I am very proud of my Jewish heritage. The rites and rituals I grew up with have shaped who I am today. I was also brought up with a healthy skepticism of dogma. Often we would sit at the dinner table and my father would ask what I thought about this idea or that. As a result, there is much about being Jewish that I don't buy- and not just because I'm cheap.
When I say I believe in God- and notice i capitalized the "G" it means that I believe in some power that was there at the Big Bang. Religion Tells me that this power opens a book every year and decides whether I will live o die- and my thought is "not so much."
Still, I believe. There is no proof. I like that. It does not mean that my belief is not rational. The lack of proof strengthens my belief because it is my choice. I choose to believe.
Faith, by definition, is belief in things not seen. Because of this, science and faith do not conflict. Science relies on proof, evidence. the lack of evidence is not proof of non existence. I like that. I choose to believe. As a result of that choice, every experiment that supports evolution does not shake my faith.
I posit that if your faith is threatened by evolution, it isn't a strongly rooted faith. It is interesting to note that the size of the Israeli army shrunk over the years as things got closer to real time. Bill Maher says if I believe in m religion I have to believe in a talking snake- He does not get to mke that call for me. I can believe in the idea of the God that is in the bible without believing in the literal bible.
My understanding of Jewish culture is that we do not believe in Hell. I like that. I am not nice to people so that I can go to Heaven. I am nie to others because it is the right thing to do. End of story.