The Tenets of Judaism
click for more discussions fromThe Judaic View thru the eyes of Rabbi Mark Strauss-Cohn
1. How does one learn the teachings of your tradition?
Being the people of the Book, we are very "into" reading. While the Torah (Five Books of Moses) is where our journey begins, the Torah alone is nearly nothing without the centuries and tomes of commentaries that go with it. We cannot read so much as a letter of some words without having to pour over a myriad of interpretations (some completely conflicting) on various passages. And while Torah is vitally important, action is of utmost importance. And we learn to do based on our teachers, our families, and our heritage that is passed down through the generations. Finally, our prayerbook has been called by some as the great anthology of Jewish thought. Honestly, if you look into Jewish prayerbooks you can learn a lot about Jewish theology and philosophy.
2. Does your tradition accept an authoritative body or council? If so, how active are they in the every day life of the practitioner?
In Jewish life, the question "Who's your rabbi?" is a very important one. Progressive/Liberal Jews follow (shocking, I know) progressive/liberal rabbis. Orthodox Jews follow (are you ready here?) orthodox rabbis. Conservative Jews split the difference. I realize I am speaking in broad strokes and I follow the teachings of a range of rabbis but certainly I take my main guidance from rabbis of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (the "Rabbinic Union" of Reform Jewish rabbis), of which I am a member. That certainly doesn't mean that I agree or must follow every platform or document they publish.
3. Does your spiritual tradition acknowledge a higher power? If so, what is the nature of this higher power? Is it a personal divine being or a non-personal energy or state. How do you refer to this higher power?
Yes, there is a Higher Power and we refer to this Personal/Communal divine being in many ways. There are hundreds of names for God. The most "well-known" are: Adonai, Elohim, El Shaddai. I like the name God refers to himself as: Ehyeh asher Ehyeh - I will be that which I will be. My most recent name/concept of God is: 'propitious moments'. I came up with that one on my own. I'm pretty proud of it. It means (to me) that God is in relationships, in timing, and in the flow of existence and things "coming together" for good, blessing, and peace.
4. What is the relationship between Divinity and humanity?
Depends who you ask and in what time period. Are we talking about biblical days? Middle Ages? 20th century? Post-Holocaust? In the Bible, God is teacher, father, director, interventionist. For the medieval mystics, God has stepped back and let humanity run the show. For the modern Jew (most non-orthodox), God is anything non-extant to a spirit, a process, a concept.
5. What is the relationship between humans, animals, plants and elements?
We are all inter-related. In Genesis, we are told that humans are to govern the creation and have dominion over the other creatures and the Garden of Eden. This can sound like we can do whatever we want but such is not what is implied. The language used in Genesis 1 and 2 teaches us that we were placed in the Garden to work and to tend the creation. While we are clearly given the 'green-light' to have dominion, that dominion is the result of our being morally in a different place than the animals - but we are not better than and must be respectful of God's creaiton.
6. In your tradition, is there a conception of matter and of spirit, and if so, what is the relationship between the two?
Yes. Matter (ie, body) is the physical reality of this world which we are temporarily housed in. Our soul (spirit) resides in this body for this world but then after death, will be removed and will exist in the world-to-come.
7. Is there something that stands out to you that people "outside" of your tradition misunderstand about your tradition. If so, please set us straight.
I have been asked before: "Do Jews believe in God?" This is a rather funny question to ask a Jew because Judaism is very much the creator of the idea of God as it is conceived in much of the Christian and Muslim worlds. Though we may not agree on various aspects of theology, the God we meet in Christianity and Islam has his roots in the Jewish Bible. So - Do Jews believe in God? Let me rephrase the question. Does Judaism believe in God? Yes - of course. Do Jews believe in God? Usually. But you can still be a Jew (indeed, even a 'good' Jew) and question God and even God's existence.
Being the people of the Book, we are very "into" reading. While the Torah (Five Books of Moses) is where our journey begins, the Torah alone is nearly nothing without the centuries and tomes of commentaries that go with it. We cannot read so much as a letter of some words without having to pour over a myriad of interpretations (some completely conflicting) on various passages. And while Torah is vitally important, action is of utmost importance. And we learn to do based on our teachers, our families, and our heritage that is passed down through the generations. Finally, our prayerbook has been called by some as the great anthology of Jewish thought. Honestly, if you look into Jewish prayerbooks you can learn a lot about Jewish theology and philosophy.
2. Does your tradition accept an authoritative body or council? If so, how active are they in the every day life of the practitioner?
In Jewish life, the question "Who's your rabbi?" is a very important one. Progressive/Liberal Jews follow (shocking, I know) progressive/liberal rabbis. Orthodox Jews follow (are you ready here?) orthodox rabbis. Conservative Jews split the difference. I realize I am speaking in broad strokes and I follow the teachings of a range of rabbis but certainly I take my main guidance from rabbis of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (the "Rabbinic Union" of Reform Jewish rabbis), of which I am a member. That certainly doesn't mean that I agree or must follow every platform or document they publish.
3. Does your spiritual tradition acknowledge a higher power? If so, what is the nature of this higher power? Is it a personal divine being or a non-personal energy or state. How do you refer to this higher power?
Yes, there is a Higher Power and we refer to this Personal/Communal divine being in many ways. There are hundreds of names for God. The most "well-known" are: Adonai, Elohim, El Shaddai. I like the name God refers to himself as: Ehyeh asher Ehyeh - I will be that which I will be. My most recent name/concept of God is: 'propitious moments'. I came up with that one on my own. I'm pretty proud of it. It means (to me) that God is in relationships, in timing, and in the flow of existence and things "coming together" for good, blessing, and peace.
4. What is the relationship between Divinity and humanity?
Depends who you ask and in what time period. Are we talking about biblical days? Middle Ages? 20th century? Post-Holocaust? In the Bible, God is teacher, father, director, interventionist. For the medieval mystics, God has stepped back and let humanity run the show. For the modern Jew (most non-orthodox), God is anything non-extant to a spirit, a process, a concept.
5. What is the relationship between humans, animals, plants and elements?
We are all inter-related. In Genesis, we are told that humans are to govern the creation and have dominion over the other creatures and the Garden of Eden. This can sound like we can do whatever we want but such is not what is implied. The language used in Genesis 1 and 2 teaches us that we were placed in the Garden to work and to tend the creation. While we are clearly given the 'green-light' to have dominion, that dominion is the result of our being morally in a different place than the animals - but we are not better than and must be respectful of God's creaiton.
6. In your tradition, is there a conception of matter and of spirit, and if so, what is the relationship between the two?
Yes. Matter (ie, body) is the physical reality of this world which we are temporarily housed in. Our soul (spirit) resides in this body for this world but then after death, will be removed and will exist in the world-to-come.
7. Is there something that stands out to you that people "outside" of your tradition misunderstand about your tradition. If so, please set us straight.
I have been asked before: "Do Jews believe in God?" This is a rather funny question to ask a Jew because Judaism is very much the creator of the idea of God as it is conceived in much of the Christian and Muslim worlds. Though we may not agree on various aspects of theology, the God we meet in Christianity and Islam has his roots in the Jewish Bible. So - Do Jews believe in God? Let me rephrase the question. Does Judaism believe in God? Yes - of course. Do Jews believe in God? Usually. But you can still be a Jew (indeed, even a 'good' Jew) and question God and even God's existence.
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