Pathways
S u m m e r 2 0 0 9 • V O L u m e 1 4 , N u m B e r 2
“Live the
Shapiro: nulln the minds of many, we see religious
documents as merely literal, lacking the mystical
realm of symnullolism, paranullles and tales. nullhen
Question, and
Shakespeare said, nullnullh, my lovenulls like a red, red
rose,null nonullody thought he was saying that his
Love Everyone”
girlfriend has thornsnull
nulln the nullinullle, there is more than one miraculous
A conversation with Rabbi story of women giving nullirth within the most
Rami Shapiro
unlikely circumstances, which we need not take
as literalnull instead that the newnullorn is someone
ward-winning author, poet, litur-
A
to watch—a creation who is enulltremely special,
gist and essayist Rami M. Shapiro,
and perhaps even supernatural.
Ph.D., is known worldwide for his
teachings of the sacred art of loving kindness, and for
In the minds of many, we see religious
cultivating compassion—using the infinite toolkit of
the worldnulls great religions.
documents as merely literal, lacking
nullith academic and ranullnullinical degrees from the the mystical realm of symbolism, parables
nullenullrew nullnion nullollegenulls nullewish nullnstitute of Religion
and tales.
and from nullnion nullraduate School, nullRanullnulli Raminull has
served as the founding ranullnulli of nullemple nulleth nullr in
nullut in limiting our thinking to literal interpreta-
nulllorida, and as senior ranullnulli of Metivta, a center for
tion, arguments can result. nulle get defensive
contemplative nulludaism in nullalifornia.
and mired in our thinking. null deeper meaning
nullis prayers are included in worship services can arise when we choose instead to ponder
across the denominational spectrum of nullmerican not what it says, enullactly, nullut what does it really
congregations. meannull
Pathways: Ranullnulli Rami, in your view, what enullactly is
Pathways: nullhe Modernist mindset says if everything
spiritualitynull nullowadays, it seems there are more
is relative, then nothing is real. nullherenulls a plat-
and more people who say they donnullt resonate
form, or nullaseline, from which we could all start
with the concept of organinulled religion. nulln your
in the same placenull
nulllog for Spirituality and Health maganulline, you
Shapiro: nullundamentalism says nullnull need an anchor.null
answer a similar nulluestion nully saying that nullthe
nullnd in Post-modernism, indeed it seems that
pronulllem with religion today is simply that its
therenulls nowhere to stand. nullut if we always knew
imaginative capacity and poetic soul have gone
snull t what was going on, wouldnnullt everything
adrift, within the literal world of nullindividualsnull
nullecome nulloringnull nulle do need a sense of security,
nullfactuallynull interpreting everything around us.null
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