On May 14, 1948, on the day in which the British Mandate over Palestine expired, the Jewish People's Council gathered at the Tel Aviv Museum, and approved the declaration of independence, declaring the establishment of the State of Israel. The new state was recognized that night by the United States and three days later by the USSR.

Nearly 53 years later, the state of Israel continues to survive, surrounded by hostile nations, criticized by many for quick and decisive militaristic action, and plagued by bitter controversies over the rights of Palestinian sovereignty.

Nowhere in the world is there a nation of people so deeply defined by their religious beliefs and history of persecution. Nowhere is there a story as beautiful, uplifting, and tragic as that of the struggle of the Jews.

When I was approached last fall to give a sermon, I didn't have a topic in the back of my mind. The idea to present this sermon on Judaism gathered momentum due to a number of events - attending several of Rabbi Falcon's services, conversations with members of this congregation, the recent Middle East turmoil, and questions about basic Jewish philosophies that have arisen in casual conversations among friends. Preparing for this service has been an education for me, which is normal as any of you who have prepared services will attest, and I now have more questions to answer than when I began.

The Jewish religion is most clearly defined by a single event that transpired 3000 years ago. As the story goes, Moses led the Jewish people from slavery at the hands of the Egyptians. God had told Moses to lead his people to the land of Canaan, but without maps or a GPS, Moses and the Jews wandered in the Sinai desert for 40 years. It was during this journey that Moses ascended Mt. Sinai and received the Ten Commandments and the Torah from God. This gave form and content to the monotheistic principle that is the cornerstone of most religions today.

During the next two centuries, the Israelites conquered most of the Land of Israel and relinquished their nomadic ways to become farmers and craftsmen. A monarchical society followed, with many famous kings including David and Solomon. The period of the prophets followed, religious sages and charismatic figures who were perceived as being endowed with a divine gift of revelation. They preached during the period of the monarchy until a century after the first destruction of Jerusalem and the Holy Temple by the Babylonians, around 600 BC. Jerusalem and the Jewish temple were destroyed numerous times during the next 2500 years. Jews have survived the conquest of the Babylonians, the Romans, the Persians, Crusaders, Turks and Nazis. Their tales of heroism and undying faith still echo through the homes of Jewish families today.

It's interesting to review the history of the Jews around the time of Christ. Some Jewish historians don't even mention Jesus, others speak of him as a normal prophet, with human failings and errors in judgment. One account cites Jesus' fascination with the Kabbalah, and ponders the question of whether the documented miracles of Jesus were simply acts of trickery. Nonetheless, the notion of an innocent, semi-divine being who will sacrifice himself to save us from the consequences of our own sins is a purely Christian concept that has no basis in Jewish thought. It is written that the messiah will be a great political leader descended from King David. He will be well-versed in Jewish law, and observant of its commandments. He will be a charismatic leader, inspiring others to follow his example. He will be a great military leader, who will win battles for Israel. He will be a great judge, who makes righteous decisions. But above all, he will be a human being, not a god, demi-god or other supernatural being.

What will the messiah do? He'll bring about the political and spiritual redemption of the Jewish people by bringing us back to Israel and restoring Jerusalem. He will establish a government in Israel that will be the center of all world government, both for Jews and gentiles. He will rebuild the Temple and re-establish its worship.

The word "torah" means "a teaching". The Torah is Hashem's (the Hebrew word for God) teaching to the Jewish people. In the Torah, Hashem tells us how to live. The Torah has many mitzvos (commandments) in it. They are Hashem's instructions to us. The Torah also contains stories. These stories are considered true and teach us about our history and our relationship with HaShem. I was raised in Denver, Colorado in the middle of the city, a middle-class, religiously integrated community. My family belonged to Beth Joseph synagogue, a large, brick building that occupied most of a city block. The main "shul" reminded me of a large theater, with tiered seating and a prominent altar that housed an ornate ark and seating for the cantor and rabbi. The shul seated perhaps 500 people, and was filled to capacity on the High Holidays, Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur, the day of attonement. Being a conservative congregation, as opposed to Orthodox, the women and men mingled freely, although women did not wear yamulkes or tallis as I see today at Rabbi Falcon's Bet Alef services.

I attended religious education twice/week, on Tuesday and Thursday. We were taught basic Hebrew, Jewish history and the underpinnings of Jewish tradition. Occasionally I would take a "mental health" day, which usually consisted of waving goodbye to mom, entering the synagogue, and leaving through the door on the opposite side of the building with my friend Jim Altenberg. We'd walk a couple of blocks to get an ice cream cone and then discuss the Kabbalah or the basis of the Kosher laws. OK, maybe we'd talk about the latest episode of Gilligan's Island. I had to be careful that my older brother Jeff did not spot my transgression, for Jeff did not adhere to my principle that learning outside of the classroom was equally important to learning within.

While interesting, my religious education never grabbed my attention and held my interest. I wasn't able to process the wonderment of the Biblical stories and appreciate the struggles and persecution that the Jewish people persevered for thousands of years. I DO have vivid (painful) memories of Rabbi Kaminesky, the RE director, pinching my right cheek, smiling and saying something in Hebrew or Yiddish that I couldn't understand.

When I was 12, I began studying for my Bar Mitzvah, which is celebrated on your 13th birthday, and is the Jewish "coming of age ceremony" for both boys and girls. Other cultures are asked to kill lions or walk through burning coals, Jewish boys are asked to sing a portion of the Torah in front of hundreds of friends, family and the congregation. I would have preferred the lion or the coals. I remember the stilled hush as I stepped up to the pulpit, looking out over the vast sea of faces, hearing the cantor hum my first note, and sweating through the hardest 8 minutes of my life. I expected them to give me a Failing grade that day, tell me I wasn't ready to be a man, maybe have Jim Altenberg or my brother stand up and shout "What about those RE classes you cut"? But I passed, was treated to a roast beef dinner and given my first decision as a Jewish man - "do you want to continue RE classes and attend regular Saturday services"? I didn't, I wasn't sold. I dropped out.

My brother followed an entirely different path, marrying his Jewish girlfriend that he met at age 14, attending synagogue regularly, and enrolling both of his daughters in private Hebrew schools. My sister-in-law would not attend my wedding since I was marrying a Catholic in a pagan ceremony. You see, we were married in a UU church. J

So what have I come away with? A deep connection to my Jewish roots, to that community that has persevered through the ages. I often observe the High Holidays, marvel in the ancient stories, make efforts to celebrate Hanukah and Passover. And the basic philosophy that Judaism teaches - take responsibility for your own actions. I love this. I teach my kids this.

Despite being one of the world's major religions, Judaism has no dogma, no formal set of beliefs that one must hold to be a Jew. In Judaism, actions are far more important than beliefs. There is no intermediary between you and God, no one to judge and forgive your sins. The closest thing that I have come across to define Jewish beliefs is Rambam's thirteen principles of faith.

1. G-d exists
2. G-d is one and unique
3. G-d is incorporeal
4. G-d is eternal
5. Prayer is to be directed to G-d alone and to no other
6. The words of the prophets are true
7. Moses's prophecies are true, and Moses was the greatest of the prophets
8. The Written Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) and Oral Torah (teachings now contained in the Talmud and other writings) were given to Moses
9. There will be no other Torah
10. G-d knows the thoughts and deeds of men
11. G-d will reward the good and punish the wicked
12. The Messiah will come
13. The dead will be resurrected

As basic as these principles are, the necessity of believing each one of these has been disputed at one time or another, and the liberal movements of Judaism dispute many of these principles. Unlike many other religions, Judaism does not focus much on abstract cosmological concepts. Although Jews have certainly considered the nature of G-d, man, the universe, life and the afterlife at great length (for example, you may remember Rabbi Falcon introducing us to the Kabbalah and Jewish Mysticism last year), there is no mandated, official, definitive belief on these subjects, outside of the very general concepts discussed above. There is substantial room for personal opinion on all of these matters, because as I said before, Judaism is more concerned about actions than beliefs.

Judaism focuses on relationships: the relationship between G-d and mankind, between G-d and the Jewish nation, between the Jewish nation and the land of Israel, and between human beings. Our scriptures tell the story of the development of these relationships, from the time of creation, through the creation of the relationship between G-d and Abraham, to the creation of the relationship between G-d and the Jewish people, and forward. The scriptures also specify the mutual obligations created by these relationships, although various movements of Judaism disagree about the nature of these obligations. Some say they are absolute, unchanging laws from G-d (Orthodox); some say they are laws from G-d that change and evolve over time (Conservative); some say that they are guidelines that you can choose whether or not to follow (Reform). There are two ways someone can be a Jew. You can either be born a Jew or you can convert. Being born a Jew is pretty simple. If your mother is Jewish then so are you, if she isn't then neither are you. It doesn't matter whether your father is Jewish or not.

Conversion is much more complicated. Judaism does not actively encourage conversion, in fact, to a large degree it actually discourages it. This is the reason Jews have never had missionaries trying to convert non-Jews. This does not mean, however, that Judaism doesn't want the convert. Judaism does want the convert but he or she must be 100% committed. Discouraging conversion helps to filter out those lacking the proper degree of commitment.

Returning to the present, I wanted to talk a bit about the current struggles in Israel. I honestly can only remember one time in my adult life when Israel was not on the brink of war, and that was right after the Camp David Accord. It seems to be a condition of existence that the State of Israel will remain embroiled in a nationalistic struggle.

This month, veteran politician Ariel Sharon claimed the mantle of leadership in Israel after a landslide victory over Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Sharon's victory was a result of Barak's indecisiveness in negotiating a final peace settlement during a five-month stretch of Israeli-Palestinian clashes. The State of Israel has entered a new path ... the path of security and true peace," Sharon told his supporters at campaign headquarters. He called on Palestinians to abandon "the way of violence" and urged his vanquished opponent, Barak, to join forces with him in a broad-based national government.

As much as I support the Jewish state, and have never trusted Arafat's agenda, I know that this issue is complex and threatens the nearly 170,000 Arabs that live in the State of Israel. I can't help but think that this too shall pass, and will one day be recognized as another cycle in the timeless struggle of the Jewish state.