An atheist does not believe in God. An agnostic is uncertain about the existence of a God. The scientific community agrees that the Universe was formed with the "Big Bang" and that it is impossible to determine where, how or why this took place. Rabbi Sherwin T. Wine, founder of the Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism, coined the term "Ignostic" to describe one who believes that it is futile to try to determine what preceded this event and who did it. Therefore one should live without reference to "God." as a supernatural being. Furthermore, you can do God's work and not believe in God. This book is not intended to challenge those who believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. . My suggestion is NOT to read this guidebook until you have studied some science and are perplexed, uncertain or skeptical about the Universe. and its origin. The evolution through the millenniums of the tribe that in time became the Jews and their religion is told. Rationalizations to explain the Holocaust and the differences between Authoritative and Humanistic religions are examined. A list of the atrocities that Religions have perpetrated is summarized. And the need for one to have faith is emphasized. A list of the major organizations for Cultural, Secular and Humanistic Judaism are comprised as well as other source material is given. Book II of "Serious Narishkite" (foolishness) is also included. Our Jewish Religion is a treasure trove of delight based on a four thousand year history. Our collective culture includes architecture, art, ceremonies, customs, holidays, languages, literature, music, rituals, traditions, as well as the altruistic moral code and ethical teachings that Judaism advocates and embraces. Do not deprive yourself and future generations of our heritage, our Y'rusha!.

In this provocative urban history, Lila Corwin Berman considers the role that Detroit s Jews have played in the city s well-known narratives of migration and decline. Like other Detroiters in the 1960s and 1970s, Jews left the city for the suburbs in large numbers. But Berman makes the case that they nevertheless constituted themselves as urban people, and she shows how complex spatial and political relationships existed within the greater metropolitan region. By insisting on the existence and influence of a metropolitan consciousness, Berman reveals the complexity and contingency of what did and didn t change as regions expanded in the postwar era."

History, Religion, and American Democracy provides a fundamental review of four major themes: naturalism and supernaturalism in an American context; issues in the history of Judaism; American social philosophy; and the teaching and learning of democratic ideals in a pluralistic postmodern environment. This book provides a naturalistic context for the deep analysis of religious, theological, as well as social and political themes.

As you will see inside this book, most letters were in response to articles, stories, or other issues affecting Jews. Richards criticism also touches on Christianity. Religion is very much a hands-on topic for Mr. Levik. Originally, letter writing was intended as a safe outlet for release of frustration and anger, never expecting such angry and sometimes vicious letters to be published. Astonishingly, provocative letters were published. Inside OFF MY CHEST you will see the published version, the unedited version, along with letters and a few articles which were never published. Whether these letters changed hearts or minds, you be the judge. Read OFF MY CHEST, see if your heart and mind are not moved, challenged, or even changed.

Open Judaism is an invitation to the spiritually seeking Jew; a clarion call for a pluralistic, inclusive Judaism; and a dynamic exploration of the remarkable array of thought within Judaism today.

For centuries, people attempted to know, why religion? What are the roots of religion? Can we function and lead a decent, moral, meaningful, and good life without blindly believing religious dogmas? So many questions are in the human mind. We are the superior species of all species on earth, and thus, we are free to think, gather new knowledge, innovate, and create new things by virtue of our brains capability and power. This natural gift prompts us to ask unending questions and find answers to those questions. But religions block our freethinking and suggest not thinking beyond the holy books but believing them blindly. This is like totalitarianism modus operandi that silences the dissents. This is an important book and the first of its kind that gives a challenging proposition as to how we can live a good, moral, productive, and meaningful life without instilling blind religious faith but to think rationally and lead life with reason, progress, prosperity, and happinessa humanistic life. We just need new principles based on scientific worldview, that is, science, technology, progress, civilization, and humanity growing together. Conventional religions cannot free people, but freethinking, knowledge, and karma can. The most realistic approach is one world, one life, one god, one universal religionhumanity.

This valuable reference extensively documents the lives and careers of the most influential leaders of Reform Judaism in America. The editors have assembled concise but informative biographical profiles of approximately 170 people. The work spans the period from the beginning of the Reform movement in 1824 through the 1976 Centenary Perspective. The individuals profiled were selected because of their impact on Reform Judaism at a national level. Included are the principal architects of reform, national organizational leaders, distinguished rabbis and academicians, outstanding cantors, volunteer lay activists, and women. The work begins with an essay on the history of Reform Judaism in America. A biographical dictionary follows. Each entry in the dictionary assesses the career and contributions of a particular leader and closes with a short bibliography of works by and about that individual. The dictionary is followed by a set of essays that overview the history of associations related to Reform Judaism. A section of appendices lists the principal figures affiliated with these organizations. An extensive bibliography of primary and secondary sources concludes the work, making it an indispensable reference tool.

"This book is about the relationship between the American religious left and secularization. It explores how three liberal religions -liberal Quakers, Unitarians, and Reconstructionist Jews- attempted to preserve their traditions in the modern world by redefining what it meant to be religious. Between the 1920s and the 1960s, these groups underwent the most massive theological change imaginable, allowing their members to opt not to believe in a personal God. As the God of traditional theism did not seem to fit into a post-Darwinian framework, these traditions took the dramatic step of redefining that concept to make a "God" that did fit, and eventually they went even further by making belief in God a matter of purely personal preference. This book narrates how, over the course of the twentieth century, believing in God and being religious became increasingly disconnected. It documents the continuance of these religious communities even after the theological rationales that originally brought them together disappeared, their communal identities instead becoming focused on humanitarian service and political commitments, which began to replace a shared adherence to theism. The radical religious views of these small liberal denominations became influential among the wider society, and eventually became accepted in American popular culture and law"--