Thought-Dreams: Back Where They Belong

Sunday, October 2, 2005

Back Where They Belong

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2 comments:

Chris Capp said...: Hi John,

Thanks for visiting my AND I MOVED blog. While I live in Los Angeles now I am a Bronx native and a lifelong Yankees fan so I was thrilled to see your latest post! They really made us sweat it out this season, but at least they're in!

A master's student at the Jewish Theological Seminary, huh? That is impressive. I wondered how you felt about Gabriel in Pete's story wearing the yarmulke from Josh's family? Is that disrespectful in any way? I see it as an act of communion, but I can see how it could be taken otherwise.

Keep blogging...

- Chris; Sunday, October 2, 2005 at 9:53:00 PM PDT
John W Leys said...: I don't see it as disrespectful in the least. Non-Jews are in no way prohibited from wearing a yarmulke. In fact, its not really a requirement of Jewish law at all, but rather a long standing tradition that has taken on a very high status amongst most Jews, to the point where it is treated as law by many. And the tradition is just of covering one's head as a sign of respect for God (some wear head covering all the time, most only during prayer or synagogue services). The skullcap is merely the most convienient form of head covering for most. Any gentile attending a synagogue service--which happens most often at weddings, bar mitzvahs and funerals--would be required to wear a yarmulke during the service.

I think Pete's inclusion of this trait of Gabriel's is a very nice touch. It says a lot about him (and perhaps it says different things to me because the yarmulke means different things to me).

Thanks for stopping by!; Sunday, October 2, 2005 at 10:02:00 PM PDT

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