[Livia]

Originally Posted by LeatherTrumpet

How can a young person make an informed decision when his parents and other relations have drummed into him or her from day 1 that their religion is true and that they should believe in it without question?

The tradition of Jewish education goes back to biblical times. One of the basic duties of Jewish parents is to provide for the instruction of their children. The obligation to teach one's children is set forth in the first paragraph of the Shema Yisrael prayer: “Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. Impress them upon your children. Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as sign on your hand and let them serve as a symbol on your forehead; inscribe them on the doorposts of your house and your gates.” (Deut 6:6-9).[wiki]

I am a little insulted that you think a trawl through Wikipedia allows you to question my faith or my grasp upon it.

You cannot cherry-pick bits and pieces from my faith and post them to strengthen your point when you have no grasp on the religion as a whole. Maybe if religious education was taught properly in schools, we would all be more understanding of each other's faiths and more respectful of other people's beliefs.

Most Jews I know - and that's quite a lot - have been brought up instructed in the religion but with free will to question and to choose. Not all of my family go to synagogue, some never go apart from weddings much like a large majority of people who would describe themselves as Christians. Many of us married outside the religion and our family is made up of more than one faith. Strangely to some perhaps, faith has never caused any kind of turmoil in our family. I do not question your disbelief in God, that is your belief and I have to assume it's something you've thought about. I am not asking you to be a Jew, I'm asking you to allow me to be one without ridicule.