[ampaterry]

Thanks, guys!

For today -

Some time ago a Torah Court in New York excommunicated Senator lieberman. Now this court has no LEGAL authority, and there are some synagogues that did not even recognize their decision, but there is a lesson here. Across the nation, and around the world, different Rabbis have spoken out on this particular decision.
There is no doubt the Torah was properly interpreted by this court.
There is no doubt that Senator Lieberman, by some of his votes in the senate on abortions, among other things, had acted against the Torah teachings.
But in reality, for a member of a faith to break with the tradition of that faith is not so unusual as to cause this action to take place. What most Rabbis agree on is that Senator Lieberman brought this action about through his references to his faith, by his answering questions concerning Judaism, by setting himself up as a spokesman for the faith, and then not living according to the teachings of that faith.

The moral of this story is that there are those that work very hard to follow God, and there are those that don’t work so hard to follow him, but the ones that get into the worst trouble are those that ACT like they are working hard to follow God while in reality they do not.
I know some wonderful Christians who attend Church every Sunday. I know some wonderful Christians who attend much less frequently. But the position to be avoided the hardest is the position of attending church every Sunday, and then forgetting everything about the teachings of Jesus Christ as you drive out of the Church parking lot.

Luke 18:10-14;
“Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”

May God bless each one of you!