Good intro courtesy of
www.bneinoach.orgWhat is a Noachide?
A Noachide (Noahide, or Noahite) is anyone that is not a Jew. All Gentiles are Noachides.
How does someone become a Noachide?
Someone becomes a Noachide by being born with a non-Jewish mother. There is no "conversion" process. You do not "join", get "converted", etc. It is simple. If you are not a Jew then you are a Noachide.
Where can I get information on what Noachides believe?
What you have asked is a very broad question. Since all Gentiles are Noachides the spectrum of their beliefs is broad as the earth.
Now, if you mean "observant Noachides", that is, Noachides that accept the teachings of Torah, then the very best source of information anywhere on the Web is at AskNoah.
There are many Questions and Answers, plus the excellent United Noahide Academy with its staff of very learned Rabbis and Torah scholars.
Where can I receive instruction on Noachide laws?
The very best place to get instruction on Noachide laws is from your local Rabbi. It should be an Orthodox rabbi. A list of Chabad Centers can be found at Chabad.Org and, in my opinion, there is no better source for instruction on Noachide beliefs or Jewish beliefs.
If a local rabbi is not available then the best advice I can give is to join the NoachideChassid Yahoo group where you can ask questions of Orthodox Rabbis.
Is there a place where I can discuss this subject with others?
There is a sister group to the NoachideChassid Yahoo Group called NoachsNeighborhood. It is a great place to exchange ideas and comments about the path of the righteous gentile.
What is B'nei Noach?
The term "B'nei Noach" means "children of Noach" (or Noah).
It may be spelled in various ways depending on one's pronunciation.
It could be B'nai No'ach, Ben Noah, etc. B'nei (b'nai, ben and so forth) mean "children of" or "child of" in Hebrew.
Is this a type of Judaism?
No, B'nei Noach is not a "type" of Judaism.
However the way we live and worship G-d is revealed through Torah.
Since G-d gave Torah to the world through the Jewish people making them the stewards of His Word it is from Jewish teachers and scholars we learn our duties as Noachides.
(Most importantly is that we learn from Orthodox teachers.)
What is the difference between Noachides and Judaism?
Noachides are B'nei Noach, children of Noach; Jews are B'nei Yisrael, children of Israel.
Although they, too, descend from Noach they have a special covenant with HaShem calling them out and assigning them greater responsibilities.
Jews have a larger, more strict set of commandments than Noachides.
Are Christians Noachides?
Unless they are Jewish either by having been born to a Jewish mother or by converting to Judaism then they are, by definition, Noachides.
If you mean are they Noachide Chassid or Torah observant Noachides then the answer would be no.
What about Moslems? Or Buddhists?
The answer is the same; unless someone has a Jewish mother or has gone through conversion with an Orthodox rabbi then they are Noachides. However they are not Noachide Chassids.
What is a Noachide Chassid?
Per Rabbi Yossi Markel, "A Noachide Chassid believes in the whole Torah and is committed to keeping his part of it."
Why wouldn't a Christian be a Noachide Chassid? They believe the Bible.
Christians believe a bible but not the Bible, that is, Tanach. Also they are not committed to keeping the commandments G-d has given to Noachides.
If anything they claim their obligation is to keeping the "Ten Commandments".
What commandments should Noachides keep?
First let us do away with the word "commandments" and use the Hebrew term.
The word "mitzvah" which is often translated "commandment" means much more. It basically means "connection" and through the keeping of mitzvos we make a connection with G-d.
The more we keep them the greater our connection. The more often we break them the more we break that blessed connection to Almighty.
There are Seven Mitzvos which Noachides are instructed to keep.
These are more like categories rather than individual "commandments". They are:
1. Do not worship idols;
2. Do not blaspheme;
3. Do not murder;
4. Do not have forbidden relations;
5. Do not steal;
6. Do not eat flesh taken from a living animal; and
7. Do not forsake the creation of courts and laws to enforce these.
These are the Sheva Mitzvos B'nei Noach, the Seven Laws of the Children of Noach.