David Lang

religious or a substitute religious piece.

That idea that we could have a better life than the life we are living, that's a very beautiful and I think necessary idea in order to live.

I do think that that's something that religion has, but it's not the only place where you can find that message.

But I do think that that's the message that's behind this piece, and I do think it's the message behind that book.

I think The Wealth of Nations is Adam Smith's idea, not just a description of how things work and not just charting how things evolved, but it's his imagination about how everyone in the world gets along.

I try to, in my studies, think of how what I learn can make me a better contemporary American.

A lot of these ideas that I have about looking around and seeing hypocrisy and looking around and imagining a utopian world, they're all things that come from reading the Bible and seeing how far away we are from a world we might possibly be in, or imagining how living up to the standards that I think my religion and probably all religions hold for us

might actually be useful and why is it we don't live up to those standards that we profess for ourselves.

Absolutely.

This is where I think religion comes in and faith comes in, at least for me.

is when you are exhorted as many times as we are to welcome the stranger and to be kind to the poor and to help people who need our help.

We're exhorted so many times because the texts know that we are not actually doing this as much as we could be doing it.

I was raised in a moderately religious environment to moderately religious parents.

These are Jewish immigrants to LA, is that right?

That's right.

And I am myself, you know, intermittently religious, I would say.

I go through periods where I get closer and farther away.

What does a close period feel like?

Well, I've gone through periods where I've, you know, kept completely kosher, and I've gone through periods where I've gotten farther away.

And do you study and go to shul, things like that?