In week five
we will be discussing Judaism and its relationship to media. In class we will
be unpacking some of the core beliefs and practice related to religious Judaism
and how they inform their response to and perceptions of various media
technologies and context. Drawing on a book chapter entitled "History and Media Tradition: Discovering
Baselines for Religious Approaches to New Media" we will consider how the
history of Judaism provides a backstory of how and why religious groups,
especial within Orthodox Judaism have responded to the media in particular
ways. It argues that by paying close attention to how religious groups define
their community, authority structure and negotiate their relationship with the
printed word provide a basis for a particular group’s media values and
tradition. Happy reading and I look forward to hearing your comments in class.
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13 comments:
Unlike Islam where modern technology makes things easier and is an aide to their rituals and practices, modern technology to the Jewish community is a hindrance in a sense. I thought it was interesting how one religious community has used modern technology to help their practice, while for another religious community the same technology is creating havoc and making practices and rules more difficult to abide by.
Reading this chapter, I was able to reflect back to my discussion article; it is nearly human instinct to take what is given to you and morph whatever that may be into something that fits your beliefs. In this case, access to the internet has allowed various new versions of Haggadahs to arise that have allowed people to change the text in order to fit their beliefs.
In this chapter I found that it was very interesting that they made a comment about a religion's past can influence their participation and attitude towards the media. It is true that in the past Judaism has been humiliated in the media, so it is probable that this former humiliation causes their resentment in media. I think all of these add up and connect with their current media stance.
This chapter very clearly relays the message of resentment toward the media from the point of view of Judaism. While Islam and Judaism have both been bashed in the media, Islam has been able to harness it and use it is a tool to change perceptions, while Judaism sees the media as a weapon to corrupt their youth and skew their beliefs. Since the media has upset many Jews, they in in turn have decided to be not as receptive and use technology in their favor. For example, having the Talmud digitalized and searchable has been controversial because it goes against the tradition of committing it to memory.
I find it interesting how within the Jewish community there are mixed feeling in regard to media. Some believe that the media is bad and has cast a negative light upon their religion. While others like Efron believe that technology and along with media can lead to "progressiveness and enlightenment." It is up to the different Jewish communities to look past the negative effects of media and technologies and use it to better their religion.
In this chapter I found the most compelling argument to be that even the people who practiced "very Orthodox" beliefs still made the decision to utilize a cell phone. The way that decision came about was very interesting to me because they decided to exclude other forms of communication and media interaction such as television and internet but were willing to make an exception for phone use. Another issue would be the fact that in this day and era a cell phone can be used to access the internet and/or television.
i find it intriguing how the advances in technology have effected the Jewish faith. some in the jewish community view it as going against tradition and being a hindrance to their faith, while others think it can help shed light on how their faith truly is and shed the negative stereotypes.
After reading this, I find how Jews are reacting to the growing amount of media use in today's society interesting. No one thing is entirely good or entirely bad. That includes media and modern technologies. How they affect a culture or religion depends on how that culture or religion utilizes these new opportunities provided to them. Yes they can be harmful and do considerable damage, but they also contain the power to construct and stabilize.
I find it interesting how much media is affecting all religions and even more so different communities within the religions. In the text it was noted just how much media affects these communities and the fact that many other religions are having to go through the same "Growing Pains" is quite fascinating.
I think it is interesting how some cultures accept technology as an asset and others reject it as a hindrance. Do you think this is rooted in an emphasis on tradition?
I find it interesting how different subgroups of the Jewish religion feel so differently about certain aspects of the media. I am anxious to continue building on these ideas.
I find it interesting how different subgroups of the Jewish religion feel so differently about certain aspects of the media. I am anxious to continue building on these ideas.
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