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Top Document: soc.culture.jewish FAQ: Worship, Conversion, Intermarriage (5/12) Previous Document: Question 11.3.1: Writing: Why do some people write "G-d" with a hyphen instead of an `o'? Next Document: Question 11.3.3: Writing: Why are somethings written in Hebrew, and others in Aramaic? See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge
Answer:
Some Jews consider Jesus to have been an ordinary man and write his
name like that of any other man. Some question whether or not he even
existed, possibly being a myth borrowed from similar stories. Others
ascribe to him the status of a "deity worshipped by others," whose
name Jews should not pronounce. Many extend this ban to the written
form. Some write "Xianity" as a simple shorthand, like "Xmas," while
others prefer not to write "Christianity" lest it appear that they
consider Jesus to have been the Messiah.
Note that the shorthands "Xianity" and "Xmas" do not derive from
attempting to "blot out" the Jesus's name; rather, they arose because
the first letter of the Christ in greek (Christos) is a Chi, which
looks like an "X". In fact, the shorthand is used by many Christians.
The possible halachic problem with writing Christ derives from the
fact that "christos" is the Greek word for Messiah/moshiach. Hence
some argue that writing the name Christ in full tacitly acknowledges
(G-d forbid) that Jesus was the Messiah.
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Last Update March 27 2014 @ 02:11 PM
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