Rabbis from Orthodox and Reform backgrounds brought their insights into Jewish mysticism to a New Brunswick synagogue this month.

And while they may have started from very different places, they both arrived at a destination where those looking to rise above the material and ordinary could find resources in Jewish tradition.

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, the noted Israeli scholar perhaps best known for his translation of the Talmud into modern Hebrew and English, spoke Oct. 17 at Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple in New Brunswick on How To Live a Spiritual Life in a Materialistic Time.

Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, author of a series of influential books on Jewish mysticism and spirituality, spoke Oct. 22 on Kabbalah: A Reform Approach, reading passages from his book Kabbalah: A Love Story.

The two appeared as part of a "Symposium in Jewish Mysticism" sponsored by the synagogue"s Keepers of Jewish Excellence Fund. A third speaker, Australian scholar Lee Slavutin, spoke Oct. 14.

The theme of taking stock of one"s life ran through both talks, which were tinged with both serious topics and humor.

"What I got from both is that you have to keep watch of your soul," said David Laveman, who helped put together the programs with Anshe Emeth"s senior rabbi, Bennett Miller.

In his talk, Kushner commented on the differences between genuine Kabala, the Jewish mystical tradition, and the pop brand practiced by Madonna and other celebrities.

"Real Kabala is when you use your study of Kabala to heal the divine," said Kushner, the scholar-in-residence at Congregation Emanu-El of San Francisco and visiting professor of Jewish spirituality at the Graduate Theological University in Berkeley. "Jewish Kabala is not when you use it to get a hot stock tip."

Those who for centuries performed mitzvot only for the sake of performing a mitzvot were, in essence, acting as "God"s chiropractors," and expecting God to reply, "Thanks, I needed that," he said.

Kushner said the practice of continually dissecting and "recreating ourselves" through the study of sacred texts is "an enterprise unique to Judaism."

The master text of Kabala is the Zohar, a book once so revered that "for 400 years more Jews could quote Zohar than Talmud," said Kushner.

Kabala, with its mystical overtones, bears a similarity to Eastern theology with its emphasis on the feminine dimension of the divine and infusion of divine presence into everyday events.

The erotic yearning that can be found on the Zohar"s pages, explained Kushner, can be interpreted as: "It makes me happier to do what my lover wants than what I want. In loving someone else, we have a heightened sense of self."

Like Kushner, Steinsaltz also drew a connection between human action and divine reaction.

"Life is identical with the divine," he said. "We can never believe in a dead God.

"Wherever there is life, there is beauty, wherever there is death or anything that resembles death, that is the opposite of the divine," said Steinsaltz, author of The Thirteen Petalled Rose, a classic work on Jewish mysticism. "Being connected means you say it is for the love of God you are going to do something."

Steinsaltz, with his long beard and traditional garb, said he did not feel out of place in the Reform setting.

"What do I have to offer Reform Jews?" laughed Steinsaltz in response to a question asked during an interview with NJJN prior to his appearance. "I can offer Reform Jews a lot. The problem is, what can they offer me? Let me ask you the other way around: Can they tell me something I"ve not heard before? I"ve read their literature."

Then he leaned over and said, "I speak to a lot of people who are not Jewish. Some of my best friends are Reform rabbis. It is no problem for me. They asked me to teach, to say something. The problem for them is that if I am successful, I am spoiling them."

Miller said bringing in an Orthodox scholar made perfect sense. "Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz is one of the greatest Jewish scholars of this era," he said. "Certainly every Jew can learn something from him."

Later in the program, Steinsaltz told his audience that they had "a big advantage" because they were not "bogged down" by rabbis telling them how to go to the mikva or how much salt to use.

"You begin with a clean mind, which to us is a great thing," said Steinsaltz.

He later returned to his main theme — those who put the material ahead of the spiritual.

"They want to drive a bigger boat, have a bigger, more shiny timepiece," said Steinsaltz. "That timepiece that costs $10,000; does it give better time, more efficient time than the timepiece that costs $50? You have a car that you can drive 200 miles per hour. How many of you ever drive 200 miles per hour?"

Such items, he said, are symbols of baser inclinations, like being envious or boastful.

"They are really evil spirits; they are devils," said Steinsaltz. "We don"t really care about these things. We don"t really enjoy these things. We are chasing devils. These devils are ghosts of dead desires."