Judaism
This is the first of three articles about the monotheistic religions.
During the Kol Nidre service I found myself bored beyond words. It is repetitive and to me tiresome. I question why I go every year, and it is certainly out of habit. I usually also fast out of a sense of Jewish solidarity, but I realize that it makes no rational sense.
The general premise of the service is making atonement for ones's sins, certainly a worthy cause. But, the whole thing is so wrapped in a repetitive paean to the glory of God. If God does not exist, as I am sure he does not, anymore than the tooth fairy, then it is a waste of time saying how glorious and wonderful he/she or it is. Further, I eschew all the begging for protection against our enemies, etc. etc. Obviously God, if he exists, does not harken to the cries of the people of Israel, and I cite the Holocaust as clear evidence. Excuses such as we can't know God's will, or that Jewish children were murdered in their hundreds of thousands to satisfy some obscure and unknown process, are to me unacceptable.
On the other hand, Jews died because they were Jews, and I am strongly committed to ensure that Jews who want to assemble and pray in whatever mode they like must be able to do so. Also, the religion is so wrapped up in the history of the Jewish people that it is impossible to separate them. So naturally that leaves me with a dilemma. I personally cannot believe in Judaism, but I am definitely a Jew. My definition of a Jew is someone who is born of Jewish parents and I leave all questions of converts and religious practices to the appropriate authorities. If I accept all streams of Judaism as valid, Reform, Conservative as well as Orthodox, why is it that I don't believe in any one of them, and yet I still remain a Jew. Because Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people and I can still be a member of this people, accept all the holy days, and so on, without actually believing in the religion.
Judaism was the first monotheistic religion that accepted a single abstract God, rather than the multiple idols that were easily shown to be false, as Abraham did so effectively. I, of course, extend his rejection to the one abstract god too. But, by uniquely developing this belief system, Judaism led the way for the development of its "daughter religions," Christianity and Islam that spread to the rest of the world. This then led to "replacement theology" in which both Christianity and Islam decide that Judaism is no longer needed, in fact is positively evil, and must be removed from the earth, hence to replace Judaism it is necessary to "kill the Jews!" The current attempts to delegitimize Israel after 62 years of its existence can only be understood as an extension of the anti-Semitic racist version of anti-Judaism. So I cling to my peoplehood, but as a modern secular Zionist I reject the ancient, God-obsessed pleadings of a defenceless minority.
During the Kol Nidre service I found myself bored beyond words. It is repetitive and to me tiresome. I question why I go every year, and it is certainly out of habit. I usually also fast out of a sense of Jewish solidarity, but I realize that it makes no rational sense.
The general premise of the service is making atonement for ones's sins, certainly a worthy cause. But, the whole thing is so wrapped in a repetitive paean to the glory of God. If God does not exist, as I am sure he does not, anymore than the tooth fairy, then it is a waste of time saying how glorious and wonderful he/she or it is. Further, I eschew all the begging for protection against our enemies, etc. etc. Obviously God, if he exists, does not harken to the cries of the people of Israel, and I cite the Holocaust as clear evidence. Excuses such as we can't know God's will, or that Jewish children were murdered in their hundreds of thousands to satisfy some obscure and unknown process, are to me unacceptable.
On the other hand, Jews died because they were Jews, and I am strongly committed to ensure that Jews who want to assemble and pray in whatever mode they like must be able to do so. Also, the religion is so wrapped up in the history of the Jewish people that it is impossible to separate them. So naturally that leaves me with a dilemma. I personally cannot believe in Judaism, but I am definitely a Jew. My definition of a Jew is someone who is born of Jewish parents and I leave all questions of converts and religious practices to the appropriate authorities. If I accept all streams of Judaism as valid, Reform, Conservative as well as Orthodox, why is it that I don't believe in any one of them, and yet I still remain a Jew. Because Judaism is the religion of the Jewish people and I can still be a member of this people, accept all the holy days, and so on, without actually believing in the religion.
Judaism was the first monotheistic religion that accepted a single abstract God, rather than the multiple idols that were easily shown to be false, as Abraham did so effectively. I, of course, extend his rejection to the one abstract god too. But, by uniquely developing this belief system, Judaism led the way for the development of its "daughter religions," Christianity and Islam that spread to the rest of the world. This then led to "replacement theology" in which both Christianity and Islam decide that Judaism is no longer needed, in fact is positively evil, and must be removed from the earth, hence to replace Judaism it is necessary to "kill the Jews!" The current attempts to delegitimize Israel after 62 years of its existence can only be understood as an extension of the anti-Semitic racist version of anti-Judaism. So I cling to my peoplehood, but as a modern secular Zionist I reject the ancient, God-obsessed pleadings of a defenceless minority.
posted by Jack Cohen at 9:10 PM
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