Avodah Zarah means "strange work" or "strange worship", and is usually used to mean idol worship which is expressly forbidden by Jewish law. Avodah zarah is worship of the messenger instead of the God who sends the message.
God exists. In the space between us and God, there are lots of intermediaries: angels and demons, souls and spirits. Angels help to connect us to God. Demons try to disrupt that connection. Their are souls of tzaddikim and of our ancestors who can guide us. Who we meet in the spirit realm is largely up to us. If we do the work on ourselves, then our good deeds create angels. If we don't, we will face our own failings and fears.
There are objects in the world that have spiritual power. Tefillin are a good example. They radiate their own power and amplify our own spiritual power. They are good lenses for the transmission of God into the world.
Avodah Zarah is forgetting that God exists behind and through all of the intermediaries and worshiping the intermediaries as gods. Avodah Zarah is worshiping the messenger.
Photo courtesy of Voyageur Solitaire-mladjenovic_n
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Very interesting- I think there is a huge misconception on the idea of Avodah Zorah which has left Jews for many years stranded without a strong tie to the spiritual realm of Judaism. Many Mekubal's (Kabbilists) who have a family lineage and were taught by thier ancestors are able to still connect with the spiritual realm, but many of us are lost not knowing what we are ALLOWED to do when it comes to spiritual work, meditation, and the like. I have been very blessed to come in contact with many strong Kabbalists throughout my life who have taught me that connecting with a shamanic journey or a meditation which brings you in contact with spiritual entities is completely alright as long as you do not involve the idea of other gods or deities- we should recognize and be very aware there is an ultimate or universal energy and between us and that source there are many different levels of spiritual beings. It is completely alright to connect with spiritual entities as long as we know that these are secondary to hashem (G-D), and we can use these relationships with other spiritual beings as a way to get closer to Hashem and help us with our own personal journeys in our life. I believe that worshipping and bowing down to idols or things that portray these other entities is Avodah Zorah- but to communicate and learn from other spiritual entities is definitely a different concept and does coincide with Avodah Zorah .
There have been many great rabbis to have abilities to connect with the spiritual realms- Baal Shem Tov, The Chabad Rebbe- Manachem Mendel, and many more. These great righteous individuals were definitely a type of Shaman or spiritual healer- titles really do not matter. What does matter is they were aware and communicated and probably learned with other spiritual beings very often, and the idea that they were doing any sort of Avodah Zorah probably never crossed anyone's minds- because they certainly were not doing Avodah Zorah but Avodah Hashem with the guidance of other spiritual beings. So, even though these days, most are wrapped in the idea of Fear and worry of crossing the lines of spirituality, I believe the root of Judaism is to connect with Hashem and the realms he places between us and him. I believe through spiritual guidance we are able to move forward in our journeys and grow to the spiritual level we are meant to reach.
-Daniel Miller
Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture Student
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