Ecumenical

[supergee]

A rabbi looks at Mr. Rogers [Twitter]

Comments

[cynthia1960]

Rabbi Ruttenberg is chock full of good food for the soul. Fred Rogers is a saint.

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[minoanmiss]

I both agree and disagree with the Rabbi. I think pointing out that "this is what belief put into action can look like and the good it can produce" is a very good idea, and I was delighted by the gentle responses to the Christians basically trying to claim that only Christianity could produce such good works . But that latter half is why i disagree, because I don't think theology or any religion are required to produce such good works. My own religious journey has been that the religion of my youth taught me to be cruel to people based on what I was told God wants, and as I make abstract notions of God less important and the actual sentients around me more important I can be kinder to and more accepting of wider and wider swathes of humanity.

I don't think Mr. Rogers' unconditional acceptance has to be religious at all, and in fact a lot of what I've seen in various religions and in the basic concept of the practice acts against unconditional acceptance.

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[lydy]

I don't think the Rabbi would disagree with you, actually. I've been following her for a while. My sense is that there are many paths to ... righteousness ... and she feels qualified to speak about how that journey looks from a perspective of faith informed by religious writing that Jews and Christians share. Did I miss the bit where she said that only people of faith can walk this path? I mean, I might have. But that is not the vibe I've gotten from her in the past.

Also, her sick burn of "Technically, Jesus was quoting Leviticus" was totally worth the price of admission.