tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552682727548828725.post8696419156780185878..comments2023-10-17T05:01:42.650-04:00Comments on Abandoning Eden: Skyping with my parentsAbandoning Edenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12696116071749613265noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552682727548828725.post-51141911690226792032019-10-06T15:53:30.065-04:002019-10-06T15:53:30.065-04:00Maybe this thought will be interesting to you:
In...Maybe this thought will be interesting to you:<br /><br />In the academic field of "religious studies", one of the big questions is "what is the definition of religion?", i.e. "What is within our field of study?"<br /><br />After years of studying religions, including multiple forms of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Yoga, Discordianism, Flying-Spaghetti-Monsterism, and the Church of the Sub-Genius, I decided that the correct definition of religion for academic purposes is "a set of rituals shared by a community". No beliefs necessary; no laws necessay; no authority involved; no priests or rabbis necessary. I think the ordinary English use of "religiously" (as in, "he has oatmeal for breakfast every day, religiously") encapsulates it.<br /><br />So in some sense I believe that following traditional rituals is the essence of religion. All the belief stuff is grafted on by people who were trying to mind-control other people, and is IMO bad every single time. The core and essence of a religion, in my opinion, is simply the shared ritual, and the beliefs are an unwanted and undesirable "barnacle" following along.<br /><br />My own family and cultural traditions, which are quite idiosyncratic to my family and friends, aren't usually considered "religious", but I've realized they serve the same role.<br /><br />Some rituals can be actively harmful and problematic to some people -- some of the traditional Orthodox rituals are just a huge trouble and inspire no joy in a lot of people, while some are actively violent and abusive and should be outlawed, such as infant circumcision. So I strongly prefer communities which aren't rigid about observance of ALL traditional rituals as a condition of membership. Some rituals are bad and need to be replaced. Still, rituals in general are what bring a community together.<br /><br />Anyway, enjoy your menorah, latkes, and dreidels. :-) You're recovering the good bits of the religion while leaving behind all the toxicity and mind control. And I'm sure that, unlike the doctrinaire, you'll understand when someone who's allergic to potatoes doesn't want to eat the latkes. :-)neroden@gmailhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07475686367097445497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552682727548828725.post-79168493800996503382018-01-21T13:13:00.469-05:002018-01-21T13:13:00.469-05:00I'm glad to see that you and your family are f...I'm glad to see that you and your family are finding a way to overcome your differences and remain a loving family. I'm proud of you for hanging in there even though it hasn't been easy. My family has similar difficulties, though not religion based, so I get encouraged when I read that yours is winning the battle. I'll keep working on mine and give it more time, I hope I have the stamina. Thanks for blogging :)Robynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06015787506044299266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8552682727548828725.post-60304376086653782602018-01-14T10:41:31.310-05:002018-01-14T10:41:31.310-05:00Sounds like your parents's strategy worked - t...Sounds like your parents's strategy worked - they deliberately wanted to show you that your brother was cool with them, so you should be, too. I agree, sneaky. But at least they're beginning to learn from past mistakes and visiting your brother and their new non-Jewish daughter-in-law.<br /><br />Enjoy whatever level of cultural Jewish engagement as you feel comfortable with!David Staumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04092344925121412070noreply@blogger.com