Ways Judaism Can Strengthen My Own Faith? (I Am Atheist)?

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BlueFanitic

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I have a short essay to do on how Judaism strengthens my faith but I am atheist I don't believe in anything XD can someone give me ideas on how to write this? (it's a short one page essay I have to redo it)
Haha I go to Catholic school and he told me that my essay wasn't answering the question but if I don't believe in anything then how can I answer it
 
Go talk to your teacher or professor about this assignment. See what alternatives there are.
 
Write about how Judaism encourages questioning and education, even though it may lead people away from a belief in an anthropomorphic deity. Write about how Judaism stresses right action over right "thoughts". Use Rabbi Hillel's summation of Torah:

Once there was a gentile who came before Shammai, and said to him: "Convert me on the condition that you teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot. Shammai pushed him aside with the measuring stick he was holding. The same fellow came before Hillel, and Hillel converted him, saying: That which is despicable to you, do not do to your fellow, this is the whole Torah, and the rest is commentary, go and learn it."

That human centered ethos, that golden rule, requires no faith in a divine source, it requires no eternal threats, nor promises of heavenly reward in order to operate, just enlightened self-interest.

Game theory shows that using a strategy based on a such a code leads to viable long term success: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tit_for_tat

Moreover, evolutionary biology and game theory mathematics overlap, and show that such behavior can confer adaptive benefits on a population: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_and_the_Theory_of_Games
 
Well, it might be a tough call, but I would expect any atheist to find much to value in Jewish ethics. Try these, for example:
http://www.jewfaq.org/speech.htm
http://www.jewfaq.org/tzedakah.htm
http://www.jewfaq.org/animals.htm
or this site concerning business ethics - http://www.jabe.org/

It's a bit of a daft assignment, but if you are going to use the idea of atheism as a faith (which it isn't, obviously) you could look at how these approaches to ethics contribute to your being able to think these things through - you'll find that the Jewish approach is not all about "G-d says do this"
 
I'm converting to reform Judaism and I've studied Judaism - here's what I've learned.

Judaism has no definition for what God is, but certainly he is NOT a giant invisible guy in a toga. To any rational observer, God must be the natural order of the universe, or at least, it is the only way that we can observe any concept of a God. God may be a misnomer for the laws of the universe, the laws of cause and effect, karma, and the odds of something happening. Even evolution happened as a result of those laws. Jews still honor this God even though they have no idea what God is, only that our planet and universe are remarkable.

Judaism has no promise of an afterlife but celebrates this life. The afterlife may be the memories that people hold of you, the love they feel for you, or there may be some sort of reincarnation - or reincarnation may be that our line goes on through our children, not a literal reincarnation. There is no explanation. In the Jewish scriptures, sheol means 'grave' and 'question' because we don't know what happens after death.

Jewish people have a mission to perform 'tikun olam' to heal the world. Jewish prophesy states that the Jewish people will usher in an age of permanent peace by teaching the rational wisdom of Judaism.

Judaism has no hell or demons. Sheol means 'grave' not 'hell' as mistranslated in the xtian old testament version of Jewish scripture. demon means imaginary god, not god of the underworld as in the xtian version, and devil means bad person, not god of the underworld.

I would say that Judaism can definitely strengthen your belief in atheism/reality, your belief in questioning the meaning of life, and if you hope for world peace, then it can strengthen your hope that mankind will achieve a point of evolution where we will be rational and peaceful.
 
Our catholic faith is rooted in Judaism. Note that they also including Jesus, kept the feast days and holy days, as it says he didn't come to abolish anything, but simply to fullfill everything.
 
I will respond with one of my favorite Chassidic stories:

Rabbi Moshe Leib said:
"There is no quality and there is no power of man that was created to no purpose. And even base and corrupt qualities can be uplifted to serve God. When, for example, haughty self-assurance is uplifed it changes into a high assurance in the ways of God. But to what end can the denial of God have been created? This too can be uplifted through deeds of charity. For if someone comes to you and asks your help, you shall not turn him out with pious words, saying: 'Have faith and take your troubles to God!' You shall act as if there were no God, as if there were only one person in all the world who could help this man--only yourself."
 
well you can use the "passover" to say that you "passedover" the religions
 
I take it you're attending some form of Jewish School?

If so -- I'd simply do an essay entitled, "How Jewish Culture Strengthens Me" if you are at least culturally Jewish, or, I'd speak the the teacher about an alternate topic.

The one thing I would not do is make of it an opportunity to lie. Most teachers will happily assign alternative topics if there is a reason to do so.
 
If you do not have faith, then Judaism cannot strengthen it.

You could twist the question and answer how lessons from the Tanakh (Christian Old Testament) have influenced your views on ethics and morality.
 
Faith could mean a lot of things. For example, it could be faith in humanity.

Or, you can go hypothetical and say, "if I did believe in G-d, this is how Judaism strengthens my faith in him".
 
tell the instructor that you cant find a logical reason justify someone elses fantasy concerning non existent beings,and request an alternative more tangible assignment.
 
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