tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-189681722024-03-13T14:15:45.219-07:00The Rabbi Is IN with Rabbi RamiCarrying on the century-old Jewish tradition of responsa, this blog provides short answers to readers questions.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1006125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-66428728604609584422014-01-05T07:25:00.000-08:002014-01-05T07:25:19.701-08:00New Year. Final Post.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I want to thank you all for being loyal readers of this blog, and apologize for not having posted in quite a while. The fact is I'm swamped with other projects. One of them is a blog–to–book experiment on Patheos entitled Rabbi Rami's Guide to Judaism. I posted the first entry this morning:<br />
<br />
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/rabbiramishapiro<br />
<br />
This will be my latests thoughts on Judaism. Nothing topical. Nothing snarky. Just my vision of Judaism that I hope to pass on to my grandchildren. And yours. I hope you will begin to follow the blog on the Patheos site.<br />
<br />
I continue to lecture around globe, run the One River Wisdom School (wwwoneriverwisdomschool.com), the soon to be open Spiritually Independent Foundation (www.spirituallyindependent.com) with its training program for spiritual directors, post my humorous spin on new age thinking on Twitter, write my advice column for Spirituality and Health Magazine, host my weekly radio call–in show (How to be a Holy Rascal on unityonlineradio.com, and bang my head against the wall to meet book deadlines, but this blog has got to go.<br />
<br />
Please follow me on Patheos, Twitter, and Facebook. Have a constructive and purpose-filled new year.<br />
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-3675071889797618142013-12-20T12:17:00.001-08:002013-12-20T12:17:29.206-08:00What Kind of Rabbi are You?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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“What kind of rabbi are you? Seriously, I just don’t
understand what you are about. A rabbi is supposed to adhere to the
commandments and make Jews Jewish, but I don’t see you doing that at all. Can
you explain yourself?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This question came through my email this morning, and I am
so grateful for it. Let me share my response with you.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps this will help: For me, Judaism is a means and not
an end, and being a rabbi isn’t about making Jews Jewish, but about using
Judaism as a tool for making meaning and discovering wisdom. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I am interested only in truth as best as I can discern it,
and I fashion Judaism as a way of articulating that truth. I don’t believe in a
God who created the universe, chose the Jews, gave us Torah, a Promised Land,
and 613 <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mitzvot</i> (commandments). I
believe in a nondual reality evolving toward greater levels of complexity and
higher levels of consciousness that ultimately gives rise to beings such as
ourselves who can begin to understand this reality, and fashion meaning and purpose
that promote justice and compassion for all beings. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The extent to which I can imagine Judaism doing this is the
extent to which I feel myself commanded. The extent to which I can’t imagine
this, is the extent to which I don’t feel commanded.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Because my loyalty is to truth rather than Judaism, I see
myself as spirituality independent, and thus free to explore and draw from the
entirety of human wisdom: religious, artistic, scientific, etc. And I want the
Judaism I teach to be of value not only to Jews, but to other spiritually
independent seekers as well. Just as Jews borrow from Buddhism, Hinduism,
Sufism, and Christian mysticism, I want followers of these paths to borrow from
Judaism as well.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So I guess I am what my rebbe told me to be: a rabbi to the
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-42021753168193429602013-12-18T08:18:00.002-08:002013-12-18T08:18:48.649-08:00Merry Christmas<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I love Christmas. Almost all of it: the music, the parades,
the lights, the greetings, the joy, the gifting, the trampling of shoppers, the
annual paranoia of Fox News anchors—all of it. I love Christmas because I love
Jesus, and I love Jesus because I love Christ, that awakened mind that reveals the
unity of God, woman, man, and nature. (John 10:30).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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That’s who Jesus is to me: a God–realized Jew. If Jesus has
asked me instead of the disciples, “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16: 13-16),
I would have smiled and said: you are Divine Wisdom knowing the unity of all
life in, with, and as God. You are what each of us is and yet does not know
ourselves to be: God incarnate. Sadly my answer never makes into the C.S. Lewis
inspired trilemma that limits Jesus to either liar, lunatic, or Lord. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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My problem with Christianity is that it teaches Christians
to worship Jesus rather than to become Christ. Of course you might challenge me
saying, “But that’s because you aren’t a Christian.” And I would respond,
“That’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">why</i> I’m not a Christian!” If
Christianity taught me to be Christ, to awaken to my truest Self and realize
that all beings are manifestations of the singular Be–ing that is God, I would
be drawn to it like a moth to a flame. But not being a Christian doesn’t keep
me from loving Christmas.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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For me, Christmas is the annual remembrance that each of us
was born holy, that each of us a child of God the way a wave is a child of the
ocean. Christmas celebrates our capacity to become fully God-realized (just as
Good Friday reminds of the cost that realization demands, and Easter reminds us
of the promise it contains). I look at the Christ child as the seed of
God-realization present in each of us, and see in this holy day a chance to
refocus my efforts at cultivating in me the mind that was in Jesus Christ
(Philippians 2:5).<o:p></o:p></div>
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What is this mind? I believe it is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Chochma</i>/<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sophia</i>/Lady Wisdom,
the Divine Mother of all things arising in the Infinite Nonduality of God, and
manifesting what the Taoists call the 10,000 joys and 10,000 sorrows. She is
the mind that knows the interdependence of all things. She is the love,
compassion, justice that arises with this knowing, and She is the courage to
confront the powers and principalities that oppose these things and this
knowing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Christmas is too important to be left in the hands of those
who can see in Jesus only three options. Claim it for yourself, or better,
claim it for your Self.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Merry Christmas.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-65090839193633220072013-12-16T07:34:00.001-08:002013-12-16T07:34:23.036-08:00Holy Rascals Revival<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Humans are meaning–makers, and religion is one way we make
it. There may never have been a time when humans—Homo sapiens sapiens—were
without religion. While our religions change, our need for religion doesn’t.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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For example, we Jews outgrew (with the “help” of the
Babylonians and later the Romans) a religion of animal sacrifice, coming up
with two first century alternatives: rabbinic behaviorism and Christian
spiritualism. Neither left the sacrificial world completely, of course. The
rabbis fantasized, albeit half-heartedly, about the rebuilding of the Temple and a return to sacrifice, and the
Christians built their entire religion around a God who himself was sacrificed. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Sacrifice is as old as religion, and probably comes from our
observation of nature and the fact that death is often a prerequisite for new life. The difference
between natural and human sacrifice is that nature puts limits on the
destruction it causes, while humans do not.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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We are, I suspect, in the final decades of a great
sacrifice. Our age is defined by unending war,
ecological and financial collapse, plutocracy, mindless consumerism,
meaningless work, and the ceaseless murder of our fellow citizens by other
citizens. The religious response to this collapse has largely been to ignore
it. Mainstream religions tell us to pray our way out of this, while new age
religions invite us to wish ourselves happy. Our gods demand nothing of us, and
want nothing more than for us to be good consumers and cogs in the capitalist
machine. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Religion hasn’t brought us to this impasse; it simply
reflects it and excuses it. While it is true that throughout history there have
been individual spiritual giants challenging the status quo, if we wait for
them to rescue us we are doomed. We cannot wait for them; we have to become
them. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I call these latter–day prophets Holy Rascals. They are holy because
they stand against the madness of our zero–sum civilization steeped in arrogance, cruelty, violence, pornography, ignorance, and greed, and for a
non–zero civilization rooted in justice, compassion, peace, dignity,
friendship, eros, and love. They are rascals because they use humor, irony, and
sarcasm to pull the curtain back on the great and terrible wizards of the Guns–Gore–God–Greed
complex that runs our lives, and reveal them for who they are: little men (and
sometimes women) with big megaphones.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I invite you meet some of these Holy Rascals at
holyrascals.com/. More importantly, I invite you become one of these Holy
Rascals at our next Holy Rascal Revival slated for April 25–26 in Portland, OR.
Check in with holyrascals.com for more details.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-70311620192458711192013-12-14T16:16:00.002-08:002013-12-14T16:16:27.112-08:00Yes, Megyn, Santa IS White<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I need to come to the defense of Fox News’ Megyn Kelly’s
claim that Santa Claus “just is white.” Her claim, and the follow-up assertion
that Jesus, too, is white, created quite a stir. In walking back her comments about
Santa she declared she was kidding. Regarding her claim that Jesus was white,
Megyn now says that issue isn’t yet settled. Wrong on both counts.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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First, regarding her just kidding around, I listed to the
tape of her rant a couple of times and she was not kidding, not even a little
bit. She believed—and probably still believes—that Santa is white. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Second, regarding Jesus, the matter is settled: Jesus, a
middle–eastern Jew, was brown. In fact, according to Karen Brodkin in her book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">How Jews Became White Folks</i>, Jews
weren’t considered white until after World War Two. <o:p></o:p></div>
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OK, Megyn was wrong on Jesus. But she was right about Santa.
He’s white!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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While the 13<sup>th</sup> century Saint Nicholas was olive
or brown skinned, the Santa we know is based on the Dutch Sinterklass who is
probably as white as Deniz Akkoyun (look her up). Sinterklass predates
Christianity and may have some relation to the Norse God Odin, who, as far as I
know, is also white. You can, as I did, check out Marvel’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Mighty Thor</i> to corroborate this claim. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Besides, the real Santa Claus, the only Santa that counts, the
Santa Megyn and I know and love, was shaped to a large degree by the Coca-Cola
company that featured him from 1931 delivering toys, reading his mail, and
sipping Cokes as he flew from house to house. And as decades of Coke ads make
abundantly clear: Santa is white. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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[Little known fact one: It is drinking thousands of Cokes a
year that allows Santa to maintain his figure. Little known fact two: Deniz
Akkoyun probably doesn’t drink Coke, or, if she does, prefers Diet Coke to
Santa’s original. Little known fact three: Santa hated New Coke and replaced
all presents with coal at every house that tried to foist that crap on him.]<o:p></o:p></div>
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So Megyn don’t let the liberal lamestream media upset you.
While you need to get used to a brown Jesus, (way more difficult than getting
used to a brown president, I know) you can be comforted in the knowledge that
Santa is as white as you and me. Or at least you; I’m a Jew.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-48308759647782020532013-11-29T11:31:00.002-08:002013-11-29T11:31:48.412-08:00Freedom From Form/Freedom Within Form<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
After facilitating a discussion on reforming Judaism with an
audience of Reform Jews I felt I had a better handle on the real challenge
facing contemporary Reform Judaism.<br /><div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My focus was on taking the old forms of Judaism—kashrut,
Shabbat, God, prayer, Torah—and reforming them: ethical consumption, play,
self-realization, contemplative practice, and critical/imaginal thinking. What
I found was people in no need of such reforming because they had lost interest
in form altogether. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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They didn’t need to remake kosher because they had no
intention of ever restricting their consuming in any way other than person
preference. There was no need to rethink Shabbat because they had stopped
thinking about Shabbat long ago. God wasn’t taken at all seriously, and prayer
was a matter of social convention and communal gathering in which the liturgy
itself was irrelevant. While some in the class enjoyed Torah study they had no
need to find new meanings in the text because they didn’t engage Torah as a
source of meaning, but as a lesson in history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Simply put, my passion for reforming Judaism wasn’t shared
by the people with whom I hoped to reform it. While I yearn for a Judaism where
old forms yield to new meanings, my students wanted a Judaism without form, or
at least without any form that demanded anything from them. Their rejection of
form wasn’t driven by a passion for freedom, but by a desire to be left alone.
The goal isn’t to be free from constraints—they have no constraints—but to
avoid any hint of constraint. But again this isn’t a drive toward freedom or
anarchy, both of which I can respect; it is simply apathy. And against that we
may be powerless.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-72546579067571462432013-11-26T09:32:00.003-08:002013-11-26T09:32:27.065-08:00Hodu L'Adonai<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This year Hanukkah overlaps with Thanksgiving for the first
time since 1888. Such a coincidence will not happen again for over 70,000
years. I’m not usually an early adaptor, but the chances of my being here for
this future union of Pilgrims and Maccabees is slight, so I have decided to
celebrate this conjunction of holy days with a special prayer: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hodu L’Adonai</i>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Those who know their Hebrew Bible will recognize <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hodu L’Adonai</i> as the opening verse of
Psalm 136: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Hodu L'Adonai ki tov, ki l'olam chasdo/</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Give thanks to God, Who is good, for God’s
mercy is boundless. But this prayer of thanksgiving holds a special surprise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Hodu</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> is rightly translated here as “Give thanks,” but more surprising it is
also the Hebrew word for “turkey.” Yes, there is a slight difference in
spelling between these two <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hodu</i>s but
let us not limit our great and glorious God to the grammatical quirks of
Hebrew. For thousands of years God hid the link between thanksgiving and turkey
in plain sight, waiting for us to find it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">As we gather on
Hanukkah and light our candles in celebration of the Maccabees’ victory over
the Greco–Syrians let us sing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hodu
l’Adonai</i>: give thanks to God, and then let us give turkey to God as well. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-72537371919269498662013-11-25T08:50:00.003-08:002013-11-25T08:50:32.023-08:00Can Jewish Humor Save the Jews?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">The new
Pew survey on American Jewry reveals a fascinating statistic: 42% of those who
identity as Jews in the United States hold humor as an essential Jewish value.
Like most commentators on the survey this statistic bothered me. I took it as a
sign of the decadence of Jewish life in this country. It was the epitaph on our
gravestone: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We Died Laughing</i>. But
this morning my train of thought made a U-turn. Jewish humor may not be the
death knell of our people but a shofar blast of our new awakening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">What
does the humor of Gertrude Berg, Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, Gilda Radner, Jon
Stewart, Lewis Black, Joan Rivers, Mel Brooks, Roseanne Barr, Andy Kaufman,
Groucho Marx, Sarah Silverman, Susan Essman, and many others have in common?
Irony and the ability to pull back the curtain on the lives we live to reveal
the madness at its heart. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">Jewish
humor has for centuries been the way the powerless speak truth; the way we who
live in the absurd reality that is this world survive. Irony and humor is our
way of shining light on the absurd. No it doesn’t make it less absurd—nothing can
do that—but it does give a modicum of sanity by reminding ourselves that it is
absurd. Can you be totally insane if you know you’re insane?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">The Pew
survey isn’t saying that Jews think Jews are funny, it is saying that Jews
honor the Jewish value of using humor to speak truth to power. Indeed with far
more Jews valuing humor over halacha (Jewish law), American Jews are simply lifting
the holy fool over the wholly observant. But the two need not be in opposition.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">Listen
to Lawrence Gross from his 2009 review of the Penguin Classics edition <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Talmud: A Selection</i>:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">“The
reader ought to be told, even in summary form, how the centuries that Jews
spent steeped in the Talmud laid the basis for the contributions that their
secularized descendants would make to world culture. The penchant for studying
godly law and lore, for example, engendered the interests and habits that
sparked later Jewish intellectual achievement; the open-ended Talmudic debates
set the stage for some Jews to think “outside the box” and chart new paths in
science and mathematics; the stress on rationality and quantification sharpened
Jewish business acumen, and the wordplay, irony and whimsicality encountered in
the Talmud bred a distinctive Jewish humor — no Talmud, no Woody Allen and no
Seinfeld.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Lucida Grande";">(<a href="http://forward.com/articles/119468/talmud-for-today/#ixzz2lft8dY4v"><span style="color: #012087; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">http://forward.com/articles/119468/talmud-for-today/#ixzz2lft8dY4v</span></a>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If Talmud led to Jewish humor, could not Jewish humor lead
to Talmud? Can we post-modern liberal and largely secular American Jews
recognize that what makes Jon Stewart <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Jon
Stewart</i> is Judaism and its love of irony, skepticism, argument, and doubt?
And could we not in this way begin to reclaim the source of that
stance—classical Jewish texts themselves? Could we once again hear the call of
which irony is only an echo to not only laugh at the insanity of power but
confront it with truth? Is it possible that we can once again learn that to
confront the powers that be we must not only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">speak</i> truth but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">embody</i>
truth? And can we, with all due respect to my teacher Mordecai Kaplan (z”l), use
that realization to reconstruct ancient behaviors into modern counter-cultural
lifestyles?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don’t have the answer to these and similar questions the
Pew survey raises, but to simply wring our hands over our people’s clinging to
humor is to miss the deeper hope that cling contains. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-30601224122684370462013-11-23T13:59:00.001-08:002013-11-23T13:59:16.965-08:00Three Passions, Two Doubts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have three passions: Judaism, spirituality, and Murphy, my
Goldendoodle. Of the three the only one I embrace without ambivalence is Murphy.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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My ambivalence regarding Judaism has little to do with
Judaism itself and more to do with Jews. I love studying Judaism but often when
I speak to Jews about the potential of Judaism to transform their lives with
new meaning and purpose, I am met with blank stares and apathy. I want to
believe that the reason so many Jews are only nominally engaged in Jewish life
is because the Jewish life they are offered is only nominally engaging. But in
those dark moments when belief gives way to truth I suspect the reason that
most Jews are apathetic regarding Judaism is that they are simply apathetic
toward Judaism. They really don’t care. And because they really don’t care
there is nothing any of us who do care can do about it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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My ambivalence about spirituality is different. Here the
issue isn’t with the people, but the enterprise itself. Spirituality is the
practice of connecting to Reality (God, Tao, or whatever you choose to call
it), but the fact is (and for me it is an experientially confirmable fact)
there is no need to connect to Reality since you cannot be disconnected from
Reality. All the systems we create and organizations we build are, as my Zen
teachers used to say, selling water by the river. The more I travel and teach
ways of awakening to Reality the more I spread the illusion that you need to
awake, that you are asleep. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Perhaps it is the recent death of Toni Packer and my rereading
of her books and those of J. Krishnamurti that has me thinking this way. In any
case, do we really need all the initiations, workshops, mantra, speakers,
gurus, etc.? Is this really the alternative to organized religion that so many
participants claim it is? Or is it just more of the same?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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My ambivalence doesn’t keep me from doing the work I do. I
continue to invite Jews into a new Judaism of my own imagining, and I continue
to invite the spiritually independent to learn from the wisdom of the world’s great
spiritual texts and teachers. But I continue to doubt the efficacy of both
efforts. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Thank God for my dog and the simple truth of wagging tails
and chasing Frisbees. While I never answered the koan “Does a dog have
Buddhanature,” I have definitively answered the koan “Is it the Buddha’s nature
to have a dog?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-70240832822753001832013-11-18T18:16:00.004-08:002013-11-18T18:16:45.060-08:00Password<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Last Saturday morning as we settled in for the second day of
my Path & Pen: Writing as Spiritual Practice workshop, Rev. Margaret, our
“den mother” explained that those of us searching for the password needed to
get on line should understand that there is no password. Access to the Internet
is free. A light bulb went off in my head as she said this.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Did you hear that? There is no password! Access is free!
The truth has been revealed to you. All these years you have been searching for
the password, surrendering to priests, pastors, rabbis, imams, swamis, and
others who promised to reveal it to you once you are ready to receive it, once
you have bought, literally and figuratively, the reality they are selling which
is always about the need for the password they claim to have. And now at last
you know the truth: there is no password! Access is free!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Now what will you do? Religion is all about selling you
passwords you don’t need. Knowing the truth, how can you go back? I’m not
saying you shouldn’t go back. I’m only asking that if you choose to go back,
knowing that there is no password, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">how</i>
will you return? <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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If you go back, go back free. Go back knowing that there is
nothing to know. Go back to play with myth and ritual rather than to surrender
to pomp and piety. Go back free, and free others when you get there.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now you know the truth as well. What will you do with it?<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-54758193775108824292013-11-12T15:23:00.003-08:002013-11-12T15:23:23.989-08:00The Rising Tide of Orthodoxy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This week’s Forward newspaper
features a front page story on the changing demographics of the US Jewry.
According to a closer parsing of the Pew survey of American Jews, 27% of Jews
under 18 years of age live in Orthodox homes. According to sociologist Steven
M. Cohen, “Every year, the Orthodox population has been adding 5,000 Jews. The
non–Orthodox population has been losing 10,000 Jews.” If this trend continues I
suspect American Jewry will hit a tipping point where non–Orthodox Jews will
simply cease to be Jews. <o:p></o:p></div>
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But hold on, why
imagine that just because we liberals Jews will be in the minority we will stop
being Jews? After all Orthodox Jews have been a tiny minority among American
Jews for decades and they never abandoned Judaism. Can it be that our faith in
our Judaism is less strong and compelling then that of Orthodox Jews? <o:p></o:p></div>
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Yes it can.
Orthodox Jews believe that God literally chose the Jews as His (sic) people,
and gave them His (sic) Torah, the only true revelation given by God to
humanity, and promised them the Land of Israel as their home. Liberal Jews may
give lip service to these ideas, but few actually believe them. After all, if
we did believe these things, we would live by them, and if we did live by them
we would be Orthodox Jews.<o:p></o:p></div>
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So the problem
isn’t just that Orthodox Jews have more babies, but that Liberal Jews have less
faith. Or, to be more specific, a different understanding of faith, but
nevertheless one that I suspect will not cling to the label “Jew” if the
Orthodox take control of the brand.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But I could be
wrong. Indeed I want to be wrong. So, please share with me your thoughts. If
the numbers reverse themselves and 90% of American Jews are Orthodox Jews and
only 10% are Liberal Jews, would you, as a liberal Jew (assuming for sake of
argument that you are) stay with Judaism or would you find a faith community
more conducive to your beliefs?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-10619737472753733612013-11-11T15:31:00.001-08:002013-11-11T15:31:34.773-08:00Up Against the Wall<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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For decades the Jewish feminist organization Women at the
Wall (WOW) has fought for the rights of Jewish women to read Torah and wear <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tallitot</i> (prayer shawls) at the Wall.
Today they are on the verge of a grand comprise, with the government of Israel
agreeing to work with WOW to turn a newly excavated part of the wall known as
the Robinson Arch into an egalitarian worship space.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The compromise doesn’t meet the standards of Cheryl Birkner
Mack who resigned from the WOW board in protest. While I support WOW and
whatever decision it makes regarding the Wall, what interests me here is Ms.
Mack’s statement published in the Forward (Nov. 1, 2013): “I’m not interested
in bigger, better, nicer, I’m interested in holiness and they’re not suddenly
going to impose holiness on the new sight.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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What makes the Wall holy? The Wall itself is the western outer
retaining wall of the Temple grounds and not a wall of the Temple itself. When
the Temple stood there was nothing intrinsically holy about this site. In fact,
there is nothing intrinsic about holiness at all.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Holiness is a sociological phenomenon. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something is holy because people claim it to
be holy. The bit of the western retaining wall that has become the Wall is holy
because it represents the Temple not because it was the Temple. And for
centuries it was the only bit of wall available. That has changed with the
Israeli passion for archeology. But is the newly excavated parts of the wall
any less the Wall than the older exposed part?<o:p></o:p></div>
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I have walked the underground excavations of the Wall many
times, and the awe I feel as I touch these long buried stones actually
surpasses the emotions I feel in the busy and highly politicized above ground
Wall. So why would that be different with the newly excavated parts of the
wall?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Logically it wouldn’t, but we are talking religion here and not
logic. The stones Ms. Mack loves have little to do with history (the rest of
the wall is no less ancient) and everything to do with emotion (political as
well as religious). I understand her feelings, even as I suspect it won’t take
long for the new wall to become part of the Wall, and no less holy than the
older section of wall. The Wall isn’t holy in and of itself, but only because
Jews make it so. As Jews extend this holiness to the rest of the wall the women
at the wall will find themselves women at the Wall once again.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-80937051199227895132013-11-10T06:03:00.002-08:002013-11-10T06:03:25.225-08:00The 2010 Vision of Reform Judaism and the Triumph of Empty Rhetoric<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
In<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"> 2010, the Reform Leadership Council (RLC) convened a Reform Judaism
Think Tank to develop a vision statement for Reform Judaism. The result is a
document heavy on emotion, empty of meaning, and lacking all vision. Here is
the statement as published:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Our Faith <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Reform Judaism maintains faith in the
Covenant between God and Israel as expressed over the generations in the
teachings of an ever-evolving Torah and tradition. Stirred by the mandate of
tikkun olam, Reform Judaism seeks to be the living expression of those
teachings. It welcomes all who seek Jewish connection to pursue a life of
meaning as inspired by the Divine and proclaimed in the truths grasped by
Jewish teachers throughout time. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In Community <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In sacred attachment to the Jewish people and
with connection to the State of Israel, Reform Jews, as members of a group and
as individuals, in holy congregations and in diverse settings, strive to make
thoughtful choices about how we put our values into action. Reform Judaism asks
us to seek the holiness that is present throughout creation through reflection,
critical study, and sacred acts so as to renew our living Covenant with God,
the people Israel, humankind, and the earth. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">With Leadership <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The organizations of the Reform Movement
exist for the purpose of bringing the teachings of Judaism to the world. In
partnership with one another, these organizations hope to realize the many
lessons contained in those teachings by nurturing individual Jews, by
sustaining congregations and groups that foster authentic and innovative
community, and by shaping a shared destiny for Reform Jews with fellow Jews in
Israel and around the world. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">To see what’s wrong with it, let’s walk through it slowly and just ask the
obvious questions that the statement raises but does not address. There is no
need to critique this statement, only to see that it is empty of all meaning.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Our Faith<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Reform Judaism
maintains faith in the Covenant between God and Israel as expressed over the
generations in the teachings of an ever-evolving Torah and tradition</b>. What
is this Covenant, and who is this God? Are we to understand God and Covenant
the way Orthodox Judaism does? If so, why do we need Reform Judaism? And if
not, somebody had better define these terms. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What does <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">ever-evolving
Torah and tradition </b>mean? If Judaism is ever-evolving and Reform Judaism is
the latest expression of this evolution, does Reform negate other forms of
Judaism? What causes Torah and tradition to evolve? What is the difference
between an evolving Torah and merely inventing a Judaism that suits our personal
needs regardless of tradition?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Stirred by the
mandate of tikkun olam, Reform Judaism seeks to be the living expression of
those teachings.</b> What teachings? No teachings have been articulated, and
hence the word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">those</i> is empty and
meaningless. What do we mean by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mandate</i>?
Where does it come from? If Reform is to be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the</i>
living expression of these teachings, are other expressions of lesser value?
And how are we to understand <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tikkun olam </i>in
the first place? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">It welcomes all who
seek Jewish connection to pursue a life of meaning as inspired by the Divine
and proclaimed in the truths grasped by Jewish teachers throughout time</b>. Is
Judaism about pursuing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a life of meaning</i>?
I thought it was about maintaining faith in the Covenant (whatever that means).
And what does it mean to be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inspired by
the Divine</i>? What is this Divine and how does it inspire me? Is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">inspire</i> taking the place of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">command</i>? What are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the truths grasped by Jewish teachers throughout time</i>? What makes
them true? Reform Judaism rejects many of the truths of the past, were these
so–called truths really falsehoods?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">In Community<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">n sacred attachment
to the Jewish people and with connection to the State of Israel… </b>What is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sacred attachment</i>? What is the difference
between sacred attachment and regular attachment? What does <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sacred</i> even mean in this context? What
is our <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">connection</i> to the State of
Israel? Why isn’t this sacred as well? What is the difference between <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">attachment</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">connection</i>?<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Reform Jews, as
members of a group and as individuals, in holy congregations and in diverse
settings, strive to make thoughtful choices about how we put our values into
action</b>. What does <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">holy</i> mean? What
makes our congregations <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">holy</i>? Why are
other <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">diverse settings</i> not holy? What
are these values? Do they have anything to do with our Covenant, and if so what
choice do we have regarding them? If we are bound by a Covenant, choice is
irrelevant.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Reform Judaism asks
us to seek the holiness that is present throughout creation through reflection,
critical study, and sacred acts so as to renew our living Covenant with God,
the people Israel, humankind, and the earth. </b>Again, what does <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">holiness</i> mean? How is it present
throughout creation, and how does <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">reflection,
critical study, and sacred action</i> reveal it to us? Why does our Covenant
with God need renewing? What does it mean to renew it? Since I have no idea
what is in this Covenant, how can I renew it? And now it seems I have living
Covenants not only with God (whatever <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God</i>
may mean), but also with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the people
Israel, humankind, and the earth</i> as well? Where did these additional
covenants come from? What are they? To what do they obligate me?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">With
Leadership<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
organizations of the Reform Movement exist for the purpose of bringing the teachings
of Judaism to the world</span></b><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">.
Now this excites me. I believe we need to bring Judaism to the world as a way
of ensuring Judaism’s survival. I want Buddhists, Hindus, Christians, Muslims,
Humanists, and Secularists to borrow from Judaism the way Jews borrow from
Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Humanism, and Secularism. But I still
need to know what these teachings are, and nowhere in this statement are they
articulated.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
partnership with one another, these organizations hope to realize the many lessons
contained in those teachings by nurturing individual Jews, by sustaining
congregations and groups that foster authentic and innovative community, and by
shaping a shared destiny for Reform Jews with fellow Jews in Israel and around
the world</span></b><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">. This is
simple blather. How is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nurturing individual
Jews</i> the way we realize the lessons contained in Jewish teaching? And since
we don’t know the teachings how can we realize their lessons? What is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">authentic and innovate community</i>? And
what are we to make of the notion of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">shaping
a shared destiny</i>. If something is our destiny we don’t shape it, we fulfill
it. And what is this <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">shared destiny</i>
in the first place? Nobody tells us!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The 2010 Vision of Reform Judaism is nothing
more than the stringing together of verbal emoticons: words that carry
emotional baggage and yet are stripped of all intellectual content. Maybe that was
the authors’ intent. Maybe they realized that if they actually defined their
terms and obligated Reform Jews to something specific, most Reform Jews would
bolt. But if what passes for vision in the Reform Movement is merely empty
rhetoric, it is time to shut it down anyway.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-46359236180151078362013-11-06T12:57:00.001-08:002013-11-06T12:57:32.893-08:00Judaism as Psychology<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
When we stop believing in religion, religion doesn’t go
away, it becomes a servant of psychology. For example, books like Jean Shinoda
Bolen’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Goddesses in Everywoman</i>, and
Robert Johnson’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">She, He, </i>and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> We</i> take the Gods and myths of ancient
Greece and turn them into modern psychological archetypes. The same thing may
be happening with liberal Judaism as well.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the current issue of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reform
Judaism</i> magazine Alan Morinis, founder and dean of the Mussar Institute,
and one of the most creative voices in contemporary Judaism, offers an
insightful essay on the meaning of Hanukkah and other Jewish holidays. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Embedded in each of our holidays,” Alan writes, “are the
messages they hold for us.” Purim’s message is “It’s time to be joyful!” Tisha
b’Av tells us its time to be sad. “If you are a person who is always or often
sad, then Purim comes to help you usher in some happiness. Or perhaps you live
your live (sic) experiencing great joy, and here comes Tisha B’av (sic), saying
“You should learn to know sorrow, too.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hanukkah it turns out is about trust which is why the photo
accompanying the essay is of a young woman hanging from a harness over a gorge
of some sort. Maybe she is lighting candles each time she approaches the
ground, I don’t know. Or maybe lighting candles is irrelevant to the theme of
trust. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let me be clear: I’m not criticizing Alan’s approach. I know
him and have only the greatest respect for his work. All I’m doing is pointing
out that this is what we do when we no longer believe. The hope is that in this
way Judaism will take on a new life as a system of metaphors for psychological
insight and wellness. If this is what is happening to liberal Judaism it will
no longer be a religion, but a self–help therapy.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I can imagine a questionnaire to help you determine if you
are a Purim Person or a Tisha B’Av Person, etc. and then, based on your
profile, you will determine which Jewish holidays you ought to celebrate. This
may give Judaism a role to play in the future, but it won’t be the one it was
meant to play.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Something similar is happening in evangelical Christianity
where Jesus wants you to be happy and rich rather than saved, and in Buddhism
where Buddha nature is that special something you are meant to actualize in the
world, and meditation is no longer a tool for enlightenment or even the ending
of suffering, but a means to reduce stress, heighten our capacity for
concentration at work and in school, and generally make us more productive
producers and consumers.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There may well be a future for religion, but it may be that
the religions we have now are headed the way of Olympus.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-62091993878135921052013-10-27T13:44:00.002-07:002013-10-27T13:44:19.367-07:00Wandering<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
[<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It is still hours
before dawn breaks over the Land of the Rising Sun. I am sharing this dream
with you because writing is how I process and publishing is how I let go of
what I process</i>.]<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yesterday I participated in Shinnyo-en Buddhist meditation,
having my inner world mirrored back to me through the words of another. My
mirror was Rev. Minoru Shitara, Director of International Relations for
Shinnyo–en. This is what I was told: “You are wandering and worrying that your
wondering is without purpose. You cannot see where you are going or why, or
whether or not it matters. Release the worrying, there is no knowing for you,
only wandering. Trust the wandering.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yes, I am wandering and I have no firm sense of direction,
and I do worry about this. This is true physically as well as spiritually. I
have difficulty distinguishing “right” from “left,” and am easily lost and
spatially disoriented. Nevertheless I did not like what I heard. Sadly, I could
not “unhear” it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Moments ago I awoke from a dream. I’m walking a rope bridge
strung over a vast chasm. I can’t see where I’d come from or where I’m going.
There is no sense of going back or going forward, only walking on. My dream
self recalled the story of Abraham leaving all he knew and walking (physically
and spiritually, outwardly and inwardly) into the not–known, and said, “But at
least Abraham had the promise of arriving and there of becoming a blessing to
all the families of the earth, whereas I have no such promise and no such hope.
Please show me more.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I watched as the dreamscape expanded and I could see a wider
view. The rope bridge grew longer and the walker grew smaller, but still no
beginning or end came into view. I again asked for more, and again the bridge
grew longer and the walker even smaller, and still no beginning or end. Again
and again I asked for the view to widen, and finally I say this: at the one end
of the bridge birthing and dying, and at the other dying and birthing. And the
now almost invisible dreamer walked on. With this I awoke.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Over these past few days among these amazing teachers from
so many paths and countries I have been reminded of my wandering. I am like the
ancient Judeans who would pack a sack of sand from the Promised Land when
travelling abroad so that their god could recognize them. I carry a sack of
Jewish sand as I wander physically, psychologically, and spiritually far beyond
the borders of my home not so that god will recognize me, but to recognize
myself and in this way honor my tribe and my ancestors and my heritage. And
yet, as I admitted without hesitation but a few hours ago, I am a hasid of
Jesus, indeed I am a lover of the Beloved in all Her forms and hasid of all her
saints and prophets, and I am a “victim” of the formless nondual whose love is
all consuming and self erasing. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I didn’t choose this “path” I simply find myself on it.
Decades ago Reb Zalman told me this would be my way, but I neither believed him
nor understood his meaning. Now there is no talk of believing or understanding,
just walking on over this chasm from nowhere to nowhere. “No wonder you don’t
take students!” a teacher told me recently. Perhaps so.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-40174262145424356212013-10-25T14:43:00.001-07:002013-10-25T14:43:22.477-07:00Purity of Soul<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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[Here are the basic talking points I used in a talk I gave yesterday in Kyoto, Japan.}</div>
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First, may I express my gratitude to Shinnyo-en and the
Global Peace Initiative of Women for sponsoring this important gathering and
for inviting me to Kyoto to participate in it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Second, let me offer two warnings. Warning one: Judaism has
no fixed or official theology. What we have are the experiences of Jews
articulated through the limited medium of words which leads to a culture wildly
divergent in its philosophies and beliefs. As we put it: “Two Jews. Three
opinions.” What you will hear from me is simply my opinion. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Warning two: words are maps and never the territory they
claim to represent. Whatever we say about the soul, Atman, or Buddha–nature is
only a finger pointing to the moon and never the moon itself. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More importantly, from my
understanding—personal as well as Jewish—there is no moon at all, only mooning,
as I hope this brief talk will explain.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Each morning observant Jews recite this short affirmation: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elohai neshamah sheh natatabi t’hora he</i>:
“My God, soul manifesting as me is pure.” It is not a prayer, but a statement
of fact. I am not thanking God for my soul, I am reminding myself of the nature
of soul.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Notice, as the ancient rabbis did, that “God” is qualified
by the word “my,” but “soul” is not qualified at all. Why is this? We speak of
“my God” because God in and of itself cannot be spoken of or about. As Lao Tzu
wrote in the Tao te Ching: The tao that can be named is not the Eternal Tao.”
Any god about whom we can speak is not God. In this prayer when we call out to
“my God” we are to realize even in the moment of our calling that our idea of
God is insufficient. In the Book of the Prophet Micah something similar happens
when we are told to “walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). In other words we
should not cling to any theology, especially our own, but hold all such notions
humbly, lightly, for no notion of God is God.<o:p></o:p></div>
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No such qualifier is attached to the word “soul,” however.
Why? Because, having admitted the limitation of language, we are now challenged
to step beyond language into the state of pure transparency, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">t’hora</i>, a state beyond all words and
concepts. When we know soul is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">t’hora</i>,
we know that soul—my very sense of “I”— is pure, without conditions, without
limits, without boundaries, without anything that would in fact make it “me” or
“my soul” at all. When I understand that soul is pure, my sense of separate and
conditioned “I” dissolves for a moment, and there is a knowing (though not an
“I” to know it) we call <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">da’at d’vekut</i>,
a knowing of the nonduality of all in all. <o:p></o:p></div>
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A simple word–play found in kabbalistic or Jewish mystical
teaching will, I hope, make this a bit more clear. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The Hebrew word for “I,” the first person singular, is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ani—aleph, nun, yod</i> or “a,” “n,” “I” in
English. The Hebrew word for the formless and yet ever–forming God is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ain</i>—nothingness, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sunya</i>— is comprised of the same three letters in different order: a<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">leph, yod, nun</i> or “a,” “i,” “n.” The
fact that both words are comprised of the same three letters suggests to the
Jewish mystic that “I,” “soul,” “self,” and “God” are different expressions of
a singular dynamic, an endless dance of birthing and arising, and dying and
dissolving that is the very nature of reality. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Focusing on the letter <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yod</i>
or “i” which stands for the Hebrew word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yadah</i>,
attention, the Jewish mystics teach that when our attention is focused
outwardly—when the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yod</i>/i is at the
end of the word as it is in the word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ani</i>,—we
have a sense of distinct self and soul. When our attention is focused inwardly—when
the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yod</i>/i is in the middle of the
word as it is in the word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ain</i>,—our
separate self or soul is seen to be transparent, pure, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">t’hora</i>, and thus empties into a greater reality we call YHVH.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As I understand it, the unity of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ain</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ani</i> is a teaching
similar to that of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #343434; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Prajna Paramita Hrydaya Sutra</span></i><span style="color: #343434; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> (</span>Heart Sutra): “form
is emptying, emptying is forming.” Again I avoid the use of nouns in this
translation to help free us from any notion of permanence, even a temporary
one. God is, if you’ll pardon the paradox, permanent impermanence. God doesn’t
change from one moment to the next, God is the changing moment this moment and
the next. And, again, we call this process YHVH.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The soul, the self, is the extending of YHVH the way
sunlight is the extending of the sun, and a wave is the extending of the ocean.
I am not saying the soul is an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">extension</i>
of YHVH as if the soul were a thing, but that the soul is an extending of YHVH,
an activity of YHVH, pure activity. <o:p></o:p></div>
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This word YHVH, sadly rendered as Lord, is a verb and not a
noun. YHVH is a form of the Hebrew verb “to be.” YHVH is a dynamic process and
not a static something. In the biblical book of Exodus we are told that YHVH is
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ehyeh asher Ehyeh</i>, not the static “I
am that I am” of most translations, but the dynamic “I am becoming what I am
becoming,” of the literal Hebrew. God is not a being, or even a supreme being,
but the endless process of being/becoming itself. And because we are YHVH
extending, we are this process as well. There is no fixed “Rami,” only YHVH
“rami–ing.” And the realization of this is the promise offered by the chanting
of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elohai neshamah sheh natatabi t’hora
he.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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My chanting does not make this so, it only awakens me to
what is already so. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">D’vekut</i>, the
unity of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ani</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ani</i>, of self and God, is not achieved or earned, it is a given. The
wave cannot be other than the ocean. The awareness of what is we call <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">da’at</i>, knowing. My chanting of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elohai neshamah</i> creates nothing new, it
only opens my eyes to that which is always and already there. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Though the goal of Jewish contemplative practice is to become
aware of this dance, to achieve <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">da’at
d’vekut</i> the knowledge of what is already so, we can say nothing of the
moment of knowing or awakening because at that moment that is no one to
experience it, and only experiencing itself. At the moment of knowing there is
no <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ani</i>, there is no <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ain</i>, there is only the ineffable
happening we call YHVH. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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While we cannot say about this experience, we can sense that
something happened. Somehow we are less afraid, more loving, more just, more
compassionate. In Hebrew we call this <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">reshimu</i>,
the fragrance of something no longer present but something no less real.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Imagine purchasing a bottle of expensive perfume, removing
the stopper, and allowing the oil to evaporate over time. Eventually the
perfume is gone, but even so the fragrance remains. I suggest that while none
of us can articulate the deepest truth beyond language, we are all smelling the
same fragrance, the aroma of the dynamic dancing of YHVH that arises as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ain </i>and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> ani</i> over and over and over again. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-4667681594363039002013-10-20T07:46:00.001-07:002013-10-20T12:47:10.304-07:00A New Covenant<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>I am preaching at Christ Church in Calgary, Canada this morning, and thought I would share with you the message I will share with them.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let me offer you a deeper reading
of this morning’s passage from Jeremiah, one true to the Hebrew, though one you
will not find in your English translations.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Be certain, declares the Only One of Being, a time of new
covenanting is coming for the House of Israel and Judah, and this new covenant
will be unlike the old made with your ancestors when I liberated them from the
Narrows only to see them brake with freedom and abandon Me, their true Beloved.
<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>This new covenant cannot be broken for I will place My
Torah within you, and write it on your hearts, that I will be your Being and your Becoming,
and you shall be My people. No longer will you teach one another, or admonish
one another saying, “Know the One!” for you shall all know Me—from the least of
you to the mightiest—for I will forgive your sins and forget your errors for
ever.</i> (Jeremiah 31: 31-34)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As Christians you may imagine Jeremiah is speaking of the covenant of Christ who died as ransom
for your sins. I will not disabuse you of this reading, but I invite you to go
more deeply into the text, to read it as rabbis do, and perhaps as Rabbi Jesus
did.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the beginning of this passage
God admits failure: the old covenant written on stone was broken, but more
importantly was breakable. This was a surprise to God: why would people newly
liberated from Egypt—the Hebrew <i>mitzrayim</i>
literally means the Narrow Places, the constricting places in which you and I
are enslaved—opt over and over again to enslave ourselves? But we do. We are
offered the endless love of the infinite Beloved and turn instead to the shallow
passions stirred by our addictions: emotional, financial, cultural, ethnic,
spiritual, religious, etc. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In Genesis 12:1–3 we are called to
<i>lech lecha</i>, to journey inwardly as
well as outwardly, and free ourselves from the enslavements and conditioning of
nationality, ethnicity, religion, parental bias and the rest, and travel to a
new place that the conditioned mind cannot see but that God will show us
when we drop our conditioning, and there as free women and men to become
strong and use our strength to be a blessing for all the families of the earth,
human and otherwise, from the least to the mightiest. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And yet we abandon the journey,
and seek to escape not from slavery but from freedom, and to “choose a new
leader who will take us back to Egypt.” (Numbers 14:4) The absolute love of
God, a love that burns away the addictions to which we so desperately
cling, is so frightening that many of us beg to return to slavery, and
in so doing break the covenant of liberation made with our ancestors.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To correct this failure God plans
to make a new covenant, an unbreakable convenant, unbreakable because it isn’t
written on stone but on hearts. Yet the ancient rabbis wondered why God writes
this new Torah “on our hearts” rather than “in our hearts.” Their answer is
crucial for all of us.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The new Torah is on our hearts so
that we may open our hearts to receive it. There is still work to be done: the
heart—your heart—has to be opened to the covenant. But how? We Jews have our
way. We call it <i>Teshuvah </i>and<i> Tikkun</i>, the Way of Returning and
Repair: returning to our true nature as the image of God (Genesis 1:27) and
Repairing the world with godliness. In this way we continue the process of <i>lech lecha</i>, the journey toward freedom and unconditionality, toward that place of liberation where we can be a
blessing to all the families of the earth. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But you are not Jews, but
Christians, and you have your own way, the way of the Cross. Not the Cross of Christ, the Cross of the
institutional Church that teaches us that Christ died as ransom for our sins so
that all we need do to open our hearts and receive the new covenant is to have
faith in that act of absolute and infinite sacrifice, and worship the one who
made it, but the cross of Jesus, the cross of resistance, the cross on which
Rome crucified those who threatened its power and challenged its hegemony.
Listen to the words of St. Paul on the nature of your way:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>For our struggle is not against the
people (flesh and blood), but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil
in the heavenly realms</i>, (Ephesians 6:12).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When you confront these powers do they roll over and surrender? No they crucify you. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus never said “worship me,” but only
“follow me”: “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from
your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me,” (Matthew 16:24). Turning
from your selfish ways is the process of <i>teshuvah</i>—the
Hebrew literally means turning; it is the <i>lech lecha</i> journey to freedom that frees you to be a blessing to
the world, but at what cost? You and I,
Christians and Jews, call this cost the Suffering Servant of God. You are taught that this refers to Christ alone, we Jews—and never
forget that Jesus was a Jew—know that it is a cost each of us must pay on our
own.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus says “take up <i>your</i>
cross” and follow him. Follow him where? To heaven that is the new
covenant assuredly, but first to Golgotha, first to the crucifixion—not his
alone, but yours. That is why you have to take up <i>your</i> cross, and not make a fetish of his cross. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus is telling you that if you want to follow him you must
do as he did and struggle against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual
forces—the nonmaterial influences of our culture that
sustain the rulers in their enslavement of the people. And in so doing you will
die. And in dying your heart will break: <i>Eli,
Eli, lamah sabachtani</i>; My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:1;
Mark 15:34). And with the breaking of your heart the Torah written on it slips
within it, and the resurrection happens.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The resurrection is the day
that is coming, the day of the new covenanting when you will do the
work of Jesus and even surpass him (John 14:12), and the promise of God will be
fulfilled because the godliness of free humans will transform the earth with
love, compassion, justice, and peace. This is the promise. The only question you must answer is this: Do you have the courage to fulfill it?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-47097102189917241292013-09-19T07:01:00.001-07:002013-09-19T07:01:30.154-07:00Happy Sukkot<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
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Today is the first day of <i>Sukkot</i>, the Jewish Feast of Booths. This is my most favorite holy
day. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What I love about Sukkot is that it celebrates both the
fecundity and fragility of life. We gather in these makeshift booths [<i>sukkah</i> (singular), <i>sukkot</i> (plural)] open to the elements to remind ourselves not only
of the wandering of our people in Sinai (something that may or may be
historically true), but also to affirm the fact that there is no real defense
against the uncertainties of life. During Sukkot we take up the truth of the
first two of the three pigs in the Three Little Pigs folktale (yes, I realize
the irony of using pigs to illustrate a Jewish point). They built their homes
out of straw and twigs, very similar to the building materials of a <i>sukkah</i>. The Big Bad Wolf’s huffing and
puffing is the wildness of life and its capacity to blow down our most precious
hopes and dreams.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Most of the year we pretend that the third pig who build his
house out of bricks was the wise pig who knew how to establish surety and
certainty in his life. Any look at the results of the flooding in Colorado, or
the mass slaying in D.C. reminds us that bricks alone cannot protect us. In
fact nothing can protect us. And yet…<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Within this fragile booth we celebrate the harvest. In the
midst of fragility—the sukkah—we celebrate fertility—the harvest. How cool is
that?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
During the week of Sukkot we gather with family and friends,
both living and dead, to share a meal in the sukkah, reminding ourselves that
the best way to survive life’s uncertainties is with the love of family and
friends.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And, to make sure we don’t miss the point, we study the Book
of Ecclesiastes, one of the most honest books ever written about the nature of
life and how best to live it. From Ecclesiastes we learn once again that everything
is <i>hevel</i>, as insubstantial as the
morning dew, and that the best way to live in a world of such profound
impermanence is to plant joy in its midst by eating and drinking moderately,
finding meaningful work, and cultivating two or three deep friendships.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Whether or not you are Jewish, this is a powerful and
important message. Whether or not you build or visit a sukkah this week, the
meaning of Sukkot is worth pondering. Whether or not Bible study is your thing,
read the Book of Ecclesiastes (let me suggest my own translation and
commentary: <i>Ecclesiastes Annotated &
Explained</i>, and <i>The Way of Solomon</i>
since most English translations miss the point).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Hag sameach Sukkot</i>,
may you awake this week to the message of Sukkot and the joy that comes with
embracing it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-55036601810145828702013-09-18T06:39:00.002-07:002013-09-18T06:39:35.289-07:00Morning Gospel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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“You want ta know th’ truth of Christianity? You ain’t gonna
find it in this church. Damn, son, you ain’t gonna find it in any church.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Murphy, my goldendoodle, and I were walking through town
this morning, and stopped to greet a man standing out front of one of the many
churches on Main St.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“No sir. No church preaches Jesus ‘cause Jesus was a revolutionary
and churches is for keepin’ the people down. What do Jesus say? The meek will
inherit th’ earth. You see any meek runnin’ things in this world? What do Jesus
say? Th’ last will be first? You see any last folks in charge? What do Jesus
say? God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven. You see God’s will working
in this world? God’s will is that th’ poor and th’ widow and th’ orphan and th’
powerless be uplifted and treated with dignity. Where’s that happenin’ in this
world? No, sir, the church don’t preach Jesus they preach Christ, th’ god of th’
rich who wants your money and your time and your energy so you are too tired
and bamboozled by dreams of heaven to make a revolution here on earth. They
don’t preach the Jesus of the Jews, they preach the Christ of Rome.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Rome? Like the Catholic Church?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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“A’course not! Rome as in th’ Roman Empire that occupied and
exploited th’ poor in ancient Israel. Sure Catholics is part of it, but
Protestants too, and Jews and Muslims and any religion that takes your money
and your dignity and gives it to the rich all the while promisin’ that you’ll
get it all back plus interest in th’ world t’ come. You know what they teach in
church?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Love? The Gospel of Jesus?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Hell, no! Churches is teaching th’ gospel a surrender.
Churches is teachin’ that Jesus wasn’t never talkin’ ‘bout this world but some pie
in the sky world. So let th’ rich run this world, and know th’ poor’ll run th’
next world. This is th’ greatest scam in th’ history of man. And don’t think it
just be Christians who be teachin’ this. I had a rabbi tell me once that rich
people are usin’ up their inheritance in this world and will have nothin’ left
in th’ world to come. You believe that? I don’t. This kinda teachin’ is just ta
keep th’ poor from startin’ a revolution. But it’s commin. It’s commin’. Nice
dog you got there.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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And the man walked on. Seriously. I love this town.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-12625940555516958472013-09-16T16:07:00.006-07:002013-09-16T16:07:58.829-07:00A Different View on Gun Control<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I flew back to Nashville from Aspen, CO this morning, and
fell into a conversation with my seatmate about the current state of the US
economy. “I’m the 1%” he told me. I’m not, I replied. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“Where do you stand on gun control?” he asked. I favor it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Me too, but you shouldn't be. Anyone among the 1% who isn’t in favor of gun
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“Because this country is on its way to a civil war: the 1%
versus the 99%. Right now the 1% runs the country and controls the military. The
military is our jobs program for the poor. When the 99% rise up against us, we will use the army against
them. What's happening in Syria will happen here. Some among the military will
turn against us, but most will see that their future lies with serving us
rather than killing us. If we allow the civilian poor to arm themselves it will
make it that much harder to defeat them.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t sure what to say. So he just
went on.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Capitalism is a culture of winner take all, and winners rig
the system to keep winning. When the losers finally catch on that
they can’t win, they'll take to the streets and bring their guns with them.
Of course you can’t stop them from owning some guns, the Second Amendment and
all that, but I would restrict them to the most primitive hunting weapons, and
not let any military grade or military style hardware get into their hands.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What about a revolution via the ballot box?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Never gonna to happen. We own the media, the media tells
people what to think. Liberal media, conservative media, MSNBC or FOX, it doesn’t
matter. I’s just circus, just distraction. Media figures and politicians are
all millionaires. The difference between them is an illusion designed to keep
the 99% believing there is hope that one day they too can be rich.
Never gonna happen.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Your view sounds very dystopian. “Dystopian for you, utopian
for me.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As I
sat thinking about what I had just heard, I couldn’t help noticing that this one percenter was stuck in the same cramped tin can I was. It gave me
hope. But probably not enough.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-71834342602709752682013-09-09T08:45:00.002-07:002013-09-09T08:45:13.777-07:00Symbol of Hate?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I passed a pick-up truck on the highway yesterday that was covered in Confederate Battle Flags. A large sticker featuring one of these flags read, "It's not a symbol of hate; it's part of our history."<br />
<br />
Does this make sense?<br />
<br />
Imagine a German driving a car covered with Nazi swastikas coupled with the saying, "It's not a symbol of hate; it's part of our history." Does this make the symbol any less objectionable?<br />
<br />
On the other hand, the Star of David is a symbol of oppression to millions of Palestinians. Can I excuse this with the notion that "It's not a symbol of hate; it's part of our history," or do I have to find another symbol that is somehow neutral? And is there such a symbol?<br />
<br />
Please don't jump on the "moral equivalency" soap box.* That isn't my point. I am NOT equating Nazis and Israelis. I am asking the question when, if ever, is a symbol beyond the pale; when, if ever, do I let other peoples' reactions to my beloved symbols influence my use of those symbols?<br />
<br />
*I know saying this won't stop some of you from going there anyway, but please try. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-16575111568159033732013-09-06T13:23:00.001-07:002013-09-06T13:23:26.157-07:00B'nai Mitzvah Redux<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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According to a new Reform effort the key to stopping parents
from quitting the synagogue once their kids become Bar and Bat Mitzvah (“Repositioning
Bar Mitzvahs to End Drain.” Wednesday, September 4, 2013) is to get “the
children to spend less time learning Hebrew and memorizing prayers, and more
time working as a group on sustained ‘social action’ projects.” Seriously? If
my goal is feeding people (the example offered in the article), wouldn’t the
thousands of dollars I spend on synagogue membership be better spent actually
feeding people? I’m sorry, but if you want liberal Jewish kids to stay Jewish
you have to focus on the <i>Jewish</i> not
the <i>liberal</i>. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Bar and Bat Mitzvah aged children are natural
revolutionaries. If you want them to be Jewish you have to show them that
Judaism is revolutionary. Teach them about Abraham shattering his father’s
idols. Teach them how Abraham’s argument with God over Sodom was a battle of
justice against power, and Abraham/justice won! Show them how living Jewishly is
an ongoing struggle against idols and for justice.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Show them how keeping kosher—boldly redefined as lifting all
their consuming to the highest ethical, moral, and environmental values they
can muster, and then striving to go even higher—is a way to battle the
consumerist culture and corporate class system that is destroying persons and
planet. Show them (ala Levinas) how unplugging from the Internet on Shabbat and
joining with family and friends to play and talk face to face is an act of
radical resistance against the facelessness that defines American life and
blinds us to the exploitation and demonization of the Other. Show them (ala
Levi Strauss) how authentic Torah study teaches them how to deconstruct all
texts (from newspapers to advertisements) to see what is really being said.
Teach them that Jews question, doubt, and argue, and that these are our
David–stones used to topple the corporate and statist Goliaths that turn all
beings into commodities, and show them how to use Jewish tradition to free
themselves and others from the narrows of Pharonic slavery and into the
terrible desert of freedom, and toward the messianic redemption of a global
promised land.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Giving our children less Judaism isn’t going to help their
parents agree to pay for more dues. Parents will pay for those things that add
value to their children’s lives and futures. If Judaism can’t do that, not only
should parents leave, but all of us should get out as well.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-50387615487221812452013-09-02T13:19:00.001-07:002013-09-02T13:19:11.618-07:00Rosh HaShanah Queries<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I received an emailed list of questions regarding the High
Holy Days this morning. I share my answers with you here as an invitation to
you to offer your own.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Why do so many Jews
attend High Holy Day services when so few attend weekly Shabbat services?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Guilt. Most Jews do little that is overtly Jewish (keeping
kosher, observing Shabbat, building a sukkah, etc.), and slogging through the
High Holy Day services is a way of saying, “I’m still Jewish.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Why do so many
Jews—even those who attend High Holy Day services—find them boring and tedious?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Because they are are boring and tedious. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Would people find the
services more compelling if they understood Hebrew?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
No. Knowing what we are saying makes it even harder to say
it. Most Jews—even many rabbis—don’t believe a word of what they’re saying.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Why are Jewish
services so long?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Because we never found a good editor. Not only is our
liturgy one prayer heaped upon another, we then repeat so many of them as if no
one were paying attention in the first place. This has nothing to do with
attention, of course, and everything to do with ancient Temple sacrificial practices,
but the result is that confessing the same sins or singing the same praises
over and over reduces both confession and praise to mere babble.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Would people find the
High Holy Day more interesting if they understood its kabbalistic or mystical
meanings? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kabbalah depends on a mastery of Torah and Talmud that most
Jews cannot even imagine. To skip Torah and Talmud and jump to Kabbalistic
texts would require a dumbing down of Kabbalah to the point of inanity. Mysticism
isn’t an alternative to the liturgy but an experience of the nonduality of God
that is supposed to emerge from praying the liturgy. To pretend to the former
when we have no facility with the latter is just silly.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>What do you think is
the real problem behind Jewish lack of interest in services?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jews. We are among the most educated people on the planet.
We helped create modernity—Spinoza, Marx, Freud, Buber, Einstein, Friedan,
etc.—and yet when we walk into a synagogue we are asked to pretend that we are
living in the 12<sup>th</sup> century rather than the 21<sup>st</sup> century.
The real problem with synagogue services is that they speak to a world we have
long since abandoned. As the service drones on we become robots programmed to
rise and sit and read responsively and make a fetish out of Torah. We become a
community of the living dead shrouded in <i>tallit</i>
(prayer shawls), imitating dead ancestors, and wondering why we feel so dead
ourselves. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>If you could change
three things about High Holy Day services what would they be?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1. <i>The theology</i>.
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is dead, and adding Sarah, Rivkah, Leah
and Rachel to his epitaph does nothing to bring him back to life. We need the
God of Spinoza, Einstein, and Kaplan instead: God as reality, God as process,
God as source and substance of all being and becoming, God as that power that
makes for human happiness, justice, compassion, wisdom, and love, and not the
Father King of our medieval ancestors.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2. <i>The liturgy</i>. We
have to invent a liturgy that reflects what we do believe, rather than recite a
liturgy in which we can’t believe. Someone should go through the High Holy Day
liturgy and a) identify the key passages and phrases (<i>Al Cheyt, Unetanah Tokef, Kol Nidrei, Shofarot</i>, etc.) that are
unique to Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur, b) recast them in a modern poetic form
(both in Hebrew and, in my case, English) that reflects a modern, egalitarian,
non–xenophobic, and scientifically accurate understanding of life, and c)
shape a contemplative liturgy around them that relies heavily on silence and
great music (not responsive readings and camp songs).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
3. <i>The length</i>.
Even with a good 45 minutes devoted to Torah discussion (instead of sermonizing),
the service shouldn’t last more than two hours.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Any last thoughts?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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One: we have to ask ourselves what the purpose of the High
Holy Days is, and then determine if that purpose is relevant to us, and, if it
is, reinvent a High Holy Day experience that actually matters. Personally, I
would offer a ten day Days of Awe intensive rooted in serious self-reflection,
meditation, <i>musar</i>, forgiveness work,
chanting, etc. that would actually promote teshuvah (returning to God), tikkun
(engaging life with godliness), and tzedakah (opening our hearts and hands to
the needy). I experimented with this when I was a congregational rabbi and I
think it worked fairly well. Today I am retired, but that doesn’t stop me from
offering advice to my colleagues: be bold!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-29205394921992531452013-08-15T09:51:00.003-07:002013-08-15T09:51:17.452-07:00Another Science & Religion Piece<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In the August 19<sup>th</sup> issue of The New Republic
Steven Pinker wrote a masterful essay entitled “Science is Not Your Enemy.” The
essay is a defense of science that often veers into an attack on religion. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Pinker writes that science is committed to two ideals: <i>The first is that the world is intelligible…In
making sense of our world, there should be few occasions in which we are forced
to concede “It just is” or “It’s magic” or “Because I said so.”</i> The second
ideal is that <i>the acquisition of
knowledge is hard</i>. Part of the difficulty is that we humans are <i>prone to illusions, fallacies, and
superstitions. Most of the traditional causes of belief-faith, revelation,
dogma, authority, charisma, conventional wisdom, the invigorating glow of
subjective certainty—are generators of error and should be dismissed as sources
of knowledge.</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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Which leads us to religion. <i>To begin with, the findings of science entail that the belief systems
of all the world’s cultures—their theories of the origins of life, humans, and
societies—are mistaken… There is no such thing as fate, providence, karma,
spells, curses, augury, divine retribution, or answered prayers…</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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I agree with Dr. Pinker, but is this really what religion is
all about? To dismiss religion because of ancient ideas many religious people
have long outgrown is like dismissing medicine because doctors once rejected
the idea of germs. Why assume that only science grows? The history of religion
suggests that it too challenges outmoded thinking and offers new theories in
its place.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Religion is one way people make meaning out of reality.
While it is true that many religions insist on a worldview that is demonstrably
false, this doesn’t mean the meaning making is any less at the heart of what
these religions are doing. Good religion, just like good science, works with
facts as we know them. Bad religion like bad science ignores the facts when
they are inconvenient.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Based on evidence I consider irrefutable, I am a firm
believer in evolution. Contemplating the unfolding of species over 13.8 billion
years is awe inspiring, but when I ask my science colleagues about the meaning
of evolution most of them draw a blank. There is no meaning to evolution. As
Steven Weinberg once wrote, “The more the universe seems comprehensible, the
more it also seems pointless.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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But when I look at the universe through the lens of science
I can’t help but make meaning out of what I see. I see evolution pushing toward
minds capable of greater and greater levels of consciousness. Making meaning
out of evolution is the work of religion. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Is meaning intrinsic to life? Yes, because we meaning makers
are intrinsic to life. Humans are the way nature makes meaning no less than
chickens are the way nature makes eggs (or is it the way eggs make chickens?).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Religion, no less than science, is a method. And religion,
like science, also rests on two ideals. The first is that the world is meaningful,
and we humans (at least on this planet at this time) are the means by which the
universe makes meaning. The second ideal is that religion, no less than
science, is hard. Religion at its best isn’t a matter of blind faith, but of
careful investigation and introspection. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Religion’s method is contemplative inquiry, difficult
practices that take years to master, and which allow us to study reality in
such a way as to make meaning out of it. Often meaning is best articulated
through myth, metaphor, poetry, art, and music. These should not be taken
literally, and when they are good religion goes bad, and making meaning
devolves into imposing belief.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Steven Pinker is correct: science is not the enemy, but
neither is religion. Contra Jay Gould’s “nonoverlapping magesteria,” at their
best science and religion are two overlapping human endeavors. Religion needs
science to keep it from clinging to old maps that no longer accurately
represent the facts on the ground. Science needs religion to avoid falling over
the precipice of nihilism. Religion and science are not in opposition. On the
contrary, they are partners in the human quest for truth, meaning, and purpose.<o:p></o:p></div>
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How do you understand the relationship between science and
religion?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18968172.post-54881624884565035052013-08-08T14:05:00.001-07:002013-08-08T14:05:20.149-07:00Pointless?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">After talking with a rabbi friend of mine earlier today about
the relationship between religion and science, I read this quote from Nobel
laureate Steven Weinberg: "The more the universe seems comprehensible, the
more it also seems pointless."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Certainly not all scientists are this nihilistic, nor does the
fact that science cannot answer questions about morality and meaning (the lack
of which is, I assume, why the universe seems pointless) prove there is no morality
or meaning. It just “proves” that if you are looking for morality and meaning
don’t use the tools of science, at least not the sciences Steven Weinberg uses
to comprehend the universe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">My rabbi friend wants to make religion the antidote of
pointlessness, but that may not help since religion yields a variety of moral and
meaning systems without any way to objectively judge which is actually true.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Maybe
the problem lies with Weinberg’s assumption. Let’s assume that life prior to
the evolution of humans is intrinsically amoral and meaningless. Let’s further
assume that humans are the way nature makes morality and meaning, and that religion
and philosophy are the ways we do this. Since humans are part of nature, and
since humans produce a variety of moralities and meanings it is wrong to say
that nature is amoral or meaningless, and more accurate to say that nature is
multi-moral and multi-meaning. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">This,
of course, leads us to relativism where no morality is better than any other,
and no meaning is any more true than any other. And that can lead us back to
nihilism. So maybe the only way we can assume a universal morality and meaning
is to assume a force outside of nature that imposes such. Which leaves us
pretty much were we are today: competing morality/meaning systems each claiming
to be the one true standard of the one true God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13.0pt;">Your
thoughts?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6