On Faith

A Brief Thought on Dietary Laws, Part II

One of my most popular blog entries was my post “A Brief Thought On Dietary Laws” where I explained that religious dietary laws are, at their heart, intended to serve as a reminder of our faith, community, and need for spiritual as well as physical nourishment.

The post received a lot of very warm feedback as well as some critical feedback - both of which I appreciate.

Of the critical feedback, most centered on the idea that kosher (or halal, etc.) dietary laws were outdated, archaic, and unnecessary. They had been creations of another time and, presumably, served a purpose long ago that is no longer relevant today. Some related dietary laws to slavery, restricting our free will and ability to fully enjoy the world around us.

However, are dietary laws really so foreign and out-dated?

Case in point: at present, the British and greater European media are widely reporting on what has been dubbed the Horse Meat Scandal. Apparently, the supply chains of many major food producers has become corrupted and what was marketed and sold as beef was, indeed, all or partially horse meat.

The public has been outraged.

But why? Horse meat is clean and safe - there’s no indication of anything to the contrary. Nobody was ever in harm’s way and, to my knowledge, nobody even complained about the taste of the food.

The answer is because all people - even the most fiercely secular - have established dietary codes. People have boundaries related to their consumption of food for a variety of reasons. Some animals - in this case, horses - are held to be above the human food chain and, thus, quasi-immoral to consume.

So, are dietary laws really as outdated and irrelevant as they may seem to the outside world? Judging by the headlines in the European newspaper, I suspect not.

Study Over Prayer?

What is more important - study or prayer?

Many who associate themselves with religious groups would argue for the latter, prayer. After all, not only is it the most intimate form of self reflection and connection with the abstract, but it is also one of the most outwardly noticeable displays of religious conviction. Yet, I would argue that study is of greater importance. And I’m not alone - many observant Jews, for example, hold that the obligation to study is more important than the obligation to pray.

In short, this is because in study God speaks to us. In prayer, we speak to God.

In prayer, God is our audience. It is as if we are speakers, preparing to make a speech before a distinguished audience. Like any good speaker tasked with making a presentation, the presentation must be rooted first in an understanding of the audience who will hear the speech. Who is my audience? What do they want from me? What are my weaknesses? These are all questions the speaker must ask themselves.

The same is true of ourselves as we prepare for prayer. We must do our utmost to understand God. We will always fall short in this effort, but our best guide is through studying the stories of mankind’s interaction with God (The Bible), and through analyzing the works of great minds who have thought about and dissected the issues before us so that we can build on their understanding.  

The Sublime In The Mundane

We forget to look around. 

We have become desensitized to the wonders that surround us on a daily basis. When you truly sit back and think about how utterly improbable everything that we see and touch and feel really is, you gain a new appreciation. The mundane becomes the sublime. The typical becomes holy. 

I don’t care how you define or visualize God - or even if you do at all. But to truly reflect on how remarkable our very existence, and the existence of all that we see, feel, taste, and understand, is - is, simply, a profound experience. 

I have been focusing on this over recent days. It is challenging, but rewarding. It has brought me closer to humanity and closer to myself. Fundamentally, too, it has injected me with a new sense of wonder - and wonder, I believe, is the foundation is knowledge. I do not believe that you can truly engage in religious thought without wonder and curiosity. 

A Brief Thought on Dietary Laws

Many people suggest that religious dietary laws are little more than archaic relics of a time long ago. Few would argue that cleanliness is unimportant, but even those who truly consider the body to be a temple would concede that today’s food handling (at least in the developed world) yields very clean food (meats included). So what’s the big deal? What merit is there in a Jew keeping Kosher or a Muslim following Halal guidelines? Surely, even if a pig was miserably unclean 2,000 years ago it is not so today.

The real answer, and the real value of dietary laws, rests not in what is clean or unclean. But, rather, in what following dietary laws reminds people of and what it connects people to.

Food and drink are the fundamentals of our human sustainability. Physical nourishment does no less than keep us alive. When we keep a close eye on what we eat, we are doing more than watching what we place in our mouth. We are keeping close watch on our identity and sustainability. Each time we choose what to consume, we are reminded of our identity - and the identity of the community to which we belong. As food sustains the body, faith sustains the soul. When people of faith monitor their food, they are reminded of their faith.

The Passing of Rabbi Elyashiv

Is Religion Important?

Recently, I heard an acquaintance of mine state that atheists were without adequate moral and ethical backing. This logic, which posits that organized religion is the sole giver of morality, is – I believe – deeply flawed. Yet, it is not uncommon. In my own experience, I have a number of close friends who self describe as atheists. They are amongst the friendliest, most trustworthy, and most curious people I know. Do I agree with them on their theological beliefs? No, I do not. However, I’ve always found them eager to engage in healthy and robust discussion.

I’m a firm believer that there are good people on all sides of the theological spectrum. Likewise, there are lots of bad people on all sides as well. There are a lot of close minded, vitriolic atheists – and there are, quite obviously, a lot of close minded, vitriolic theists.

I do not believe that there is a definite correlation between morality/ethics and faith. Religion can be a catalyst for morality and ethics – but it, like anything in life, is no guarantee.

However, if I didn’t feel religion was important I wouldn’t be religious. But I am. Why? The answer rests in the idea of community. I believe that collective struggle is important. It engages us on a deeper level and encourages both action and contemplation – internal to ourselves and external to a wider group.

Of course, this requires individual action. Groupthink can be paralyzing. We see it all the time – and especially in some religious communities. Perhaps one of the most meaningful stories from the Torah is that of Jacob and the Angel. Following a night of wresting, the injured Jacob is renamed “Israel” – i.e. “wrestles with God”. This became the collective name associated with the Jews and their nation. Whether you are Jewish or not, I think the idea of “Israel” is applicable to any effective faith. We should wrestle with the idea of God – not become one-dimensional thinkers who believe we have the final answer. Faith is hard and only gets harder, to be surrounded by others who are also committed to struggling with faith can be important, uplifting, and meaningful. It can also be a useful tool for learning from others, and learning more about yourself.

Religion accomplishes this in a number of ways. Through custom, ritual, tradition, the community is engaged and connected. We may look individually at some of these rituals and think them odd or outdated – but they provide a link amongst people, present and past and, through the creation of an identity, bond people together as they commit to wrestle with abstract and difficult thoughts.

So is religion important? I think so. I think it adds value to life. But we should not make the mistake of thinking that it is so important as that it is essential for goodness. This must come from the heart and soul of the individual. My thought is that religion is both deeply personal and deeply communal. With just the former we become close minded and selfish. With just the latter we become drones. We should embrace our struggle for understanding and growth, and lean on those around us who are seeking the same.