THE RAINBOW SWASTIKA - Scattered Seed Ministries

appear in the forefront of the other groups listed in this section, especially Elat Chayyim.
Conversely, the latter is promoted with equal fervor on the Aleph website. The 3-fold vision
of Aleph Alliance explicitly calls for "Jewish spirituality" and never mentions any spiritual
path outside of Judaism. Quite the contrary, the FAQ asserts: "It is an important part of
Aleph's mission to make the 'hidden' treasures of Judaism known and accessible" to all those
"spiritually sensitive Jews [who] have sought spiritual expression in other faith traditions."
However, a brief survey of the Elat Chayyim faculty [see below] and Schachter-Shalomi's
own spiritual journey [see also the summary above] will show that the "treasures" they
themselves have studied and now offer are from many other faiths besides Judaism, principly
from Buddhism. [Thus, instead of attracting Jewish seekers to authentic Judaism, they give
added encouragement to look elsewhere for the "treasures", just as they have. Reb Zalman's
allegiance to the Naropa Institute, whose "learning philosophy is rooted in Buddhist
tradition", is alone enough to discredit historical Judaism as self-sufficient.] Aleph, like
Schacter-Shalomi, clearly accepts the "universality of spiritual truths" and is proud of its
"synthesis of these wide-ranging experiences", not to reaffirm Judaism but to create a
"unique" teaching. [Actually, "universality" is used advisedly. The Aleph FAQ notes one
exception to their acceptance of all spiritual paths: an entire heading is inexplicably devoted
to their "position" on the miniscule sect of "Messianic Judaism", where the tone switches
momentarily from free-spirited liberality to a rather prim disapproval of groups "which
actively target Jews for recruitment" and which use "deceptive practices" to present Christian
teaching in a Jewish context. A rather curious stand for a movement whose leader proudly
"integrated" his Catholic studies into a "unique" teaching being sold as Jewish, and whose
recommended list is topped by a "Jewish" Center teaching Eastern pagan practices.]
3b. Arthur Waskow: One of the most active Aleph leaders is this rabbi who heads what could
be called the Green JR contingent. Waskow shifts the mission of the Jewish people as "light
to the nations" from spiritual revelation of the only G-d, to saving and healing the Earth-as-
God. His manifesto is embodied in his article, "And the Earth is Filled with the Breath of
Life". Waskow's "re-invention" of Judaism goes beyond the usual JR revisionism, in that it
works retroactively back to the very origins of Torah. The ancient Temple offerings were not
in obedience to the G-d of the Covenant, but in honor of a pantheistic Divinity: "The earth,
the rain, the sun, the seed, and our work -- together, adam and adamah, the earth and human
earthlings, grew this food. It came from the Unity of Life; so we give back some of it to that
great Unity." The purpose of the Jewish people is indistinguishable from the purpose of
humanity in general, which is to attain union with the universe: "For the universe to continue
on this journey toward self-awareness, there needs to be a species capable of self-awareness -
made up of individuals who can reflect upon their own selves, and also able as a species to
reflect upon itself and to see itself as part of the Unity of the universe - on which it is also
capable of reflecting. That is what it means to live in the Image of God." Throughout the
article, Waskow's choice of pronouns for G-d is "It". [Compare all these elements with Bailey
and the "Hierarchy" on the solution to "the Jewish problem". Waskow has apparently tried to
address every Jewish "fault" named in NA literature.] Key NA concepts are used freely, such
as "leaps" in cosmic and human evolution (using the imagery of a spiral), the idea that "earth
is Spirit" and the equivalence of Jewish "renewal" with "transformation". The "idols" to be
avoided by Jews are not foreign gods adored by the nations, but "mere carved-out pieces of
the Whole, things of partial value that we elevate to ultimates," anything short of the
impersonal "great Unity". Prayer is directed to the "mystery of allness in the world" - not to
the G-d described by Abraham as "the most high God, Maker of heaven and earth." The
covenantal signs of the Jewish people like the Sabbath and kosher dietary laws are reassigned
as ways to "heal the planet".