Insight! Event Discussion # 1

Insight! Events are community readings, plays, lectures, and concerts we attend together and discuss afterward, seeking points of contact between culture and God.

Howie Howard, Jill Puffer, and Tim Gillespie attended the first lecture in UK Edwards Campus' "Children of Abraham" series by Jonathan Boyarin, author and professor of Modern Jewish Studies, titled "Seasons and Lifetimes" on Jan. 31.

Howie: What kind of expectations did you bring to our first Insight! Event?

Jill: I expected to learn a lot about Jewish culture, as I knew absolutely nothing. This lecture is part of a series that is, to my understanding, reflecting the cultures of seemingly very different groups who have a very similar beginning.

Howie: Yes, "Children of Abraham" is the over-arching title. It refers to Christians, Muslims, and Jews, all of whom claim Abraham as their ancestor (biological, spiritual, or both). The story of he and his family begins in the Bible at Genesis 12, and continues for the rest of the book (including sons Isaac and Ishmael, grandson Jacob, and great-grandson Joseph of "The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat."

Jill: The speaker (Jonathan Boyarin, author and professor of Jewish Studies at KU Edwards campus) spoke very little of Abraham's story, and I actually didn't learn much about it until we had coffee afterwards. I was glad the lecture fueled the conversation for us.

Tim: Yeah, it went something like "Howie, what did that lecture have to do with Abraham?"
"Oh, nothing".
"Ok. Who's Abraham, then?"

Howie: Yeah, I went through the 5-minute version at the coffeeshop. Calling, binding, "decendents like stars in the sky" pretty much. So what did the speaker talk about?

Jill: Boyarin spent quite a bit of time telling Loren Eisley's story of the night he and his dad watched Haley's comet passing. Tim and I have been discussing how the story fits into the overall theme of his lecture. Tim believes that the point that was made was: maintaining a connection with older generations is important to the continuation of your cultural heritage--knowing and understanding what your ancestors have done and keeping them in your memory. Eisley's father told him to think of him when the comet passes again.

Howie: Talking to my mom (a.k.a. "Howie's Mom") a little later, she went to Google and found a really good bio of Eisley on the web at http://www.eiseley.unomaha.edu/biography.php . He is a well-known sociologist. A short version of the comet-story is at the bottom of the page. He's actually a Nebraskan, which is cool for me. He didn't make it to see the comet in 1986, though he had his own children who did. Boyarin really emphasized that Eisley's father wanted him to see the comet "for me" - he seemed to desperately need a sense of continuation, and found a concrete image of it thinking that he would not see the comet's next passing, but that his child might. I remember standing in my own driveway in '86 with my dad; we counted years and figured that I might be fortunate enough to see it twice myself, as Eisley's father hoped Eisley would.

Jill: The most enjoyable part of the lecture was listening to Boyarin's opinion of cultural identity. Having a strong cultural identity doesn't mean that you need to diminish your global identity or the identity of others. I felt that using "own cultural identity" versus the "global" or "universal" and even "human" identity was very broad. We've been trying to think of a more close-to-home example of what he was expressing. For example, if you go to an Irish festival to learn more about your Irish heritage, it doesn't mean that you necessarily think being Irish is *better* than being Scottish, or anything else. Learning about yourself won't lessen your opinion of others. Having a good sense-of-self and cultural identity will actually help you appreciate other people and cultures because you won't have to put them down to feel good about your up-bringing. Does that make sense, Howie?

Howie: It makes complete and beautiful sense to me... but I know that it doesn't for many people. Boyarin described the more common attitude as "zero-sum" - for example, if I'm a strong Irishman (say, 90% of my identity) that leaves only 10% of my identity to be "human" or "universal." He said that way of looking at identity is fundamentally flawed. Identity is like love - "non-zero sum" - there is no quantatative limit. So I can be an amazing, strong, deeply rooted Jew (or Scot, or African-American) and still identify strongly with all people in our humanness and not let my strength be twisted into superiority or disrespect.

Jill: Boyarin used the term "chauvinistic" a lot to express that kind of negative self-loving--blindly loving and accepting your heritage without necessarily knowing why, then ripping on other people because they don't share your beliefs. Your faith shouldn't be "blind". You should understand why you are how you are and embrace those who are different from you. After all, we are all people. We're in the same boat. I think that's where the "global" identity comes into play.

Howie: Brilliant! I love "negative self-loving" - that phrase really puts the inherent contradition of that attitude on display! So, speaking generally, what can you say about our very first Insight! Event?

Jill: Having the opportunity to reflect with other people after the lecture meant a lot. It's nice to breathe in all the information and find out what everyone else thought of it. And the coffee was pretty good, too! I am looking forward to the next lectures and hopefully tying it all together in the end.