Welcome to 'Community.'

This evening marks the first night of Hanukkah.  I have found, on this particular Saturday, that all is quiet because no one I know within an eight-hour drive is celebrating.  There is no one fighting over who gets to light the first candle.  No one pouring Manischewitz into a translucent blue SOLO cup, no one making last-minute dashes to Costco for a family-sized pack of Mott's.  

Instead, it's just my husband and me sharing some salmon miso soup -- a nice, quiet night at home, which we like, but surprisingly quiet from our usual early Decembers.

My Facebook feed will soon be filled with photos of homemade latkes and dreidel jokes, but all of those people are in California (or another state that is not Washington).  I have a lot of Jewish friends there.  Thanks to these friends, I have been to my fair share of Hanukkah celebrations, but this year I won't be going to any.  It's a little depressing, I have to admit.  I feel like I am cheating myself out of the chance to secretly dress my friend Fitz's cat in a menorah-laden outfit.

C'mon, Fitz.  Moxie would look ADORABLE in that yarmulke.

When considering how people convene for religious celebrations, it seems that people rely heavily on community.  We, as humans, seek out the company of other people to spend our time with.  Because there are so many people on this earth, we can afford to be picky about with whom we choose to spend this time, and therefore usually end up hanging out with like-minded people.  This is how cliques get formed: sororities, religious groups, support groups, families, activists, sports fans, dog lovers -- there is a common belief, a common thread, and in that single thread of thought, you are finally not alone. 

Religious communities get a lot of criticism because of the very fact that they are religious communities.  There's a lot of stigma surrounding them.  But when you think about it, religious groups are essentially just another bunch of people with a common thread that makes them feel less alone in this vast world. 

AmURica.

Although it is certainly not the sole reason for religion or communities in general, so much of this world is spurred by loneliness.  So much of that loneliness then turns quickly into judgment of how other humans deal with it.  Many people look to find a solution to that loneliness by looking for a larger purpose in life, some larger goal that alleviates the inevitable pains of the human experience.  For some, solace is found in religion.  My mission with this blog is to help people understand the very human things beneath this religious user interface.

This blog exists as a writing experiment of sorts.  I have spent the last eight years researching religion and have found a wealth of fascinating cultural information about various religions.  I want to look at religion through an anthropological and cultural lens, and in order to do this, I have a few basic concepts / rules / disclaimers:

1. I will not bash any religion in particular.

2. I will not deem any particular religion as "correct" or "incorrect."

3.  I aim to present each concept in a fair and balanced light that explains all aspects surrounding it.

4. I aim to keep my personal religious / political preferences separate from these studies.

I look forward to sharing my research with you in the coming posts -- but as for tonight, I'll be lighting a little menorah that I got from Target last year because of what it means to me: my participation in the larger human community, and the hope that one light can bring patience and tolerance to other lights out there.