Born Religious or Picked to be Religious?
Samuel Nathan Kahn was born into the religious world of Judaism but this is not necessarily why he remained religious. Like with anything, it is always easier following what you were taught but just like the rest of the world, it can be challenging to stay an avid believer.
Samuel Kahn has both an English name and a Hebrew name, Shmuel, which is used amongst the more religious communities. He has been no stranger to complications throughout his life. Sam made his mistakes as most people do but even through these mistakes, Sam looked for guidance in g-d. He never gave up faith no matter how hard things got because he always believed that remaining religious and keeping up his learnings would give him answers to help him on his path, which it did.
Everyone has their own level of faith and they have their own belief system and the truth is whatever works for them is great. For Mr Kahn he believes that the reason he has managed to overcome so many obstacles is partly because of his religion and what this teaches him in every learning session he does. Sam also teaches Judaism in open discussions called Shiur you can listen to Sam in action on his youtube page.
Samuel Nathan Kahn encourages his children to learn about Judaism; he has many reasons for this which go beyond the fact that he and they are Jewish.
He believes that religion teaches a sense of belonging and life lessons that everyone could benefit from. Kahn believes that faith is more than religion- it’s a way of life, it’s a culture, it’s your heart. In Judaism, you are taught to lead by example, to be the best person you can be so you can lead others in the right way and this is a lesson that Sam believes everyone should learn.
Sam says “One of my favourite things is finishing work on a Friday and preparing for Shabbat, where the whole family gets together to enjoy a meal and exchange stories and learn about the religion”. On Shabbat you are not allowed to drive, or be on your phone/computer or really do anything, the time should be spent exploring different areas away from business and technology, it gives you the chance to be ‘in the moment’. Samuel Kahn believes it is a really special time and also a lot of fun when he has guests over and gets to exchange stories on religious belief, and not forgetting the beautiful food that goes with it all.
Samuel has always found it fascinating listening to other people’s opinions on Judaism, growing up everyone would have discussions about religion and always asked questions like ‘why, when, where, and how’. Sam believes that this inspired him to ask the same questions in his business life which is part of the reason that he has become a successful businessman.
Everyone is entitled to learn and be whoever they want to be, and Sam promotes education in all areas and enjoys open conversations to encourage his family and friends to ask ‘why’. Sam is not religious because he was born into it- he remained religious because he believes in this journey for himself. Sam has a lot of commitment to his religion and this can only be admired.