Seven Noahide Laws

603,550 Jewish heads of household, and their families, numbering in the millions, collectively experienced the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai. Name another event, in the history of mankind, with so many verifiable witnesses.

What is the biggest march in history? A million people? Two million people? Imagine 3, 4 million people, all experiencing the same thing. Now try to convince them they all had a collective hallucination. If the foundation of history is human witness, then Mattan Torah is more grounded in history than perhaps any other event.

We know exactly how many individuals there were, because a census was taken (actually, three of them in the 13 months after the Israelites left Egypt).

I'm angry that people in the 21st century, the beneficiaries of centuries of scientific advancement, still believe that men with beards in clouds tell them what to do.

I am also angry that some people think there are bearded men in clouds. Any idiot, including you, can look at the clouds and disprove such a belief.

No one is asking or telling you to believe in G-d. I was speaking to those who do. For you, perhaps the physical world is confusing enough, without having to deal with its spiritual underpinnings, and that's your path.

The world was formed precisely to conceal G-dliness within creation, within physicality. You see a physical world, and so do I. This is how we are built, and no one is asking more of you.

I don't know about Islam or Christianity, but Judaism is based on action. Not meditation on a mountain top or seclusion in a monastery, but action in the real world. Not lofty ideals, but their implementation - the perfection of our physical world through natural means. We Jews were given 613 mitzvot, or good deeds, to perform in the world.

You don't have to be Jewish to be a good person. What you must do, however, is act like a good person.

We are fortunate to live in a time when the essential morals of monotheistic faith - what the Jews call, the Seven Noahide Laws - have completely permeated our society and civilization, making basic adherence to them a matter of accepted routine. More is not required of you.