I have finished the book "Future Tense: Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the Twenty-First Century. I must say that, even though I am a secular Jew and Rabbi Sacks is a religious Orthodox Jew, I have found him to be a towering intellectual who has tremendous knowledge of philosophy, history, and the world's religions. His major points are that: 1) Orthodox Jews have been turning inward, thereby shutting themselves off from communication with the larger world. This process must be reversed to enable Jewish thought to positively influence others and to gain wisdom and friends from other groups, and 2) Non-Orthodox Jews have engaged with the outside world to the extent that their ties to Judaism have weakened and intermarriage and assimilation threaten to greatly diminish Jewish numbers.
Rabbi Sacks strongly supports the right of Israel to exist, but feels that, when the Israeli government took over the charitable and human service functions that had been performed by religious and other voluntary organizations in the Diaspora, the spiritual, religious, and emotional aspects of these activities were greatly diminished. Because Israeli Jews are, in large majority, non-religious, and assume that all they need to uphold their Jewish identity is to be Israeli, deprives them of their heritage and all the spiritual benefits and wisdom about life they can gain from their religion.
Rabbi Sacks feels that Judaism brought hope to the world. Ancient Greek culture promoted fatalism. As in the Greek tragedies, people could not escape their fate, not matter how hard they tried. However, in Judaism, there is always hope for the future, as exemplified by the belief that the Messiah will come, but hasn't come yet, and by the prayer recited over thousands of years for a return of the Jewish People to the Land of Israel.
Rabbi Sacks writes so beautifully that I would be remiss not to include a few quotes from his book:
"... the Jewish people wrote a story of hope that has the power to inspire all who dare to believe that injustice and brutality are not the final word about the human condition, that faith can be more powerful than empires, that love given is not given in vain, that ideals are not illusions to give us comfort but candles to light our way along a winding road in the dark night without giving way to fear or losing a sense of direction."
"Jews have turned inwards; they need to turn outwards. They are conscious of being different, but so is every member of a minority, and in a global age every group is a minority. Our uniqueness is our universality, and it is precisely by sharing our uniquenesses that we encourage the heritage of humankind. Jews are not the only people to seek God, live lives of faith, work for the betterment of humanity or count themselves blessed by God's love. They are not alone. Jews have friends among many faiths, and among secular humanists, and they should cherish them all, making common cause with them in defence of freedom, human dignity and moral responsibility. They should not take every criticism as a form of antisemitism. They should rest secure in their unparalleled past and fact the future with vigilance but without fear."
"I have argued for a Judaism that has the courage to engage with the world and its challenges. Faith begets confidence, which creates courage. That is how Jews lived in the past and should live in the future. For they are the people of the journey to a distant destination, begun by Abraham, continued by a hundred generations of ancestors, and it still beckons, Judaism is faith in the future tense. Jews were and are still called on to be the voice of hope in the conversation of humankind."
Showing posts with label Jewish peoplehood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jewish peoplehood. Show all posts
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Book - Future Tense: Jews, Judaism and Israel
I've gotten about a third of the way through the book, "Future Tense: Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the Twenty-First Century", by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Chief Rabbi of the main Orthodox Jewish congregations in Great Britain. He is an impressive intellectual who cites from many Jewish and non-Jewish historical and religious sources.
Only partway through the book, I have already been enlightened by many interesting points and historical facts Rabbi Sacks brought up. For instance, he made the point that Judaism is unique among the major religions in accepting religious diversity (what he calls particularism). He states that the Torah recognizes that people of all monotheistic religions worship the same god, can be righteous, and will not have to become Jewish when the messiah comes and brings peace to the earth. This contrasts to the "universalism" of the other major religions, whose basic tenets are that all people should follow the one true faith and that an unpleasant fate awaits those who do not.
An interesting fact that Rabbi Sacks brings up is the German origin of the term, "antisemitism." This has far more than linguistic importance in that early anti-Jewish sentiments among Christians and Muslims were related to Jews' refusal to convert to what were seen as the true faiths that evolved from Judaism. The saving grace of this religion-based anti-Jewish feeling was that Jews could convert to redeem themselves. That left a way out for physical survival. However, the term "antisemitism" refers to a race of people, not a religious group. This distinction is critical, for one cannot change one's race. Thus, the "Jewish Problem" could not be solved by religious conversion. That, of course, led to the Holocaust.
Some recommendations put forth to Jews include:
Only partway through the book, I have already been enlightened by many interesting points and historical facts Rabbi Sacks brought up. For instance, he made the point that Judaism is unique among the major religions in accepting religious diversity (what he calls particularism). He states that the Torah recognizes that people of all monotheistic religions worship the same god, can be righteous, and will not have to become Jewish when the messiah comes and brings peace to the earth. This contrasts to the "universalism" of the other major religions, whose basic tenets are that all people should follow the one true faith and that an unpleasant fate awaits those who do not.
An interesting fact that Rabbi Sacks brings up is the German origin of the term, "antisemitism." This has far more than linguistic importance in that early anti-Jewish sentiments among Christians and Muslims were related to Jews' refusal to convert to what were seen as the true faiths that evolved from Judaism. The saving grace of this religion-based anti-Jewish feeling was that Jews could convert to redeem themselves. That left a way out for physical survival. However, the term "antisemitism" refers to a race of people, not a religious group. This distinction is critical, for one cannot change one's race. Thus, the "Jewish Problem" could not be solved by religious conversion. That, of course, led to the Holocaust.
Some recommendations put forth to Jews include:
- Have pride in your religion. Don't let the negative view of others define you.
- Jewish religious observance is necessary for the preservation of the Jewish People. Ethnic Judaism leads to loss of identity within 3 generations.
- Jews must not see themselves as an isolated people with no friends. It is important to establish bonds with other religions and fight discrimination against any of them.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Jewish Matrilineal Descent Challenged in British Court
A recent article appeared the the New York Times entitled, "Who is a Jew" (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/world/europe/08britain.html?_r=1&em). It dealt with a decision by a British appellate court that a Jewish School (state-supported as are all religious schools in Britain) cannot refuse to accept a student because it doesn't consider him a Jew since his mother was converted to Judaism in other than the Orthodox tradition. In fact, the court went further by saying that admissions criteria must depend not on family ties, but “on faith, however defined.” It proposes that belief and practice define religion rather than heritage. The British Supreme Court will take up the issue soon and make a final decision.
As I have mentioned before, the Orthodox tenet of defining Jewish identity as transmitted by the mother alone was not always part of Jewish law and is a major factor in keeping Jewish numbers low, as well as creating a division between Jews of the Orthodox/Conservative persuasions who follow the rule and the Reformed/Reconstructionist persuasions who don't. Despite claims to the contrary, the rule is not a 5,000 year-old tradition. It was instituted in about 70 AD at around the time of the destruction of the Second Temple and may have been intended to identify the children of raped Jewish women as Jews.
Why does Judaism seem to be the only religion in which belief and practice of the religion is not considered enough for membership? What do bloodlines have to do with religion? Was Hitler correct in thinking that Jews are a race more than a religion? The sooner we get away from that notion, the better. Fortunately, Judaism's genetic distinctiveness is diminishing due to intermarriage, adoption of children from non-Jewish backgrounds, and immigration to Israel of Jews from Africa and West Asia. Just as with other religions, Judaism would do well to reach the point where one cannot recognize a Jew by the shape of his nose or the combination of his skin/hair/eye color. The antiquated, arbitrary, divisive rule of matrilineal descent that weakens Judaism should find its way to the trash can. Let religion be defined by belief and practice! And let ethnic identity be up to the individual.
As I have mentioned before, the Orthodox tenet of defining Jewish identity as transmitted by the mother alone was not always part of Jewish law and is a major factor in keeping Jewish numbers low, as well as creating a division between Jews of the Orthodox/Conservative persuasions who follow the rule and the Reformed/Reconstructionist persuasions who don't. Despite claims to the contrary, the rule is not a 5,000 year-old tradition. It was instituted in about 70 AD at around the time of the destruction of the Second Temple and may have been intended to identify the children of raped Jewish women as Jews.
Why does Judaism seem to be the only religion in which belief and practice of the religion is not considered enough for membership? What do bloodlines have to do with religion? Was Hitler correct in thinking that Jews are a race more than a religion? The sooner we get away from that notion, the better. Fortunately, Judaism's genetic distinctiveness is diminishing due to intermarriage, adoption of children from non-Jewish backgrounds, and immigration to Israel of Jews from Africa and West Asia. Just as with other religions, Judaism would do well to reach the point where one cannot recognize a Jew by the shape of his nose or the combination of his skin/hair/eye color. The antiquated, arbitrary, divisive rule of matrilineal descent that weakens Judaism should find its way to the trash can. Let religion be defined by belief and practice! And let ethnic identity be up to the individual.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Birthright Israel Helps Keep Jews in the Fold
The Jewish Advocate newspaper of October 30, 2009 reported that a study of the Birthright Israel program verifies the program's effectiveness in keeping young Jews in the fold. Supported by charitable foundations, the program sends Jews up to age 25 on free trips to Israel. The Brandeis University study compared Jewish-related outcomes between a group of people who had been on the trip and a group who had applied for the trip but were not able to go for whatever reason. All study subjects were non-Orthodox Jews. Seventy-two percent of those who had been on the program later married Jews compared to 46% if the non-participants. In summary, compared to non-participants, those who went through the program were 57% more likely to marry Jews, 30% more likely to feel that raising children as Jews is very important, 23% more likely to feel very connected to Israel, and 28% more likely to attend religious services monthly or more. For the Jewish member of intermarried couples, program participants were 93% more likely to say that raising children as Jews was very important. The spouses of intermarried participants were 4 times as likely to have converted to Judaism. At its peak, the program sent 45,000 young people on the program annually. But the sagging economy and Madoff swindle of Jewish philanthropists has reduced that number to 25,000.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
The bond among various kinds of Jews
The Jewish people is widely diverse, being made up of those who are members of synagogues and temples (Chasidic, Modern Orthodox, Conservative, Reformed, or Reconstructionist), those who are not affiliated but practice Judaism individually or in small groups, and ethnic Jews who have a Jewish identity even though they are atheist, agnostic, or practice another form of spirituality, such as Buddhism or even Christianity. The latter group raises hackles among many Jews because Jews practicing other religions are usually regarded as apostates who disguise themselves as Jews in order to bring more Jews into the fold of their new-found religion. This is reflected in the bitterness frequently expressed against "Jews for Jesus."
So what binds this diverse group of Jews together?
1) Genetic relatedness - ("flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood"). Though genetically diverse, Jewish ancestry has been traced via the Y-chromosome. It is human nature to feel a degree of relatedness to those sharing one's genes. Evolutionary theory posits that we have an instinct to preserve and proliferate our genetic stock.
2) Shared history - Unfortunately, much of this shared history is negative and dates back thousands of years to include: serial conquests of what is now Israel by several different empires, capped by mass expulsion from the land; dispersion into countries in which they were weak, frequently persecuted minorities; and the massive genocide of the Holocaust. Yet some of the shared history is positive, such as the tradition of learning, intellectuality, and critical thinking both within and without the religious context (e.g. the great rabbis vs. Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud). Marx, the noted theorist behind Communism, actually came from a long line of rabbis. It is unfortunate that much of the identity of ethnic Jews centers around the Holocaust, while religious Jews have many more positive associations with their Jewishness.
3) Concern for Israel and Jewish survival - Most Jews, whether religious or ethnic, are concerned about the physical survival of the Jewish people. While it is true that there is an element of liberal Jews that condemns the state of Israel for its "aggression", even they usually have a gut-level concern for the physical survival of the Jewish people. Such liberal Jews are generally against any kind of war or violence and have the idealistic view that all people of the world can live together peacefully if they only try to understand each other.
4) Shared outlook - Because of their acculturation, Jews often have similar world views even if they vary greatly in their religiosity. Jews tend to be politically liberal and have most often voted for Democratic candidates for political office. Three quarters of Jews in the U.S. self-identify as moderates or liberals and only 19% voted for Bush in the 2000 elections. Jews in the U.S., whether religious or ethnic, have favored careers in science, medicine, education, and business while avoiding occupations such as construction, other manual trades and the military. Some of these cultural predilections may have their source in the Jewish religion, while others may have developed independent of religion, as they have for all groups of people who have lived somewhat separate lives from other groups around them.
So what binds this diverse group of Jews together?
1) Genetic relatedness - ("flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood"). Though genetically diverse, Jewish ancestry has been traced via the Y-chromosome. It is human nature to feel a degree of relatedness to those sharing one's genes. Evolutionary theory posits that we have an instinct to preserve and proliferate our genetic stock.
2) Shared history - Unfortunately, much of this shared history is negative and dates back thousands of years to include: serial conquests of what is now Israel by several different empires, capped by mass expulsion from the land; dispersion into countries in which they were weak, frequently persecuted minorities; and the massive genocide of the Holocaust. Yet some of the shared history is positive, such as the tradition of learning, intellectuality, and critical thinking both within and without the religious context (e.g. the great rabbis vs. Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud). Marx, the noted theorist behind Communism, actually came from a long line of rabbis. It is unfortunate that much of the identity of ethnic Jews centers around the Holocaust, while religious Jews have many more positive associations with their Jewishness.
3) Concern for Israel and Jewish survival - Most Jews, whether religious or ethnic, are concerned about the physical survival of the Jewish people. While it is true that there is an element of liberal Jews that condemns the state of Israel for its "aggression", even they usually have a gut-level concern for the physical survival of the Jewish people. Such liberal Jews are generally against any kind of war or violence and have the idealistic view that all people of the world can live together peacefully if they only try to understand each other.
4) Shared outlook - Because of their acculturation, Jews often have similar world views even if they vary greatly in their religiosity. Jews tend to be politically liberal and have most often voted for Democratic candidates for political office. Three quarters of Jews in the U.S. self-identify as moderates or liberals and only 19% voted for Bush in the 2000 elections. Jews in the U.S., whether religious or ethnic, have favored careers in science, medicine, education, and business while avoiding occupations such as construction, other manual trades and the military. Some of these cultural predilections may have their source in the Jewish religion, while others may have developed independent of religion, as they have for all groups of people who have lived somewhat separate lives from other groups around them.
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