Few are guilty, But everyone is responsible… An Invitation to Reason: A Collection of Observations, Meditations, Anecdotes, Stories, Quotes and Concerns about Religion and Judaism in Today’s World By Nourallah (Norman) Gabay © Copyright: 2009. All rights reserved for respective authors. 2 An Invitation to Reason: “Man, as nature’s frail being, was endowed with two things that should make him the strongest amongst animals: Reason and Sociability.” Lucio AnnioSineca “I do not want my house to be rounded by walls and my windows to be closed to other cultures. I wish to become familiar with the culture of lands as much as possible, but I will not permit them to affect me or shake me from my own status.” Mahatma Gandhi The secret of the unparalleled growth of the United States has been her embrace of a wide array of diverse cultures allowing them to meet and to merge. Let’s not close ourselves off in the name of “religious observance.” No bird ever learned how to fly while inside a cage. The breadth of man’s conscience is miles above the bitter narrowness of bigotry. Norman Gabay 3 Introduction In the three decades since the Jewish mass emigration from Iran, one would have expected our community to advance by learning from the progressive achievements of our host countries and stand in step with the rationalist and intellectual segments of world Jewry. Instead, a small yet active group of superstitious extremists have been promulgating isolation and dogma in the guise of promoting the Jewish religion and in the name of protecting our youth from the corrupting taint of a contemporary culture they deem immoral. These extremists follow a series of conflicting ideas and use them to steer our youth away from the realities of our time. This group proselytizes for following our ancestors’ way of life at the cost of tearing apart our families today. The Jewish culture of our ancestral tradition was never the collection of superstitions they preach. At the same time, they remain oblivious to the fact that a culture can only be won over by a more powerful and exalted one. The Jewish religion was established with the express prohibition against the worship of another human being, the making of idols and the spreading of superstitions and falsehoods – it was not meant to further such actions. The secret to preventing the misfortunes of the past is not to repeat them. Instead success for our community lies in being in step with our time. There is a well-known Persian saying that the strongest of storms can’t cause the slightest ripple at the bottom of the well. Likewise, the great tragedies of our past, the mass murders of millions of our people, and the setting of our libraries on fire, have not 4 succeeded in causing permanent damage to Jewish culture – or to any culture similarly threatened. Throughout history, many wicked enemies of culture have set the libraries of many nations ablaze – not only that of the Jews but also the Egyptians, the Chinese and the Persians. Little did they know that although they might postpone the growth of a culture by violence and enforced regression, they could never destroy its long-term progress. The evolution of culture is very much like giving birth: if a mother or doctor tries to stop the process, the child will be lost and the mother may suffer as well. In a similar fashion, no religion, ideology or power can stop the march of time –they must adapt or suffer the consequences. Contrary to the claims of extremists, remaining in step with modern times does not contradict the essence of any religion. Even if the religion remains constant, its adherents must come to terms in each generation with the world around them. Religion may be inherited but its believers and their world change over time and they need to understand their religion in the context of their times. The extremists’ position is not unlike that of the man who sold blocks of ice. Empty-handed, he was asked: “Have you sold all your ice?” “No,” he replied, “It all melted away.” Similarly, the irrational beliefs and nonsense spread by the extremists will melt away – nothing will remain. Yet we can neither ignore nor remain complacent to the falsehoods of these regressive traditionalists. This writer’s criticisms are not of the Jewish religion, or any religion, but against those who would contaminate religion with superstition and preach those ideas. The basic tenets of the religion, such as the Ten Commandments, remain eternal. It is how those traditions and commandments are applied to our modern life that is of concern. It is the belief of this writer that for our religion to remain 5 vibrant, the first step to success is to remain up-to-date and adapt the commandments to our times. Oriana Fallaci once wrote, “There are moments in life, when one’s silence would be wrong, and her speaking out becomes a human duty, a moral fight, a necessity – escaping from which would be equal to evading responsibility.” This volume was not written out of some supernatural mission but rather a responsibility to do so. I believe emphatically that the secret to securing the survival of the Jewish religion is to rid it of the irrational nonsense and superstitions that many mistakenly attribute to the religion itself as well as to cast out those who promote such bogus thinking. Having written over a hundred articles, I gather my thoughts in one volume for you, my respected reader. I first wrote this book in Farsi and the Farsi version of this book has been successful in our community that I decided to have it translated to English version so that the younger generation and other people will be able to read this book. In writing these pages, I am aware that each individual has the right to his or her beliefs as long as they don’t impinge on the rights of others – and that such rights are crucial and vital to our free society. Just as no two people have the same fingerprints, each person’s perceptions are unique and no writer will be able to please everyone. I have put down my thoughts to address the issues of our time. If I use the words of erudite poets and scientists, I also rely on the notion that “everyone understands an idea according to his own capacity.” In addressing these issues, I do so for the betterment of society, and without any fantasy about the realities facing us. Indeed, it is my conviction that, in the long run, humanity always adapts itself to reality. 6 In this book, I reaffirm the need to preserve the many rational aspects of religion that benefit society and pays due respect to moderate, rational and logical religious persons. Such leaders have the author’s approval: Instead of blindly imitating the past, they have led themselves and their children to the highest contemporary level of humane social thought. By contrast, I have reserved my criticism for a regressive and superstitious group who use religion to obstruct the progress of society, even at the price of causing great rifts among families and within society itself. I will, with the support of various sources and documents, try to convince my reader that each generation needs to support an evolution in its thinking. If its logical beliefs are to survive, we cannot preach a rigid mindset and inflexible attitude. I issue a warning: We need to stop the growth of regressive traditionalism in our religious schools and among our families by spreading knowledge and by providing accurate information. If we do not, our children will be denied their rightful place in contemporary society. In writing this book I am aware of the various reactions and strong opposition I am inviting. I call upon my like-minded readers to help spread the ideas developed in this book, by examining its contents in private gatherings and fostering critical debates. Norman (Nourallah) Gabay Winter 2011, Los Angeles. 7 Foreword By Nourollah Kharrazi Mr. Nourollah Kharrazi is widely recognized as one of the most beloved writers of the Iranian Jewish community. The following is an abridged adaption of his original introduction to the book in Persian. My good friend, relative and namesake, Mr. Nourollah Gabay, has penned a book that deserves a standing ovation! The subject matter is bigotry, prejudice, short-sightedness and blind traditionalism. These evils can render meaningless whatever they infect. They may even affect a family, tearing it apart with hostilities. This is a grave matter, and its weight can be felt on each page of this book. Mr. Gabay, who has studied the subject of traditionalists, or “antique-worshipers,” at great length, has made a surgical analysis of the problem, and presents his findings in his typically sweet Persian prose. He doesn’t hesitate to bring in appropriate quotations and anecdotes from a diverse array of sources, mixing up poetry and prose, in order to prove his point. How well he has succeeded in his goal! But as passionate as he is in his argument, he never offends the religious extremists, because his job has been to offer kind guidance not to present vehement complaints. Even when on occasion he is infuriated by the nonsense he sees in the words and deeds of some extremists, he simply asks the reader to put aside regressive traditionalism and to avoid hurting our youngsters and intellectuals with a religion contaminated with superstitious thought. He reminds 8 me of the man who said, “Religion was born for people, not people for religion.” Religion is generally a good counsel, that is, until it’s mixed with superstition; then, it can become a means to mislead its followers.