunted West, a historical fantasy game set in the Wild West in America.
Not only is the premise cool, but DHS’ mission is to make tabletop gaming more inclusive. Not only are the settlers we typically see in such games playable characters, but so are Indigenous people, Mexicans, Black folks, Asian folks, and yes Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews!
We’re PLAYABLE CHARACTERS! There’s a whole section about us! I am not sure how to give voice to how excited I am to see myself in stories and games about the Old West. And not as an amusing side character from a Mel Brooks movie (though he was groundbreaking), but as a force to be reckoned with.
We were there too, and now I get to play as a Jew in the Old West!
P.S. I was not paid to say any of this. I bought the game at kickstarter price when it was in development. I do know one of the creators, but he has no idea I did this or that this is me. I haven’t played yet, so I can’t vouch for the gameplay (yet), but just seeing our explicit inclusion made me lose my mind.
Food for thought for all employers out there: putting your “inclusive holiday party” weeks after Hanukkah has ended and days before Christmas? Not “inclusive”.
