America is Good for Religion

There are a number of people who are very involved in trying to make sure that their "religious" views should be everyone's religious views. They feel that "Religion is good for America.” But this is open to debate because in my opinion -- “it is America that is good for religion.”

Did you know that there are estimated 40,000 Christian Protestant denominations in America? Judaism is split into Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Renewal, as well as Secular Jews. And then there is the Roman Catholic Church and a Reformed Catholic Church. Of course, we should not forget the Greek Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Church, Zoroastrians, and Muslims.

In this country, there is the freedom to "think outside the religious/spiritual box" so to speak. Usually, the children of immigrants become American in culture and attitudes. When Jews came in large numbers from Europe in the last century, one of the first things their Rebbes taught them was baseball, because baseball was American, and American was good!

SHHH! Don't tell the Imams, the same thing is happening to Islam in America. When my kids were growing up, I saw some Muslim classmates with traditional dress and there were others in jeans, with makeup, hair uncovered. (America at work) A recent article in the Dallas Morning News talked about one 26 year old Muslim who prays regularly, observes the Ramadan fasting and is openly gay. He is part of a small, but growing number of American Muslims, challenging the long-standing interpretations of Islam that defined the culture and world of their parents. The Muslims in newspaper article believe that one can be gay and Muslim; that the sexes can pray together, that females can preach and that Muslim women can marry outside the faith -- and they can also point to passages in the Quran as proof texts! 

Every religious group has had to struggle with what it means to their culture, their memes, their country to be, a Jew, a Christian, a Muslim or, an anything in America! The traditions of religious freedoms in this country provide the opportunity and legal protection for its citizens to re-examine the Sacred Scriptures (Tanakh, Christian Bibles, Quran, etc.) and openly speak about different interpretations even though they challenge rules and notions which for centuries were set in stone – meaning controlled by authoritarian religious institutions in other cultures.

Nearly 40% of the 2.75 million Muslims in the U.S. are American born and the number is growing. Many people are worried about ISIS, but if I were ISIS -- I'd be worried by iphones, Twitter, Old Navy, and McDonalds. God Bless America!

Choose Life By Doing TOV!

Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor

Shepherding-Leadership -- a New Very-Old Model

What do call the people you work for -- bosses, managers, owners?  

● What kind of people are they?

● How do they treat others?

● How do they treat you?

● How do they treat themselves?

I have heard, and I feel, that the leaders of many companies, especially big corporations, have place “Value” (money and wealth) over “Values” (the timeless ideas of what it means to be moral and ethical people who value the common good). Have corporate leaders sacrificed concerns over the well-being of their workers in the name of more profits?

The more I look at this situation the more I believe that the results are: less productivity, less or no loyalty, more stealing, and less creativity. Devaluing workers also devalues their work. There is very little mentoring. People feel isolated, helpless, afraid of losing their jobs, angry and enraged, sometimes to the point of inflicting their rage on their co-workers or bosses – at the very extreme by shooting those they blame -- or by committing suicide and killing themselves. 

Maybe we need to rethink these things. Is there another model for leadership that should be considered? I believe that the Biblical metaphor of a Good Shepherd has a great potential. Think back to those terribly boring Sunday School stories for a moment. Some of the most important characters in the biblical text were shepherds -- Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David, to name a few. By the way, that other Jewish guy named “Jesus” was also called a “Good Shepherd,” and the first person to be murdered in the Torah was also a shepherd, the first shepherd, and he was named Abel. The Creator seems to really prefer shepherds to lead his people.

What kind of qualities does a “Good Shepherd” possess?

● they are with the flock

● they provide sustenance for the flock

● they guide the flock in the right direction

● they protect the flock from danger

● they search for members of the flock that become lost

● they strengthen weak members of the flock

Can you imagine what the benefits would be to everyone involved in company if the leaders followed the “Shepherding-Leadership Model?” I believe its long-term profits would increase, its sales would grow, creativity and productivity would dramatically increase – and a new spirit of loyalty, satisfaction and peace would be revealed.

I know – you think I'm dreaming -- right? But I am not, because I know of some leaders of corporations that are doing things in a “shepherding way.” Their workers are happier and productive because they and their work are valued. This power model does not require a huge capital investment. It requires a spiritual investment at the top, beginning with a set of commonly accepted and shared core values, beginning with the “highest value” of all – “the protection and preservation of human life.” “Shepherding-Leadership” acknowledges that employees have lives outside of work and what happens away from work can have tremendous impacts of what happens at work. The rewards of this leadership model will far outweigh the investment required – and those rewards will reach far beyond the workplace.

Choose Life By Doing TOV,

Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor

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