Rabbi's Musings

Mark Twain used to say that when the world came to an end he wanted to be in Cleveland, since everything happens there ten years later than the rest of the world. Poor Cleveland. Of course, if you want to cheat death there is a simpler way. Keeping coming here to synagogue. A major study of church attendance and mortality indicates that people who attend church, synagogue, or their mosque every week live an average of seven years longer than people who never attend worship services. This kind of data underscores the power of religions, not only for their psychological well-being, but also their physical well-being. 

The study may be new but the connection between religion and health is quite old.  Among what we call primitive tribes, the priest is also called the medicine man. Also, among the civilized ancient Greeks, healing was done by the priests of the god Aesculapius, and his temple was the hospital. So, too, in our own purely monotheistic religion, the priest examined patients and diagnosed their ailments. Evidently in all religions, from the most primitive to the advanced, health and religion were closely connected. 

I know that we Americans are not as healthy as we should be – half of men my age don’t even have a physician. But attending worship is a lot easier than having a colonoscopy, right?

And yet, religion is clearly on the decline. Indeed, religion is on its way to extinction in Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland. That's the conclusion of a study by researchers from Northwest University and the University of Arizona.

The study is based on mathematical analysis of census data reaching as far back as a century. In those nine countries, the census queried religious affiliation. Using an analysis technique called nonlinear dynamics and a model of human interaction that posits that social groups that have more members are more attractive to join, the researchers concluded that religion was on the way out in the nine countries studied.

While this study is new and applies to religions of all stripes, previous research has concluded that young adults are leaving the church (and synagogue) today at a higher rate than in former years.  Even if we question these results, or don’t apply them to America and the Jewish question, I am struck by the disparity between the therapeutic benefit of religion amidst its probably growing decline.

Is it that we don’t tout the physical benefits of religion? Or that, competing in that arena makes no sense in a society where Weight Watchers and the local gym are less expensive in the long run than religious affiliation?

In other words, are we focusing too much on therapy – which is not our central strength – instead of theology, the traditional point of religious belief?

We engage in Torah because it has practical value: lives that are guided by moral values are healthier, happier, and lead to a better world. The problem is that we teach our students that the study of Torah is therapeutic, but we don’t remind them enough that the Torah is more than therapy. It is also reflective of profound moral lessons. For instance, the Torah teaches there is one God. What does this mean for us? It means that there is a moral code in the universe that is not relative. Hurting defenseless people is wrong in any community on earth and, when we encounter intelligent life on another planet, it will be wrong there too.

We Reform Jews have a tough task. We live in a world where every source for authority has to prove itself, again and again. And we have a confusing message: take the Torah seriously but not always literally. If we take the Torah seriously, then we can learn to savor the good things in life while at the same time working to save the world from the fires of hate and injustice.

The values of the Torah are not an extra strain on our over-crowded schedules. They are the foundation of what it means to be a responsible, centered person. So let’s continue to speak of Judaism as a way to promote healthier lives, while at the same remembering that the values of Judaism also lead to better lives.