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Shirat Hayam Stories by Rabbi Rachel
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STORIES
1. Rosh Hashanna Simpsons Sermon
On Rosh Hashanna, Rabbi Rachel gave a sermon about lessons she drew from The Simpsons Movie. Here it is!
2. The Upper World and the Lower World
This story is about a man’s search to answer the question: what happens after I die? The answer that he comes up with is not a literal or definitive one. This is consistent with Jewish theology on this question. The most common answer to this question is that Jews do not concentrate on the afterlife; rather, we know that what is important is to live this life the best we can, because whatever we may postulate about the afterlife, there is a recognition that we don’t really know what happens.
Some Jewish sources speak about reincarnation, and some speak of an upper and a lower world (both not envisioned quite as the Christian heaven and hell, although the source for them). My personal favorite vision of what happens after death is that we (our souls? Our energy? Our experiences?) merge with, G-d. In my image, the closer we are to what’s really important in life (creating a just and good world), the easier this merger with The Source of Goodness becomes. May we all emulate the version of the Upper World in this story, and support each other to reach our communal goals.
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