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Re: the committed atheist it's hard to argue it any other way than this Insight's Presentation
ReplyDeleteAlso see my JVO post on this
BUT many Jews do not have a definite belief in "NO G-D" rather they have no FIRM belief [sort of agnostic] or have a firm belief that G-D is NOT the same as has been traditionally defined.
While the Zohar Posits Yisrael v'oraitto v'kudsha brich had hu these Jews often Believe in and Accept
A. Israel the People
B. Israel the Land
C. Torah - it's wisdom, culture etc. [A La Mordechai Kaplan]
Many of them also accept
D. Jewish "Spirituality" -similar to the Maslow definition provided- w/o a personal G-D
Thus they accept the Inspiration of Jewish History, ceremony, Holidays, etc. But don't see a Traditional G-d firgure involved, just the spritiuality of the Collective - Perhaps akin to Jung's Cosmic Consciousness. Sort of a Jewish Pantheism of Holy Jews, Holy Israel, Holy Torah, but w/o G-D as we understand it.
And the truth is that G-D is so transcendant, perhaps they have given up on an Imminent G-d completely.
As has already been said, "Torah" is the "Idol" worhsipped by the Jews.
Shalom,
RRW