21/ to eradicate religion, or to institute it universally; what we need is pluralism and tolerance for all but the intolerant, whichever direction that intolerance might go. And finally, on the matter of Judaism and Israel. I have several Jewish friends of varying religious attitudes; I’ve even had - ThreadSky

cogtri.bsky.social • 11 days ago

21/ to eradicate religion, or to institute it universally; what we need is pluralism and tolerance for all but the intolerant, whichever direction that intolerance might go.

And finally, on the matter of Judaism and Israel. I have several Jewish friends of varying religious attitudes; I’ve even had

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cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

22/ the honor of having been invited to a Seder and to two Chanukah celebrations. These rituals are part of Jewish culture, the same way that Thanksgiving (whatever its problems) is part of American culture (and Canadian, in a different form). That’s not to say that it’s a 1:1 comparison, but the

cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

23/ point is that we of the majority tend to be blind to our own cultural trappings and see them as “normal,” or the ‘absence of culture’ (much like how whiteness tends to be perceived as the ‘absence of race’). Judaism is as much (and for many, more) cultural as it is spiritual, and unless you’re

cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

24/ real damn clear that “getting rid of religion” doesn’t include getting rid of all cultural practices that have even a hint of spirituality to them, you’re being not just antisemitic, but also hostile to every other culture with spiritualized rituals.
And now we get to Israel. I’ve said it before

cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

25/ and I’ll say it again; Israel in its current state is a manifestation of the cycle of abuse on a geopolitical level. Oh, sure, there are people who use religious justifications for its existence and behavior. But that’s all they are: justifications. Israel’s actions aren’t motivated by religion

cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

26/ any more than an abusive parent who quotes “spare the rod and spoil the child” is motivated by religion; it’s just a convenient excuse, and as we’ve seen with many other atrocities, religion is hardly the only option on the “justification for doing horrible things” shelf. Taking away that one

cogtri.bsky.social•11 days ago

27/ excuse would just see them pivot to another, like saying that Palestinians aren’t actually a distinct culture or simply voicing their fear that a genocide is inevitable and they’d rather be the ones doing it (“they want to wipe us out so we’re doing what we have to to survive”). The only degree

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