Judaism and Beards

Warning: This post is a little ridiculous, but this alongside an analysis of Nietzsche's Genealogy of Morality are what I have rattling in my head. This one is a lot easier to write.

I'm obsessed with my beard. Anyone who knows me knows that I'm super proud of it, and they are aware that I have a strong belief that all men should wear a beard. I first grew my beard in 2006, when I walked out and quit my first job at Chick-fil-a. It was company policy, or health code policy, that employees weren't allowed to have facial hair, so as part of my rebellion on top of just walking out I also decided I'd grow my beard. Yesterday, I was looking at facebook pictures of me spending time with that first beard so many years ago, after which I went to check my current beard out in the mirror. This beard checking out thing is really a habit of mine, in most ways I'm not a narcissist, but I love my beard.

I'm going to get a little out there now, but I've noticed a recent change in my beard. Since I've been embracing traditional Jewish practices, my beard feels as if it's grown thicker and more awesome. Yes, I'm not shaving with a blade anymore, but I barely shaved ever anyway. I honestly think that somehow by my becoming more observant, my beard is becoming more.. epic. It's as if my face knows that I can't be a talmid hacham without a good face full of hair on you.

So, a quick discussion on beards and Judaism for all of you that are going, "What do beards have to do with Judaism and this blog." I spent a week in Lakewood, and while not every Orthodox person there, or even every Rabbi, had a beard I noticed that all the big guys, the gedolim who came to speak to us, they all had some very nice beards. One of my fellow fellows there actually asked one Rabbi Uren Reich how long he's been growing his beard. A highly inappropriate question to ask a man of his wisdom, but his answer was 35 years in case you were wondering. Anyway, beards are a thing in Judaism, but really I think its more of a thing of Jewish culture. Yes, in the old days there was a rule of "no putting a knife to your face", so awhile back you couldn't actually shave, but with modern technology around there are kosher razors that don't actually physically cut against your skin. I don't know the science. So, while there is a rule about no shaving,  the rule is bypassed.

Then why have a beard? I think part of it's cultural because of the whole no shaving thing. For years, we had to have beards, and so saying "Jews have beards" was a perfectly valid statement. Now even though we can shave, "Jews have beards", and so I have a beard too. I also once attended a Movember panel where we learned about Judaism and beards, and one of my teachers who happened to have a beard I'm very jealous of, said "All the great rabbis had beards, so if I want to be a great rabbi I might as well have one too".