Judaism, superstition, & uncomfortable connections
I just love it when the rabbi begins his sermon with the statement that Judaism prohibits belief in superstition--and then proceeds to give an entire sermon based on the "fact" that the ayin ha-ra (the evil eye) is real, without seeing any contradiction whatsoever between his first assertion and his second. [Insert roll-eyes emoticon and/or sarcasm warning here.]
So Jews are forbidden to believe in, or engage in practices involving, superstition.
This is why we have segulot? Maybe, if I tie a red string around my wrist . . .
Parshat HaMan, not to mention Ashrei, anyone?
What about going to a rabbi for a blessing? Since when is any human being supposed to have that kind of power?
And when it comes to sympathetic magic, we get dangerously close to more-widely-accepted territory. The beating of the leaves of the willow branches (aravot) against the floor or chair is said by some to be an attempt to imitate the sound of rain--the day before we pray for rain.
What about petitionary prayer in general? When we ask G-d for help, aren't we trying to force G-d's hand? Is there a continuum leading from superstition to sympathetic magic to petitionary prayer? Could there be more of a connection between religion and red strings tied around wrists than we'd like to admit?
Wed., March 4, 2009 update:
Ah, here's what I was looking for, three days ago--I knew that DovBear had a few words to say about Parshat HaMan.
So Jews are forbidden to believe in, or engage in practices involving, superstition.
This is why we have segulot? Maybe, if I tie a red string around my wrist . . .
Parshat HaMan, not to mention Ashrei, anyone?
What about going to a rabbi for a blessing? Since when is any human being supposed to have that kind of power?
And when it comes to sympathetic magic, we get dangerously close to more-widely-accepted territory. The beating of the leaves of the willow branches (aravot) against the floor or chair is said by some to be an attempt to imitate the sound of rain--the day before we pray for rain.
What about petitionary prayer in general? When we ask G-d for help, aren't we trying to force G-d's hand? Is there a continuum leading from superstition to sympathetic magic to petitionary prayer? Could there be more of a connection between religion and red strings tied around wrists than we'd like to admit?
Wed., March 4, 2009 update:
Ah, here's what I was looking for, three days ago--I knew that DovBear had a few words to say about Parshat HaMan.
posted by Shira Salamone at 11:35 PM
12 Comments:
the difference between prayer and magic, the anthropologically-minded scholars of religion tell us, is that prayer is a *request*. magic is an attempt to directly affect the universe; it's not asking for anything, it's just *doing*. and that's how segulas work. hence they are magic and folk-religion, as opposed to 'official' religion. i see sympathetic magic rituals as a form of physical prayer, similarly to lighthearted 'omen' foods on Rosh Hashana.
and then there are the philosophies of prayer itself. the more rationalist views, that don't like the idea of us convincing God to change God's mind, see prayer as a process of effecting change in ourselves, such that we eventually deserve whatever it is we're praying for.
"prayer is a *request*. magic is an attempt to directly affect the universe . . . " Sounds right. Thanks for the clarification.
"i see sympathetic magic rituals as a form of physical prayer, similarly to lighthearted 'omen' foods on Rosh Hashana." I hadn't thought of it that way, but that certainly puts it in a more positive light.
The philosophical approach to prayer is a bit roundabout for my taste. For me, that approach works mostly for prayers of thanksgiving (hodaot?), because they help make and keep me aware of how fortunate I am to benefit from nature's beauty and bounty. "Mah rabu maasecha, HaShem, kulam b'chochmah asita . . . , How great are Your works, G-d, all of them in wisdom you make. . . .."
Oops, I should have said "The *rationalist* approach to prayer . . . "
(Darned ArtScroll siddur/prayer book--in one place, they translate "asita" as "make" [present tense], and in another place, as "made" [past tense]. Onward to my Soncino Tehillim/Psalms, Psalm 104, verse 24: "hath made . . ." Okay, past tense. That's what I thought in the first place. Grumble, grumble, kvetch and mumble, mix-ups make this learner stumble.)
Ask your rav if he believes in the dybbuk.
I'm not sure I want to know how he might answer.
Hey I have a post that is much in line with yours. Check it out at:
http://shmuzings.blogspot.com/2009/02/round-cauldron.html
Thanks for the URL, Smoo. That's an interesting post.
People have always had the power to give blessings. We have all of the avot blessing their children; we have birkat cohanim; we have parents blessing their kids every week no Friday night. The person is understood to be drawing down the blessing from good on behalf of someone else. The gemara tells stories of how prayers for someone else are more effective than prayers for yourself, see Bavli Brachot around 5b, "yesorin shel ahava."
And as for prayer being a request, it helps when one remembers that sometimes the answer is "no."
But I don't look at the point of petitionary prayer being that God is Santa Claus. It's more like if you unburden yourself and share your needs and fears with someone you love, you'll feel better, even if your loved one doesn't fix your problem.
See http://www.tek-law.com/neshamah/Divrei%20Torah/vayetze_5766.htm for a d'var Torah I gave on the power of prayer.
Ayin hara, on the other hand, is definitely superstition, and rabbis should discourage such talk.
Reb Barry, I stand corrected on my statement, "Since when is any human being supposed to have that kind of power?" Back when our son still lived at home, we blessed him every Friday night. And I will pray for the health of a friend's relative even though I don't know the relative. But when people expect automatic positive results, as may be the case when some folks go to a rabbi for a blessing, makes me uncomfortable. As you said, "it helps when one remembers that sometimes the answer is "no."
" , , , petitionary prayer [is] more like if you unburden yourself and share your needs and fears with someone you love, you'll feel better, even if your loved one doesn't fix your problem." That's a good way of looking at it.
Thanks for the URL. Nice d'var Torah.
Ms. Tech-Challenged here thanks Kiwi the Geek for her instructions for creating a hyperlink in a comment, which I'm passing on to my commenters:
[A HREF="put the link here"]put the text here, whatever you want the reader to click on[/A]
For every [, substitute an <.
For every ], substitute an >.
Thanks for liking my post!
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