Atheists daven too…

[hatam_soferet]

The Forward’s got an article this week about an atheist siddur.

My knee-jerk reaction to that is “eww, what?!” but I know myself for a liturgical conservative, so when the nice Forward people asked for an illustration, I got out my special Mental Crowbar I use for inducing open-mindedness, and came up with the piece you see here.

See how it works? It’s a well-known phrase from the liturgy, both expressing the idea that every living thing has the urge to commune with the divine, and leaving the viewer to contemplate just what that means.

Note, by the way, that we say “every living being,” not “every living person,” or similar. This surely consciously includes living beings who don’t have theology, like fish, say, or deer, and why not atheists? The idea of non-theistic beings seeking spiritual communion is hard-coded into theistic liturgy, so really an atheist siddur is not such a bizarre idea as all that.

You can’t really see from the picture, but the pen-flourished decoration is an old manuscript adornment done in a très modern ice-blue metallic ink, a visual echo of what the siddur is attempting.

It’s for sale, make me an offer :)

Mirrored from hasoferet.com.

Comments

[liv]

I can't see your pic at the moment cos of limited internet, but I do very much like the idea of an atheist siddur. I think Judaism for me is as much about being connected to the community as relationship with God, and liturgy is such a huge part of how we make that belonging happen.

It is actually the case that lots of non-Ortho siddurim include atheist and agnostic elements, particularly the Reconstructionist ones, but Reform and Progressive ones too. So basically this guy is being a snob because he has a high level of Hebrew language and a background steeped in religious texts, which isn't the case for most Jews. Perhaps he can actually do atheist liturgy better than others, in which case good luck to him. I mean, hey, if he really can write like Amichai and the Payytanim, then the world probably needs his contribution. And if he's just being self-indulgent, well, he's establishing his own connection with his heritage in a way that doesn't offend his philosophical principles, and that's a positive thing in itself.

Knows his stuff

[(Anonymous)]

Yes, Tzemach is definitely a snob (most extremely a language snob), but he's a damn smart snob, and not of the nasty variety either. He's incredible to learn with *and* to daven with, and I personally applaud initiatives that help Jews to embrace Judaism and traditional Jewish practice regardless of whether or not they can connect personally with the most common conceptions of God. I really like your illustration Jen, and think it's wonderfully appropriate, and would buy it immediately if I had any money.

Also... I assumed you knew Tzemach. Did I assume incorrectly or are you just being professionally detached?

-gella

Re: Knows his stuff

[hatam_soferet]

Moi, I know Tzemach a bit. I wouldn't have called him a snob, really, Liv - more of an eternal geek.

Re: Knows his stuff

[liv]

I don't know him, in fact; that may be because there's a bit of a disconnect between European Jewry and US / Israeli communities. He sounds like a cool guy from your description; a lot of my social circle may be perceived as snobs because they are just that intelligent and engaged. Definitely agree with you that it's a very worthwhile project, though.

Re: Knows his stuff

[(Anonymous)]

Liv, sorry, threading mistake. Question was directed at Jen. oops! Yeah, hes a really cool guy... his supplementary hypothesis-based Bible work is fascinating and fun, and wonderful to see his passion when he teaches.

Jen... agree on the geek description, though at that level of geekery is it really possible not to spill over into the snob category just a bit? ;)

-Gella

aKpDSqxhSH

[(Anonymous)]

You guys are a bunch of whiny little babeis.Everything Youtube changes, you complain about!You also say Youtube is infringing your rights...what rights? You have absolutely zero rights; you don't have to use this website, and it can change however it wants!If anyone has any beef with Youtube, make it a legitimate one, rather than blindly saying "utube is a fasist corperashin they deleted mi vido." Youtube didn't delete your video because of their so-called (by you) political structure (that doesn't even make SENSE!) but because you uploaded your favorite Pokemon episode, which is clearly against the rules.Do you hate the beta channels? Why? The best reasons that I've heard, sadly, have been things along the lines of because it's gay, it sucks, and they hate it. How about a real reason critiquing its integrity?All I ask is that the commenters on this blog take ONE SECOND to think about what they are saying before they mindlessly contribute to the dumbing down of the world.-ZachThe sheer amount of IDIOCY I see in these comments lowers my belief in the prosperity of future generations.