Our New Partner: Sinai and Synapses

Welcome to Jvillage Network's newest channel, Sinai and Synapses.

Sinai and Synapses is an organization whose mission is to offer people a worldview that is both scientifically grounded and spiritually uplifting. It aims to provide tools and language for learning and living to the millions of people who see science as their ally as they pursue personal growth and the repair of our world.

Its founder, Rabbi Geoffrey Mitelman,  is a sought-out teacher, presenter, and scholar-in-residence, and was interviewed by BBC Radio’s World Have Your Say about the religious implications of the Higgs Boson.

He was ordained by the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, where he received the Cora Kahn Prize from the Cincinnati faculty for the most outstanding sermon delivery and oratory. An alumnus of Princeton University, he received multiple prizes for outstanding scholarship in Biblical and Judaic studies.


With this new partnership, we will bring you posts that bridge the scientific and religious worlds by exploring topics from both perspectives.

We look forward to many interesting articles and we'd love to have your feedback.  We encourage all our members to add this channel to your Jewish Resources navigation.

With that said, we bring you our first post from Sinai and Synapses:

 The Beauty in Science and the Beauty in Judaism

Think about the most inspiring piece of art you have ever looked at. Or the most powerful book you have ever read. Or the most moving play or movie you’ve seen.

Now — why did you find it so beautiful?

There were probably any number of reasons — it may have changed the way you thought about things. It might have emotionally affected you. It almost certainly stuck with you afterwards.

But despite the fact that whatever you chose was personal and subjective, there seem to be certain facets of beauty that cut across all genres, times and places. Educator Howard Gardner argues in his book Truth, Beauty and Goodness Reframed that there are three main elements of beauty: we find something beautiful if it is interesting, if it is memorable, and if it is has a “pull” to it, leading us to continually come back to it.

Continue reading.