Press "Enter" to skip to content

How is religious doubt expressed as a virtue in daily practices, rites, or prayers?

Hi, I’m currently learning more about Judaism and I’m particularly interested by the idea that doubt, rather than faith, is what drives Jewish belief and lived experience (see references below).

But can anyone tell me whether there are any Jewish rites, rituals, ceremonies, prayers etc. that symbolise or consecrate this notion of ‘doubt’ or ‘struggle’?

For reference:

Jewish author Matt Greene has said “The engine for Judaism isn’t faith. It’s doubt. What keeps the vehicle moving isn’t the belief that it will but the heat generated from a thousand simultaneous disagreements. (…) What Judaism essentially amounts to is a four-thousand-year-old argument.”

In a similar vein, Rabbi and Jewish philosopher Nathan Lopes Cardozo wrote in the Times of Israel:

“the more uncertain we become, the closer we get to where we need to be (…) religious uncertainty is one of the most powerful ideas; it keeps us on our toes. And it will give us great insight into Judaism’s core beliefs.”

Thanks!

submitted by /u/visaseeker94
[link] [comments]
Source: Reditt