Whether or not Jews have faith —and the reality is that many are on the fence — there’s no question that this surreal time in 2020 has made people think afresh about the divine. About events that baffle us, powers beyond us, and whether we’re called to heal — our society and each other.
In my years of writing about Jewish ritual and identity, I often avoided the subject of belief; it seemed somehow audacious or even sacrilegious to investigate— as a non-ordained, non-Orthodox person who isn’t sure I could explain my faith or the Jewish God. This surreal pandemic was undoubtedly a catalyst to try harder. I’ve spent the last several months exploring complicated questions about the divine with Judaism’s practitioners, asking rabbis and scholars of varying denominations and backgrounds how they translate God for the rest of us. Not academically, but practically. Every day.
Does God punish us? Does God need us? What is God’s opinion of us? What do Jews miss without belief?
I posed 18 questions to 18 thinkers whom I admire but don’t always agree with. Each column consists of one dialogue with one teacher about one question using one text. These candid conversations chip away at what is, for many of us, a stumbling block: the idea that God exists, is with us every moment, and doesn’t abandon us even when it feels that way. The idea that God expects us to do some of the heavy lifting.
We’re calling this project “Still Small Voice,” from the Book of Kings text that Rabbi David Wolpe offered to underpin his views on whether God punishes. We are launching it during the Jewish month of Elul, a time of reflection leading up to the high holidays, when God the Judge is said to decide who will live and who will die in the coming year.
We start today with a personal introductory essay (click on the button below to read) and four interviews (see links below).
Does God Punish Us? Rabbi David Wolpe The world is not divided between believers and nonbelievers; God does not pick who lives and dies.
Does God Need Us? Laura Shaw Frank Miriam is proof that God relies on us and this pandemic proves it, too.
Is Jewish Survival Proof of God? Rabbi Sholom Lipskar God’s fingerprints are on Jewish endurance and perhaps in the reason I got the coronavirus early on.
Does God Hear Us? Rabbi Sandra Lawson The better question is do we hear each other? Especially after listening to George Floyd die.
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