Judaism's Essence in Six Words... Go!

This week, I'd like to take a slight departure from my usual blog posts here on Take on Torah. As you likely already know, the High Holidays are right around the corner, and most rabbis are already well 

into 'High Holiday mode,' writing sermons, planning services, and generally freaking out (more or less). So with that in mind, I have been working on my own sermons, and have been mulling over a particular question, which I also posted on Facebook. I would like to repost that question to you all here, but with the added bonus of sharing with you all the previous answers people have submitted (thus far).

So the next thing you'll be reading is the post I put up on Facebook, and then the wonderful responses I've received. I would like to invite you to do one of two things: 

A) Post your own response; after all, this IS Take on Torah (as in, what is YOUR take on the posts I've been writing?). Or B) Please feel free to comment on someone else's submission. Which ones resonate with you? Which ones (if any) do you find particularly poignant/beautiful/provocative? I'd love to hear what you have to say! So here goes: 

Ernest Hemingway is rumored to have authored a short story in just six words, and challenged other authors to do the same. His sad, little story went: "For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn." Tragic, but so powerful!

There are books on six-word memoirs; NPR launched a race card project, challenging listeners to express their thoughts on 'race' in just six words; and there are many others like this out there.

What about Judaism? Can you summarize what it means to be Jewish, to you, in six words? I've taken a crack at it, here are a few of my attempts:

1) Questioning is in our blood. Why?
2) Reinterpreting the Bible since 1,500 BCE.
3) We've got a holiday for that...
4) Ask good Jewish questions every day

And here are some wonderful submissions from other people:
5) Conceived 1939 Poland. Born 1939 Uruguay
6) We suffered, we survived, let’s eat!
7) Empty seats in the Sanctuary. Why?
8) Just like mom used to make
9) Try it, you may like it
10) Judaism is very much about food
11) Culture. History. Peoplehood. Books. Family. Food. (Feels a little weird excluding God…)
12) Make Judaism accessible to increase connections
13) I wouldn’t be alive without it
14) Hope to Realty, with God’s help (The author MAY have meant 'Hope to Reality,' but I kind of like it both ways! :-))
15) Do Good. The rest is commentary
16) In my blood. In my life
17) Wandering, wondering, seeking God and people
18) The Judaism is awesome to me
19) Knowledge linking past and future generations 
20) They attacked, we won, let’s eat
21) We are one. We are different 
22) Candles glow, tradition guides soul; nourished 
23) Two Jews, three opinions, chosen people 
24) Shema Yisrael! Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad (the 'original' response to this question! But yes, someone DID also submit it to me. Though luckily they didn't claim it was their original composition...)
25) Values that guide, community that sustains 
26) We kvetch and then God laughs
27) We know where we came from 
28) They tried, They failed, let's eat

Your turn. :-)


Photos in this blog post:

1. CC image courtesy of bark on Flickr

2. CC image courtesy of One Way Stock onFlickr

3. CC image courtesy of Goynang on Flickr