On Yom Kippur, Jews are asked to meditate on their sins, vow to make changes and then soberly face the future.<\/p>\n\n
For 10 million-plus radio listeners, this probably sounds like calling in to talk with Laura Schlessinger. While most radio counselors offer moral cosmetic surgery, \u201cDr. Laura\u201d has stormed ahead of the pack by performing radical operations \u2014 with little or no anesthesia.<\/p>\n\n
It all comes down to the Ten Commandments, she said. Basic moral laws are becoming even more relevant in an age of easy excuses and smorgasbord religion.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cLots of people say `I\u2019m not religious,\u2019 but when you ask them to describe their values they basically start quoting you the Ten Commandments,\u201d said Schlessinger, who last weekend delivered a Rosh Hashanah address entitled \u201cWhy Bother Being Jewish?\u201d at the synagogue she attends. The High Holy Days end with Yom Kippur, which begins at sundown Sunday.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cMost of our moral laws come from religion,\u201d she added. \u201cThere\u2019s something above us that says some things are right and some are wrong. \u2026 I find it hard to take anyone seriously who won\u2019t admit that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Most moral mavericks quickly change their tunes when the tables are turned, she noted. Truth is, they \u201cwant the freedom to hurt other people, but then they don\u2019t want to be hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Schlessinger has both a Columbia University doctorate in physiology and a post-doctorate certificate in marriage and family counseling. While many call her a conservative, she shuns labels and has even declined to create her own \u2014 other than to call her blunt style \u201cpreaching, teaching and nagging.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Social liberals knock her because she attacks premarital sex, adultery and easy divorces. She says abortion is wrong and that children should be raised by their mothers and fathers \u2014 at home. Most of all, she grills adults who put their own interests ahead of those of children. Meanwhile, some conservatives are not sure she\u2019s pure enough. Many question her acceptance of some gay and lesbian relationships. Others wonder about the sources of her moral code.<\/p>\n\n
While baptized as a Catholic, Schlessinger converted to Judaism as an adult. She also has said that meditation and martial- arts training \u2014 she has a karate black belt \u2014 played roles in her \u201cphilosophical evolution.\u201d She recently offered this on-air summation of her faith: \u201cI am as religious a Jew as I can struggle to be at this point.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Her personal strategy for handling tough issues is to match wits with her rabbi. She also keeps a file of letters and telephone numbers sent in by other clergy \u2014 a valuable resource when handling religious issues on her show.<\/p>\n\n
But most callers already know what\u2019s right and wrong, she said. The problem is that they just don\u2019t want to do it.<\/p>\n\n
A self-proclaimed born-again Christian once said he was separated from his wife and shacked up with another woman. Yes, he knew this was sinful. His problem? Pangs of guilt. Another caller admitted that he felt guilty having sex with his girlfriend. He didn\u2019t want to marry her because she wasn\u2019t a Christian \u201clike he is.\u201d An Orthodox Jewish woman asked for help solving a problem linked to driving on the Sabbath, which is forbidden in Orthodoxy. She got upset when asked to explain her statement that she already was living with her fiance.<\/p>\n\n
Clergy must realize that it isn\u2019t enough, these days, to talk about \u201csin,\u201d said Schlessinger. At some point they will have to risk making sustained arguments in favor of virtue. In her bestseller, \u201cHow Could You Do That?\u201d, she noted: \u201cI am saddened that too many pulpits don\u2019t challenge the folks in the pews (lest attendance drop?) about their personal behaviors in the context of moral choices, which ultimately give dignity to fundamentally animal behaviors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
Her show\u2019s popularity may be evidence of this sad silence. If people can\u2019t find practical answers in places that were once moral sanctuaries, they may turn to other forums \u2014 such as talk radio.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cI guess,\u201d she said, \u201cmy program is filling that gap, somehow, for a great many people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On Yom Kippur, Jews are asked to meditate on their sins, vow to make changes and then soberly face the future. For 10 million-plus radio listeners, this probably sounds like calling in to talk with Laura Schlessinger. While most radio counselors offer moral cosmetic surgery, \u201cDr. Laura\u201d has stormed ahead of the pack by performing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":610,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n