Shalom.  Is there anything in noj's post that you disagree with outright?  Perhaps there is something there that should have more light...thus clarified from your Jewish perspective?

G.

In the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth, and all the creatures therein, and man He made in His image. And God saw all that He had made, and Behold, it was very good. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And so man ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and was cast out of Eden.

 So first we were made perfect without sin and degeneration, and God saw no evil in our hearts, and then we chose to sin, and death entered the world by our sin. And since Adam, sin and death have reigned over all mankind. As you yourself admit, even the Righteous sin, and if it took only one sin to drive out Adam and Eve from the garden, and to take from them their eternal life, how much more do our many sins condemn us, and make us unworthy of paradise? Who can say, I have made my heart clean? Who can say I am pure from my sin? (Prov 20:9) Truth, Lord, we are all like dogs who drink iniquity like water (Job 15:16)  Because of this the Priests obeying the Law of God offered oftentimes the same sacrifices day by day, year by year, always sprinkling, always burning, always sacrificing for man's sins.

 So, if man is by nature wretched, what makes a man Righteous? No one has ever followed the Law without violating it, no man has ever been utterly pure, utterly without transgression. The law proves every man a liar..... So how can there be Righteous men? Abraham, Moses, David, and all of them, they were Righteous in that they believed in God, trusted Him, loved Him and all His Righteousness, and that Faith was imputed onto them as Righteousness, and because of that love, they followed the Commandments of God, because of Faith in God, they stood back up after each fall. They stood up because they feared and loved the true source of all Holyness, which is truly what signifies a Righteous man. Faith, which is the originator of good fruit.

Christianity maintains that all men are doomed to sin, and everyone will go to everlasting hell unless they accept Jesus as their savior. Hell and d--nation - another fear tactic.

 Fear tactics? Interesting that you should say that. When God listed blessing and cursings in the OT, and when He said to His people, Fear thy God, was He also using scare tactics? When for some sins, God declared there would be the penalty of death, was He using scare tactics?

The Torah does not teach, or even mention, that people are "born in sin," or that we are fated to sin.

 

 Then you have not read your Bible! It is one long story of man's failure and undeserved rescue by God. Even good David committed vile sins, and could have been killed immediatly for them as others had been, and was he not greater than you?

"All your nation is righteous; they will inherit the earth eternally; the shoot that I have planted, the work of My hands, something to be proud of" (Isaiah 60:21). So we are righteous, and God is proud of us.

 

 God is proud of a faithfull people, not just any people. Just because you are Jewish, does not mean God will ignore your sins, God made a promise to your forefather, and that He will never forget.. God never changes His mind. But that does not mean you have a free pass to be a brat! Your saying that "we are Righteous" by default is quickly refuted by the many Judgments that have come upon Israel.

the Book of Job (33:24) it says that if someone has even only one merit and 1,000 sins, he is rescued from hell.

 Ye do err in your scriptures, they read:

21His flesh is consumed away, that it cannot be seen; and his bones that were not seen stick out.  22Yea, his soul draweth near unto the grave, and his life to the destroyers.  23If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter, one among a thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness:
 24Then he is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom.  

 No doubt you got the 1000 number from the verse right above it, which is not the number of sins if you read it again. You should read Job from the beginning, so you understand the context.

 You do contradict yourself if you believe what you say, that if someone has even only one merit and 1,000 sins, he is rescued from hell. If a Psyco killer who hated God died, he might not go to hell if he loved his mother! If he lended money to someone once! If he had atleast one good merit about him, though the rest of him is evil. Those who have Faith in God escape hell, though they may have a million sins on their charge, if a man repents, and returns to his God, that man will be saved. For by grace are we saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.

The Christian bible, on the other hand, teaches that there is no repentance after sinning. Here is what it says in the Christian bible: "For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them" (2 Peter 2:20-21) In other words, if anyone accepted Jesus as savior, and then sins, they are in worse trouble than they were before they accepted Jesus. So what then is the advantage of accepting Jesus?

 Ye do err in MY scriptures, these scriptures speak of Apostacy, not of sinning, as even the Apostles confessed to imperfection. Read Matthew Poole's commentary on it:

Ver. 20. The pollutions of the world;  those more gross wickednesses in which most of the world still lieth, #1Jo 5:19.

Through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ;  such a knowledge of Christ as brings with it an outward reformation of life, though it do not purify the heart. For that the apostle doth not here speak of those that were rooted in Christ by a saving and heart purifying faith, appears by #2Pe 2:14, where he calls them unstable souls.

They are again entangled therein, and overcome;  return to their old sins, yield up themselves to them, and continue in them.
Ver. 21. It had been better for them not to have known;  their sin had been less if they had not known the truth, but now they sin against knowledge, and therein their apostacy is much worse than their ignorance would have been.

The way of righteousness;  the way of obtaining righteousness by Christ, and of living godly in Christ, #2Ti 3:12, prescribed in the gospel; the same which is called the right way, #2Pe 2:15, and the way of truth, #2Pe 2:2.

The holy commandment;  the same in other words. It is called holy, not only as proceeding from God, who is holy, but as teaching nothing but what is holy, and being the means God useth in making men holy, and as being opposed to the pollutions of the world before mentioned.

Ver. 22. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb: this is added, to prevent the scandal that might arise from their apostacy; q.d. It is not to be wondered at that they are again entangled in and overcome by their former pollutions, when there never was a thorough change wrought in their hearts. Dogs and swine (beasts unclean by the law) they still were, under the greatest appearances of reformation, and such they now show themselves to be by their vile apostacy.

The dog is turned to his own vomit again: as dogs vomit up what is burdensome to them, but, still being dogs, and not having changed their natures by easing their stomachs, lick up their own vomit again; so these, under a fit of conviction, through the power of the word, disgorge those sins which burdened their consciences, but having thereby gotten some ease, and their old nature and love to their former lusts still remaining, they again return to the same sins they had for a time forsaken.

The sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire: as swine, that naturally love the dirt and mire, if sometimes they be washed from it, yet, still retaining their former disposition, return again to it; so likewise these here mentioned, however they may be washed from the pollutions of the world, and by the preaching of the gospel brought off from their former ways of sin, and brought into a profession of holiness, yet, still retaining their old nature and corrupt dispositions, they are easily prevailed over by them, and so relapse into their former abominations.

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 It is clear from scripture, not only is it possible to repent, you will be forgiven:

1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

If you examine the Christian belief in this matter, you will even find denominations that believe God only chooses those that He has previously decided to choose. In other words, God will accept into Heaven only on those whom He has decided to accept into Heaven, and we have no free will or choice! That means that we cannot even be good people if we try! It's all up to God! "Many are called, but few are chosen." How is this merciful? What about all those people who are not chosen? How do they attain "salvation?" Why can they not attain salvation, when it isn't even their fault? That is possibly the cruelest doctrine I have ever heard! No matter what a person does, he will get Heaven only if God had previously chosen him to get Heaven! Everyone else goes to eternal hell!

 
 
[Many are called, but few are chosen; This suggests that though many were called, few were worthy of being chosen. Perhaps the meaning is this, that some who had heard the Word, and received that blessed seed, failed to produce any fruit, and thus perished. On the other hand, others were called, and having received that seed, they produced much fruit, and by that fruit proved themselves worthy.

Matthew 24:13
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

 In other words, that man who believed in Jesus, and did not allow that faith to be eroded by the sin of the world, but "endured unto the end", that man is chosen, because he has kept the faith throughout his life without failing.  

 It is self evident that, whosoever believes in God will be saved, whether called or uncalled, evil, or righteous:

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 11:25Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 26And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? 27She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.

Romans 9:33
As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.  
 

 Why send us forth to preach, if that preaching did nothing? So two are called, given the same graces as each other, yet one refuses, and the other accepts.
 

In Judaism, it is entirely up to you. If you do good, you will get good. Nowhere in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) would you connect salvation with sin. On the few occasions where salvation is mentioned, it is on a national scale rather than an individual one. In these cases the Tanakh talks about Israel, as a nation, being saved from oppressors (1 Samuel 11 & 19:1-6; 1 Chron. 16:16:35). As for individual salvation, 2 Samuel 22:1-3 gives a case of when David is delivered out of the hand of all his enemies and out of the hand of Saul and Hannah says, "I rejoice in thy salvation from being a barren woman" (1 Samuel 2:1). In many of David psalms, he is either praying for salvation or rejoicing in salvation and on all occasions there is no mention of salvation from sins (Psalm 3:9; 62:1-8). The question "are you saved" is foreign to the Hebrew Bible. The weird Christian concept of sin, sacrifice and add-water-and-stir instant salvation obtained by belief in a man dying on a cross, is in no way a fulfillment of the Hebrew Scriptures. In Judaism, it is entirely up to you. If you do good, you will get good in return.

 Ye do err in your scriptures!

Deuteronomy 30:19
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

 Blessings for good things, cursing for sins against the Holy God. Life if you obey, death if you disobey. And how does one choose life?

20That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

 By cleaving to the LORD your God. Is this not an offer of salvation? Does he not wish to save you from choosing evil? The entire Bible is one long story of this same lesson... Alone you are doomed, vulnerable to the devil and his minions... But with God is your only hope, with God by your side you can defeat all enemies. Trust and obey, for there is no other way to live, but to trust and obey. You are so small, you cannot make one hair on your head white or black, you are helpless, but your Father offers you help, do not reject it!  

Matthew 23:37
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

One cannot attain "salvation" through any mere man, no matter what fantasies are attributed to him. Salvation is rescue from a disastrous situation, not forgiveness from sin.

 

 Psalm 32:2
Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.

 Firstly, Christ was not just a man:

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

 Secondly, He was to be cut off, but not for Himself:

Isaiah 53:8He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.  9And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.  10Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  11He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 12Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Daniel 9
24Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.  25Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.  26And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.  27And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

 
 Seventy weeks; Or 70 x 7, 490 years are determined on Israel.

to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity;  

 John 3:17
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

1 Corinthians 15:55
O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

Romans 5:19For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 20Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 21That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.


 and to bring in everlasting righteousness

1 Cor 1:30But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

1 Corinthians 6:9Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

to seal up the vision and prophecy; That is, to fulfill the prophecy etc,


and to anoint the most Holy; That is, Himself, the Holy one, who was anointed for His work by the most High God.  

Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

 Perhaps the Commandment given in Nehemiah in the 20th year of Artaxerxes, either 445BC or 455BC, "even in troublous times", as we read of in Nehemiah.

26And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself:

 If not for Himself, then for others.  


and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

 About 40 years after Christ predicted that the Temple would be destroyed, the Romans under Titus destroyed the city and the sanctuary, on the same day the Temple was destroyed the first time, the 9th of Av.

27And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

 Some think the final week is yet to be completed, and put it off into the future. Others think it was fulfilled some other way. I tend to think this was fulfilled in this manner, in 66AD, at about the time Vespasian entered the war, till the fall of Masada in 73, equals to 7 years. The daily sacrifice ceased 3 years and a half through, due to the lack of priests, as mentioned in Josephus.  

  So, if Christ is God, and if His mission was to save us from our sins, why do you doubt that He could do it? Can't God forgive sins?

What does the Psalmist mean when he writes:

The christian is intent on convincing all men that they are thoroughly evil inside and out; that their thoughts are evil and sinful, and since (they assure us) sin results in separation from the Holy G-d, men need a sacrifice for sin, and an intermediary, and all sorts of other stuff and nonsense.

Romans 3:23  "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

This may be true, but it was never possible for man to approach the Glory of G-d; and it is a good thing in that G-d forgives the penitent.
Isaiah 64:5 And we are all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteousness like filthy rags; we all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
Ecclesiastes 7:20 Surely, there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
Psalms 143:2 Enter not into judgment with Your servant; for no man living is righteous before You.
These statements confirm that no one is completely righteous and without sin, and that when one does inevitably transgress he becomes "like one who is unclean," but not actually or permanently so.
Sins can be "erased" through sincere repentance and a firm resolution never to repeat them. The power of repentance is illustrated below:
Psalms 51:19 The sacrifices [acceptable to] G-d are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O G-d, You will not despise.
I Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said: "Does the L-rd delight as much in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obedience to the voice of the L-rd? Behold, obedience is better than any sacrifice, and to comply [is better] than the fat of rams."
Jeremiah 36:3 Perhaps the House of Judah will hear all the evil I [G-d] intend to do to them, so that everyone may turn from his evil way and I may forgive their iniquity and sin.
Ezekiel 33:11 "As I live," says the L-rd, G-d, "I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn, turn from your evil ways, for why should you die, O House of Israel?"
Pr 14:16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.
Pr 24:16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.
To be Just is to rise from stumbling, which is the only way to stumble several times, while to be wicked is to refuse to rise up off the ground.
To be righteous is thus defined, not, as some say, as 'failing to ever sin,' but as 'repenting of sin, correcting them if possible, and doing that which is right,' as seen in Ezekiel 18.

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Who was the audience? What was the message from G-d? Rarely will one find a curse without a blessing being offered, for the right actions. What curses and blessings were mentioned in Jeremiah? What did Israel need to do inorder to obtain these blessings?

These are indeed important questions.  That is why I posed the verses with a question (I thought posting the entire chapter a bit much as I know that the Scriptures are readily accessible to all in this thread).  My interest is in learning about Jewish interpretations of these passages in their their proper context...about Jewish answers to these questions noted above.

The Jewish world view and the Christian world view is very much different.  Rather than just answer the questions specific to the verses, let me share some thoughts on what I consider to be differences in the Jewish 'world view' and the Christian's.  I know I'm going to go off topic here, but I figure it best to over share a bit so as to explain how differently we may think.  And maybe find some common ground.

Judaism has no formal dogmas. Our various groups will at times give formal responses to social questions, but these are not binding upon any Jew.  Local communities operate with a Bet Din (court).  Torah commands us, that we are to resolve questions - by majority.  We interpret that now to apply to each local Jewish Community.

G-d gave no commandment to Israel that we believe anything.  Rather all of His commandments to us were about action.

We have no formalized opinion of 'the next world'. We certainly don't hold to the notion of eternal hell fire as depected in some Christian literature.

G-d made man very good (Tov Maod in Hebrew).  And mankind is exactly what G-d knew we would be. Good in the sense of potential.  Everything we need to choose good, G-d has already given us.  It is up to us to make it work, in the context of the life G-d grants us. And our motivation is not for reward in a "heaven".  

We have no concept of dualistic power. We hold that Satan works for and on behalf of G-d, not against Him. In other words Satan is on G-d's side.  

G-d deals with Israel as 'a people'.  While I certainly believe in a 'personal relationship with G-d." I also accept full responsibility for my fellow Jew and their relationship with G-d. I am affected, and I affect the well being of all other Jews by my observance of G-d's Covenant with my people. In other words, my sin affects not just me, but all of Israel. When I perform a Mitzvot (commandment), I am sanctifying the moment, myself and all Israel.

Repentence "Teshuvah" in Hebrew, means to return - return to the person G-d made us.  Being mature and responsible.  G-d is forever waiting for repentence and will always honor a contrite heart. He does not require blood in order to forgive.

Our Hebrew Scriptures are the treasure of Israel.  While many of its precepts are applicable to the Gentiles, Torah was given to Israel. Our Scriptures are our history and our heritage.  We cosider observance of Torah, in part, to be our role as a nation of Priests.

The Jewish mission is to work with G-d to Repair the World.  Tikkun Olam in Hebrew.  That includes more than just observance of Torah, but social action as well.  Everyone can and should participate in Tikkun Olam.

All humanity has equal share in whatever blessing or curse might befall us in this life and whatever is available (if anything) in the next.  Jews are not "exculsive" in that regard.  But because we tend to live somewhat aloof (as required by Torah), we get a bum rap at times.  That goes with the territory I suppose.

==========

I don't know if I answered your questions - or raised more.  Certainly I trust reading the verses in light of my points, should give you a different take on the words.  In other words, I interpret them in context of our Eternal Covenant with G-d.


Shalom

Actually, Shalom, I see alot of common ground between christian teaching and what your last post indicated.

But of course, there are the obvious disagreements too.

I see replacement theology as a removal from some central teachings of the first "christians" who were Jews.  For instance, I don't like the idea that in some future time, G-d will again re-establish the temple with blood sacrifices of animals.  This flies in the face of first century christian teaching.  This also gives the idea that G-d has two salvation plans - one for Jews and one for Gentiles.  This annuls the teaching of the first christian Jews that Christ Jesus is the end of sacrifices.

G

Replacement Theology, by definition, is the idea that the Church has replaced Israel.  The Covenant with Israel has also been replaced (i.e. the use of the term Old Testament is a perfect example).

But I suggest that even the concern you have about the restoration of Temple Sacrifices is born from your own deep seated belief in Replacement Theology.  Why else would it be of concern for you what Jews do.

Shalom

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Replacement Theology, by definition, is the idea that the Church has replaced Israel. The Covenant with Israel has also been replaced (i.e. the use of the term Old Testament is a perfect example).

Yes.  I didn't feel the need to point out the obvious, just pointing out some dishearting things that are taught within this system.  

Concerning the replacement of OC with the NC, this is based on Jeremiahs (chap 31) words.

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But I suggest that even the concern you have about the restoration of Temple Sacrifices is born from your own deep seated belief in Replacement Theology. Why else would it be of concern for you what Jews do.

No.  Otherwise I would support the system.  The reason for concern is based on an earlier concern which started with the first christian Jews.  Originally, this was a Jewish concern.

G

Jeremiah 31 is addressed to Israel and Judah, not all of humanity.  Jews understand this to be a prophecy about the restoration of our people.  I made mention earlier that the covenant and Torah are not one in the same.  Anymore than a marriage is equal to the pre-nup.  What G-d promises Israel and Judah is that He would right His Torah in our hearts - so that no one will need to teach one another about G-d.  He didn't say He would write a new Torah (new Law). And since Jews are still teaching each other about G-d, the prophecy has not happend.

G-d addresses the nations specifically in our Scriptures.  I do not think it correct to assume when He is speaking to us, he is speaking to you.  That again is the essence of "Replacement Theology".

Shalom

But I suggest that even the concern you have about the restoration of Temple Sacrifices is born from your own deep seated belief in Replacement Theology. Why else would it be of concern for you what Jews do.

 The Jews have an absolute right to the land and to the temple. It is their land, and the only people standing in the way is the spineless world and the Murderous Terrorists that need to be driven out. Sooner or later, there will be Justice over there. With Hamas being elected, Israel should just give everybody the finger and cripple the terrorist war machine once and for all.

I believe there are passages in the nt that say the early church members, including (I think) family members of jesus, continued offering sacrifices after the death of jesus. Apparently they didn't think jesus' death was a "final sacrifice."

 

 Considering your prior "interpretations" of the NT, I am not surprised you would think that. Reading what you believe we believe, I would think you had never before read the Gospels or anything from the NT!

And the Temple stood for a further 40 years, so the killing of a man nowhere near the Temple was not the "Final Sacrifice" you want us to think it was.

 
 The fact that the Temple was destroyed should obviously be a sign to you that God was not pleased. If I remember correctly, some 2million or more Jews were murdered in that mighty war. Not something anyone should be happy about, or try to ignore as if it was not a death blow to your Judaism.

 Those Zealous priests, they would still be offering their sacrifices as they were slain all around the altar (I am speaking of a prior story before the War that destroyed the temple), very inspiring, and very sad. Reading your posts, one would think the Sacrificial system was not needed, and not important to God!

I formal education includes Christian Studies at the graduate level. I must admit, I focused on Western Christianity mainly, so I do not consider myself an expert on the Eastern flavors. When I retire (in 10 or so years) I want to return to school and obtain a Doctorate in Christian Studies - or some related area. I only know of one Jew who has a Doctorate in Christian Studies - the world needs at least two of us. Bottom line: I am very familiar with the Christian Scriptures - I bet I'd win the Bible Quiz at a Pentecostal Church!

I thought I was quoting nojc4me, not you. I was thinking about when he said elsewhere that in Christianity it is not possible to repent (Edit: not possible for a Christian to repent after sinning he meant) , which is obviously a silly conclusion. I am too lazy though to check who it was I quoted, but if it was you then it does not apply.

 Now as for winning a Bible Quiz at a Church, that is always possible... But if you went to my kind of Church, there are old men there who are absolutely brilliant.  

My orthodox brothers say the holocaust was the result of the Reform movement in Europe. Most contend it was simply the result of being who we are as the servant in Isaiah, suffering at the hands of the nations.

 I was talking about the deaths during the Great revolt, not those killed by Hitler. Though if it was Judgment, it was Christians, Orthodox Jews, Reform Jews, who were all Judged.  

I don't believe anyone believes G-d's ultimate goal for Israel was to kill animals.

 Well that's good, I don't believe that. The ultimate Goal for Israel is to be Righteous children of God.  

Leviticus 26:2 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD. 3If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; 4Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.  

 Snip---

 11And I set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you.
 12And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people. 13I am the LORD your God, which brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, that ye should not be their bondmen; and I have broken the bands of your yoke, and made you go upright.

Our Scriptures put prayer, and a contrite heart above any physical sacrifice.

 Indeed, but that never made void the Law of Moses, it completes it, as I have explained in another post.

So, in a sense, it is not as important as some Christians believe we Jews hold it to be.

 Considering the Zealousness of the Jews in obeying the Law of Moses, it is better to say, "not as important as we NOW hold it to be".