How to know God?

To this important question, Sharon has a simple and clear answer. "If we love God, we want to know him, to study his creation, hence respect and love for the Torah."

A member of the Reformed Jews, Sharon met the Imam of the Quebec Mosque. She observed that by learning to know each other better, we "improve our knowledge of God.”  Her research led her to a greater knowledge and understanding of humans.

Continuing her explanation of the distinctions in Judaism, Sharon spoke of the Kabbalah, a mystical path of Judaism, emphasizing the existence of three branches. She then mentions the three key books that are: the book of Creation (3rd or 4th century), the book of Clarity (Languedoc - 12th century) and the book of Splendor or Zohar (Moses of Leon, 13th century - Spain).

She goes on to mention the existence of another key, the ten “sefiroth”. These are the attributes of God, two of which are wisdom and beauty. She also speaks of the reparation of the world, a theory of the Kabbalah (17th century) that containers holding the divine light broke; and to repair them, one must follow the commandments, pray, help others, and eat kosher food.;

She ends this part of her presentation by pointing out another distinction: the union of man and woman. The presence of God among us is described by the notion of Shekinah, considered as the feminine part of God. From then on one can understand the metaphors of the conjugal relationship to account for the desire for union between the "En sof" (the Infinite) and the Shekinah.

How to serve God?

Among the other distinctive elements in Judaism, let us emphasize that social justice is very present in their religion. The presenter mentioned the fact that Jews serve God by walking in solidarity. They pray with their feet! They use their free will to do good and to practice mercy in the world. Evil cannot be camouflaged.  They seek the path to walk through their suffer, and they try to turn evil into good. In addressing the presence of mercy in Judaism, Sharon quotes a rabbi, "Do not do to others what you do not want to be done to yourself."

An unusual journey

Raised in a modern home where there was not much talk of God, Sharon became acquainted with faith when meeting with a rabbi, in a synagogue, who told her that "God is good.”  It was in Israel that she met her husband, Peter, a native of Sweden. They have three boys and are part of a community.

Not knowing much about prayer, Sharon undertook a second master's degree and then began a doctorate in Jewish studies. Discovering the importance of belonging, she was not content to continue her research on Jewish studies. She is more interested in dialogue without losing sight of the fact that Jews are in the minority. She emphasizes listening, what she calls oral history. She participates in the Jewish-Christian Dialogue in Quebec. This approach enables an inner transformation that allows her to see the other as a sister, a brother. 

"You have to fight the prejudice of thinking that the other wants me harm," she says. Today, Sharon has undertaken a post-doctoral degree on the oral history of Jews, Cambodians, Rwandans and Haitians.

She listens to life stories while compiling the data collected in a database. The conference was rich in content touching on many aspects, including the question of forgiveness, the many branches of the Jewish religion and the conflict with the Palestinians. 

The session ended with a celebration in the chapel.

 Remember that this activity was organized by the SNJM Spiritual Animation Committee. 

Source: Sr. Constance Létourneau 
Photos: Sr Yolande Dufresne