Sacred Traditions

If you would like to review the material from the documentary, The Buddha, you can go to the PBS website. There are some helpful resources there that you might use for your outline.

Click here to read the MSNBC report about the beginning of the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage:

“Wearing white robes to symbolize purity and equality under God, millions of Muslims began Saturday their annual hajj pilgrimage by climbing a rocky desert hill outside Mecca.

Vast crowds of pilgrims started at dawn to ascend the Mountain of Mercy at Arafat, 12 miles outside Mecca, where Islam’s Prophet Muhammad is said to have delivered his farewell sermon.

The ascent of Arafat is the first event associated with the five-day hajj. Saudi authorities say that an estimated 2.5 million pilgrims are expected to participate.”

Happy Diwali! Yesterday, the festival of Diwali began. For some good information about this festival, see this piece from the Washington Post – article. Here’s a quote from the article:

“A contraction from the Sanskrit word Deepavali, that literally means rows of earthen lamps, the day has varied religious significance for Hindus, Jains and Sikhs. But the metaphysical import is the same across all traditions: let the lighting of the Diwali lamp illuminate and vanquish the dark forces–the vices–that abound in the recesses of the intellect. The light symbolizes the victory of knowledge over ignorance, and goodness over evil and awakens an an awareness of God in every life.”

Click here for the 2010 New York Times story on the new prayer book for the High Holy Days:

This mahzor, as the prayer book for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur is known, is the Conservative movement’s first updating in nearly 40 years. Called Lev Shalem, Hebrew for “whole heart,” it hews close to the text’s traditional Hebrew, but adds translations, commentaries and optional readings to adapt the book to modern sensibilities.

The writing was partly driven by an awareness that Jews who come to synagogue on the High Holy Days may not be as knowledgeable as weekly synagogue-goers and may be more ambivalent about their faith. It also includes transliterations of every widely sung prayer for those who cannot read Hebrew.

“It went a long way toward meeting people where they actually are,” said Rabbi Gordon Tucker of Temple Israel in White Plains, N.Y.

This weblog is the place that you will find information about Sacred Traditions class. Your assignments can be found here as well as basic information about the class (syllabus, web links, grading, etc.).

Recently, I ran across this article about five women representing different faiths who came together in their city to dialogue and work for better understanding between their religions. Check it out here – link.

From the article:

There is something about women getting together to talk. They relate. They bond. And when they cross cultural and faith traditions, something special happens: They act.

Five years ago, Trish Harris, a Catholic, met Shahina Begg, a Muslim, at a performance of The Children of Abraham, a musical play that traces the connection between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the conflict between them, and the possibilities of reconciliation. Harris said to Begg, “It would be kind of nice to do something instead of ‘The Children of Abraham’, what about The Women of Abraham?”

“Funny you should mention that,” Begg responded. “I have a Jewish woman and a Protestant woman who had contacted me and they’re interested in doing the same thing. We’re going to have coffee next week. Do you want to have coffee?”

That led to the founding of Women’s Interfaith Solutions for Dialogue and Outreach (WISDOM), with members representing eight faith traditions committed to building relationships and making the community a better place.

Studying Talmud
by Robert Goldenberg
link

The fact is, after all, that the Talmud is interesting, The people represented in it were intelligent, articulate, and dedicated to the remarkable project of helping an ancient tradition survive mortal danger. The arguments stimulate, their language gives pleasure, the immensity of their achievement provokes awe.

There is wit in the Talmud, and humor too. There are wonderful stories, and logic whose disciplined sharpness is breathtaking. The Talmud has been compared to the sea; you never enjoy swimming anywhere until you’ve gotten used to the water. Getting wet can be uncomfortable at first, but after that “the water’s fine”: the pleasure keeps mounting.

This from the AP (link):

Placing the statue at China’s political heart is the authoritarian government’s most visible endorsement yet of the 2,500-year-old sage and, selectively, his teachings.
Confucius is enjoying a revival, in books and films, on TV and in classrooms. His message of harmonious social order and deference to authority is unthreatening to the party, while his emphasis on ethics resonates among Chinese coping with fast-paced social change on the back of torrid economic growth.