An atheist does not believe in God. An agnostic is uncertain about the existence of a God. The scientific community agrees that the Universe was formed with the "Big Bang" and that it is impossible to determine where, how or why this took place. Rabbi Sherwin T. Wine, founder of the Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism, coined the term "Ignostic" to describe one who believes that it is futile to try to determine what preceded this event and who did it.

What is Ignostic Judaism?

Thoughts of a Secular, Humanistic, Cultural, "Ignostic" Jew Regarding Science, Religion and FaithBy Ed Brody

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2011 Ed Brody
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4567-4553-0

Contents

Table of Contents...........................................................................................Page 4:Preface.....................................................................................................Page 6:Acknowledgements............................................................................................Page 8:Definitions.................................................................................................Page 10:Dedication..................................................................................................Page 11:Chapter I: Science..........................................................................................Page 12:Prelude.....................................................................................................Page 13:Copy Letter to the Editor, New Jersey Jewish News...........................................................Page 15:Statements of Rosalind Franklin and myself..................................................................Page 17:What is science?............................................................................................Page 22:Is Belief in God Required?..................................................................................Page 25:Chapter II: Religion........................................................................................Page 26:Generations sought solutions and "created" answers..........................................................Page 29:Has Judaism evolved?........................................................................................Page 41:Judaism without the supernatural without revelation.........................................................Page 45:Ancient literature and our Bible............................................................................Page 48:My Epiphany.................................................................................................Page 53:Does Religion promote Peace or A Piece of ...?..............................................................Page 59:"Thou shall have no other Gods ... for I ... am a Jealous God.".............................................Page 61:Where is the benevolent God who loves everyone?.............................................................Page 63:Rationalizations to explain Auschwitz.......................................................................Page 65:Authoritarian vs. Humanistic Religions......................................................................Page 69:Religion and Democratic Government..........................................................................Page 71:Proud to be a Jew...........................................................................................Page 72:An agenda for a Ignostic Jew................................................................................Page 76:The Hebrew and Aramaic languages anchor us to the past; English leads us to the future......................Page 83:Chapter III: Faith..........................................................................................Page 84:Have Faith, and Enjoy the Benefits..........................................................................Page 88:How religion distorts.......................................................................................Page 90:The Inquisitions............................................................................................Page 93:Who are the Neturei Karta?..................................................................................Page 94:Do not throw out the baby with the bath water...............................................................Page 96:An open letter to my grandchildren..........................................................................Page 98:Epilogue – Ignorance is not bliss; it is oblivion! Problem #1 Intelligent Design......................Page 99:Problem #2 Gay marriage and Abortion........................................................................Page 100:Problem #3 Dar al Islam.....................................................................................Page 103:Chapter IV: The Organizations...............................................................................Page 104:International Federation for Secular & Humanistic Judaism...................................................Page 110:The Center for Cultural Judaism.............................................................................Page 111:The Jewish Cultural School and Society The Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations.........................Page 113:Book II: Potpourri of "Serious Narishkeit" (Foolishness)....................................................Page 114:Rudyard Kipling's "If"......................................................................................Page 115:John Lennon's "Imagine".....................................................................................Page 116:Langdon Smith's "Evolution," (A love story).................................................................Page 120:Do you plan to live on ... and on ... and on ...?...........................................................Page 121:Who is wise, who is rich & who is successful?...............................................................Page 122:Ed Brody's "Jews for Cheeses"...............................................................................Page 124:"Hell" explained by a Univ. of Washington student...........................................................Page 126Hello, your call is important to us.........................................................................Page 128:Bibliography................................................................................................Page 131:Index of People.............................................................................................Page 135:Index of Rabbis.............................................................................................Page 136:Miscellaneous index.........................................................................................Page 138:

Chapter One

Science

"Science requires testability."

Judge. John Jones III of the United States District Court in a 139-page decision, Kitzmiller vs. Dover, Pa. Area School District, Dec. 20, 2005

"Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people."

Attributed to both Admiral Hyman Rickover and Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)

"With all thy getting, get understanding!" B.C. Forbes

Prelude

Five years ago I read the enclosed "Letter to the Editor" in the New Jersey Jewish News, which is reproduced on the following pages. The article emphatically stated that "evolution is no more than a theory and a very unconvincing one at that." Furthermore it claims "Intelligent Design uses the same sophisticated tools of science but with much more convincing results." The Jewish author, a physicist, has a record of accomplishment including more than 150 journal publications and more than 200 American & foreign patents.

In no way could I have agreed with this article. Having passed high school physics and chemistry, plus college biology, bacteriology, histology and later courses in human anatomy and physiology, I began to draft an answer. Originally I wrote a response of less than 900 words. Since that meager beginning, I have read a number of articles and books that have broadened my understanding.

In addition, I was introduced to the teachings of Rabbi Sherman T. Wine, founder of the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism. Attending lectures in Florida with his instructors opened my eyes to what I had been thinking all along.

Science and religion are two very powerful forces, and instead of arguing about where or when life originated, we should be more concerned to improve conditions here and now. I do not believe in miracles and revelations. Being inclined to be an agnostic or more correctly I am an "ignostic." (A word coined by Rabbi Wine. See page 19) But I am also a secular, humanistic, cultural Jew!

I am also a traditionalist when it comes to saying the well known prayers in the original, traditional language. I strongly acknowledge the beauty of our Jewish culture, customs, heritage, traditions and religion. Furthermore, to those who have "faith" in their religion, not for one moment would I wish to disturb or rattle their belief in their faith.

"Letter to the Editor" New Jersey Jewish News (Copy) February 3, 2005 MetroWest edition, page 5

"No more than a theory"

"As a physicist having a record of accomplishment including more than 150 journal publications, more than 200 American and foreign patents, and honored designation of being a distinguished scientist and fellow of scientific organizations, I feel compelled, in the name of honest scientific inquiry, to strongly object to the content of your Jan. 20, 2005 editorial entitled `A plain ruling of creationism.'

Evolution is clearly not, as you claim, in the same category of accepted theory as atomic energy or the rotation of the planets. The latter two are solidly based on experiment, observation, and calculations whose strength and consistency have withstood the test of men and time. That is not the case with the theory of evolution, which, despite their attempts at using the same tools of science, has failed to convince many noted and respected scientists of its veracity.

Can evolution be any more than a theory when it defies the laws of mathematical probability that describe the odds of even the simplest biological structures evolving as being essentially impossible?

Can evolution be more than a theory when it cannot explain how life could spontaneously arise from nonlife, nor can such a feat be duplicated despite impressive scientific knowledge and sophisticated laboratory equipment?

Can evolution be more than a theory when the fossil record, the only documentation of whether evolution actually occurred in the past, is completely and systematically lacking in transitional life forms and shows only the sudden and inexplicable appearance of a wide variety of complex life forms?

Can evolution be more than a theory when it seems to be contrary to the well established Second Law of Thermodynamics, which tells us that things in nature tend to become more disorganized with the passing of time, not grow more complex?

Can evolution be more than a theory when it cannot account for the elegance and complexity of biological systems at the molecular level?

The advocates of Intelligent Design use the same sophisticated tools of science but with much more convincing results. The conclusion of Intelligent Design flows from data, not belief. No, contrary to your editorial, evolution is no more than a theory and a very unconvincing one at that."

(The author prefers to remain anonymous.)

Incidentally, The Second Law of Thermodynamics was originally articulated by Rudolf Clausias in 1850. It is also known as The Law of Increasing Entropy which states that things in nature tend to become more disorganized with the passing of time, and not grow more complex. In other words, disorder called entropy increases in time thus the world becomes increasingly chaotic.

There is a strong argument that neutralizes this Law. The Anthropic Principle points out that we see the universe the way it is because if it were different, we would not be here.

Evolution is not a closed system. It take place amid great chaos and indeed depends on the disorder in its midst, from which it draws options for diversity. (Ray Kurzweil "The Age of Spiritual Machines", 1999, page 31.)

Within all this chaos there developed a single cell organism which was capable to reproduce itself and in eons of time and through various stages of evolution eventually emerged as Homo sapiens.

Statements

"Science, for me, gives a partial explanation of life ... it is based on fact, experience and experiment ... I agree that faith is essential to success in life ... In my view, all that is necessary for faith is the belief that by doing our best we shall come nearer to success and that success in our aims (the improvement of the lot of mankind, present and future) is worth attaining." Rosalind Franklin PhD as a Cambridge undergraduate argued against and strongly disagreed with her father's belief in "life after death."

Dr. Franklin (7/25/20–4/16/58) was a physicist and X-ray crystallographer. In May 1952 she exposed crystalline strands to a series of X-rays which she then identified as the double helix of the DNA. Her colleague Maurice Wilkins privately showed her work to Francis Crick and James Watson.

I am simpatico with Ms. Franklin. The Illinois College of Chiropody and Foot Surgery, awarded me the degree Doctor of Surgical Chiropody (DSC) cum laude. Some time afterwards the College offered to change my diploma to read Doctor of Podiatric Medicine. However I was ankle deep in the children's retail shoe business, and never bothered. In the early 60s, my alma mater was renamed, The (Dr. William M.) Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine. By 1982 it became part of the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago IL.

Dr. Franklin's pioneer work and discovery of the double helix of the DNA was never given ample credit. Drs. Crick, Watson and Wilkins ignored her contribution in their first DNA paper published in Nature April 1953. In December 1962, four years after Rosalind's death, they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology. (The prize has been given to only 34 women, as of a few years ago, and never given posthumously.)

LIFE lists Dr. Franklin among the "100 People Who Changed the World," along with Leonardo DaVinci, Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, Sigmund Freud, Marie Curie and Albert Einstein.

"Of threats of Hell and Hopes of Paradise! One thing is certain- This Life flies ... and the rest are lies; The Flower that once has bloomed forever dies."

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam (Died 1123 in Persia) Verse 63, Translation by: Edward Fitzgerald

"Where questions of religion are concerned, people are guilty of every possible sort of dishonesty and intellectual misdemeanor...." Sigmund Freud, "The Future of an Illusion."

Mark Twain is often quoted as saying, "The trouble with most folks isn't their ignorance. It's knowin' so many things that ain't so." As an example of the truth of the above saying, is that the quote was actually originated by Josh Billings, a 19th-century humorist.

What is Science?

How is science different from all of the other disciplines? To begin with, "science" must meet, as a minimum, these four criteria:

1. There must be observation!

2. There must be measurements!

3. These findings must be verified and confirme

4. Science is never static or dogmatic!

1. Observation: Whether one uses an electron microscope which can see minute particles or the Hubble Telescope which can see far into distant galaxies is immaterial. Photo-sensitive paper can record the collision of two atoms as well as the outlines of internal organs in a human body. The CAT scans, the MRI machines, the devices that use the Doppler Effect are all capable of recording what is going on within a person.

2. Measurements: Whether one uses angstrom units or light years or any measure in between, what is observed must be capable of being measured. (An angstrom unit is 10^-10 meters or 0.0000000001 of a meter. A light year is the distance that light will travel in one earth year and is estimated to be 5.88 trillion miles or 5,880,000,000,000 earth miles.)

3. Confirmation: Scientists must be able to duplicate the experiment, although subsequently someone else might refine, augment or better define certain aspects of previous findings.

4. What is regarded as standard and correct today may be modified, and even found to be in error tomorrow. The process of science is much like peeling an onion. Scientific advances are made incrementally. You remove the top layer and find another layer to examine. Remove that layer and there appears still another layer. Soon you arrive at the core, but if you happen to examine a different onion one finds that it might be slightly different from the first onion. Today's scientists stand on the shoulders of "giants" who preceded them.

As Carl Sagan points out an astonishing insight by Albert Einstein, central to his Theory of General Relativity, was not accepted at first by the scientific community. But when experiments, tests, measurements and observations were eventually made, that confirmed his hypothesis; it showed that right from the start "Nature agreed with Einstein."

"Scientists observe nature, and then they develop theories that describe their observations. Science is driven by nature, and nature gives us no choice, it is what it is." (This statement by astrophysicist and Yale professor Meg Urry is mentioned in Parade Magazine, May 27, 2007.)

In a recent book by Tom Wheeler, Mr. Lincoln's T-mails: The Untold Story of how Abraham Lincoln Used the Telegraph to Win the Civil War, he quotes from a lecture given by the future President in 1859. "The great difference between Young America and Old Foggy is the result of Discoveries, Inventions and Improvements. These, in turn, are the result of observation, reflection and experiment." Lincoln understood the scientific method and what science is capable of accomplishing.

For the past few centuries science has made exponential advances, especially since the end of World War II. Science has become so specialized that to really understand any branch of science today requires extensive education even at the post doctorate level.

Scientific discoveries range from the smallest particles in "Quark" and "String" theory to the mammoth, mind boggling size of our universe as postulated by the "Big Bang Theory." Cosmologists who study the Universe agree that the Cosmos was "born" 13.7 billion years ago. (That is 13,700,000,000 years or 164,400,000,000 months, to put the numbers in perspective.) The margin of error is estimated as +/- 1%.

There is no answer to what preceded the big bang because it can no longer be observed or measured retroactively. Thus there are two schools of thought:

1. The "Big Bang" was either caused by the "laws of nature."

2. Or by some supernatural "God." who either "creatio ex nihilo" i.e. creation out of nothing, or who collected all the materials in the universe and then set off the explosion.

Atheists believe with certainty that there was no architect or "God" that caused the Big Bang.

If one is not sure, or undecided as to what or who caused the Big Bang, then one is an agnostic.

On the other hand ignostics hold that that subject is meaningless and one can and should live without these concerns. One can seriously ask, "How does believing in God relieve human suffering or even begin to repair the world?"

Members of the above groups could be Secular, Humanistic or Cultural Jews or perhaps be united in time under a new banner of "Ignostic Judaism!"

Charles Darwin (1809-82) was raised as a Unitarian in the Anglican Church and married his first cousin Emma Wedgwood who was also a member of the same denomination. When their oldest daughter died at age 10, he broke with Christianity and became an avowed agnostic.

There are some who believe that "evolution is no more than a theory and a very unconvincing one at that." The missing link between the apes/monkeys and man may never be found because that specie may have had a very short life-span and all evidences of its existence may have been destroyed in the millennia that followed. The DNA sequence of the human and the chimpanzee is reported to be 98.7% the same. We are fortunate and thankful for the 1.3% difference!

However, in the area of biogeography, there are locations where dozens of species have evolved which are different from each other, whereas elsewhere, yet nearby, there are none.

In paleontology, students of this discipline are able by observations and calculations, to reconstruct a series, from the simple to the more complex forms in animals and plants.

The physiologists are able to place these findings in a chronological sequence showing a logical progression in their development.

In geology, the earth's stratum and rocks have been examined and classified into the different ages of its history.

Embryology studies of one animal such as the human, demonstrates that the human embryo goes through similar stages that other animals in that same group/phylum experience. E.g. the aortic arches in the fish will develop to be their gills and in the humans they become extinct.

In biology this rule is called, "Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny." That is the life history, the development, of one specie, from the fertilization of the single cell embryo to its emergence at birth and eventual death is similar to the other species in the similar group (phylum).

In the study of Morphology, the femur bone, for example, is similar in design, shape and function to the femurs of myriads of other animals, that share similar skeletons inside their bodies.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from What is Ignostic Judaism?by Ed Brody Copyright © 2011 by Ed Brody. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.