So Miriam asked us one morning why we come to Torah Study and what we get out of it? In the limits of today, with what I know in this moment, here is my answer to that question. I come to Torah Study to learn to distinguish and release the constraints of the “cult” religion I grew up in – one allowing no questioning or interpretation and imposing controlling limitations on it’s followers.
Today, along my Jewish path, I learn to embrace an ever-expanding and open faith – a faith that encourages questioning, the search for truth, and growth. As I embrace my faith, I learn to keep balanced and hold strong. With a clearer understanding of the difference between religion and faith, it becomes easier to recognize, then renounce those “man-made” dogmas. I once thought one word could be used to describe the other. Then I was introduced to “choice.” Through choice, and because of it, I began to see new distinctions between “faith” and “religion,” and so outgrew the holds of “religion.” I understand these may only be my distinctions of the words. Yet, I see the limitations of “religion, ” set apart from a limitless universe of “faith.” For me personally, my prior religion was built on forcing one community’s dogma upon generation after generation, to gain and maintain control and power. My new faith is built of trust in the vast degrees of the Unknown, as well as a belief that holds Universal truths. Neither is meant to control. It was Andre Gilde who once said: “Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it.”
Like sand shifting beneath my feet, I too shift to recognize that while the ground I may be standing on is holy; like our Source, it is also ever evolving, and I must remain agile to make the changes necessary as the definition of truth expands beyond the limits we put upon it with our human minds, words, definitions and distinctions. I am aware of the ripple effects the universe creates for me and although I find myself in constant attempts to find the balance within this co-existence, unforeseen forces still play a part in my destiny. Therefore, I have learned to honor and respect the part they play in my journey as a necessary experience. To fight them would be a fruitless.
Today you can see, some of my reasons for coming to Torah Study are: 1) To follow my quest for learning about and understanding our Source and the Universal Truths, 2) To learn how to de-program myself from the “cult” dogmas of my past, 3) To keep alert by living in the questioning and not get caught up in any man’s agenda that could create just another new kind of dogma, 4) To learn to find the balance, that Golden Mean, that is to be found in the words of the Torah, and release old social beliefs that have a foundation of extreme “wrong/right” thinking, 5) To honor your right to your perspective as well as see it with you, and recognize that I don’t have the right to make you wrong to make myself right. 6) To honor diversity and inclusiveness in our thinking as a good way of learning, and 7) To recognize that the words of the Torah, while sometimes are taken literally to learn the lesson, at other levels beside the literal, can uncover the multifaceted teachings that lay hidden between the words, waiting to be discovered. As with the first discussion between Moses and Aaron regarding the meaning of G-d’s words, all words are meant to evolve and take on new meaning for each person. And, for each person these words take on additional new meanings with each new daily application of the teachings as they relate to our present day lives. Like each changing season, the season of my eighteenth spring reflected different experiences than the season of my fiftieth spring, yet both came at the same time of year during the seasons of my life. Ah - my Torah is truly a Torah for all seasons!
As I continue to study the many layers of truth, I can be sure of only one thing: change. That change will bring with it a new universe of knowledge for me to wonder about and wander in. So now, what do I get out of Torah Study? All the things I have told you I come for, and more! I get an education from a diverse and inclusive community of friends, both old and new, yet all cherished for the contributions they make in my life. Of course if I learn my lessons well, it will all change tomorrow! And because you have asked the question, you have opened the door that has shown me the blessings to be found in my study of the Torah at our synagogue.