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x-heesy · 1 year

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If you concentrate on finding whatever is good in every situation, you will discover that your life will suddenly be filled with gratitude, a feeling that nurtures the soul. -Rabbi Harold Kushner 🕎

𝗣𝗨𝗥𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗜𝗦 𝝠 𝗠𝗬𝗧𝗛 / 𝗜𝗧’𝗦 𝝠 𝗧𝗥𝝠𝗣 / 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝝠𝗞 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 / 𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝝝𝗡 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 / 𝗖𝗛𝝝𝝝𝗦𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗬 / 𝗪𝗘𝗜𝗥𝗗 𝗜𝗦 𝝠 𝗖𝝝𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 / 𝗡𝝝𝗧𝗘 𝗧𝝝 𝗠𝗬𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗙 / 𝗬𝝝𝗨 𝝠𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝝝𝝠𝗗 /𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦𝝠𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗕𝗜𝗚𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 / 𝗠𝗬 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗗𝝝 / 𝗟𝝝𝗩𝗘 & 𝗟𝗘𝗧 𝗟𝝝𝗩𝗘 / 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 & 𝗟𝗘𝗧 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 / 𝗞𝗘𝗘𝗣 𝗜𝗧 𝗦𝗜𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗘 / 𝗞𝗘𝗘𝗣 𝗜𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝝠𝗟 / 𝗩𝗘𝗧𝝝 / 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦𝗧 / 𝗠𝝝𝝝𝗗 𝗕𝝝𝝠𝗥𝗗 /𝗣𝗨𝗡𝗞𝗦𝝠𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗗𝗘𝝠𝗗 / 𝗡𝝝 𝗚𝝝𝗗𝗦 𝗡𝝝 𝗠𝝠𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦 / 𝗣𝗥𝝝 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 𝗠𝗙𝗭 / 𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗥𝗚𝗬𝗦𝗨𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗥𝗭 𝗡𝝝𝗧 𝗪𝗘𝗟(𝗟) 𝗖𝗨𝗠 / 𝗧𝝝 𝝠𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝝠 𝗟𝗨𝗩𝝠𝗭 ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

#justanfriendlyreminder 💡

#thelittlethingsarethebigthings 🌹

#autosuggestion #pointofview #codingyourself #programyourself #endlessness #creatingyourself #neverstoplearning

#fantasy #empathy #equality #respect #love #basics

#textart #artfulquotes #typography #expressyourself #iphoneart #newcontemporary #popart #artsyfartsy #artfuckery

#quotes #quotesdaily #quotestoliveby #quotestagram #quotesaboutlife #quotesoftheday #quotestags #quotesgram #motivationalquotes #quotesandsayings #quoteslover #quotesofinstagram #quotesforlife #quotestoinspire #quotestoremember #quotestag #quotesilove #inspirationalquotes #lovequotes @shadowanndeath @luna-zylum @the-owly-lady @wetwicksdry 💞#quotesaboutlifequotesandsayings #successquotes #dailyquotes #lifequotes #quotesforyou #positivequotes #quotes4you #quotesaboutlove #instaquotes #quoteslife #quoteslove #qotd

Soundtrack: kisses for roses by art department

#Maybeiamadreamerbutiamnottheonlyone ☮️

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dk-thrive · 10 months

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We can endure much more than we think we can; all human experience testifies to that. All we need to do is learn not to be afraid of pain. Grit your teeth and let it hurt. Don’t deny it, don’t be overwhelmed by it. It will not last forever. One day, the pain will be gone and you will still be there.

— Rabbi Harold S. Kushner, The Lights Of Kabbalah, Oct 19 2020 (via Make Believe Boutique)

#Rabbi Harold S. Kushner #endure #struggle #persevere #hurt #pain #grit #pass #let go

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vaspider · 2 months

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Hi Spider, I hope you're well! I had a question about being Jewish and was wondering if you could give me some insight. All good if not!

Forgive me if I use the wrong terms here, I'm still learning and don't have any ill intent.

I'm a weird case, I think? I was raised Catholic, and I found out as an adult that my family past was hidden from me. Both my Babcia (great grandma, from Poland) and my Grandpa are descended from and were practicing Jews.

This information was withheld from me, so my knowledge of it is limited to what I've learned from my parents after they passed. And that's been like pulling teeth in and of itself.

How would I go about reconnecting with this part of my past? Are there resources available for the basics? I tried looking up various things online, but I think I'm looking in the wrong places- it's all super dense to me and I don't know where to start.

If you have any advice on this, or any thoughts of your own, I'd really appreciate it, no pressure. Thank you!!

My cat Princess says hello btw (:

Hello, Princess!

I would recommend finding a rabbi close to you geographically and starting there. Many places have a Judaism 101 class, which is required for conversion but doesn't necessarily lead to it.

Here's the list I gave @oldest-man-alive-blog off the top of my head when he asked for books to read to decide if he wants to convert

Essential Judaism by George Robinson Choosing a Jewish Life by Anita Diamant Here All Along by Sara Hurwitz The Jewish Approach to God, A Brief Introduction for Christians by Rabbi Neil Gillman To Life! A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking by Harold Kushner Becoming a Jew by Rabbi Maurice Lamm

And followed with this:

#image description requested #asks

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meatmensch · 9 months

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when i find myself in times of trouble rabbi harold kushner comes to me speaking words of wisdom

from npr

#my posts #judaism #writing #been thinking a lot of stuff like 'why has god done this to me' and 'why has god forsaken me' lately. then i have to remind myself. i don't #believe in that kind of god :)

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crazycatsiren · 5 months

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I believe in God. But I do not believe the same things about Him that I did years ago, when I was growing up or when I was a theological student. I recognize His limitations. He is limited in what He can do by laws of nature and by the evolution of human nature and human moral freedom... I can worship a God who hates suffering but cannot eliminate it, more easily than I can worship a God who chooses to make children suffer and die, for whatever exalted reason.

Rabbi Harold Kushner, When Bad Things Happen to Good People

#religious ramblings #religions #religious quotes #deities #quote of the day #divine beings

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jewishtwig · 1 year

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I'd like to do research on Judaism/Jewish people in general, but idk where to start. Do you have any suggestions for books? I'd truly appreciate it! About telling my parents, I don't think it's safe to. They're not antisemitic, just anti-religion in general. My mom has a lot of trauma from being raised catholic, so idk if she'd be ok with me talking about possibly considering converting to Judaism. My dad is a firm believer that everything I'm interested in is a phase, so yeah no. Thank you for your time!

-13 anon

Here’s a few of my favorite titles for beginners!

- Living Judaism: The Complete Guide to Jewish Belief, Tradition, and Practice by Rabbi Wayne Dosick

- On One Foot: An Intro to Judaism Coursebook from American Jewish University (this one is more of a workbook)

- Jews, G-d, and History by Max Dimont (for history lovers)

- To Life! A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking by Rabbi Harold Kushner

Along with learning Jewish traditions and beliefs, it is also very important that you learn about past and present antisemitism. For now, I would recommend starting with A Convenient Hatred: The History of Antisemitism by Phyllis Goldstein

I also asked a Rabbi I took a religion and literature class with if he has any other recommendations for you and he suggested these:

- Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

- The Chosen by Chaim Potok

- Maus by Art Spiegelman

When you’re ready for more books, check out the Jewish Book Council!

As always, please let me know if you have any other questions! 💙

#jumblr #asks #<3 #judaism #jewish #conversion to judaism #jewish conversion #antisemitism mention #book list

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nonegenderleftpain · 1 year

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this is maybe very hopeful, but i still find it in me to send an ask, hoping for the best... i hope to not waste too much of your time with this

as someone who is possibly thinking of converting to Judaism, what is the first step?

i know, i should look for a rabbi, for a group, for just... something. to connect me to the culture, but i grew up in an incredibly sheltered household, in a small town, christian, and i still dont have solid income to look out for them far and wide... honestly, I'm kind of afraid that if i dont end up going through with the conversion, I'll just feel guilty for wasting people's time for my own personal gain (as opposed to...... their gain? yeah. its impossible to tell wether that one makes sense)

im pretty sure i have met exactly one Jewish person IRL and that's not a stretch.

so, basically, when im asking for the first step here, what i really mean is, how do i know where the stairs are?

and i dont have a super philosophical reason as to why i even think of converting in the first place. i guess i just need a place where my first crime won't be my humanity.

So I've sat on this all day trying to figure out how to be elegant. I'm in a fair bit of pain today, so elegance is kind of beyond me - I'll settle for helpful.

Anon, I grew up in a really similar situation to you. I grew up in one of the few Catholic towns in my very protestant area. It was a tiny farm town, only on the map for gambling, and I lived in an incredibly sheltered home. I couldn't be on the internet unsupervised, and my parents turned it off at 10pm, until the day I left home. I never had time to form a community, was not allowed to ask questions, and struggled with constant feelings of fear and crushing oppression by a church I no longer believed in.

When I was in highschool, I discovered LaVeyan Satanism, got my hands on the satanic bible, and converted, largely hiding it for years. I didn't meet a Jew until I left for college, and was so anti-Gd that we never really spoke (Not due to antisemitism - any engagement with religion triggered religious trauma history, so I couldn't be around ANYONE openly practicing any religion. It was a very stressful time, and I carry a lot of guilt for not engaging with her more.)

I didn't have any big philosophical reasons for seeking Judaism, either, at first. I had had a very spiritual experience in the Cherokee Nation with a family friend who invited us, and I was actually considering moving there and taking part in their religious practices as much as they would allow me to, as a white person. My family friend was a religious leader there and was willing to accept me and bring me in, but it never panned out. I have been seeking that same spiritual connection for years, but I didn't really know it until I found it again.

I first started learning about Judaism when I just. Kept running into Jews in my life. Online, in community spaces, through my advocacy work. And I asked myself "what is so important about this?" and picked up the book To Life! by Rabbi Harold Kushner. Immediately, I was enthralled, and I have not stopped being amazed and overjoyed with what I've found.

For me, the first step to really learning more was reaching out to my local Reform congregation. I'm not sure if you're thinking of converting Reform or not, but I'd suggest starting there, because I've found it's been very easy to find my footing as a queer person with a fraught religious background. The Union for Reform Judaism - the largest North American movement of Reform Jews - offers Intro to Judaism classes once a semester (many congregations require these courses for conversion). The classes lay out the very basics of Jewish values, history, and practices. They're usually taught by local rabbis - my course this semester on Jewish history has two classes with each of the four Reform rabbis in my city. This is a great way to get to know the rabbis, see how they teach, and see who you click with. It will also allow you to interact with other folks that are new to Judaism - Jews that want to learn more about their heritage and practices, prospective converts, friends and family members of practicing Jews, and sometimes just people interested in theology!

Once you find a rabbi that you click with, you'll want to reach out to them and set up a meeting (I meet personally with my rabbi on Zoom, because transportation is difficult for me as a disabled person). During that meeting, you can tell the rabbi your story, your level of interest, and answer some of their questions, as well. My Rabbi asked me why I chose Judaism as opposed to something else, and really dug into my resolve, because I came to him expressing my desire to convert. This is pretty normal - antisemitism is on the rise in the US and around the world, so they want to make sure you understand what you're taking on by seeking Judaism.

Here's the thing about Judaism - it is not something you can do alone. Judaism is a tribe and a people, not just a religion. I do not say this to dissuade you. If anything, I want to encourage you. No one is going to be upset with you if you come, participate with sincerity and earnestness, and then decide that it's not for you. You will not be wasting anyone's time by asking questions and learning things.

I also grew up Christian. We were taught that asking questions is a sign of a lack of faith. That we must follow and believe and never question Gd. I am here to tell you that that is the complete opposite of what Judaism not just expects, but requires. Israel means "to struggle with Gd." It is our job as Jews to struggle with the Torah and what it asks of us. To question it and interpret it and find out how to do good in the world. To disagree. This is not a religion of blind faith, and it is not a people that will silence your questions.

So I suppose the concise answer to your question is more of a checklist:

Research your local synagogues. See if you can attend one of their services online. See if you like the rabbi, like the way they talk and the things they say and the way they interpret the texts. See if you like the cantor, and if the way they chant helps you with your connection to the service or detracts from it. Take notes of any questions or concerns you have, so you can bring it to the rabbi.

Contact your local rabbi. If there is more than one congregation where you live, choose which seems most approachable for you to start with. On their congregation's website, there should be an email form that will take you to them, or to whomever runs their site, who will be able to put you in contact.

Set up a meeting with your rabbi. If you can go in person, that's great, but if you get anxious easily, Zoom can be really helpful. I recently even got my rabbi to join Discord. Bring them your questions. Tell them why you're there. Answer their questions honestly, and don't be afraid to tell them you're nervous. I promise you're not the first prospective convert they've spoken to.

Try to get into an Intro to Judaism class. You can ask questions about all different sects of Judaism, even if you're taking classes with the URJ, and a good rabbi will be able to give you cursory answers and resources to find more information. If Reform doesn't work for you, I'm sure that the other sects of Judaism have their own classes you can take. As a convert, I have not had to pay for my classes, and I think that's a national thing

Attend services. Don't be afraid to not know what's going on. Don't be concerned that you don't know Hebrew. Don't worry about them thinking you don't belong there. I still haven't formalized my conversion (I haven't been able to schedule my beit din), but my congregation considers me a member, and recently formalized my membership in our organization. They consider me a Jew, as much as I consider myself one. I am part of their family, even though I'm very new and know almost nothing.

And most importantly:

6. Keep reading. There are lifetimes of Jewish literature, information, and text out there. Jews keep extensive and detailed records of everything. When a Jew has an opinion, they write a book. And every Jew has opinions. I'm happy to give book recommendations, but this post has gone on far too long.

I know it's not a simple answer - there really isn't one. Conversion looks different for everyone, and takes different amounts of time for everyone. So does practice. I don't keep kosher but I give blessings over what I eat, even if it doesn't follow kashrut, because the blessing and gratitude is what is holy for me (and because I have dietary issues). I haven't hung mezuzot because I can't afford them, but I wear kippot because the visual reminder of the cultural and historical throughline of our people matters to me. I don't know Yiddish or much Hebrew, but I learn and ask questions and am enjoying immersing myself in a culture and ritual that I didn't know I needed.

I hope this is at all helpful. If you need or want personal help with any of these steps, please, please send me a DM and I will help you. I know it can be nervewracking to talk about religion, especially as an ex-Christian. I promise that my inbox is a safe space to discuss it. You're among friends, and I know your struggle.

Stay well, and may Hashem bless your journey, wherever it leads.

#jewish stuff #jumblr #lovely anon #the ask and the answer but not the book #jewish #jew by choice #jewish convert #i mean this please dm me if you see this nonnie #i'd love to help

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multiplicity-positivity · 11 months

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Hii hope you&'re having a good day/night! Here's the thing uhm, one of our sysmates really likes Judaism and wants to convert; however the body isn't Jewish and conversions are finicky in our country, not to mention not free and we're disabled and unemployed... It's only them; not all of us. We were wondering if any Jewish system can help us on what to do responding on this post as we're unsure on going off anon out of fear of judgement.; while we do support them, it's a process of their own; not a collective one.

hi! we’re actually in the process of converting to judaism! it’s definitely a long road for us (we’ve been walking this path for 4 years now!) but it’s absolutely enriched our lives and helped us find purpose.

we’re not jewish (yet!) but we will say that you don’t have to be jewish to learn about judsism! you don’t have to speak to a rabbi or attend a synagogue in order to begin the learning process.

we’ll open this up to any of our jewish followers! but we’re adding a potential reading list and a personal note under a cut :)

🐢 kip and 💫 parker

here are some excellent books we’ve added to our jewish library which have been insightful for us!

1) the tanach!! you don’t have to be jewish to read the tanach - we bought ours at a used bookstore for $14 usd :)

2 & 3) choosing a jewish life and living a jewish life, both by anita diamont

4) essential judaism by george robinson (an essential read - it’s a big text but it’s easy to digest!!)

5) jewish literacy by rabbi joseph telushkin (also a big text, but chock-full of info)

6) to life! a celebration of jewish being and thinking by rabbi harold kushner

also we’re a system who’s really into podcasts - here’s some jewish pods we listen to!

1) unorthodox

2) queer yid podcast

3) rabbi shais taub’s soulwords

4) take one - daf yomi

5) unsettled podcast

and here’s a note, from one convert-in-progress to, potentially, another:

one thing we wish we knew more about when we started learning about judaism is palestine, its people’s struggle for freedom, and the occupation of its land by israel. this is an incredibly difficult topic, and one that many jews we’ve spoken to are incredibly willing to ignore. information and news surrounding the israeli occupation of palestine and the ethnic cleansing of the palestinian people is rife with propaganda and disinformation. even our own rabbi for our intro to judaism class would not field questions regarding palestine, and refused to acknowledge the displacement and suffering of the palestinian people in our class.

please, please educate yourself and learn from all sides, if you can. israeli sources regarding the state’s formation are vague, secretive, and delicately worded. the truth is, over 700,000 people were displaced by zionists in the nakba of 1948, and even today 5.6 million palestinians are refugees. we’re including some links to sources where you can learn more. it’s worth noting that the unsettled podcast is an anti-occupation podcast put together by jews fighting for palestinian liberation! there are anti-occupation jews out there, but they can be hard to come by, especially in public spaces.

youtube

(^ this is the first in a documentary series. if you can stomach it, we suggest watching the whole series!)

#religion #judaism

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gay-jewish-bucky · 6 months

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"If we want to be able to pick up the pieces of our lives and go on living, we have to get over the irrational feeling that every misfortune is our fault, the direct result of our mistakes or misbehavior. We are really not that powerful. Not everything that happens in the world is our doing."

—Rabbi Harold Kushner, When Bad Things Happen to Good People

#jumblr #jewish #judaism #jewish quotes #rabbi harold kushner #when bad things happen to good people #theology

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ha-youwish · 22 days

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This is not a vent post, it’s a book recommendation and self-analysis kinda. Please consider reading this, I won’t blame you if you don’t.

Last year around this time, my granddaddy passed away. Usually, online and in formal spaces I would call him my grandfather, but that’s not what I call him and I will not limit myself for this post.

Last year around this time I was beginning my second semester of college ever. I was not doing so well. My grades were low because my attendance was abysmal and my work outside the class was shit. However the previous semester I had taken a class that I was able to stick around for more than the rest.

This class was studying how different major religions and cultures coped with death and how they thought of the afterlife. I bought the books for that class with financial aid and never read them.

Just now I got done reading one of the books, When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold S. Kushner, never read it until I found it sitting around today.

It’s a relatively short book, under 200 pages, about how Kushner deals with the question “Why do bad things happen to good people?” from his place as a rabbi.

Now I don’t have any sort of relationship with god. i’m not strictly atheist or anything but i tend to believe in whatever religion people want me to believe in if they ask me to pray for them or a family member.

when grandaddy died, i had nothing to fall back on. granddaddy was extremely religious and generous, i am so incredibly grateful he was involved in my life and there for me. but people from his church said it was a part of god’s plan or that there was a reason he passed when he did and when i was in such a low state at college already.

i moved away to college and the landlord sold my home. i was in an unfamiliar uncomfortable place where the only place i felt fully comfortable was now completely inaccessible. my mom moved in with grandaddy and took care of him before he passed. it was tense. he was kind but old and stubborn and so is everyone else. the drain of taking care of someone can be worth it, but that doesnt mean its not there.

i was, and am, dealing with severe depression surrounded by other gloomy people who didnt make it much better. i never went to class and i had, and have, crushing guilt that i was wasting the time and money of my family.

and then granddaddy went to the hospital. and then he died. and its unfair.

all of it is unfair, and if it was a part of gods plan then hes fucking unfair too.

now, i have not necessarily moved on. my fingers shake still if i think about it too long. i dont even know if im going to post this because of how exposed and raw i feel. but its important to me that somehow in some way this gets expressed and that someone other than myself will read it.

your suffering was unfair, whether it was a lot or a little. the world is unfair. we all know it. i hope you know that you will never be able to look into the eyes of someone who has never known suffering, and i hope you can find some comfort in that connection.

this book is from the point of view from a religious man. it talks a lot about a god i dont believe in. but the way it talks about suffering and how it effects people makes it helpful for me to parse my own feelings and thoughts.

so feel free to replace god with whatever you want, with humanity and spirit and the universe and everything good. here are some quotes, alt text included:

- sometimes i convince myself that what i feel is nothing more than chemicals, that the regret i feel from not driving home the day before and visiting before he passed was just something my mind is doing.

i once stayed up late at grandaddys house after he passed and i was shoved right back into school like my life hadnt just gotten its shit rocked.

my mom was in her room asleep, but i really couldn’t take it anymore. we stayed up late just talking through how we felt after i had cried to her. and to be completely honest, hearing that she had regrets and wished for just a little more time fucking sucked. knowing the people around you are going through it sucks, even if it was to be expected

but we connected over that long early morning. we resolved almost nothing. i felt the same as i did before and granddaddys still dead and buried. but it was easier to go on after that.

another quote, a tldr if you don’t want to read the book but want to understand what he gets at, in the end of it all.

i dont think i can forgive other people for being unfair, not without effort. but i think i can forgive the universe because the unfairness is proof that people have choices. shit happens, you choose what to do after it.

for a lot of people, mourning and religion bring them the strength to move on, as he talks about in the book. things dont get better because of prayer that god will fix everything or the universe will set itself right again or you can escape through fantasy books to another world,

they get better because something gives us strength to get up again and keep moving. to kushner, thats god and people who came together to support him. to me, i dont know yet, i dont know if i’ve really started to pick up my life yet. but i think this book helped me start to see the bigger picture

#long post #sorry this is kinda personal #but like thanks for reading if you made it this far #im not putting a readmore for Reasons. sorry

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