Below are some resources to help you feel supported, stimulated, and entertained in your ongoing journey out of religion.
Support
Reddit – the ex Jew community is very supportive and allows interaction in an anonymous space.
Footsteps – a NY based non profit to help people transition out of religion. They are open minded and very helpful.
Hillel – the Israeli equivalent of footsteps. Not related to the student union group.
Humor
Brick Testament – someone took the time to create the entire bible in all its gory, in Lego form. Honorable mention goes to King David’s pile of foreskins, made of Lego.
Tim Minchin is a brilliant and scathing musician, several of his songs specifically mock God and religion.
Ricky Gervais brings a special type of British sarcasm to his ongoing atheistic bashing of religion.
Movies & Videos
One of Us – an excellent documentary produced in part by Footsteps, currently available on Netflix, about three individuals who leave religion, and the repercussions of their choices.
The Awakening of Motti Wolkenbruch – a swiss comedy about a young man who leaves religion. Currently available on Netflix.
Cosmic Sceptic – a very articulate, young British atheist addresses common theological issues and debates.
Hayehudim Ba’im – “The Jews Are Coming, היהודים באים” an excellent Israeli satire, many of whose segments parody biblical figures and scenes from the bible.
Ill Mind of Hopsin 7 – This hip hop song is the most accurate portrayal of both the frustrations and issues in believing in a non-existent God.
Books
The God Delusion – the seminal book by all time skeptic extraordinaire, Richard Dawkins.
All Who Go do Not Return – a poignant and personal story of Shulem Deen’s journey out of religion.
Beware of God – a series of satirical stories mocking Jewish religion and culture.
Sapiens is consistently one of the best books that people say changed their perspective on religion and life itself. Although it doesn’t even talk about religion directly, it completely restructures how we think about the universe and being human, which is particularly important for ex-religious people who grew up thinking the world is 6,000 years old and that humans are the most important thing in existence.
Websites & Articles
Patheos’ overview of Judaism. An excellent, 3rd party presentation of early Judaism’s origins and progressions. Highly recommended for getting a different perspective on how Judaism came about, how different it used to be, and how Rabbinic Judaism came to play the role that it did today.
Judaism is not a major player in the history of humankind – a refutation of the oft-cited claim that Jews have had a unique contribution to the world and have been a “light unto” the nations” throughout history, from Yuval Noach Harari, the author of Sapiens.
A parody by The Onion of the supposed age of the universe.
We are not lost – An articulate opinion piece about the Orthodox attitude towards ex Jews. From the website OffTheDerech.org
