A friend of mine says Kabbalah is not religious, but rather a scientific approach to matters. I me it seems to have strong religious characteristics and the people I have meat seem very cultic. I must admit that I have not looked deeply into Kabbalistic teachings.
What is your assessment?
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Kaballah - Is it a religion, a cult, a philosophy or what?
by freetosee 19 Replies latest jw friends
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freetosee
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Sargeant Pepper
A snare and a racket
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LongHairGal
FREETOSEE: I was curious about it too but haven't looked into it yet. By interested I mean just reading a book. I would never join anything again.
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designs
The Cabala or 'the hidden wisdom' within Judaism has been added onto by successive generations of certain select Jewish practicioners. The various ideas and practices were systemized in the Cabala books of Sefer Yetzirah, Bahir, and Zohar. Ideas were drawn from other cultures as well such as Hindu's idea of metempsychosis, Chaldean astrology, Persian angelology, Egyptian Serapis-Isis cult, Numerology, Platonic concepts of emanations, etc..
Matter and spirit were symbiotic. Creation was an emanation, En Sof, with God mediating through 10 Sefirot's a stream of flowing creation. It was very superstitious in some of its periods. The 'Name' of God or the Shem ha-Meforash, YHVH, was like the Philosopher's Stone used by alchemists.
Rabbi Maimonides, 1135-1204 CE, tried to respectfully discourage people from getting to involved because of its superstitions. Cabalistic goals were to find redemption and a mystical way to relieve life's suffering, and it preached Love.
The Zohar states: "In love is found the secret of Divine Unity. It is love that unites the higher and lower stages of existence, that raises the lower to the level of the higher- where all become fused into one'.
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freetosee
A snare and a racket - yes, just like Russell and Rutherford. That's what I was thinking when my friend was telling me about it.
LongHairGal, I'm miles away from joining anything myself. I was offered books and shown websites, but think its the same as reading jw literature and websites, it does not give a true picture. -
freetosee
Thank you designs! How would you categorise Cabalistic groups of today? Religion, science, dangerous cult.. ?
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designs
Well its ranges from the Madonna camp to ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups and everything in between. Some people dabble in it like some read their daily Horoscope without attaching to much deeper meaning to it and some like a small group of Rabbi's did a few years ago invoked the 'Shem ha-Meforash' to bring peace.
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freetosee
The Cabalists I spoke to seemed quite offended when I told them that to me they have religious characteristics. I haven't seen much of a scientific approach so far.
I think the definition of religion fits to Cabala. There are different branches and ways people practice it. -
Band on the Run
The Kaballah is Jewish mysticism. We have St. John of the Cross and Thomas Merton.
Hasidim is also mysticism from Eastern European. My understanding is that kaballah is older. Fascinating.
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Band on the Run
Kaballah used to attract very disciplined people. You had to study for years before secret knowledge was revealed. Today it is greatly dumbed down with being partly a celebrity sect. Madonna did much damage. It reminds me of Pilates. Years ago Pilates was only near dance centers. It cost a fortune and was little known. The gym and Y pilates, QVC-can't be the same thing.