B"H

The Tenets of Our Faiths

By the grace of God I have after a great deal of prayer and exertion
been given the words to write this post - a piece I wanted to write
for so long and didn't know just how. May God watch over me as I
write and keep me, so that I do not fail.

Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, of blessed memory, the first
Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of the new settlement of the Land of Israel,
was a spiritual giant. He is almost universally considered to have
been one of the greatest Jewish mystics not only of the last century,
but of all time. He wrote: "The Book is the Book, but it is the heart
which does the interpreting."

How do we react when the tenets of our faith tell us to remain in a
state of isolation from other Peoples, so that we do not
become "defiled" by others and their ways, to remain a People
separate from every other People in creation, complacent in
our "chosenness"; when our hearts tell us that all of Humankind are a
brotherhood and we yearn to reach out to them, to be a part of them?

How do we react when the tenets of our faith tell us that our way is
the one and only correct way, that every other way is folly, or at
the very least misguided ignorance, and that it is our religious duty
to convince other Peoples by any and all means of the truth of our
way, for their own good; while our heart tells us that diversity is
the way of creation and every being has the right to self-definition
and self-determination and that everyone will find their own way to
Ultimate Truth?

How do we react when the tenets of our faith teach us that the way to
God is to sit in unperturbable silence, rapt in the bliss of
meditation, unmoving, not stirring from our places, no matter what
our senses tell us; when our hearts go out to the indigent and
suffering around us, and we yearn with all our being to act in the
created world in order to alleviate their distress?

How do we react when the tenets of our faith tell us that in order to
prove our strength and resolution to our way and preserve our ancient
traditions, as handed down to us from time immemorial, we must
inflict extreme pain on our bodies in religious ceremonies; while our
hearts tell us that the body is as sacred as the Soul and that to
harm the body is to fly in the face of the sacredness of nature?

There are many who because of these apparent "contradictions" in
established religions decide upon one of two ways to resolve the
problem: they choose to adhere to the tenets of their faiths
silencing their hearts, or they leave the religion they were born
into, some going so far as to disavow or even execrating their
heritage. Some take a third way: they adopt another religion, only to
find that their new religion presents them with as many quandaries as
did their own.

Know that God has placed these apparent "contradictions" in every
religion. They are the planting of God's hands so that your Soul may
grow. You are not meant either to betray the People and tradition
you were born into, or to unthinkingly accept the tenets of your
faith which your heart tells you need examining. In the first case
you betray your People, in the second you betray yourself. Both of
these responses are a cutting yourself off from that which God wants
for you.

Those who leave their religion are demonstrating not only their
complete lack of faith, but are also demonstrating arrogance and
disrespect toward their elders. Could it possibly be that their own
singular understanding is greater than the collective wisdom of the
many in so many generations who held their faith dear, very dear? If
one has even a shred of respect for those who have come before
him/her they do not abandon the way of their forefathers and
foremothers.

However, one must be true to one's heart. God has planted many
tenets which are anathema to the sensitive heart in each religion.
Why? It is so that you will question - not question the truth of the
precept, but question your own understanding of it. If one comes to
God with an honest and humble prayer and says: "I respect what I see
written here, but my heart tells me otherwise. How shall I proceed?
How shall I act? Have I understood what is taught? Surely I have
not seen to the depth of Your wisdom. What do You desire of me?" that
person will have fulfilled God's true Will in planting the tenet in
the faith - that person will have entered a dialogue with God. This
is God's true desire - to teach you the depths of your faith
directly, so they you may see. Such a one who prays this way will be
blessed with vision heretofore unknown to him/her. They will see
ways of understanding and interpreting the tenets of their faith that
*resolve* that which s/he thought were contradictions, precepts which
limit the freedom of the Soul and harsh commandments. S/he will come
to see the righteousness and compassion which exists in the seemingly
harsh precepts with clear eyes, in a way which is compatible with all
of God's creation. The tradition of their People will not be
contradicted or contravened in any way. The one who entered into a
dialog with God will understand them with ever-increasing depth as
God personally takes them by the hand through eternity.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be for a
blessing.

Doreen Ellen Bell-Dotan, Tzfat