I found a post in the Canadian Globe and Mail by rabbi John Moscowitz. The mass reading from the last few days tell of Jesus warning the Jews of an overly strict adherence to the Law, a more outward adherence for show of devotion than the inward adherence in come closer to the Father. With hundreds of laws and even more reflections on these laws, another rabbi once said that when he started the day he could better decide which laws he would break as opposed to the laws that he would abide. I have always thought that God's Law was a guidebook for those wishing to tread the dangerous yet alluring paths through material life to become more than just a man, but rather a child of God here and now for all the world. Basically, to be that light Jesus mentions, up on high, in the window for all to see.
We have choice. How many religions and regimes have tried to take our freedom away? How many schools of thought decided that men are like children and need to be lead by the hand and beaten if necessary? Freedom has been earned, and yes, it does not always produce great fruits. I agree with rabbi Moscowitz's view on freedom and thus post it:
I believe deeply that freedom is an absolute necessity for all human beings. I believe in freedom’s redemptive and liberating capabilities for the individual. I believe that freedom is a religious value and right. Freedom is at the very core of our humanity and our dignity, our goodness and our God-ness.
You can’t have freedom in the abstract if you don’t have freedom in reality. You can’t have freedom for one or some without freedom for all. You can’t have one set of rules to recognise love and marriage for heterosexuals and another for homosexuals.
I believe that rabbis, Jewish tradition at our backs, should sanctify the love of Jewish gays and lesbians no less than that of any other two Jews. When any two Jews wish to formalise their love through the rites of kiddushin, the Jewish wedding ceremony, our place is under the chuppah, not at the gates.
So, let me say it clearly and loudly: I believe rabbis should officiate at gay and lesbian marriages and that such a marriage is no less holy than that of a Jewish man and a Jewish woman. No caveats, no exceptions, no footnotes.
I’ve not employed any Torah as a proof text to rationalise rabbinic standing at same-sex weddings.
The reason is straightforward. You, as easily as I, can find texts to buttress one side or the other. I believe that in the liberal milieu, it’s intellectually problematic to do so in this kind of context: One text is as good as another. Which doesn’t mean the tradition has nothing to say, at least with regard to how a mind changes and decides. (theglobeandmail.com)
Funny enough, i agree all should have the right to choose, but that not all choices are helpful to that individual. Is forcing all churches to accept same-sex marriage helpful to all? Me thinks not. But again, that is a choice. At the end of the day, what's in a word? Is a rose by any other name still a rose? Does it change the sacrament? Or are we still busy with infighting, exclusion and separation from our brothers and sisters and missing the point of the Christ altogether? The beast prowling in the darkness of our fears is not to be taken lightly. His distractions are real, as real as the pain and suffering we cause. I pray that we might all do the right thing, with God's guidance and love and grace, through him and with him and in him.
Deo gratias.
We have choice. How many religions and regimes have tried to take our freedom away? How many schools of thought decided that men are like children and need to be lead by the hand and beaten if necessary? Freedom has been earned, and yes, it does not always produce great fruits. I agree with rabbi Moscowitz's view on freedom and thus post it:
I believe deeply that freedom is an absolute necessity for all human beings. I believe in freedom’s redemptive and liberating capabilities for the individual. I believe that freedom is a religious value and right. Freedom is at the very core of our humanity and our dignity, our goodness and our God-ness.
You can’t have freedom in the abstract if you don’t have freedom in reality. You can’t have freedom for one or some without freedom for all. You can’t have one set of rules to recognise love and marriage for heterosexuals and another for homosexuals.
I believe that rabbis, Jewish tradition at our backs, should sanctify the love of Jewish gays and lesbians no less than that of any other two Jews. When any two Jews wish to formalise their love through the rites of kiddushin, the Jewish wedding ceremony, our place is under the chuppah, not at the gates.
So, let me say it clearly and loudly: I believe rabbis should officiate at gay and lesbian marriages and that such a marriage is no less holy than that of a Jewish man and a Jewish woman. No caveats, no exceptions, no footnotes.
I’ve not employed any Torah as a proof text to rationalise rabbinic standing at same-sex weddings.
The reason is straightforward. You, as easily as I, can find texts to buttress one side or the other. I believe that in the liberal milieu, it’s intellectually problematic to do so in this kind of context: One text is as good as another. Which doesn’t mean the tradition has nothing to say, at least with regard to how a mind changes and decides. (theglobeandmail.com)
Funny enough, i agree all should have the right to choose, but that not all choices are helpful to that individual. Is forcing all churches to accept same-sex marriage helpful to all? Me thinks not. But again, that is a choice. At the end of the day, what's in a word? Is a rose by any other name still a rose? Does it change the sacrament? Or are we still busy with infighting, exclusion and separation from our brothers and sisters and missing the point of the Christ altogether? The beast prowling in the darkness of our fears is not to be taken lightly. His distractions are real, as real as the pain and suffering we cause. I pray that we might all do the right thing, with God's guidance and love and grace, through him and with him and in him.
Deo gratias.
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