Today I had an email conversation with my good friend Aline. I decided to post our rant because it was a really good discussion. Again, different than what I am normally doing, but this is something I really wanted from this blog. So read and give any feed back you may have.
Aline:
Can you write a rant about how Madonna says that Kabbalah is the teaching of Jesus? As I recall, it is a JEWISH thing. http://www.imdb.com/news/wenn/2006-11-01/ And she’s teaching her new adopted son about it? Kind of like taming the heathen, huh? What a joke…
Me:
“Studying Kabbalah doesn’t mean you can’t be a Christian or a Buddhist or a Muslim or a Jew or whatever.”
Um…no. “The essence of the Kabbalah is the teachings of Jesus,”…what??? You cannot be a part of a religion that says ‘hey, Jesus rocks…’ and then turn around to say ‘I can believe any religion I want while still thinking Jesus rocks.” No, you can’t. You cannot be a part of a religion that is the offset of a religion that does not see Jesus as the Messiah and then say I follow the teachings of Jesus. It is the whole “having your cake and eating it too” idea…it just doesn’t work like that my friend. I don’t care if you are Madonna or Jim-Bob Jones. So Aline, I’m a Christian, but I am also a Buddhist. Forget that whole First Commandment thing – “Though shall put no other God’s before me”…it doesn’t matter, because the essence of Christianity is the teachings of Jesus!
Aline:
Ha! Well put, ma’am. And people who choose to think of Kabbalah as a cult religion conveniently forget that Kabbalah is basically Jewish mysticism and really has nothing to do with Jesus or even Judaism for that matter. Some rabbis practice Kabbalah and everything, but they do not believe in Jesus, they are not Buddhists, and they are still Jewish and follow all the traditions. Kabbalah is a bonus, not a religion in itself. Stupid pop stars and movie stars exploit Kabbalah and make it a “real” religion with the stupid red string bracelets, and people in Podunk County, USA believe them and decide they’re gonna get them some red string bracelets, too! They’re ruining the ancient tradition so completely that it will be centuries before people look at the tradition of Kabbalah with any ounce of sincerity or dignity. So, there, Madonna.
Me:
“Kabbalah is a bonus, not a religion in itself.”
Thank you for that. That is the simple and easy way to describe what Kabbalah actually is. It is not something of itself, it is something higher than the basics of the religion. You practice the Jewish faith and if you want more from it, you do more to achieve something higher…in this case, Kabbalah.
Let’s make something trendy…you and me. Lets start wearing purple and green string bracelets and start the ministry of puppets. Not a puppet ministry because that already exists. We will just do the exact same thing puppet ministries do, but we’ll say it is completely different.
I don’t know, that was just off the top of my head…but still…you can’t just change something like this to make it whatever you want it to be.
Aline:
The Ministry of Puppets sounds great – heck, we could do anything – fill in the blank. Ministry of Puppy Dogs and we wear collars, Ministry of Rainbows and we dress like Leprechauns, Ministry of Ugly, Hairy Things and… well, you get the picture. The point of all this insanity (and this is not only Kabbalah, but also every religion) is that religions are here for a purely comforting reason. Being Christian or Jewish means that this is what your family believes, but you can choose to take some things and mix them with others. I am Jewish, yet I believe and do not believe in many aspects of my religion. But my religion is there, and that’s what matters to me. I have something to turn to when everything goes to shit. The people who “turn to” Kabbalah are turning to a bastardization of something that does not really mean anything, and if they did this privately, that would be fine with me. But the fact that Madonna, Britney, Ashton, and Demi are shoving their thoughts into the public eye (and now onto an innocent baby) is ridiculous and horrifying. Why are we turning to stars for religious advice, rather than our clergy or ourselves?
Me:
Why is every star jumping onto a religious ban wagon? I want to know what it is about Kabbalah that stars feel like they have to latch onto. Nothing against the religion of course, you know that. Why Kabbalah? Is it because they actually know what the religion stands for and because of it they have found their reason to get up in the morning? Or is it because it comes with pretty accessories? I personally think other religions have much prettier religious accessories and decor. String bracelets are so last season!
Seriously though, I think it is all for publicity. Madonna found out about a religion that nobody really has anything against because not a lot is known about it. She can basically say whatever she wants and those that are sheep will follow. Those that are truly seeking something higher will just use her religious “outing” as a jumping off point to learn more.
I don’t understand how Madonna can bastardize Kabbalah into what she wants it to be and yet Tom Cruise is considered crazy because he physically expresses his beliefs. Yeah, I think Tom has gone nuts, but at least he talks about his beliefs and why he believes them. At least he has a reason to be jumping up and down on Oprah’s couch…Madonna just has a string.
Aline:
True about Tom Cruise – as ridiculous as he is, he still actually believes what he is saying. The same goes for John Travolta and Kelly Preston – they also believe in Scientology, and they don’t seem too screwed up. Even Mel Gibson – and I hate myself for saying this – has convictions about his religion that go deeper than a string accessory. And even though they make him a Nazi, anti-Semite asshole who has a “drinking problem”, he has convictions and beliefs to go along with his religion. What does Madonna have besides a string, a desire to crucify herself at every concert (so not Kabbalah – and if you ask me, it’s a way to attract a crowd and sell more tickets), and a new adopted African boy to play with (attagirl, Angelina – you teach Madonna about the joys of having enough money to adopt 12 children). It’s getting to be a little unbearable, and I think that she just needs to shut up.
Me:
There isn’t much more I can say here. We’ve pretty much agreed to agree.
It all boils down to what a celebrity can do to get themselves in the limelight and stay there.
Madonna was the girl that everyone paid attention to in the 80’s as a rebel. Well, she’s trying to raise a family now and she’s in her 40’s so she can’t really get away with rolling around onstage in a wedding dress any longer. This is her way to stay in the limelight or she is done with. This is the reason I was upset that Reece and Ryan called it quits. Not upset in the way of crying, but just a little bummed about it. So it didn’t work for them, okay, that happens. But they made it work when they were together. They kept themselves out of the limelight until it was necessary for movies and whatnottery (that was for you!). It is sad the things celebrities will do to make sure no one forgets their names. No one has forgotten Reece and Ryan and they are not going to. Sure Reece’s career is bigger than Ryan’s now, but he still gets decent roles. You don’t have to kiss girls during video award shows, you don’t have to hang yourself on a cross during concerts, you don’t have to jump up and down on Oprah’s couch, and you don’t have to take an actual religion and change it around to fit your life so you don’t look like a bad person. Guess what folks…THAT is what makes you the bad person.
Oh wow…guess there was more I could say. Hrmmph.
Thanks Aline!
-hearts and whatnottery-
