It is said that a person's purpose in life is directly tied to their religious beliefs. And while most people in the contemporary world argue that spirituality is a personal walk with God, the truth remains that unless one's spirituality links to their religion, then they can easily stray away from the teachings of the Bible, the way unguided sheep quickly deviate from the herd. Spirituality is a person's own walk with God, their belief in the existence and love of God, and practicing self-righteousness and concern for those around them. Religion, on the other hand, is the body of believers who come together to remind each other of the teachings of God, putting checks and balances for the practical application of spirituality. Therefore, it is correct to argue that religion is the nourishment of spirituality. I chose Sarah Hurwitz's book since it gives much weight to the ancient covenants God had with His people, and what each of these meant for the lives of the believers. Sarah Hurwitz explores the religion of Judaism, its teachings, and relevance in the world today through carefully examining the application of its teachings to solve societal problems while at the same time expounding on a personal religious walk in the Word.
Brief Summary
The book, "Here All Along: Finding Meaning Spirituality and A Deeper Connection," is written by Sarah Hurwitz, a Judaism faithful who takes a closer look at the Torah and its teachings, drawing on its relevance in the contemporary society, and its role in realigning the lost generation with the Word of God. The book starts by explaining what the Torah is, and the books it contains, as well as its teachings. The Torah is a combination of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible known as the "Tanakh," which contemporary Christians refer to as "the Old Testament (Hurwitz, 2019) ." The Torah contains the text of creation (Genesis), which gives an account of God's order of creation. The first book of the Torah manages to portray God as an orderly God who causes everything to work together for the good of those who love them.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Through the Torah, an outstanding aspect that comes across is how much God is caring, and causes things to work together for those He calls and love. Much of the Torah is more of a genealogy, explaining Abraham's lineage, how the people lived, how God rewarded those who obeyed His instructions, and how He punished those who did not. The second book of Torah, exodus, documents the lives and journeys of the Israelites, the chosen ones of God, from captivity in Egypt following Joseph's death and into the promised land (Hurwitz, 2019) . The third book, Leviticus, records God's numerous instructions for how the Israelites should worship God. All through the Torah, God is portrayed as a caring father who makes various covenants with His children never to leave nor forsake them, provided they follow His commandments.
Critical Personal Reflection
The teachings of the Torah manage to challenge the reader to find a more in-depth and meaningful understanding with God, to always delight in the Lord for His promises are of prosperity and love for His children. When reading the book reflecting on the Torah, it is impressive how a compilation of texts, laws, and covenants from earlier than the 6th B.C.E depicting events from centuries earlier could have so much information into the nature of God (Hurwitz, 2019) . It is critical that when reading the Torah, an individual bears in mind that although the Torah documents events from that much earlier, the nature of God has always been the same. Therefore, all his instructions and laws given to the Old Testament are still relevant today.
Having such a liberal approach allows the reader to connect deeper and on a new level with God revealed through the Torah, making the walk personal and enriching. More particularly, I was thrilled with the story of Abraham's encounter with God when he was ordered to slaughter his only son. Like the author, I had questions on why God, depicted as loving and caring, would ask Abraham, an older man, to sacrifice his only son, given the years of pain he had gone through without getting a child (Hurwitz, 2019) . The author's answer after raising this question was a mind opener for me since it challenged my belief as a Christian. I came to learn that when God takes away something we love and treasure, it is not so that He may punish us, but it is because He tests our hearts to strengthen our faith in Him. Many a time as Christians, we face tribulations and think God has deserted us. Hurwitz reminds us that God is right there with us, strengthening our faith so that through us, He may be glorified.
Another area of interest that the author touched on that was a bit personal for me was questioning the Torah's eligibility. The Old Testament books were written centuries ago and acted as laws and covenants that God made with the Israelites. Therefore, the question that rose in mind prior to reading the book was, "how accurate and relevant is the Torah to the contemporary Christian?". As Hurwitz points out, the Torah is accurate today, not because it directly speaks to our situations, but because it lays the foundation principles upon which Christianity was built on (Hurwitz, 2019) . As a book of moral truths, the Torah contains teachings that form the basis of what the church should be, of the kind of life a Christian should lead, how they should interact with their neighbors and their role in spreading Christianity. Understood from this perspective, I am more convinced now in the teachings of the Torah.
Lastly, it is impressive how the author interprets the horrifying parts of the Torah, such as the stoning of people who work on the Shabbat. Initially, this was a part of the Torah that I found a little disturbing. It was contradictory to the same book that preaches love and tolerance to instruct Christians to stone those who do not follow the teachings of the Torah. Hurwitz points out that it is imperative to confront these controversial messages and understand them in new ways that are consistent with the teachings of God (Hurwitz, 2019) . In this aspect, the author says it is the responsibility of the faithful to correct each other in love, spreading the gospel of hope and salvation rather than condemnation to save the world.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Sarah Hurwitz does an exemplary job in simplifying and moderating the teachings and interpretations of the Torah in a manner that is consistent with the world we live in today. It is impressive how the author manages to restore confidence in the teachings of the Old Testament through carefully handpicking the passages that are controversial in the church. Having read the book, I was left with the questions, "how can one interpret the laws of Moses in relation to the teachings of Jesus Christ?" "What steps can the church take today to preach love and tolerance for individuals who do not believe in Christianity while at the same time spreading the laws of Moses?". My last question was, "Why is it that most churches today do not embrace or teach from the Torah, yet it is the foundation of Christianity and the church?". Having done this assignment, I am thrilled by the facts I was able to gather and incorporate them into my spirituality. It opened my eyes to concepts and facts I hitherto had no idea of.
Reference
Hurwitz, S. (2019). Here All Along: Finding Meaning, Spirituality, And A Deeper Connection to Life - In Judaism (2nd ed., pp. 1-352). Spiegel & Grau.
