Mulling over George Pope to Steve Asher 29 Sep 2006

 SA>  GP> NOWHERE in the Noachide laws is there ANYTHING about following
 SA>  GP> halachic authority of ANYONE!!!
 SA>
 SA>  GP> You really ought to do some research on the FACTS some time!
 SA>
 SA> Save your dissembling for someone who cares for it, George.

 GP> No dissembling.  I made a straightforward statement of fact:
 GP> "NOWHERE[emphasis deliberate] in the Noachide laws is there
 GP> ANYTHING about following halachic authority of ANYONE!!!"

"Round and round the great big loop, isn't this fun, boys and girls?"
as Rod Quantock might have said.

On the one hand, you claim that "NOWHERE in the Noachide laws is there
ANYTHING about following halachic authority of ANYONE!!!" (Nice bit of
hand-waving, shouting, and weaselling, btw)

On the other hand, you have previously stated that God didn't communicate
His commandments directly to the world, only to the Jewish people through
Moses and the prophets, and later the rabbis, and it was their job to
interpret which were for whom and under what circumstances.

That, George, is what "halacha" is all about - "the way to
go" - the corpus
of rabbinic legal texts - overall system of religious law. The "noahide
laws" are a sub-set of this overall system of religious law (halacha).

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Date : Fri Dec 09, 12:49                                                   
From : George Pope                                        1:153/715.1275
To   : Steve Asher                         
Subj : Xmas Left & Right                                                     
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On (08 Dec 05) Steve Asher wrote to George Pope...
 SA> ONE? Stop weaselling! I am talking about SEVEN "Noahide
Laws", which
 SA> you claim God communicated to Noah in "several communications" or
 SA> similar.

As I said, I have no time these days, what with working every day (when
I was rather used to retired life! *sigh*)

 SA> OK, you produced ONE of the SEVEN "Noahide Laws"; please trot out
 SA> the reamining SIX, from scripture (not the Talmud), and as God
 SA> spoke or communicated to Noah (not Adam, not the Rabbi, not the
 SA> candlestick maker etc). What is the problem, given your claimed
 SA> ability to read & understand scripture? Stop weaselling!

Not all that God spoke is in the Bible -- some was spoken to Moses but
not written down; some was spoken to prophets, but commanded to not be
written down; some was conveyed to the Jewish priests & rabbis through
the centuries. . .

The fact that all 7 of the Noachide Laws DO exist in the written Torah
is plain proof that God intended them to be kept!

He didn't communicate His commandments directly to the world, only to
the Jewish people(through Moses, & the prophets), and it was their job(&
later the rabbis') to interpret which were for whom and under which
circumstances.

[...]

These same rabbis are the ones who received the text/knowledge that God
communicated 7 laws to Noah.

[...]
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 SA>  GP> Talk to a few rabbis directly (I have!)
 SA>
 SA> Which rabbis did you talk to, George?
 SA>
 SA> No hand-waving or evasion, please. Just a straight answer, for a
 SA> change. :)

 GP> I only give straight answers.  It's easier.

 GP> Rabbi Leff(now in Ohio) and I have had a long academic
 GP> relationship. 

Interesting - I can pin this one down without much trouble. :)

 GP> Specifically on the subject of Noahide, I've spoken with Rabbi
 GP> Weinberg, from a local Chabad. . .

Do you have any more info on this one? There appear to be several
Rabbi Weinbergs.

 GP> Others, I don't recall off-hand, but they're there.

Thanks for the 2 you did recall.

Cheers, Steve..

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