The Chain of Events That Killed Khamenei
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It’s part of the reason why only 26% of US Jews believe in God.
The recently released results of a survey of sermons in American synagogues revealed what every American synagogue-goer already knew: Most of the sermons focused on politics and Israel. The survey, conducted by the Jewish People Policy Institute, used AI to analyze 4,400 sermons given in 34 Reform, Conservative and Modern Orthodox synagogues between October, 2021, and October, 2024. Even before Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, about half the sermons across denominations focused on politics.
Growing up in a Conservative congregation in suburban New Jersey, my life’s trajectory was propelled by this phenomenon. Our family was devoutly dedicated to the synagogue. I went to services every Friday night and Shabbat morning. I was the president of our synagogue youth group USY, and on the National Board of USY.
The high point of the Shabbat services, relieving the boredom of the prayers before and of the Torah reading afterwards, was the rabbi’s sermon. A polished orator, the rabbi spoke about politics, antisemitism, or Israel, with an occasion sermon on pop psychology. God was never mentioned.
My many years of Hebrew school taught me nothing about the Jewish concept of God.
Innately spiritual, I knew that God existed. Yet my many years of Hebrew school, which I attended until I was 18 years old, taught me nothing about the Jewish concept of God. God was like our distant relatives in Haifa. I knew they existed but I had no relationship with them.
Then, when I was a sophomore at Brandeis University, I had an epiphany. It was 1968, when 80% of the students were Jewish. I saw a poster advertising a panel discussion about God to be held in the Student Union. The four professors on the panel, all of them Jewish, included the esteemed Dr. Abraham Maslow, founder of Humanistic Psychology, whom I adulated. The unanimous conclusion of the panel was what they called a “humanistic concept of God,” meaning the best part of every human being. As for the transcendent, supernatural God of Judaism, they dismissed it out of hand.
I was excited to finally have a concept of God. The humanistic God was intellectually cogent, supported my value system, and made no demands on my behavior. It was good enough for me but apparently it wasn’t good enough for God, because God then orchestrated my life’s path to draw me into a real relationship with Him.
I wanted to go abroad for my junior year. Japan was my first choice but the Japanese scholastic year did not sync with the American school year. France was my second choice, but only French majors were eligible, and I was a psych major.
Forlornly surveying the pamphlets in the office of Foreign Studies, I noticed the “College Year in India” program of the University of Wisconsin. It accepted applicants from all colleges and all majors. I applied.
In the late 60s, the West’s infatuation with Eastern spirituality was just beginning. One of my psych professors, James Klee, had given me a private tutorial in the Bhagavad Gita. I was game to learn more. Accepted to the program, in September, 1968, I arrived in Varanasi as a student in the philosophy department of Benaras Hindu University.
During the summer’s orientation, the program had tried to prepare us for culture shock: No running hot water, toilets were holes in the floor straddled by two porcelain footrests, and water could be drunk only after inserting iodine tablets.
My biggest culture shock was that I found myself in a God-immersed society.
My biggest culture shock, however, was that I found myself in a God-immersed society. A temple, or at least a shrine, appeared every 20 meters. The center of every home was a shrine to the family’s chosen deity. No one entered or left the house without bowing to the deity.
Most shocking of all was that all of my professors, plus my friend Mittoo’s father who was a scientist, believed in God. Not a by-the-way lip service belief in God, but a loving, intimate relationship with their chosen deity. God mattered. More than politics. More than psychology.
The more I studied Vedanta philosophy and the more discussions I had with these intellectual and passionate believers, the vague, invisible, and largely irrelevant God of my Conservative synagogue was replaced in my mind by a tangible, loving, supernatural presence that permeated daily life.
God-consciousness became the goal of my life. After a year in India, I returned to Brandeis and finished my degree. The day after graduation I joined a Vedanta ashram in the woods of Massachusetts, with an Indian woman guru. I spent the next 15 years there as a monastic member.
Vedanta is a universalistic philosophy, teaching that all religions are equally valid paths to God. Therefore, our ashram routinely invited speakers from other religions. Our stock Judaism representative was a Jewish Renewal rabbi who spoke more about Sufism than Judaism.
A Hindu woman who lived at the ashram was a teaching assistant to Elie Weisel at Boston University. Through him, she met Rabbi Joseph Polak, an Orthodox rabbi who was head of Hillel at B.U. In November, 1984, we invited Rabbi Polak to speak about Judaism at the ashram.
I had attended synagogue services every Friday night and Shabbat morning. The rabbi had never once talked about God.
Rabbi Polak came and spoke about “Love of God Even unto Madness,” quoting Maimonides. I sat there in shock. I knew that Maimonides was a mainstream Jewish thinker, not a fringe figure. But what did love of God have to do with Judaism? I had attended synagogue services every Friday night and every Shabbat morning. The rabbi had never talked about God.
The words “love of God” were never once uttered from our synagogue pulpit, that I could guarantee. Yet here was this Orthodox rabbi talking about love of God as a central dimension of Judaism.
Eight months later I had left the ashram and was studying Torah in Jerusalem.
While living at the ashram, I would go home to visit my parents twice a year. During those visits, I would accompany them to their synagogue for Friday night services. It was a large synagogue, with a sprawling main sanctuary. After one such service with its typical sermon about politics, I confronted the rabbi. “Why do you never talk about God?”
He replied, “Did you notice how many people were there tonight?”
“Yes,” I said. “The place was full.”
His rejoinder stunned me: “How many people do you think would come if I talked about God?”
Could it be true? Are Jews so disinterested in God?
A Pew study entitled, “Jewish Americans in 2020” reported that only 26% of U.S. Jewish adults believe in God as described in the Bible, compared to 80% of Christians and 56% of U.S. adults overall. Some 50% of Jews say they believe in some other spiritual force or higher power rather than the God described in the Bible. Some 22% of Jews say they do not believe in any kind of higher power or spiritual force, compared to just 10% of American non-Jews.
Why do so few Jews believe in God?
I have my own theory. (Feel free to post your own replies in the comments section.) Back at Brandeis, my Jewish professors did not believe in God. In India, the equally intellectual professors all believed in God because in India, you can believe in God and do what you want. (There are ethical principles called yama and niyama, but they are not obligatory.) But in Judaism, God gives commandments, lots of them, such as “Don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, keep the Sabbath holy, don’t eat shellfish.”
In Judaism, God gives commandments, lots of them. So if you want to eat shrimp or commit adultery, you have to get rid of God.
So if you want to eat shrimp or commit adultery (not necessarily in that order), you have to get rid of God.
When God revealed Himself at Mt. Sinai to the entire Jewish nation, He did so by giving the Ten Commandments. The implicit statement was: If you want to connect to Me, transform yourself by doing My will.
New York Times columnist Ross Douthat’s new book Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious has become an immediate bestseller. The book presents scientific and rational reasons for believing in God. In an interview with Bari Weiss, Douthat, a devout Catholic, stated something that made me laugh. He explained that an obstacle to believing is that religious practice is hard. As an example, he told how that morning, during Lent, he couldn’t make his children a sandwich with meat.
No meat for 40 days? That’s hard? Try no bacon, lobster, clams, or beef stroganoff ever? Try keeping the Sabbath holy by not going to the movies on Friday nights. Try not starting up with your beautiful, young, married secretary. No wonder so few Jews believe in the God of the Bible.
However, the Catch-22 of the commandments of Judaism is that they are the very means of creating a loving relationship with the infinite God. The two foundational commandments of the Torah are:
In India, one shows love for one’s chosen diety by offering flowers, fruits, or sweets to the idol. In Judaism, one shows love for God by keeping the mitzvahs.
Just as I show my love for my husband by giving him what he wants for his birthday, so I show my love for God by doing His will. You don’t want me to eat ice cream for dessert during a meat meal? Okay, I can wait for the Bourbon Praline Pecan because I love You. Every mitzvah—lighting Shabbat candles, unplugging from electronics even for a few hours on Shabbat, giving charity, calling your mother—forges a relationship with the One who commanded it.
According to Judaism, to believe in God and disregard His will is like being married to a spouse who lives on another continent and never communicates except by text. Jews get it that having a relationship with God entails keeping—one by one, ever so gradually-- His commandments.
No wonder it’s easier for the rabbi to talk about politics.
But isn’t it time for the 50% of US Jews who believe in “a spiritual force or higher power rather than the God described in the Bible,” to start learning who the God of Judaism really is?
Thank you so much, In the 7th, 8th and 9th grade, 1957-1961, I went to shul every Shabbos morning, but when I thought about it 40 years later, I was not sure about my recollection, that God was never mentioned in the rabbi's sermons. "How could that be?" I thought. From your article, it's clear to me that my recollection was correct. Although it's a shame to confirm something so depressing, it's good to know I'm not making up memories, and more important, now I can repeat this story when it seem worth doing so.
Unlike you, I'm barely spiritual, if at all, but I knew when I listened to or discussed Judaism, I wanted it to be Judaism, not a transformed version, and I go to an Orthodox shul and try to obey all the Jewish laws, especially all but the so-called ceremonial laws. .
I think, as always, Ms. Rigler has her finger on the pulse of the problem. I must say I do not agree with her conclusion as to the reason Jews have rejected G-d is because of the heaviness of the requirements of the commandments. I think first one needs to have a relationship with G-d before one takes on the mitzvot. If one believed that the mitzvot really helped forge a relationship with G-d, then I think many more people would sign on. But G-d must come first. I think the reasons for why G-d has disappeared from many congregations is manifold, including the lingering theodicy problem of the Holocaust, the fact that many immigrants to this country prior to WW II were themselves already separated from the community and the most devout perished in the war, and so forth.
A Pew study entitled, “Jewish Americans in 2020” reported that only 26% of U.S. Jewish adults believe in God as described in the Bible, compared to 80% of Christians and 56% of U.S. adults overall. Some 50% of Jews say they believe in some other spiritual force or higher power rather than the God described in the Bible. Some 22% of Jews say they do not believe in any kind of higher power or spiritual force, compared to just 10% of American non-Jews.
As a Noahide looking for the Messiah reading this paragraph troubles my heart. Until Israel returns to G-d the world is hopeless and the Messiah for this generation must have a broken heart.
A very eye-opening article. More people should know that G-d is loving and caring and is concerned about every individual. It's difficult believing in G-d when you were brought up receiving no information or the wrong message about faith in G-d. We need G-d in our lives more than ever and Judaism makes that connection through mitzvos and study. All it takes is a little effort on your part to find a Rabbi, a friend, or an organization like Aish, to explain your relationship with G-d and bring you to a meaningful life. We can't erase the past, but we can build a better future.
We say, Ovinu Malkainy". First He is our Father, then He is our KIng.
The Israeli Office of Ivrit Language/Safa Ivri might disagree with your transliteration/spelling.
And so would Chassidim, and Aidat HaMizrach, but our kind Father understands all His children.
My sister wondered, "is this all there is? What happens after we die? Why and for what deeper purpose do we live?" She went to a reform rabbi who said there is no afterlife, no concept of olam haba, that she should just be a good person and that was enough. . His answer so disturbed her that she left judaism forever and became a Christian. She married a non Jew. She is no longer alive but her legacy is that she has grandchildren who are rabid antisemites. Imagine how different this story might have ended if she had gone to a scholarly rabbi versed in halachic Judaism.
Excellent article. I was raised in a conservative/reform home where I learned about Judaism but we kept few mitzvot. After many twists and turns, I also became a ba’alat tshuvah, a returnee to orthodox practice. I am married, a mother, grandmother, a practicing lawyer, and consider myself a feminist as well. One has to invest time and energy in any relationship, including with Gd, by obeying His mitzvot. I find learning the Torah, studying the Talmud on occasion, participating in community activities, etc. deeply fulfilling personally and spiritually. I wish my siblings chose to share my path as well but each to her own.
I presume, like most Jews who read Hebrew but don't have sufficient comprehension of the text, we quickly mumble through the prayers or while trying to finally sit down during the silent reading of the Amida. Certainly, the English translation of the text is available on the left side of the page, but it's difficult to feel a sense of spirituality doing this. It infuriates me when Rabbis and Cantors refuse to read spiritually uplifting prayers in English (blessing for the new month, or the healing prayers during the Torah readings). The 99% of Hebrew during services is, for me, a weakness for those who may only attend services once per week but wish to feel closer to God during the 2 1/12 hour service.
Learning to read Hebrew is actually quite easy - much easier that learning to read English.
Understanding Hebrew requires a higher degree of reading efficiency that reading English, but understanding is mainly built up of understanding root words and there are only about 500 root words in Hebrew.
You should go to someone who teaches according to the Massorah, which is the best and scietifically is way ahead of its time.
You can find out more information at kriah.com
I believe that G-d is multilingual and listens to all our prayers.
Of course, if one can use "Ivrit", then that is much nicer.
I sat through quite a bit of “hell and damnation “ sermon from my Catholic priest almost every week . However it would take much more for me to leave the Catholic faith than listening to bad sermons.
Hence,I don’t understand why your Rabbi’s sermons drive you to Hinduism. Sermons are part of the religious experience . You have the holidays -Shabbat , Pesach , Sukkot etc to build your connection with God.
Perhaps your motivation to leave could be something else other than your Rabbi’s sermons?
The Jewish mind is built to ask questions. A Jew does not like to just sitting back and "believe".
He wants to know how, and why and "how do you know?" and "is it logical?" and so on.
Reform "Judaism" makes no attempt to answer questions so it leaves the logical Jewish mind unsatisfied.
You're looking at it from too much of a Christian point of view. It is the blandness of a suburban temple that turns people off, not the content. One hundred years ago Joseph Roth wrote that in Western countries they replaced the traditional Beis Medrash with boring temples where the emphasis is on money and status. That is still true today.
It may shock some people to find out that a Rabbi giving a 'sermon' Shabbos morning is not something required by Judaism, and not practiced at all in many Orthodox synagogues. Rabbonim speak at Shabbos afternoon classes, by 'Shalosh Seudos', weekday night classes, and more - about Halacha, Mussar, Chassidus, Torah outlook on life - NOT about politics. My grandfather was a highly popular and respected Modern Orthodox Rabbi for over 50 years, and I frequently heard him speak, never about politics. He commented once that some congregants asked him to speak more about Israel (not even using the word 'politics'). His answer was basically, what difference does it make in people's lives to talk about politics? My job is to teach Torah lessons for life.
Many comments here made by people with more familiarity with real Judaism seem to focus on a different issue, which is why is it that many people who do keep Judaism, even very scrupulously, do not necessarily speak much about God or our relationship with Him? The short answer is that although the 'Yetzer Hara' would prefer to get people to do major sins, if that doesn't work he will still at least try to get us to forget the One Who gave us the Torah, and neglect having a real relationship with Him. This is a big problem, and has been so through the ages. You can see that from reading Navi. In more recent generations, the Baal Shem Tov and his disciples specifically emphasized focusing on our relationship with Hashem in all aspects of our lives, even the mundane.
Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, the great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, who's teachings continue to inspire and invigorate Jews of all backgrounds and levels of observance, put great emphasis on each individual speaking to Hashem in his/her own words. This is the 'Hitbodedut' Mrs. Rigler refers to in the comment section here. Hitbodedut (literally 'seclusion', i.e. the state of being alone with God) isn't simply 'prayer', in the shallow understanding of that word. Relationships are built through communication. Jewish prayer in general (when properly understood and practiced), and Hitbodedut in particular, is us speaking to God. Learning Torah (again, when properly understood and practiced) is God speaking to us. A full discussion of this is way beyond the scope of a comment section.
In my shul the board does not allow the rabbi to talk about politics
Love your neighbour as yourself! You don’t need anything or anyone else!!!
Not so simple!
It is a starting point, but no more than that.
Go into any Orthodox Jewish house and see the shelves full of holy books.
Obviously there is more to Judaism than one semtence.
Excellent article. Though my parents were secular Jews, I was lucky enough to have my grandparents and great-grandparents , Orthodox Jews living with us until they died. They lived downstairs in the bottom apt of our two-family home. I spent a lot of time with them and got to see their intimate relationship with Hashem. So when I began exploring Judaism and visited synagogues where the sermons were political, I knew enough to ask, "why aren't we discussing the parsha of the week?" I knew enough to know there were synagogues out there, Orthodox synagogues, where I could be inspired each week to work on my yatzer hara and become a better Jew and human being.
I feel very sad that so many American Jews have no exposure to this kind of Jewish experience and have no idea it exists.
No community is perfect. I have some extremely Orthodox relatives from an extremely well-known Orthodox community, who have driven me far away from religious Judaism for many reasons, chief among them, their dishonest, lying, cheating, manipulative , uncaring, dismissive behaviour, and then rationalizing, justifying and excusing everything they have done, blaming everyone else for things going wrong. Human psychopathology is human - it is in everyone to some degree, some more some less, and no religion or belief in God is a guarantee that you will be a good, kind, caring, honest and responsible person
I believe it was Rabbi Nachman said the" Torah was not given to fix your torn pants"0ne may keep the rituals of any religion including Judaism and still be an awful person. It's a price for free will but while understandable it's wrong to blame God and or the religion when many of the practitioners fail in their obligations. Check out why the two temples were destroyed and more controversial as still so raw why the holocaust ( Divine Madness)
But why didn't you look at the ones who are good?
You, yoursef said that only "some" were bad!
With all due respect, I don't believe the "across denominations" part. I've ,gone to Young Israel as well as many black hat synagogues. I don't think I've ever heard a sermon about politics.
American Jews growing up in the 70's 80's were robbed of our beautiful heritage, our amazing G-d and our incredible people. That's the real shanda.
Thank you for this thoughtful article and the discussion it has elicited. I would love to hear more about how you practice meditation now, since I believe you originally learned to meditate in the ashram. How do you experience the difference?
Author responds: The meditation I now practice is partly hisboddedut, speaking to Hashem in my own words, in English. I start every day by thanking Hashem for 5 things I never thanked Him for before, what I call, "the blessings of the day before." Then I talk to Him about whatever is bothering me. But I follow Rav Shalom Arush's dictum, "No whining." I never complain, but ask Hashem to help me understand, etc. what's going on. Then I meditate on the Morning Blessings.
BTW, if you're married, you may be interested in my weekly webinar for a spiritual approach to marriage: https://sararigler.com/workshops/the-kesher-wife-webinar/
I think the reason for not feeling G-d's love among Jews is mainly that few have experienced unconditional love from parents. More likely, they get the message, "I can't love you if you're not a brilliant scholar (the boys)" or "I can't love you if you're don't live up to my expectations." If you didn't think you were worthy of your parents' love you won't feel WORTHY of G-d's love and you're likely to think, "I'm not worthy of love, because I could never please my parents." As a therapist, I try to help people to feel G-d's love on a deep, intuitive level, because we are an intrinsic part of G-d and don't have to prove our worth or meet impossible expectations. We can practice knowing that the love is always there. We have to REWIRE our brains to truly believe this. It takes practice!
Yes, that is a good point.
I've noticed how the Amidah is so full of unconditional acceptance. Just God bestowing goodness. I sometimes slow down and just taste the words.
Its been helpful.
And it preps for tachnun, where we are finally ready to face our negativity and ask for help.
This article peaked my interest!! I belong to a reform Jewish synagogue… and unfortunately, the head rabbi constantly gives sermons from the Bima on politics.. really disturbs my peace…recently a group of us got together and spoke to the rabbi about taking politics off the Bima… no such luck! I am a proud Jew and I am grateful to study Judaism and learn about G-d…all over ….yes, from my synagogue, Aish, Kabbalah Center, Mussar Institute, and Chabad … I’m able to find G-d in many many places. Thank you 🙏.
At the reform congregation we belonged to all we ever heard was left wing politics. At Chabad you hear no similar rants.
Why do we constantly focus on the “burden” of rule? Did Abraham have the mitzvah? He had a relationship and trust in God that was accounted to him as riighteousness. God called on him because the chaos of paganism that had overtaken humanity robbed them of the joy of a relationship with a loving God. The mitzvah came much later during the exodus. It was given because many had become so immersed in pagan culture that many had no idea how to act outside that setting. We teach our children rules of harmonious relationships and survival. As loving parents we hope the values taught become a pattern that leads to a fruitful life, not one of resentment and chafing over “annoying details”. If you love God as He loves you the rules are no longer a burden but a fulfilled way of life.
Noone complains about the "burden" of having to open your mouth and put in food, and then having to chew it and then swallow the food.
Noone complains about the "burden" of being healthy and then having to enjoy life.
This writing rang so true in what is going on in our communities in St. Louis, Missouri. The reform congregation rabbis who have the largest audiences have shifted to political speeches and preaching of their opinions on all matters of politics. The focus is no longer surrounding God, and therefore not taught as an important value or even as a focused theme. We need to get this back.
This is an excellent article. As an Orthodox Jew who puts on Tefillin every weekday, I could appreciate all the points in the article,
In the Torah( the Jewish Bible) it says that Isaac got the inheritance from Abraham, but his other children got gifts the eastern religions stem from these gifts, I read one Chabad rabbi went to India and saw a lot of idol worship there, the Jews that turn to Hindu or Buddhist or other eastern religions , did not delve into their Judaism there is reincarnation, meditation, Kabblah, and very spiritual things in Judaism, so the rabbis are not representing Judaism in the right light, also when Israelis end up in India they go to the Chabad house, I heard once I wonder if it is true the Dali Lama said " if you are Jewish look into your own backyard and study Judaism "
It's a sad indictment on US Jewry, and on the basic chinuch-educational process, but that does mean that over 70% do believe.What's more, the core Jews, those who will pass their beliefs, emunah and values to the next generation are thriving.It also means that there are plenty of fertile souls just waiting to be touched by the beauty, meaning, and efficacy of Judaism
I guess in their parents home, or maybe in school they are just getting what to do or what to not do, and they want a better connection to Hashem, they have special classes for people that want to become religious so maybe these people that don't see the beauty in Judaism should get also classes geared to people that want to become religious, then maybe they will connect better with Hashem, it is like a telephone call the connection isn't clear something has to be done to make the connection clearer
“The Ten(der) Commandments” from the G-d Who loves me … a good book.
"That you need God more than anything, you know at all times in your heart.
But don't you know also that God needs you - in the fullness of His eternity, you?
How would man exist if God did not need him, and how would you exist?
You need God in order to be, and God needs you - for that which is the meaning of your life."
Martin Buber "I and Thou", Part Three. (trans. W. Kaufmann)
Martin Buber left Orthodox Judaism and went his own way.
Quote:In Jerusalem, Buber returned to the field of social philosophy, an academic appointment the university administration wrested from a faculty that deemed the “Schriftsteller Dr. Martin Buber” neither a genuine scholar of religion nor sufficiently educated as a specialist in Jewish studies. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The quotation from his book sounds great, but it is hollow and does not reflect an accurate description of our relationship with G-d.
I think the nail was squarely hit when the writer basically said, if you want to do what is wrong, you eliminate who said it was wrong. This describes modern society in many ways. Thank you for this reminder.
I saw some comments regarding the term "woke." The term has been both overused and misused. Perhaps we can substitute woke for misguided.
Too often G-d is portrayed as a business man concerned with transactions-no affection!
An enlightened businessman lovingly (sometimes tough love )invested in souls both godly and animalistic may work but even Moses was told understanding the why of God's ways while living is impossible
Very interesting article. Actually if you read the torah with the knowledge of today you will find a lot of advice the same way a physician or a lawyer could give today. The question is: "how did the torah knew all of this?".
I tried to find answers in my blog: "Judaism cage or liberation?"
In the third chapter I tried to understand the meaning of El, Allah, Elohim, Shaday and YHVH.
The torah gives clearly the answers for those who try to understand what they are reading in the original hebrew text.
https://medium.com/@willylipschutz/judaism-cage-or-liberation-d7d1a60196c4
This is brilliant! I especially love the metaphor of the long distance text-based spouse. With God it’s a 24/7 get your fingernails dirty relationship. A relationship with God is vibrant and sometimes messy. But oh the payoff! Beyond any words that I can think of. Thank you so much for your wonderful writing. I need to pass this on to the many Jewish non-believers in my life.
This made me all teary because I had a very similar itinerary. Thank you for sharing this.
I think if this person wanted to know more about their heritage. JERUSALE. would have given them a lot.
She lives in Jerusalem. The article is about her journey.
If this is the current spiritual state of Judaism, no wonder Hashem will allow any means to have hs beloved back in his arms. You are way too precious for him to lose you, even if in the process his heart breaks over you.
He will not ever divorce himself from loving you. You are imprinted on hand, not just worn as a ring.
Because he loves you with all his heart, all his mind and all his strength, you are entwined in his 'being.'
As such, you are a light to the nation's.
And those of us who are joined to you, whether near or far, therefore also love & appreciate you.
Shalom
OUTSTANDING!
The Jewish world of Europe at the time of the Holocaust was splintered and not uniformly observant. Many inroads, especially after WWI, had fractured the communities with Socialism and other isms greatly affecting the youth. For more details consult Rabbi Avigdor Miller's book, "Divine Madness".
And also "With Fury Poured Out" by Rabbi Bernard Mza - a talmud of Rav Moshe Feinstein z"l
FYI I was addressing the earlier comments which touched on the Holocaust.
It is my understanding that Hindus believe in the caste system which if you are an untouchable this system marks you for life to be a begger and to be shunned by the rest of the Hindus. THERE IS NOT WAY I COULD BELIEVE IN SUCH A THING! Jews and Christians on the other hand do believe that you can change your status in life based on your actions. So do Buddhists, all three of these religions in my opinion are correct and Hinduism is wrong by rejecting certain people from birth.
Thank you for your article. I am a close contemporary of yours. Growing up Reform, I didn't hear a lot about God. It was a time when the ritual mitzvot were de-emphasized. When I was in elementary school I separated my sense of God from my experience of being Jewish. There was a time at the end of high school that I wanted to leave Judaism, but my "spiritual/God" experience at the time was essentially that was not my path. I went to a Quaker college, studied religion, wondered around the Jewish communities, and eventually came back to a Reform Judaism that felt very different than the one in which I was raised. My experience at my synagogue is one in which the rabbis try to give a diversity of perspectives and sermons to nourish the diversity of perspectives within the congregation.
I'm a proud Reform Jew, but have become so disgusted with the direction the movement has gone (e.g. focus on Democrat politics, so-called social justice for everyone else but not for Jews, dividing up Jews by "color, working so hard to fight the most pro-Israel, pro-Jewish POTUS in our nation's history, etc)", I cancelled my Temple membership, and now consider myself a "Reform Jew on my own." I feel the Reform, Conservative, and Reconstructionist movements have bought too much into the Democrat party's toxic, woke, DEI, CRT, Intersectionality, gender-madness ideologies, which foster anti-Semitism! I used to love watching the streaming Shabbat/holiday services at Temple Emmanuel NYC but had to stop as each sermon was becoming full of partisan politics (Democrat). Shame.
Read The Nine Questions. Fabulous book
It’s insulting to use the term “Democrat politics” just as it would be to use “Jew religion”. It’s the Democratic Party, and members are Democrats.
Have you considered going to an Orthodox shul or speaking with an Orthodox Rabbi?
I would highly recommend reaching out to either a Modern Orthodox rabbi or someone at Chabad. Your life can completely change.
Sounds like you're on the right track; yasher koach! It's not easy to break with habit because one has to be an honest thinker to realize he's in the wrong environment.
Hmmmm...well if India is so filled with love of G-d then what's with the poor, wretched beggars that literally line the streets in their cities? Don't they have mitzvas for helping the poor and unfortunates? What about the horrible bride burnings when the in-laws want more dowry? Don't they have respect for ladies? Female fetuses are aborted all the time--is G-d OK with that? I don't know what shul the author attended but the prayers in my siddur give a big shout out to G-d so if the Rabbi isn't constantly mentioning G-d maybe it's because he doesn't need to.
Can the poor exist while people still love G-d??? Hinduism doesn't have mitzva, just guidelines, so there's no OBLIGATION to eradicate poverty. Beyond that, getting rid of poverty is a massive undertaking. Judaism obligates Jews to take care of the poor, does that mean that orthodox Jewish neighbourhoods have no poor???
They have poor people, but they are cared for. There are no "homeless" in the streets of Orthodox neighborhoods, not in Israel or America or anywhere.
Of course the homeless exist in all parts of the world. I live in the Seattle/Tacoma area and the homeless population has skyrocketed over the past couple of years, primarily because the rents are out of control. In my neighborhood 2 new high-rent condo buildings are going up and you can bet the rents will be over the top. A neighbor recently sold her home for almost half a million--that's totally ridiculous as the homes in my area aren't worth that much but according to realtors it's always about location. Rents need to be either capped or brought down to reality and new buildings/houses be required to have set asides for low incomes. Having safe, basic living accommodations should be a right and not a luxury.
The source of the housing problem lies in the overregulation you seek. Developers are proscribed from developing the affordable housing demanded by the market in certain neighborhoods. It’s called NIMBY (“Not in My Backyard”)and the proof lies in Houston, where there is no zoning and building costs are half of what they are in NY.
Hinduism also has the caste system which lets them off the hook--if one is a poor, miserable beggar it's obvious in the previous life you were a rotten person and now it's payback time. I understand that getting rid of poverty is a massive undertaking which requires the cooperation of government, industry, and our social organizations plus a mind change in how we view poverty. Living wages plus benefits would be a big start and if the business claims they can't afford it then maybe they shouldn't be in business. Corporate welfare needs to be thrown to the dumpster--a fair profit yes but not the size of the national debt. Some of those corporations could be taxed 90% and they'd still be rolling in dough while their employees are relying on SNAP, WIC, and section 8 housing.
Do not forget the plight of the "untouchables".
I don’t believe the author was implying that India is filled with love for the G-d of Torah. Hinduism is a religion of many gods. The love the believer shows us for the “diety of choice”. However one can say that the dedication shown to those gods is certainly enough to make the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob jealous.
Because Christianity is a religion but not an ethnicity, and because the US guarantees religious freedom, people who identify as Christian are likely to be those with a commitment to the religion. Many non-observant Jews see themselves in ethnic rather than religious terms.
It’s possible that Douthat practices a form of Catholicism that is more religiously conservative (Latin Mass) than that of most Catholics since the Second Vatican Council of the earth 1960’s. Most mainstream Catholics only abstain from meat on Fridays in Lent, not the whole 40 day period.
Judaism not only connects us to G-d, it also separates us in many ways from non-Jews. As a Modern Orthodox woman, I didn’t have any difficulty in living in a mixed neighborhood, but my observance stymied my career
With respect, in that case it was the wrong career. The primary career of a Jew is to be a Jew. A man has one type of career and a woman has a different type of career. Both are essential. A job is only a means for earning money.
If the job is also a "giving" job, then the primary job - being a Jew - is paramount.
Judaism separates us from non-Jews because we have a role to play in this world which is very different from the role of a non-Jew.
An athlete who is training for the Olympics has different life to others. He has choose what he eats, has to train, not get into alcohol, etc.
The Torah is our Manual of how to live and do our job in this world.
I’m an attorney. My work place had a policy of being able to take off for religious observance if I made up the time. That didn’t change my boss’s wanting employees to be available all day on Fridays.
And I went to law school so that we could afford to send our children to Jewish day schools.
So it’s hard for me to believe that you can accurately tell me that practicing law was the wrong career.
So why is being a Religious Jew stymiieng your career?
I was working as a Patents Attorney but gave it up to learn Torah.
The drop in income was enormous but the increase in quality of life was also enourmous.
I am glad you were able to give up your job to learn Torah. As I noted in a previous comment, I became a lawyer in order to be able to afford day school tuition for my children, as well as the many other higher-cost aspects of a Jewish life. And I am now retired, so I am able to do more learning and volunteer activities.
Great. Now you can catch up on your reading.
The books of Rabbi Avigdor Miller z"l are easy-to-read, comprehensive and very authoitative on every aspect of Torah-true Judaism.
I THINK YOU LEARNED OR SAW LAWS WITH A WOMANS EQUALITY FEMINISM ARROGANCE. YOU DIDNT GET LOVE SO DONT FEEL LOVE. I THINK YOU HAD TO PROVE YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU WANT TO DO WHEN EVER YOU FEEL LIKE DOING AND NO ONE CONTROLS YOU.
THAT SO CALLED rabbi NEEDED THE JOB.... SO HE KEPT HIS JOB AND FAILED IN THE PERFORMANCE.
RABBI= RESH" BET"YUD
RESH=LEADER
BENIE=OF THE CHILDREN
YUD YISRAEL =OF ISRAEL.
THAT rabbi KEPT THE JOB
You lost 50years of KNOWING THE ONE TRUE GD
It figures this is written by a man! YOU are the arrogant one here!
Hey David your CAPS lock is on.
She lost about 15 years. She is married and lives in Jerusalem.
There was absolutely nothing in this article about feminism. It sounds like you just get very shouty at any indication of a woman thinking for herself or asking pertinent questions about the world. It sounds like you just whip out "FEMINISM!!!!!" whenever a woman says anything that you find even remotely challenging or uncomfortable.
You know it's been my experience that all people and all the world are imperfect where not on the other side of Eden to be perfect or perfect the world I think where to overcome our human wants and desires and learn to be less sheifish . materialistic you know before the industrial revolution farther farmers were able to stay home with their sons and daughters making familys more cohesive and I've also noticed that on YouTube tabbies do talk more what peoples relationship should be with god
Full disclosure first: I have a PhD in Eastern Religions and I have been to India twice. I am also Shabbos observant and keep kosher.
I would like to suggest a more compassionate approach to the rabbis and congregations of the mid to late 20th century: holocaust shock. I do believe that individually and collectively our parents and grandparents were emotionally damaged by the holocaust even if they didn’t personally experience the camps. For most this was somewhat subconscious. But I have met enough highly self aware people, some of whom continued their strict practices, who told me unequivocally that they stopped believing in God after the holocaust. And I think this is a very understandable response on their part.
I would also like to remind everyone that the Tanakh is a highly nuanced text. Our sages not only assert that there are 4 levels of meaning to every word and phrase. But also that within each of those 4 there are another 4 levels. The biblical concept of God is not easily discernible, and there are debates regarding this enshrined in the Talmud and other texts. What does it even mean to say that God is one, when “One” is only an abstraction to us? We live in a world of division and multiplicity. The entire commentorial tradition including up to the present day is a record of the struggle to understand what the commandments actually mean and how we can put them into practice. Because even to those with the greatest minds and wisest hearts God is still inscrutable.
Please read the "Introduction to the MIshna" by the RamBam
Reform "Judaism" started 200 years ago
It came from a deliberate decision to creat an artificial "look-alike". They didn't want to break off all conection with Judaism, but they wanted to be as much alike the Christians as possible.
Because their form of conversion does not require any strict adherance to the Torah, anyone who calls himself a Reform "Jew" is considered to be a non-Jew unless he can show clear proof that his mother is truly Jewish.
So, probably, many of the Reform "rabbis" are not even Jewish.
Actually it is worse than that. If you have any non jewish ancestry on your maternal line you are not a Jews. My mother's mother's mother (my great grandmother) was NOT Jewish so I am not Jewish. BS!!! That is why I had to turn I way from Judahism, because I was de-jewed for lack of a better word. As Tybolt said in Romeo and Julliet: A PLAGUE ON BOTH YOUR HOUSES!!!!
Think of this I am not Jew even though I have ancestors on my father's side that died in the Holocoust because for the sole reason that they were Jewish, my father is Jewish, my mother is THREE/FOURTHS JEWISH and somehow I am not a Jew????? No wonder there are so many people who do not like the Jews.
I understand your frustration. If you want to be halachically Jewish, you may wish to convert. Some Orthodox rabbis will work especially hard to help people in your situation convert. And since intermarriage was much less common in your great grandmother’s time, is it possible that she was Jewish but had concealed that fact?
Don’t give antisemites a pass; their opinions are indefensible.
There are many reasons why folks don't like Jew. A cure for all hatred except envy is a big one So is hating a God that makes demands which Judaism taught the world. Just guessing but unless you have a burning desire you were likely not meant to be Jewish which is no problem like not meant to be a musician but one with Zerach Yisrael ( seed of Israel) may have a less rigorous path to conversion if you so choose. There is no such thing as better or worse person cause you are a Jew or not just a different role. As I understand it Judaism teaches God loves all humanity which He created in his image.
I have a friend who converted from Catholicsm to Judaism. One day, he asked me whether I thought he would be accepted as a proper Jew. I replied that those of us who were comfortable in our skin as Jews would accept him. Those who were sincere in their belief and practice would accept him. Perhaps some of the others would not. And indeed, he has found this to be the case.
Excellent article, and the lively discussion proves that the author has touched a nerve. I also grew up in the Conservative movement and also never, ever once heard anything about God being a real presence in my life. When my older brother died in a car accident when he was 17 and I was a young child, I never heard any words of comfort about Judaism believing in an immortal soul. Yes, committing to a life of mitzvot observance is challenging, and the strictures can turn some people away (as can deeply negative experiences), but it is possible to develop a relationship with God that can enrich our Jewish lives beyond measure.
First off, hi Judy! I remember the article you wrote for Aish about the year you lost your brother. I grew up in the Reform movement with precious little religious knowledge. My parents were terrified of anti Semitism, but my grandparents wanted their grandson to become a Bar Mitzvah. I am very happy for the folks in my community who are fulfilled at our local Reform synagogue. However, the Reform movement never gave me what I needed.
This has been going on for eons. In 1990 - I attended a class given by a reform rabbi. He taught that - G-D's Written Torah - was "NOT TRUE" - & was no better than "ALICE IN WONDERLAND". Albeit - a good book of "HUMAN BEHAVIORAL PRACTICES". OF course - if we read - the whole of the Tanach - it is plainly evident - that this has been going on - since soon after G-D created the Universe.
Beautiful article! Such a shame that so many Jews, unfortunately, know so little about our own religion. Hopefully your well-written essay may touch another Jewish Neshama and ignite the spark within them.
When I visited India, I was surprised how some of the ceremonies had similar rituals as Judaism. Blowing horns, lighting candles, chanting -- sounded similar to reciting the Torah. I wondered at the Jewish influence from the communities that lived there in the middle ages. It was explained to me that Hinduism does believe in one G-d, but in many forms.
And reform Judaism focuses on social reforms -- helping immigrants, etc. So maybe that's why there's not much talk about G-d and love.
IT IS TAUGHT THAT 2 OF ABRAHAMS SONS WENT EAST TO TEACH AND ITS THOUGHT THAT IT WAS I NDIA
It is a traditional belief in certain Jewish circles that Avraham's children with Ketura were sent to the East, and that they were the forefathers of the Brahmin (i.e. Brahma = Abraham).
I learned that too, but all these concepts stem from Judaism, and Judaism believes in the afterlife and Rambam/ Maimonides 13 principals of faith, there is a prophet called Ezekiel that had a vision of Hashem and what goes on in heaven it is read on a Jewish holiday I don't remember offhand which maybe Passover
It wasn't Passover the vision was on Shovout I just looked it up, the holiday we get the 10 commandments and all Jews converted to Judaism
I believe in God simply because tried as I might, I found myself incapable of not believing. But I also believe that all religions are man-made because God is beyond the capacity of the human mind to comprehend.
In my opinion the Torah began as the oral history of a primitive people whose oral historians were excellent observers, but very limited theorititians. In fact, their most common go-to for explaining anything was, "God did it."
Most agree the Torah was finally written around the time of King David. Many parts were left out or lost, and that is what we have today.
Nevertheless, I am happy to remain a Jew for many reasons, but primarily because Judaism is arguably the only religion in which someone like myself may have such a divergent opinion, yet not be excommunicated.
Who are the "Most" that you're referring to at the beginning of your 3rd paragraph, in which you make a fictitious claim?!
Most secular scholars and many Christian scholars accept the theory that the Torah was written by several different authors.
Well, that explains why the claim is false!
You have a lot to learn. Please contact a real Rabbi - not one of the watered-down types - and discuss things with him.
Judaism has an unbroken Massorah going back to the beginning of time
The Giving of the Torah on Mt Sinai was witnessed by milllions of people - a whole nation!
And the Torah has been studied by the greatest minds.
I’d be interested to know how you know that matan Torah was witnessed by millions of people.
So beautiful Thank you.
Thank you for such a well-considered, well-written article. Where might I find Maimonides' texts which Rabbi Joseph Polak used as a starting point in his 1984 presentation which you'd mentioned (“Love of God Even unto Madness”)? Should we look in "More Nevuchim"?
From Rabbi Polak: The lecture at the ashram was from the remarkable 10th Chapter of Rambam’s הלכות תשובה, Hilchos Tshuvah. In paragraph ג (3) of this chapter, Rambam speaks of the love for G-d as an obsession, where you cannot get your lover out of your mind, and he there delicately refers to this love as חולי אהבה —lovesickness.
Thank you for this. I am an intensely proud Zionist and proud Jew. I care deeply about Israel and my fellow Jews. I find the ritual satisfying and believe ( as much as I can) that the survival of the Jewish People is a miracle. However I can’t make myself believe that God actually exists and that we received the Torah at Sinai. I wish I did and wonder how people like Jonathan Sacks can.
Why the downvotes for someone telling us what’s in his heart? It’s just the opposite of what is needed.
Thank you for bravely expressing this! You can find some wonderful articles about these two vitally important topics on Aish.com by googling. Here's one I just found right now: https://aish.com/god-are-you-there/
The fact that the Jewish people still exist today in spite of 3000 years of attempted annihilation by so many others, convinces me that Gd Exists and the Torah is 100% truth.