01/02/2024 7:34:13 ¶ ●

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How do you feel about jewish supernatural creatures being portrayed in media? Is it okay if done correctly, since it is a closed religion? I'm really curious, especially since you obviously know so much about them.

I also want to say that I love your art! And I love being able to learn more about these creatures.

thank you for the kind words, i appreciate it!

i have to say i’m confused by the question, or possibly its framing - i’m not sure what Judaism being a “closed religion” has to do with portraying creatures from folklore in media. “closed religion” is a term people generally seem to use when they’re talking about not appropriating the actual religious/cultural practices of a (usually contextually marginalized) religion that you don’t belong to. recently i’ve seen some pushback against the term “closed practice/religion” for Judaism, as it’s not literally true. yes, Judaism is for Jews, but anyone can convert to Judaism - it’s just that it’s a whole process that involves a lot of learning & then being accepted by a Jewish community. to my knowledge, “closed practice” as a term grew out of the pagan/neo-pagan community anyway & was used to describe any religion whose symbols, deities & practices weren’t socially considered fair game for use in your own personal spiritual practice - i have a lot of thoughts on this odd sort of “restaurant view” of religion & culture, where some things are at a free-for-all buffet so you can just take what you want (who put them there?) while other things are only served at certain tables by reservation (is anyone else ever invited?), but that’s a whole other post.

i’m assuming you’re asking how i feel about non-Jewish people portraying creatures from Jewish folklore in various kinds of media, & the answer is that it totally depends on the thing & how it’s done? i definitely don’t subscribe to the idea that creators should never step outside their own experience/culture. i do think portraying (elements of) other cultures is something that should be done carefully & sensitively, ideally with input from members of that culture! unfortunately, it is very, very easy for creators to unintentionally fall into antisemitic tropes & stereotypes, because those ideas are so old & so pervasive, especially when it comes to monsters & other supernatural creatures (Jews having been literally demonized by Christian culture for centuries). i think if you’re not Jewish, then making sensitive, educated work about Jewish monsters is probably hard mode, but that isn’t to say it can’t be done. i can think of plenty of bad examples off the top of my head, but i’m sure i could come up with some good ones too if given the time.

of course, this is all just my opinion, & should not be taken as a ruling on what’s “okay”! other Jews will agree & disagree with me, which is fine & good. :)