Post by singingbird on Dec 3, 2009 20:50:19 GMT -5
Hi
My name is Sara and I'm 24 from NYC and currently living in DC. I'm Jewish and don't really know where I fit in in the religion and am probably headed off in the Humanistic direction given that I'm marrying a Non-Jew and while I lean Conservative, they are called that for a reason. Reform never really clicked for me and Reconstructionism is too weird for me. And there was a time where I was thinking about being orthodox, but I've never really appreciated skirts or sitting separately from the men-folk.
What is attractive about Orthodox Judaism is that their rabbis are so charismatic and intellectually facile. They write papers and have discourse on when AI becomes an entity and how to deal with that eventuality. How fascinating is that? Granted most rabbis I've met are charismatic and intellectually facile, it comes with such a high degree of study. Also I'm a musician and the Orthodox have the best music. All the prayers are sung or chanted and have been passed down orally for hundreds of years and to be a part of such a musical tradition is incredibly attractive to me. I'm the kind of person where I will choose what synagogue I go to based on what tunes they use to sing the prayers, if they have a cantor, and whether they have a choir. I'm weird. One of my other friends chooses on whether she agrees with everything all the rabbis say. The rabbi's job is to make you think and expand your horizons. If you already agree how are you to expand your thinking? Sorry, tangent. So I flirted with strict religion, but ultimately realized that it wasn't for me.
I guess I'm like a benevolent busybody. I want to know and understand everything. So I've sought out friends that are different from me and asked them lots of questions and have learned about a lot of different people, religions, movements, and music. But I'm still so confused about Christianity. I think this is because it's rendered culturally invisible by being dominant. I know some mild Christians and ask them plenty of questions, but they can't really explain the extreme right wing republicans or quiverfull or Rush Limbaugh. Most of this scares me a lot, especially now that the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 was passed and now that Stupak-Pitts was passed too. I want to understand this mindset that says that it is ok to make my decisions for me.
Anyrate I found out about Vyckie's blog from the Secret Lives of Women episode. I'm really hoping that maybe this combined with Joyce's book will make things make a bit more sense to me.
So in summary I'm probably Rush Limbaugh's worst nightmare: A college-educated woman from NYC who is Jewish, liberal, pro-choice, and a member of NOW. And to think my mother once said that my curiosity will kill me.
My name is Sara and I'm 24 from NYC and currently living in DC. I'm Jewish and don't really know where I fit in in the religion and am probably headed off in the Humanistic direction given that I'm marrying a Non-Jew and while I lean Conservative, they are called that for a reason. Reform never really clicked for me and Reconstructionism is too weird for me. And there was a time where I was thinking about being orthodox, but I've never really appreciated skirts or sitting separately from the men-folk.
What is attractive about Orthodox Judaism is that their rabbis are so charismatic and intellectually facile. They write papers and have discourse on when AI becomes an entity and how to deal with that eventuality. How fascinating is that? Granted most rabbis I've met are charismatic and intellectually facile, it comes with such a high degree of study. Also I'm a musician and the Orthodox have the best music. All the prayers are sung or chanted and have been passed down orally for hundreds of years and to be a part of such a musical tradition is incredibly attractive to me. I'm the kind of person where I will choose what synagogue I go to based on what tunes they use to sing the prayers, if they have a cantor, and whether they have a choir. I'm weird. One of my other friends chooses on whether she agrees with everything all the rabbis say. The rabbi's job is to make you think and expand your horizons. If you already agree how are you to expand your thinking? Sorry, tangent. So I flirted with strict religion, but ultimately realized that it wasn't for me.
I guess I'm like a benevolent busybody. I want to know and understand everything. So I've sought out friends that are different from me and asked them lots of questions and have learned about a lot of different people, religions, movements, and music. But I'm still so confused about Christianity. I think this is because it's rendered culturally invisible by being dominant. I know some mild Christians and ask them plenty of questions, but they can't really explain the extreme right wing republicans or quiverfull or Rush Limbaugh. Most of this scares me a lot, especially now that the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 was passed and now that Stupak-Pitts was passed too. I want to understand this mindset that says that it is ok to make my decisions for me.
Anyrate I found out about Vyckie's blog from the Secret Lives of Women episode. I'm really hoping that maybe this combined with Joyce's book will make things make a bit more sense to me.
So in summary I'm probably Rush Limbaugh's worst nightmare: A college-educated woman from NYC who is Jewish, liberal, pro-choice, and a member of NOW. And to think my mother once said that my curiosity will kill me.
