Rami Ungar The Writer

I write scary stories. As such, I sometimes have to use the supernatural in my work, something I enjoy doing. But at some point, if you start to write stories about demons and spirits and murderous beings from other dimensions, people are going to ask you, what’s your own beliefs? Do you believe in any of the things you write about? Do you believe in aliens that appear over Boston, like in Ripple (if you want to read that short story, click here: http://www.nthzine.com/fiction_online.php?archiveDisplay=20121105), or do you believe in succubi like that one short story you wrote that you hope to publish?

Well, I thought I’d clear a few things up before I get asked that question. I’ll include about five major things that people will probably ask me about, and unless people want to know more, I’ll leave it at that. Hope you find it informative:

1. God and Satan: I definitely believe in an all-powerful, all-encompassing authority that created our universe and is very active in the day-to-day lives of human beings as well as the changing of the seasons and the orbiting of the planets. I also believe that this Being is called by many names, answers to several of them, and as long as you live a good life and do not do horrible things in your life, eventually He will reward you for your good behavior (when though, I can’t say).

As for Satan…well, I believe there is a being called Satan, but my belief in him is more in line with the traditional views of Judaism, which say he’s more a servant of God with a bad job of tempting good people in order to test their devotion. The view that Satan is the antithesis of God only came later, around the time of Jesus, and it’s more Christian than Jewish belief, so I really don’t follow it, or follow the belief that there’s one being who embodies all evil and is set against the being that stands for all good. Doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy a story involving that bad boy Lucifer, though.

2. Ghosts/Demons/Spirits/Angels: I do believe that there are beings I can’t see, but do have ways to interact and even interfere with the material world. I’ve actually had encounters with ghosts/spirits, leading to some very interesting stories (ask about the time a spirit was pushing against my teeth while I slept). I also believe in demons and angels: there are times when I’ve believed there is something near me that wishes to do me harm, like when I wrote that succubus story and I swear something was summoned because I couldn’t stop thinking about and researching succubi. At the same time, I believe that there are benevolent beings that if you can call them by name will come to your side to protect you. There’s even a prayer in Judaism that calls the four archangels to protect you in time of trouble, and the couple times I’ve used it, I’ve felt like there was something around me protecting me from harm. It’s pretty neat.

Now, if I believe in demons, how can I not believe in one that’s leading a war against Heaven? Well, if humans and demons all have one creator, why does there have to be a king of demons when there isn’t a king of evil humans? Just doesn’t make sense to me.

3. UFOs/Extraterrestrials: I’m a bit of a skeptic on this one. There was actually a class here at OSU I took that explored the subject, and the conclusion was that if there is life out there, it probably is either very basic, like single-cell organisms, or if it’s like humans, it’s probably at the same level of intelligence and technology as humans, so we probably don’t get a lot of visitors from the deep, dark space. I know there are a lot of people who say they’ve been abducted, but then again there are a lot of people who say they speak to Jesus and that they are being investigated by the CIA (who aren’t allowed to do domestic investigations, by the way) because they know how their chocolate fudge recipe relates to the attacks of 9/11, and they all sound alike to me.

No offense meant to those who believe in aliens, though; I just need more substantial proof before I start believing in visitors in ships coming to observe and abduct creatures that, for all our intelligence, still don’t know how to live together without getting into a huge fight.

4. Magic: I believe there are forces that human beings can summon and control with rituals or spells. Such rituals and spells can be found in nearly any group, including Judaism (*cough* mezuzah *cough*), and that each group’s rituals/spells are unique and can do wonderful things when done right. 

I also believe that this can be rather dangerous, especially if you are summoning a spirit or a being with great power, for example, so only take part if you are aware of the risks, you accept them, and you don’t think your particular God will mind if you take part in such a ritual.

5. The Afterlife: Now, here’s where my beliefs aren’t traditional in any sense of the word: I believe that this life is sort of a preparation room, one where, through the choices we make and the actions we take and the people we meet, we’re groomed for a journey we take in the next life (assuming we don’t get stuck in this world as ghosts). What this journey entails or whom we take it with, I can’t say. All I can say is that this journey is specially prepared for us after our deaths, and that at the end of this journey…perhaps then it’s the final destination.

If you’re wondering what Jewish traditions might say about my beliefs, I’ll tell you that the only mention in the Torah of the afterlife is “Sheol”, which is either some sort of pit, or it’s a plain of existence where the dead go. Truth be told, nobody’s really sure what it is, Jewish scholars are well-known to have many different opinions on any number of issues (in fact, the joke goes you get two rabbis together, you’re going to get three different opinions). There’s also something in the Kabbalah that could be seen as reincarnation, but I’m not familiar with it, so who’s to say my beliefs on life after death are out of line with my religion?

Well, that’s all I’m going to say for now. If you want to know my beliefs on the Loch Ness monster or Bigfoot or something along those lines, let me know.

But what I really want to know is:

What are your beliefs? Do they agree or disagree with mine? And what gives you faith in your own beliefs?