Faith

This is the one book most feminist would agree isn’t their greatest source but I beg them to look deeper. For the Torah/Bible is the first book to advocate for women’s rights way, way before it was popular. In the times before the Torah/Bible when a man died the property left behind would go to his male counterparts yet G-D commanded a different outlook. In this version property would given to the children or wife of a deceased man a revolutionary decision way behind it’s time. That is why one can’t make such a definitive decision about the book before truly reading between each and every line.

Why did G-D bring us to this place today? If we have found our purpose could we have just found a puzzle piece instead?  The truth is you have a special roles to fill that enable you to be here today.  Maybe after you check off one role a new door opens that you couldn’t have seen before or a door of trouble closes.   It could be a role of great leadership or support that enables this place to be a bit better but without you that piece would be missing. I believe we are predestine for one great act but are actions enable that act continue for many more scenes or be shut down before the curtain opens. The truth is this all could be one show that by our acts or non-actions will lead to a new performance with all different cast and outcome.

All of us would rather be blessed then cursed yet to receive those blessings from G-D appears very difficult for most of us especially if you’re Jewish. There are so many rules and laws you would need a Rabbi by your side every waking and even sleeping moment to make sure you’re on the right path and a different Rabbi could say you have it all wrong. Therefore Basic Judaism believes in searching for the key rules of life and perfecting them first while spreading that message as far as one can.  We believe the more the Jewish people and the world accept such a message the more we will all be blessed with peace, health and happiness.

Tonight my own personal faith journey might be brought to a whole new level. Will I openly and vocally express that journey or keep it among a few close friends? Tonight that decision will be made and how it’s determined will surprise you!  My faith journey lies somewhere in the middle between those that are more traditional and those that are more personal.  In other words I have a unique way to express this faith at times and at other times will follow the flow.  Here is the sequence (below) that had me chart this path.

(1) Yesterday out of know where a Power Ball Ticket was placed at my workstation which I took as a sign to play.

(2) Returning home a drenching rain suddenly lead to a beautiful rainbow that dissipated before opening the door.

(3) Suddenly I was called to be the 10th man at a Sabbath evening service and accepted this request.

From these signs if I was to win the Powerball drawing tonight I will utilize a great deal of those funds to go public with my personal faith journey and even if I came in a close 2nd that would be the case.  If on the other hand I don’t win then I will accept that my journey is still meant to be personal and kept within the confides of my loved ones.  I willingly accept G-D’s verdict either way.

We can never thank G-D enough for what thee has given us even with many a lifetime.  For every breath we take, for ever creature who’s crawled our way to the loved one we hold dear etc, etc, etc…. but we can take some important steps in the right direction. If we act in a way of love to those who thee has given to us in our life, by willingly giving oneself to help in anyway with a kind hand,  we are giving back to G-D. This especially rings true to those  individuals who are more difficult to repay such as a good parent, sibling or spouse. We should help them with tasks that normally we might even find repugnant without a word of complaint or condition.  When we act in such a way we are understanding just a bit of G-D’s love to us whether we truly deserve or not.

Too an animal lover like me this whole practice appears barbaric but when I take a step back from today’s times and see it from my ancestors perspective it appears in a brighter light. For my ancestors raised animals for a living and sacrificing one of their own to G-D was as if I was too give up a part of what I truly worked for all my life. An animal takes years to raise and a great deal of effort to take care unlike the dollar bill you have in your pocket.  Today many of us might give money, or time to our faith institutions but imagine giving up a part of worked your whole life to attain to G-D directly. The willingness to give up something so important to you and your family must be considered an act of true love of G-D.  For that reason this offering and what it truly meant to my ancestors helps me appreciate the strength, wisdom and love that they were willing to give in order to demonstrate their true faith.

Idol Worship today in most cases doesn’t exist where you stand near a statue to offer some sacrifice but where you sacrifice a part of yourself for another object or even person above G-D. We might have believed that idol worship is gone forever as most of the major religions are monotheistic but how do those “followers” of such religions act is just as important.   When we sacrifice our values just to gain an extra $$ or to capture the attention of the public aren’t we in way sacrifice to an idol. If we give into lust or even love to act in a way that betrays our closeness to G-D in a way aren’t we  building that idol. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t seek fame, fortune and love but not at the point of where we turn our back on the ultimate creator G-D.   Go for it all but remember to stay on the right path to get there or your sacrifice might be your ultimate curse.