Over the past two weeks you read two short passages by two very famous Jews - Rabbi Jonathan Sacks and Abraham Heschel.  For your discussion board, I would like you to choose one these readings and discuss your thoughts and reaction to it.  In your response you can respond to any of the following questions:

• why did you choose this particular reading?  what interested you about it?
• did you find the reading beautiful? or disturbing?
• what did you learn about Judaism from this reading?
• is there something about the reading that confused you or that you would like to know more about?
• Was there an idea or opinion in the reading that you strongly agreed or disagreed with?  Why do you agree/disagree with it?

Your response must be at least 250 words and include two direct quotations from the reading (along with the page numbers for the quotes). Your initial response is due Thursday, September 16 by midnight. You must also respond to at least two classmates by Saturday, September 18 by midnight (these responses must each be at least 100 words long).

 

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks was born in the United Kingdom on 8th March 1948. He was a religious figure before passing away to cancer. He ventured more into the Jewish philosophies, which he explained on radio under a radio frequency on BBC radio throughout the day. Despite being the chief, he did not make sweet decisions that got everyone happy, but as we all know, the truth hurts. When he took over the job of the chief rabbi, it was heroic luck. In any case, it didn't take long for him to meet resistance. After proposing a collective action that everyone could participate in, he would not recognize members of the Jewish gay helpline. This may be a firm move to reconcile with the Orthodox Church, and this is just the beginning of the struggle between Sachs and the region for strict rights.

If his interactions with the religious right were tense, imagine how difficult it was for him to relate to the Progressive branch of Judaism. The foremost liberal rabbi of Judaism, David Goldberg was one of his relatives through marriage and took malicious joy in reminding people of the connection.

Abraham Heschel was born in Warsaw, and he started receiving Jewish education at the University of Berlin. After his studies, he went to the states and became a writer, and he became very respected. As Herschel said, the critical reality drive occurs at the "pre-conceptual" level; there is always a gap between what we encounter and how we translate our experience into language. The incredible performance barriers, reasoning and religion, are conceived from developing personal feelings beyond communicating. "From our strict standpoint, we don't understand the size; we are there, we see it. We need more data, and our statement is a distortion of reality. Words and ideas should not be used as a screen, but "should be used instead of windows.

These two people inspire because despite sometimes facing difficulties and hate from some, they never stopped doing what they thought was right. This teaches us always to do what we think is right always.