Our Immoral Soul
A Manifesto of Spiritual Disobedience
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Rabbi Bonder turns a few conventional ideas on their heads as he identifies the forces at play in individual, social, and spiritual transformation. Many people believe that obedience to the established moral order leads to the well-being of society as well as the salvation of their souls. On the contrary, says Bonder, the human spirit is nourished by the impulse to betray and transgress the ways of the past. Even the Bible legitimizes our God-given urge to disobey in order to evolve, grow, and transcend. It is this "immoral" soul of ours that impels us to do battle with God—and out of this clash, Bonder predicts, a new humanity will emerge. In the course of discussion, he examines a variety of intriguing issues touching on religion, science, and culture, including the findings of evolutionary psychology; the relation of body and soul; infidelity in marriage; the stereotype of Jew as traitor; sacrifice and redemption in Judaism and Christianity; and the Messiah as archetypal transgressor.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Making use of diverse sources such as evolutionary psychology and Hasidic lore, Rabbi Bonder inverts the usual "body/soul" definitions. For Bonder, it is not the evil flesh that seduces the moral soul; rather, it is the soul, in its desire to evolve, that encourages the body to break accepted mores. Bonder argues that religious conformity does not lead to spiritual maturity, which is attained instead through a thoughtful rebellion against the status quo. So, for example, "Adam and Eve were apes until this act of disobedience marked the advent of consciousness," and the biblical Abraham founded Judaism by abandoning his home in "civilized" Ur a betrayal in his countrymen's eyes. The results are intriguing, with Bonder posing moral dilemmas involving everything from the causes of anti-Semitism to infidelity in marriages. Some questions remain, however. Moral or not, the mind or soul, not the body, is usually seen as the human "decision-making" faculty, but Bonder's insistence on the mind/body tension does not identify who or what is doing the choosing. And if conventional morality is the sole purview of the body, how does one distinguish between "genuine" evolutionary impulses and willful licentiousness? Other points seem far-fetched, such as the prediction that "the Human Genome Project will map the soul" using uncertainty principles similar to those in quantum physics. Nevertheless, Bonder's method can provoke a worthwhile examination of commonly held religious values. (Dec.)
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