Shabbat Gathering: Do we all worship the same G!d?

Gud Shabbos Khaveyrim, as is our custom, we will gather tonight at 5.45p ct to welcome Shabbat. These are the coordinates:

Zoom
Meeting ID: 883 8469 4181
Password: 822665
Phone: +1 312 626 6799

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Happy Birthday, Kate!

Here we go.

What I would like to write isn’t what I’m going to write. I’d like to write the answer to the question, “Do we all (Muslim, Hindu, Christian, etc.) worship the same god?” Instead I’m just going to loll about with the question and let you ponder your own answer.

First, it’s clear that not all Jews worship the same god. For one thing, there’s a significant percentage of Jews that don’t believe in god at all. For another thing, there are some big differences between the type of god described in the Reconstruction siddur and the god described in an Orthodox siddur. So there’s that.

Second, Torah doesn’t exactly make it clear that there’s one single god or a bunch of gods and that the G!d of Israel is the foremost of that divine set.

Here’s my approach (and I’ve stolen ideas and language from Everything is God: The Radical Path of Nondual Judaism).

If we say that there are other gods in addition to ours, then we are undermining the very concept of G!d as the singular, universal power that created and sustains the world. Space opens up for gods other than G!d. And a god that isn’t everything isn’t my type of god. Therefore, maybe there is only one god and we all worship the same one.

If that’s the case, what’s the particular advantage of worshiping the “Jewish” G!d rather that the one of the Hindus or Muslims or Christians? Wouldn’t they all be the same god? Well, there’s merit in the point of view, especially if one is interested in promoting universal peace and understanding. But there’s more to it than that.

In his book, Michaelson asks and answers that very question. His answer is that he was raised a certain way and that influences his faith. Michaelson was raised as a Jew and “speaks that language.” Therefore, he resonates with worshiping in a way that’s familiar to him. Worshiping at one hundred different Hindu shrines just isn’t the same thing. Just as there is an “express lane” for him in Judaism, so there are road blocks for him with other religions.

But what about me? I was raised a Christian through and through. What about my particular situation and the situation of a number of you reading this now who have come to Judaism as an adult? I can’t speak on behalf of anyone other than myself, but I believe that my background, from before I was born into this particular world, includes being at Sinai when the covenant was forged. I know that’s a bit woo-woo for some of you, but it’s the answer that’s true for me. I take this whole monotheism business pretty seriously. In spite of my best efforts over a very long period of time, I never squared the notion of monotheism with the paradigm of the Christian trinity. But that’s all behind me now and I’m delighted with my choices.

And may it be for all of us a blessing.

See you tonight!
Mit vareme grusn,
(With warm regards,)

All my love,
brian.