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Individuals More Interconnected Than Ever
Well I suppose we can say the cup is half-empty or half-full.
The new Pew study sheds light on religious affiliation in America. We learn that nearly 25% of Americans now switch their religious affiliation over the course of their lifetime. And that just as one of the most rapidly growing political constituencies in this nation is the "Independents," so too do we find that the "Unaffiliateds" are growing as rapidly in religious circles.
This means that (cup half-empty) individuality is truly supreme in American religious life and that we are witnessing a kind of "tipping point" away from traditional spiritual affiliation. Or (cup half-full) we are celebrating the role that individual choice, globalization and porous boundaries now play in one of civilization's oldest practices: religion.
Which God you worship and how you do it matters less from the perspective of where you grew up and depends at this stage more on how you feel and what you think on a continuum of expression and experience over the course of your lifetime. "And," to quote Al Franken's famous Stuart Smalley character, "That's okay."
Writing as a rabbi who's deeply invested in the preservation of an ancient, rich and evolving Jewish tradition, I admit to fearing that too much choice and indivuation in relationship to God, ethics and Jewish morality will simply wear away at the endurability of tradition.
On the other hand, the adaptability of Jewish culture to every civilization we have ever encountered and lived among over nearly 4000 years is great testimony to the necessity for navigating boundaries with a principled flexibility. Being able to move in and out of cultures and traditions is arguably, the very DNA of ethnic and religious Jewish life. And is, in the final analysis, an important component to our survival. Had we remained the same, never adapted, resisted opening up our own borders to those who moved across previously unchartered waters, we would have ossified and become extinct.
So in historical and philosophical terms, such movement is unavoidable and possibly worth the risk.
In practical terms it means a couple things.
One, as a rabbi, I'm ever-aware of how I'm translating Judaism to potential seekers--to that percentage that may actually choose us. Jews marry non-Jews at a nearly 50% rate. For some, this represents a potential dilution of Jewish culture and tradition. For others, this is a mandate for making sure that rabbis and synagogue communities are poised to articulate what is eternal and beautiful and rewarding about practicing Judaism. Given that one-fourth of our population changes its faith, this represents a statistic that can unify interfaith families under one faith and encourage the practice of a newly shared tradition.
Two, I must also be conscious of those born Jews who may be exploring other faiths. I want to both "welcome the stranger" (the Torah's language) and keep my fellow Jew close (there are, after all, so few of us!)
It means being aware of and conversant in other faith traditions; knowledgeable about the choices out there; literate in the ideas and philosophies of other traditions that people are seeking. Jewish history has many examples of the hybridization of ideas, which over time, become mainstream. The more I am personally aware of rationalist, mystical, meditative, or ecstatic traditions, the more I am able to respond in an informed way to what my fellow Jew may be seeking. Maybe I can't satisfy him or her as a rabbi; but there may be another who can.
And that's okay.
Especially because we decry the increased influence of individuality, I take the principled stance of: It's not about me.
One's religious life is about one's relationship to the Divine: sublime and yes, individual. Judaism recognizes both the collective body of Peoplehood and the principle derived from Genesis that each person is made in the "image of God." Our goal must be to always hold those views in equal balance to one another.
In other words, we're on the Paths we're on. My job, in awe and humility, is to help that restless 25% of you get to where you're going.
By
Andy Bachman
|
February 27, 2008; 6:59 AM ET
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Posted by: < ?: +) | March 13, 2008 2:21 PM
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thank you for writing your article....
i enjoyed it and it caused me to stop and inspect my beliefs and my real life experience and contemplate how the two relate when the theoretical and the aspired to.... meet the reality of actions in ones past...the present... and of coarse the enevitable speculation on other peoples outer veneers which i sometimes realize are a very small glimpse of anothers true reality and intentions.... my revelations of self would be much too long to post in this forum or would appear vain and selfcentered when my purpose was to actually comment on your article... but thank you again... and i will say even though i'm a christian and don't clainm to be extremely knowledgeable about the jewish faith i have studied the old testament which has a lot of books in commen with the torah.. even thoough my ancesters were jews on on side of the family.... it would seem that there has always been a lot of individuality with most faiths and the idea of a homoganized lockstep congregation may be a recent aspiration.. it would seem that moses, and many of the phrophets were very individualized and non conformist on many levels. and would not br thr most likely one would think of fullfillling thier actual roles. i've heard it said that moses was a stutterer and thats what the word uncircumcided tongue ment and why he wanted his brother to actually speak for him. but it was in fact moses who was chosen to lead. to be faithful to ones fundamental beliefs has very little to do with the method of implementation as much as the results and the spirit both carried, evoked and passed along for future generations. that it is not the rituals as much as the meaning that matter maybe the rituals were meant to accnetuate the message and if so one would assume the rituals would change with thetimes but the message would remain the same... but please check for truth i'm just a dyslexic artist
Posted by: artistkvip | February 27, 2008 9:29 PM
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My boyfriend is Muslim and I am Catholic. When we first started dating, I thought that this would probably be a relationship ender. However, I have come to realize that we have the same core values- do unto others as you want done unto you, don't disrespect your mother and father, don't steal, don't lie. Aren't those core values what really breed tradition and family and community unity?
The core values are what is really important to me. I think to a certain extent that the role of religion is changing in the world today and holding on to old-world ideals is unrealistic. Religion was a tool of the state used to control citizens. Today, it is developing into something different- what that is we have not yet been able to define- but that does not mean that we should not try.
Posted by: Anonymous | February 27, 2008 2:45 PM
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It is very refreshing to read Rabbi Bachman's essay. Had I been associated with his congregation I may have remained a self-identified Jew for longer than I have. But I doubt that I would have remained.
What I have experienced in the congregation that I was raised in is not the open-mindedness in this essay. I work to combine my Pagan and Earth-based spiritual calling and practice with my Jewish (orthodox/very censervative) faith tradition of origin. This effort has not been offered any support from institutions that I have accessed.
There is a growing number of resources available to those of us who approach Paganism from a Jewish perspective, and those who approach Judaism with a Pagan world-view. This information has not really made it very far into the leadership structure of the Jewish community as far as I have been able to seek.
This is why I identify as a Unitarian-Universalist Pagan. Within UU there is a broad base of support for developing individual theo/thealogy and a community that embraces the healthy diversity of spiritual opportunities. Here my creativity for combining my two faith traditions has received the kind of recognition that only encourages me to follow my path deeper.
Posted by: WindReader | February 27, 2008 1:37 PM
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