Thank you Lord

I make no secret of my Atheism. Yes, I go to synagogue on the holidays. Yes, I am raising two daughters who will both be Bat Mitzvah-ed. And yes, I’d like to believe we are part of something larger than ourselves.

But when it comes to the Big Sky-Lord, as Bill Maher refers to him, I’m just not with the program.

How can you say that, Rich?
Particularly in light of all the beauty and wonder that surrounds you: the sunsets, the waterfalls, the oceans, the smooth-sipping goodness of Noah's Mill Bourbon.

They are all undeniably inspiring, but they do not constitute proof of a G-d. And certainly not the angry, vengeful Almighty spoken of in the Bible, the one who smiteth thine enemies with the breath of one nostril.

With all those stories of reverence for the law and tales of retribution and repentance, the Supreme One acts less like a diety and more like a District Attorney. Show me some of that larger-than-life Elliot Ness-ness.

And then, just as the cement in my head is about to harden, G-d reveals himself to me on the front page of the Los Angeles Times….