Because I enjoyed listening to the program so much, at one point I started working my way through the archives. One particular episode ,titled "Julia Sweeney," jumped out at me. The episode focused the entire hour on Julia Sweeney who you may know from SNL. When I first heard it I was still on the fence about God and the Torah and found myself disagreeing with her at times. This episode focuses on a couple recordings of Julia's stand-up routine. In her routine she talks about her brother getting cancer and then later getting cancer herself. She later developed this material into a one-woman show called God Said, Ha!. Long story short, Julia went off the derech over the course of her experience. She recounts how she struggled with her faith (she was a Catholic) and spoke to her clergy about her thoughts. There are some similarities to what many skeptic bloggers have gone through with their Rabbis. Here is a link to the Julia Sweeney TAL program: http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=9Thursday, November 8, 2007
SNL's Julia Sweeney Went OTD
This American Life is a fun NPR show. It is an hour-long radio program that picks a new theme each week and then produces a variety of stories on that theme. Like much on NPR it can be a little self-important at times but mostly it's entertaining and fascinating. I highly recommend the show.
Because I enjoyed listening to the program so much, at one point I started working my way through the archives. One particular episode ,titled "Julia Sweeney," jumped out at me. The episode focused the entire hour on Julia Sweeney who you may know from SNL. When I first heard it I was still on the fence about God and the Torah and found myself disagreeing with her at times. This episode focuses on a couple recordings of Julia's stand-up routine. In her routine she talks about her brother getting cancer and then later getting cancer herself. She later developed this material into a one-woman show called God Said, Ha!. Long story short, Julia went off the derech over the course of her experience. She recounts how she struggled with her faith (she was a Catholic) and spoke to her clergy about her thoughts. There are some similarities to what many skeptic bloggers have gone through with their Rabbis. Here is a link to the Julia Sweeney TAL program: http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=9
Because I enjoyed listening to the program so much, at one point I started working my way through the archives. One particular episode ,titled "Julia Sweeney," jumped out at me. The episode focused the entire hour on Julia Sweeney who you may know from SNL. When I first heard it I was still on the fence about God and the Torah and found myself disagreeing with her at times. This episode focuses on a couple recordings of Julia's stand-up routine. In her routine she talks about her brother getting cancer and then later getting cancer herself. She later developed this material into a one-woman show called God Said, Ha!. Long story short, Julia went off the derech over the course of her experience. She recounts how she struggled with her faith (she was a Catholic) and spoke to her clergy about her thoughts. There are some similarities to what many skeptic bloggers have gone through with their Rabbis. Here is a link to the Julia Sweeney TAL program: http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=9
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7 comments:
Notwithstanding the sarcastic rantings of some of the commentators here, there is no question that the intellectual honesty of believers is limited by their "faith" in all types of magical thinking, including imagined all-powerful being(s), the "divine" origin of a flawed, inconsistent, ancient (albeit wonderful) book, and the infallibility of saints and scholars-- no different than Russell's teapot orbiting out there in space running the world. If we were living in the middle ages, it would be easier to believe in witches and spells causing disease rather than bacteria, just as now it is easier for believers to believe in divine punishment and afterlife than to just accept that "sh-t happens". I used to find great comfort in JP's way of thinking, that everything was tied together in a neat little just and organized package, by a divine all powerful creator.
As I write this it's actually hard to believe that in the year 2007 with everything we know now that you still have to argue about this.
Basic Logic 101 says that the burden of proof lies not with the atheist to disprove God, but with the believers to prove his existence, as well as the truth of the whole web of theories surrounding it (goodness, afterlife, messiah, divine control etc etc, for which every religion has its own details).
But I still like Judaism because I was raised with it and I love what it has given the world.
DRJ. Excellent comment on a difficult situation. Living as an Orthodox Jew in a non Orthodox body can be a challenge. My son lives in Israel in your city for that matter so perhaps on my next visit there we can meet up. Avi
Avi,
By all means look me up.
I don't like to post my email address because of bots out there but if you write to LNM he can give you my email.
"Basic Logic 101 says that the burden of proof lies not with the atheist to disprove God, but with the believers to prove his existence"
Atheists have the burden of proof when they assert there is no G-d. Burden of proof isn't the point. In the end something is either true or not. There is so much assumption in this site that we are filled with skeptical answers. We are filled with more questions than ever that are leading to answers that are very different from anything given before. It will take a while for the questions to spread and the answers to crystallize and then spread.
RG, I can't figure out for the life of me what it is you are trying to say.
"Lubab No More said...
RG, I can't figure out for the life of me what it is you are trying to say."
Atheists have the burden of proof when they assert there is no G-d but burden of proof isn't the point. In the end something is either true or not. There is so much assuming in this site that data is showing only skeptical answers. We are getting more questions than ever that are leading to answers that are very different from anything given before. It will take a while for the masses to realize that there are these questions and the answers will take to time to more fully develop and then spread amongst the masses.
You know, I never knew exactly what the LDS/Smith story was. Amazing, how people can believe that.
But, I shouldn't be surprized, I once believed that mystics can read my past in my Mezuza.
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