http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog To those who doubt .... and then doubt themselves Mon, 13 Sep 2010 08:46:39 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur have always been two of the most complex days of the year.  They don’t try to hide that fact…  they present themselves that way – full of dizzying dichotomies.  But the one thing that stands out about both these days, the one undeniable fact, is ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/09/13/what-creates-holiness/ I'll never forget the college paper I wrote on Kant's critique of the Ontological Argument. St. Anselm conceived of the argument after much contemplation and prayer and it was based completely on reason. It went something like this: If I can conceive of a being than which ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/09/06/poker-anyone-some-thoughts-for-rosh-hashanah/ I recently watched a TED lecture that was recorded in February of 2008 given by Karen Armstrong. Karen Armstrong was a nun in her earlier life but eventually abandoned Christianity and became entirely disenchanted with religion. She tried but failed to pursue a career in literature and wound ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/08/26/karen-armstrong-reevaluates-religion/ In many ways, of all the stories in the Tanach the Akedah stands out as one of the most perplexing.  Particularly in light of Sefer Devorim which we are currently reading, where the Jews are implored over and over again not to follow in the ways of pagan worship, how ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/08/18/did-abraham-flinch-when-god-told-him-to-sacrifice-isaac/ Recently my attention was drawn to an article in Time Magazine dated August 23, 2007 entitled “Mother's Teresa's Crises of Faith.” The article speaks of a book, Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light, which is a compilation of Mother Teresa's correspondences, many of which she requested be destroyed ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/08/12/lessons-in-religious-doubt-from-mother-teresa/ There is little more satisfying in life than watching two of your greatest loves meet:  Brown mustard on a barbecued hot dog.  Salted butter on a steaming cob of corn. Or even the first meeting between your parents and your husband-to-be.  I think this is one reason I was so ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/08/08/philosophy-and-faith-together-again/ "Everything is determined, the beginning as well as the end, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect as well as the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper." ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/07/28/raise-your-hand-if-you-believe-in-free-will/ Recently I noticed an article in Haaretz written by Anshel Pfeffer entitled It is wrong to Fast on Tisha Be'Av. Pfeffer's arguments were twofold. Firstly he argued that for the first time in history we live in a world in which Jews who do not live in Zion ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/07/23/is-it-wrong-to-fast-on-tisha-beav/ About a year ago my family went to my parent's apartment in Jerusalem for Shabbat. They had two guests for lunch – one was a pediatric surgeon and the other a Hollywood script writer. I'll never forget my sister-in-law's remark to me as we all sat drinking in ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/07/09/a-lesson-in-faith-from-the-writer-of-friends/ Last night I attended an interesting lecture given by Prof. Howard Wettstein, professor of philosophy at University of California. When I first walked into the room I was struck by the audience.  The first person I saw was a tall middle-aged man with a long gray beard, misshapen black hat, ... http://www.reasonable-doubts.com/blog/2010/07/06/a-fresh-look-at-doubt/