Tikkun Daily Blog Archive (https://www.tikkun.org/tikkundaily/category/religion-2/page/25/)
It used to be that religious conservatives were more abundant than religious progressives, but among the millennial generation- unaffiliated religious progressives are now exceeding the rest. This week’s Learner’s Mind calls for the people to speak up so that we may find one another, and that we may give our word for a whole world.
Many are complaining about mixed moral messaging coming from Pope Francis, including on the subject of abortion. Is it not better to ask if Pope Francis and Spiritual Progressives can find common ground to that assert all human beings are made in the image of God?
Reflecting on Peace Day, we can look to the power of personal peace and see that focusing on bringing peace to our local communities can contribute to a global peace movement.
A conversation with a young intellectual sparks a conversation about young Jews in America and questions if it is their obligation to invest time into the situations in Israel.
When the spirit of an activist becomes weighed down under the burden of their work, a center needs to be found again. Contemplative, liturgical prayer can be just the thing to maintain balance within a community and within oneself.
As Yom Kippur approaches, we invite you to reflect on two of Mark Kirschbaum’s pieces. One dealing with the relationship between time and teshuva and the other addressing why we read the Jonah story on this day.
Today, the twelfth anniversary of 9/11, monsters pretending to be my brothers in faith declared a holy war against my home and killed almost 3,000 innocent of my fellow countrymen and women in one terrifying swoop. Certainly their actions were taken by the entire country as a sign that Islam is a violent, bloodthirsty religion, wanting nothing more than to force the West to its knees through murder and mayhem. Ordinary Muslims such as I were aghast that such terrible actions could hold more weight than the statements of millions of Muslims in the United States and abroad who vehemently denounced them individually and collectively. But that’s human nature, isn’t it, that actions speak more clearly and resound louder than mere words do?
The beloved city, Israel’s capital, is besieged by Syria. No one is free. We are the walled city. We are its violent, deceitful citizens. O, dear people, you have been in thrall to fears, and for so long a time. In the Cross of Christ, come free and see in the present moment that what you fear does not exist. The violence of anger will move from your path and you, like the lepers, will become angels—messengers of good news to the city.
“So what do the rich do every day that the poor don’t do?” I read this in an article posted to a Facebook business group. I was deeply disturbed by this article because it failed to mention the socially constructed systems that perpetuate economic inequality. I didn’t want to rock the boat in this business group because it’s part of my professional network. But a louder voice spoke (before I could even reel her in!), reminding me of my morning prayer.
Jewish law requires that all synagogues have windows. We’re not supposed to pray in separation from the world; we’re supposed to pray with the world, conscious of its cycles, in a space that invites connection with them. Unfortunately, most authorities interpret this rule as permitting synagogues to have windows that never open.