Kay at Ephemeral Thoughts tagged me with a meme. As she wrote, “The rules of the meme are to list three religions, apart from your own, that you find fascinating and why.”
I was tempted to list “conservative Christianity” and explain what I like about it and what its role was in bringing me to faith and setting me out on a journey I’m still on. But I think that, given that Christianity still is my tradition, and a various conservative versions of it were my own tradition, it will be more in keeping with the spirit of the meme to focus on other traditions altogether.
It was surprisingly easy to pick my top 3:
1) Reform Judaism: I love that this branch of a sister tradition of Christianity, sharing much of the Bible and much else beside, has already undertaken and embraced a radical rethinking of its theology in a way that is still controversial even in more liberal denominations. Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism inspire me as I seek to articulate what I suppose you could call my “Reform/Reconstructionist Christianity.”
2) Sufi Islam: It was reading authors reflecting this mystical branch of the Islamic tradition that forced me to confront the possibility that people outside of Christianity may have had a similar life-changing religious experience to my own. The inclusive outlook, the panentheistic way of speaking of God, and much else provokes and challenges me and has contributed to my own Christian faith in interesting and important ways.
3) Taoism: I appreciate this tradition’s embracing of mystery and the impossibility of articulating that which is ultimate. I also appreciate its practical focus and emphasis on living long and peacefully rather than achieving much in a way that competes for glory and brings tragedy as well as triumph. I may not always embrace its outlook, but I certainly find it insightful and challenging.
Although there are some people I’d really like to hear from, I’ll leave open who takes up the challenge of this meme, but I’ll particularly encourage students who have finished exams and professors who have finished (or need a break from) grading to consider themselves tagged.
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