Discussion from Week 2 of my Religious Studies Class

Note: my class is full of very religious Xtians, so I really need to temper what I write. This is proving to be an interesting exercise in tact for me!

Please state in a couple of paragraphs why you think the book of Genesis is so important to the religious life and culture of Israel. Identify the one or two themes of Genesis that seem most important to you and explain why.

The Book of Genesis, in essence, sets the foundation for defining the entire culture of Israel. Not only does Genesis present the basis for the beginnings of the nation of Israel (including their belief system), but also for the rest of the world as well. Genesis helps to explain how the culture of Israel deals with the "big questions" of human thought: "How did the world begin?", "What role do humans have in the world?", and "How did our people come to be?".

The two themes I find to be key in Genesis both deal with creation. Ironically, I will not be referring to the Adam and Eve narrative which was the initial "creation". Rather the two creation stories that more solidify the culture of Israel -- the stories of Noah and of Abraham.

In the story of Noah, Genesis presents the background of all humans on the earth today. Noah, as Genesis presents him, is the physical and spiritual ancestor of everyone alive today. Although Noah had no written Bible to serve as a reference for ethical living, G-d did present to him a covenant; which would include him and all of his descendants (so all of us today). This covenant pre-dates the revelation of the 10 Commandments given at Mt. Sinai. Yet it seems here, for the first time since the creation of the world, G-d is giving specific instructions regarding ethical living. In Genesis 9:1 to 9:17, it seems as if G-d has made a "change" in how he relates to humans. The story of Noah presents humankind expectations of behavior, a clearer view of reward and punishment, and precedent of showing that G-d's involvement with the world shall be ongoing.

In the story of Abraham, Genesis presents the creation of the nation of Israel (and the seeds of Christianity and Islam as well). What is interesting is that Abraham seemed to have converts (Genesis 12:5) to his pioneering belief in one G-d, yet a great importance was placed on the fact that Abraham had a biological son, Isaac, through which the nation of Israel would descend. Undoubtedly, throughout the entire Bible, you have a strong emphasis placed on lineages, in addition to the theological teachings. This demonstrates how it has come to be that the culture of Israel includes both belief and biological ties. A "non-believing" member of the nation of Israel is still a member. This system of biology & belief has also made the nation of Israel a very "portable" group of people. Their essence is not intrinsic on the existence of any particular country, and they are not easily absorbed by other cultures.

Overall, I feel my response was super-simplistic. But it was still about double the length of what everyone else posted. It's the first "writing" week, so I'll see how the feedback goes and adjust accordingly.

Scholarly Religion

One of the courses I am taking this semester is Studies in Hebrew Scriptures.  It's an online class (just like my 3 other classes), and I figured it would be an interesting class to take in order to fill my upper-division elective requirement. From what I can tell, there are 14 students in the class.  Of that 14, 10 have proclaimed to be born-again Christians who seem to be approaching this course as "bible study for credit".

I attend a large public university; and without a doubt, such institutions will always have a religious Christian contingency. WVU would probably have a higher than average amount. Just by looking at the roster of religious clubs on campus will attest to that. But I have had little (no?) interaction with that side of the collegiate populace. When I was on campus and in Hillel, religion seemed to be not so important to us. The majority of the members were Conservative, and I was Reform -- but there were no theological discussions about why we were what we were. We had a very abbrieviated service on Friday night and holiday parties, and that was it. We focused on the fact that we were all Jewish and hung out and that was that.

The course only began on Monday, so there have only been 2 days of introductions and discussions.  Already I see a stark contrast in how religious Christians (like my classmates) and religious Jews talk about G-d. First of all, they use the word "love" a lot ("I love the L-rd"; "Ilove reading the Bible", etc.). I also notice that they refer the Creator also as a person -- as a friend -- or maybe even a lover, by saying things like, "He has stood by me through thick and thin" or "Jesus has turned my life around". I find this very interesting. And I also realize that there are a great many Jews who feel this way (in fact, Chassidus is centered on a "feeling" relationship with G-d). Yet it is still very different...and I can't quite put my finger on exactly what it is. My cursory conclusion is these particular religious Christians (no one revealed their denomination...but I'm pretty confident they are all Protestant) see G-d (and Jesus, at his right-hand side in heaven I guess) as the puppetmaster who is controlling the world. Whereas Jews take on a personal responsibility for maintaining the proper order of the world by doing their part of maintaining their covenant with G-d.

The following is from the class syllabus:

In this course the student will be able to:

1. Recognize and identify important people and events throughout Israel’s ancient history. 
2. Understand the historical, cultural, and religious settings behind the Hebrew Scriptures. 
3. Analyze the impact major events and people had on the life and faith of Israel.
4. Develop a deeper understanding of at least one Old Testament book. 
5. Evaluate how various theological concepts have shaped Israel, her existence, and her thought.
6. Compare, contrast, and critique ideas through collaborative learning.

Here you can see that in theory, someone should be able to objectively approach the course material to accomplish these goals.  Yet I get the feeling that this focus on the "Old Testament" may conjure up some discussions that will invariably lead the "...this is what I believe..." sort of discussions. We'll have to see.

Tell Me About It In The Morning, Ok?

School started last week; and from the looks of it, I should be able to (IY"H) pull off this 18-credits + a-30-hour-work-week thing. Today I was my first day back and the first time I've seen my boss since she left on vacation 16 days ago. I came in armed with my print out of the month of October from Chabad.org. Yes, you are not reading that incorrectly...there are 3 weeks when I need two days off back to back. Awwww...I knew you would understand! I can work 9-hour days to make up for it, no problem. And no, I can't be reached on my cell phone...I'm very sorry.

B"H, that religious people can even exercise these rights with their employers nowadays!

If only it were so easy to explain the Jewish calendar to those who are not your employers. I received an e-mail from a friend from my old college days (waay back from when I was on campus) regarding Fantasy Football. Hmmmm...whatever that is. On one hand, I can't be coy...I know why he contacted me. I grew up with football. Plaxico Burress, Charlie Batch, and Willie Parker are in my extended family (as proudly told to me by my Grandmother). I went to two high schools that had powerhouse football programs. On top of that, I was in the marching band, so I was required to attend every game. As I moved through high school, some of my very good friends became starters; so it became "personal". Then I could begin to appreciate the talent present in professional level football. Then came college...

A person can never overestimate the importance that the football program of West Viriginia University holds over the school, the students, and the state. I actually did play in the Pride of West Viriginia (the university marching band) for 1 season, but it was waay to intense for me. Band practice at 8 am on a Saturday was not my idea of fun at all. I very much preferred the following year of making the trek to Milan Puskar stadium sipping beers that didn't need coolers because it was super cold/windy/snowy outside anyway. Sitting around with 60,000 other fans (or foes) being as entertained by what going on in the stands as what is going on with the game. Football started to appear almost like a chess match. I could pick out the positions and anticipate the calls. You began to recognize the plays. I never got into remembering statistics, but at least I could match the number on the jersey to the player.

I was probably one of the few women my friends knew who could do this, so I guess this is why I stuck out in his mind as a pick to participate in Fantasy Football?

So I sent an IM back on AIM, "Ummm...thanks, but I don't really have the time for all of that right now" (which is true).
Reply: "Oh it's cool. Hey are you going to homecoming?"
Response: "What? Where, in Morgantown?"
Reply: "Yeah. I think it's on Oct. 11"
Response: "That's a Saturday?"
Reply: "Yeah."
Response: "Oh surely not :-)"
Reply: "Why? You can get tickets since you're a student now. Don't have to go to the scalpers like I do."
Response: "Ok...do you want mine then?"
Reply: "No, they check your ID. Thanks though. So are you planning to go to any other games?"
Response: "Not really."
Reply: "Oh how come."
Response: "Aren't they all on Saturdays just about?"
Reply: "Yeah. Except for the Pitt game which is Friday."
Response: "Yeah. No. :-)"
Reply: "What...you're going to miss the Backyard Brawl!?!"
Response: "_____, Fridays/Saturdays are the Jewish Sabbath..."

Then commenced some more explaining revolving around why going to a football game would be a problem on Shabbat...

Just to verify I checked the upcoming football schedule for WVU. And yes, just about every game was on a Saturday. But even if one fell on a Sunday or something, I honestly do not know if I could get motivated to attend. In fact, probably not. It's weird, because if I had TiVo, I would record the games and watch them (surely before watch the Steelers). But dealing with being in a football stadium -- I would have to pass. It's funny, because I only have the greatest memories of going to the games. And I still love football. It's something else.

I recognize that waves of pure irrationality sweep throughout large crowds. Here you have 11 college athletes on a 100-yard field. They are surrounded by thousands upon thousands of people whose extreme happiness or extreme disappointment/frustration is dependent upon them. I guess I will "go there" and wonder out loud if it is all nothing but a form of avodah zarah -- one of the biggest no-nos a Jew can do. What we have is a modern-day Coliseum (no pun intended...in that WVU does in fact have a "coliseum" where they play basketball games) where the humanity of those being watched is stripped away. Are they elevated to being worshipped as demigods? Or are they being degraded to the point where their own well being is only secondary to the much desired victory? Whatever the case, it seems...it just feels so "twisted".

So I guess if I did want to get swept up in a mob-type mentality along with 60,000 other people, I would not want to do it for the sake of cheering on a football team.

I did not watch the Olympics either (just couldn't change my schedule and stop what I was doing to watch them I guess), but at least with the Olympics, you sometimes get a little insight into the athletes. I thought it was fantastic that Jamaica won so many gold medals...because I get tired of the continuous bad rep the island seems to get (so it's great to see the world cheering them on). But I hardly felt bad that I did not see them competing. Just tell me the outcome...and I hope they win in the end.

So I wish the Mountaineers an excellent season in 2008. I'll be checking the highlights on Sundays.