By Steve Arnold One of the things that attracted me to Judaism in the first place was the sense of community that has always been such a part of Jewish life. I never really understood what true community means, however, until my wife died April 23.
On that terrible night one of the first calls I made at midnight was to Rabbi Jordan Cohen who came immediately and stayed with me for three hours in my parking lot while my home was invaded by a succession of police and coroner wondering why an otherwise healthy 56-year-old woman had simply died in her sleep. The real embrace of community came days later when funeral arrangements had been made and it was time to clean a house that had suffered from years of cleaning neglect.
By Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie I have just returned from a week in Israel. I met privately with Foreign Minister Tsippi Livni, Leader of the Opposition Benjamin Netanyahu, and a half dozen other ministers and Knesset members. I also joined a small delegation of Jewish Agency leaders for a meeting with Prime Minister Olmert. In addition, of course, I had extensive meetings with leaders of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism.
A few impressions: In many ways, Israel's situation has never been better. Unemployment is the lowest in 20 years. The economy grew at a rate of more than 5% for the first quarter of 2008. The hotels are full and tourism is at an all-time high. Reform congregational groups are everywhere, and I was delighted to meet Reform congregational leaders and rabbis wherever I turned. On the political front, a ceasefire is in place in Gaza, Israel is negotiating with Syria, and there has been quiet on the northern border for almost two years.
By David A.M. Wilensky As readers ofReform Judaism magazine will recall, the RJ magazine's summer 2008 issue included a series of important questions regarding the Reform Movement and their answers as given by 30 adult members of the Reform Movement.
I'm currently at the URJ Kutz Camp with a group of people who will be the future lay and professional leadership of the Reform movement in North America. I'll be using many of them as well as many of the younger Kutz staff members this summer in a series of posts here on the RJ.org blog, in which I will be asking Reform high school and college students (and perhaps a few 20-somethings) for their take on Reform Judaism via questions similar to those used in the magazine.
Josh Levin lives in Sarasota, Florida. He is a senior in high school. This year Josh will be the Religious and Cultural Vice President for the North American Federation of Temple Youth's Southern Tropical Region. Josh has three summers of experience at the Kutz, NFTY's Campus for Reform Jewish Teens. Next year, he plans to attend the University of Florida.
By Mary Hofmann I think comfort is based on a perception of competence . . . you can't feel comfortable when you don't understand what's going on and don't know how to act appropriately in a given environment.
People come to Judaism with great trepidation, intimidated by the enormity of what they don't know. Often worse, Jews born to Judaism but raised in a totally secular environment, feel even more intimidated by all they think they should know in their very genetic structure, and don't - so they stay away, embarrassed and defensive. We want to be welcoming, but the sheer amount of knowledge the aspirant lacks might well be forming an insurmountable wall for many.
By William Berkson Ok, folks. I'm peeved. I'm just curious if others are irritated by this kind of thing. Last week Dr. James Dobson said that Sen. Barack Obama was deliberately distorting "the traditional interpretation of the Bible" when he pointed out that the plain reading of Leviticus prohibits eating shellfish, and that the Defense Department would have a problem with Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Sen. Obama's point was that political leaders would be wiser by not being sectarian in their arguments for public policy--which I thought was a pretty good point.
The floods in the Midwest have displaced hundreds of thousands of people, destroyed billions of dollars of crops and business and the clean-up is only beginning. Rabbi Lane Steinger is the regional director for the Union's Midwest Council. Between filling sand bags along the Mississippi and helping the congregations hardest hit by the floods he joined us by phone to give us an update from St. Louis.
By Mark Young I recently had the honor of being included in several chapters of the RJ Guide - Reform Judaism 30 Stories. If you didn't yet make it all the way to Section VI-Making a Difference, here is part of what I wrote:
These days, one of the greatest joys for my wife Jane and me is when our 24-year-old musician son visits children's convalescent hospitals with us, our temple's mitzvah group, and recently our cantor and junior choir. Many of the patients we see have profound congenital disabilities and will never fully recover. Some people think they're unable to communicate, but we've learned this is far from the truth.
By David A.M. Wilensky As readers ofReform Judaism magazine will recall, the RJ magazine's summer 2008 issue included a series of important questions regarding the Reform Movement and their answers as given by 30 adult members of the Reform Movement.
I'm currently at the URJ Kutz Camp with a group of people who will be the future lay and professional leadership of the Reform movement in North America. I'll be using many of them as well as many of the younger Kutz staff members this summer in a series of posts here on the RJ.org blog, in which I will be asking Reform high school and college students (and perhaps a few 20-somethings) for their take on Reform Judaism via questions similar to those used in the magazine.
Edie Joseph currently lives in Gainesville, Florida. She grew up at URJ Camp Harlam, attended Kutz in 2005, and in 2007 received a Bronfman Youth Fellowship in Israel. She will be attending Yale University as a freshman in the fall.
This week the j. jewish news weekly of northern california published a story about how Congregation Sha'ar Zahav was instrumental in expanding health care coverage to thousands of people in the city of San Francisco. How did they do it? Through Congregation Based Community Organizing. I sat down with Lila Foldes, assistant director of Just Congregations to learn more about Congregation Based Community Organizing.
By Gardening Grandma All newspapers are in trouble, but the impact of the Internet is perhaps most keenly felt in the Jewish media, those community papers which aims to deliver local, national and international news to a miniscule audience. Those are big challenges for papers with small staffs and tiny budgets.
By JanetheWriter This morning, a friend emailed me to relate the less than menschleichkeit goings-on she'd witnessed during her bus ride to work. The key players were a blind man, his companion and a woman who, among other bus etiquette transgressions, wouldn't switch seats when the blind man and his companion boarded so that the two could sit together. (Talk about putting a stumbling block before the blind...) At the end of her note to me, my friend said, "Not a lot of Jewish values going on in the city this morning."
Earlier in the day, I'd read in the New York Times that the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the ADA Amendments Act (H.R. 3195) yesterday by a 402-17 vote.
By Mary Hofmann While I enjoyed reading the many perspectives of the contributors to Reform Judaism this month, I was truly saddened by the plight of Elise Silverfield May and those in her situation (which includes a whole lot of us, on a lot of levels!)--the perceived high price tag of being Jewish (page 61 or online here).
Her particular alarm rang concerning the temple members' expectations around her son's upcoming bar mitzvah, which were terrifyingly grandiose. This concern connects well with Rabbi Yoffie's comments at the Biennial regarding congregants reclaiming Shabbat morning services from the grip of private "parties." If we don't want Reform Judaism to become increasingly about status and wealth, I believe this problem needs to be addressed both in terms of reclaiming both the sanctuary and the sanctity of the event. I guess it has to do with the values established at each congregation--and all of our opportunities (and obligations?) to revision those values regularly.
By Richard J. "Dick" Israel The grand panjandrum of this blog (aka the editor) has decreed that I post or be forever exiled. I must confess that up to now my contribution has been non-existent, but I attribute that to a lifelong (by now that's pretty long) notion I have indulged that those who speak the most have the least to say. That includes yours truly. Nonetheless, in all fairness to those who have been striving to enlarge lay contribution to the evolution of our otherwise clergy heavy Reform Judaism, let me strive to comply by exposing some stray ideas which have drifted through my thoughts recently.
First, I tend to consider Reform Judaism as an association of generally like-minded Jewish people who can share religious worship and religiously derived social service activism with each other. That sharing includes financial as well as personal support to the best of each person's ability. I believe, also, in the utmost freedom of belief. I care not what any fellow Reform Jew believes, so long as we can worship together congenially. I care not what religious observances or practices any such fellow worshipper feels to be obligatory, optional or down-right silly, so long, of course, as that fellow worshipper accords me the same indifference.
By dcc I have a conundrum: I consider myself a Classical Reform Jew. I do not view the mitzvot as a to-do (or to-don't) list. I feel connected to ethical regulations, while I have no desire to return to the Temple. I am a Kohen, but have publicly renounced my priesthood. However, I don't eat pork or shellfish at home.
Reform, not Reformed, Judaism is fluid and over the years, the Movement has been in a constant state of flux, being true to this name. Some of our younger members have seen fit to return to traditions long regarded as out of date, while older members of our community remain Classical in their observance. I fall somewhere in between; I suppose I am a neo-Classical Reform Jew.
By Marge Eiseman Jewish life is going on summer vacation. The last few bar and bat mitzvah celebrations will happen this week, and then the synagogue calendars (and buildings) will be empty except for regular Shabbat worship. And even then, with our service held outdoors on Friday night, we just walk through the building to get to the back lawn!
Is this a leftover from an agricultural society? How many of our regular congregants really take off for the summer? I understand that many of the children might go to summer camp, but I firmly believe there is still a vibrant community left "in town."
By David A.M. Wilensky As readers of Reform Judaism magazine will recall, the RJ magazine's summer 2008 issue included a series of important questions regarding the Reform Movement and their answers as given by 30 adult members of the Reform Movement.
I'm currently at the URJ Kutz Camp with a group of people who will be the future lay and professional leadership of the Reform movement in North America. I'll be featuring many of them as well as many of the younger Kutz staff members this summer in a series of posts here on the RJ.org blog, in which I will be asking Reform high school and college students (and perhaps a few 20-somethings) for their take on Reform Judaism via questions similar to those used in the Magazine.
Jade Sank is a 17-year-old recent high school graduate. In the fall she will attend Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York. Jade was a member of NFTY-GER, serving as the 2007-2008 NFTY-GER Secretary. She attended the URJ Kutz Camp in the summer of 2006 and the Urban Mitzvah Corps in the summer of 2007. This summer, she is hard at work as a member of the Avodah staff of the URJ Kutz Camp.
What has belonging to a congregation (or a Temple Youth Group or a Kesher group or going to a URJ camp etc.) that is part of the larger Reform Movement meant to you? Belonging to my congregation, my TYG, NFTY, Kutz, and Urban Mitzvah Corps has meant everything to me. My eyes have been opened by the millions of ways that I can get involved and make connections not only on a North American scale but a world scale. By becoming involved in many different ways I have achieved small goals that will eventually help the Reform Movement become stronger. The best part about being part of the larger movement is that through the small things I do, I will see the results on a larger scale.
By dcc My dad is a science guy and likes to explain things like floods, earthquakes and mega-storms in terms that none of us can understand. But last week, at the height of the Midwest flooding, he handed me his copy of the LA Times and said, "That bridge is a house colander."
He was referring to the picture of houses that had been swept off their foundations and flowed downriver until they were jammed against a steel-beamed bridge. Now, this engineering marvel, which usually towers over the river below, was reduced to stopping homes from continuing their trip down river. This is no time for explanations - it is time for action.
For years the Union has been know for its relief funds. Individuals, congregations and other groups know that if a check is sent to the Union's relief funds, 100% of the money will find its way into the hands of those who need it most. From natural to man-made disasters and everything in between, the Union sends funds to areas in need in record time. These Midwestern floods are no different. And some very interesting people are taking note of the Union's services.
By William Berkson In the first installment, I argued that Judaism shouldn't try to do without God, because then it will lack the power to inspire us. That raises the question of whether modern science leaves open the door to God, to religion.
There is still a strong movement that says science has superseded religion. This movement, known as "positivism" started with Auguste Comte (1798-1857). Comte had the theory that there were historical three stages in the development of understanding of the world: religious, then metaphysical, then scientific or "positive." Science should sweep aside all religious and metaphysical explanations, and scientific theories of society, in particular, would advance humanity to an ideal condition.
Originally, the idea that the world consists only of "atoms and the void," and lacks any guiding purpose had been championed by the Epicurus (341-270 BCE). The Epicureans were unique in the ancient world in denying Providence--that God, or many gods, had a guiding influence on humanity. For that reason, the Jewish sages condemned them and said, "Know what to answer to an Epicurean." (Avot 2:19) Because there are leading scientists who still champion the idea that science has superseded religion, "knowing what to answer" is still a vital issue.
By JanetheWriter In today's Ten Minutes of Torah and in a recent blog post, Dr. Dvora Weisberg--briefly--and Larry Kaufman--more extensively--discuss tallitot. Clearly, they are the topic of the day, reminding me of the first time I observed the commandment to l'hitateif batzitzit--wrap ourselves in the fringes.
Although I was married, gainfully employed in the Jewish world and even an active member of a synagogue, I was thousands of miles from home and family, and often found myself alone--socially, spiritually, and emotionally. Seeking community and acting on an ad I'd seen in the Jewish Journal of Los Angeles, I began to attend "Shabbat Resounds," the once-a-month, student-led Shabbat morning service at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Held in the lobby of the school's building, the service was filled with joyful worship and music, which, together with the sunbeams, did, indeed, resound into the unique architectural crevices of the space before bouncing back down to us.
The time has come to engage in dialogue with our Muslim neighbors and to educate ourselves about Islam.
Dialogue is especially critical now. We live in a world in which religion is manipulated to justify the most horrific acts and where Islamic extremists constitute a profound threat. When fanatics kill in the name of God, sensible religious people have an obligation to do something about it.
What is our task? To find the voices of moderation and to reclaim from the fanatics the true essence of religious belief. To do this, we must know what Islam truly stands for and engage in dialogue with our Muslim neighbors.
By JanetheWriter A few months ago, during an informal visit in my apartment from my parents, my sister and my nephew Ian, I was stretched out on the living room floor and Ian, as five-year-olds are want to do, was walking on my back and climbing all over me. When his weight hit a spot that made my back crack, I groaned, "Oh, Ian, just call me your personal Uncle Irv," before squirming out from under all 40-something pounds of him.
"Like mother, like son...like aunt, like nephew," I thought.
Outside-the-box social justice groups like PJA are responding to a communal establishment that has narrowed its vision to the twin issues of Israel and anti-Semitism by developing innovative programs dealing with a range of issues, from fair housing to sweat shops to support for Hispanic immigrants.
By Larry Kaufman It's the custom in our congregation for the person who presents the d'var Torah to pose questions for discussion by the kahal, the community. Leading the discussion on Shelach Lecha, I noted that this parashah includes the commandment to wear fringes, a commandment that was essentially negated in Reform Judaism by the Pittsburgh Platform of 1885, the negation remaining in force for well over a hundred years.
"In a world where matters of faith seem so often and so tragically to divide us, there is no issue which aligns us more deeply than our shared dependence upon and sacred responsibility to this tiny planet, enfolded within its fragile atmosphere, spinning in the vastness of time and space."
Kyoto and Bali agreements calling for worldwide reductions in CO2 emissions are a critical step in the world challenge to reduce our dependence on our diminishing world oil supplies.
By David Fair The Reform Movement in America is well over a hundred years old. In that time, our movement has developed and expanded many customs and ways of life that reflect a culture, rich with tradition and background. Yet it's a rare week when I don't hear one of our congregational leaders give a sermon where we are not compared to the more conservative movements of Judaism. What I hear the most is how we are justified in not following the Conservative and Orthodox customs of Kashrut, Shabbat, fasting holidays, and the like.
By Bryan Freehling I began observing kashrut not when I converted to Reform Judaism thirteen years ago, but when I became a vegetarian almost three years ago. Although I considered observing kashrut upon becoming a Jew, my life partner of fifteen years who had kept kosher until he was 21, was not too amiable to that notion. However, after the passing of our beloved canine companion, Bella, both of us chose to become vegetarian.
Real peace will come to the Middle East when both Israelis and Palestinians accept each other's story as 'legitimate'. People may have strong feelings about the 'other' side of the story but have to accept that each side feels it's case is the truth.
By Rabbi Richard Address In developing our project on the aging of the baby boomers (Sacred Aging) a host of questions have emerged. Many have to do with how we, given the gift, we pray, of longevity, can continue to answer God's question of Genesis 3: "where are you?" (ayecha) So, I decided to try and start a small dialogue on our blog about these issues.
By William Berkson As I was writing my second post on Israel and the Jewish community worldwide, the outstanding journalist and real 'mensh' Tim Russert dropped dead. And he was younger than me. That made me think: I'd better start posting first on what I think is most important. So here will start a series of posts laying out a vision of how to strengthen Reform Judaism. I would love your comments on where you think I am going right or wrong with this vision, and what you'd add or change.
By Gardening Grandma I suspect I'm not alone in finding myself looking my own mortality more squarely in the face because of Tim Russert's untimely death. As the outpouring of emotion and tributes attest, he died doing something he absolutely loved. He clearly relished his work, making each moment he was on air count, but he also made sure there were plenty of moments for his private life.
How often have you heard someone say, "That's the way I want to go," when they hear about someone who was here one moment, and then, suddenly, is not in the world any more?
By JanetheWriter Last week, I drafted--and ultimately scraped--a post for this blog because after it was written, I came to realize that not only was it much too personal for the vast world of cyberspace, but also, because I wrote it in anger after someone challenged my belief in the Jews' covenantal relationship with God, I wanted to give myself some time to reflect on what I was saying.
Then I read the article in the New York Times quoting a letter from Abraham Foxman to Pastor John Hagee in which Foxman writes, "We look forward to meeting with you to promote a dialogue between Christians and Jews based on mutual respect, reconciliation and the recognition of God's eternal covenant with the Jewish people." Since Foxman raised the covenantal issue with Hagee, I've reconsidered my scraped post and, after a lot of thinking, I'm giving it another shot:
My daughter graduated from high school Saturday. The weather changed from cold and rainy to a sunny 80 degree day. The plague of cicadas awaited for 17 years and due to arrive by now were yet to emerge from the ground. I arrived early and got a front row seat knowing that I could not miss seeing my beloved child on this special day. It was Shabbat and all was right.
A short piece on the editorials and letters page in Friday's New York Times suggests that according to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, "the Lower East Side is one of the 11 most endangered places in America..." The article mentions several neighborhood landmarks, including The Eldridge Street Synagogue which, following a recently completed multi-million dollar restoration is now known as the Museum at Eldridge Street.
Dating from 1887 and widely known to be the first synagogue built "from scratch" in America by Eastern European Jews, the continuously operational Eldridge Street Synagogue is an architectural, cultural and historical gem. This Sunday's "Egg Rolls and Egg Creams" Festival celebrates the rich heritage and history of the immigrants--Jewish, Chinese, Italian, and others--for whom the neighborhood was the "Plymouth Rock" in their pilgrimage to America. Indeed, it was so for my grandparents, and on this Father's Day weekend, it is most fitting to honor them--our grandmothers and our grandfathers--for their moxie in making the journey and ensuring a better life for us all.
Michelle Boorstein of the Washington Post has been observing the dialogue between members of a synagogue and a mosque in the Washington area. She writes:
Such dialogue is often a balancing act: hopeful yet guarded; genuine yet superficial; teetering on the precipice of the most emotional subjects but often stepping back. Rare efforts such as this one, which ended June 1, go beyond a single mass event and seek more depth and intimacy.
By Rabbi Stacey Blank In Israel, even in Reform synagogues, most of the kids who have an aliyah to the Torah when they turn 13 are boys. There are very few girls. It is still not common for girls to have an aliyah to the Torah in Israel (though everyone has a party!). In a country where women fought side-by-side the men in the 1948 War of Independence, where women hold important positions in government, and where women run major corporations, it is hard to believe that girls by and large are not encouraged to enter the religious sphere.
Having reached the age of 62, I thought I had experienced most Jewish life-cycle events: my own confirmation and marriage, the birth of children, brit milah and pidyon haben for our son, bar and bat mitzvah of our children, the death of a parent and grandparents, and the marriage of our daughter. However, last weekend I added another to the list - the naming of our first grandchild. Like many young adults, her parents are not yet affiliated with a synagogue. They identify as Jews, but shun established institutions.
They waited until she was 9 months old to create their own ritual. I think it was worth the wait.
Digital Torah
June 11, 2008
(10 Comments)
Over the past 22 months, Cantor Alane Katzew, director of Music Programming for the Union, has headed a project to digitally record every line of the Torah. Using the same cantillation and tone throughout the entire project of the 5,845 verses, Cantor Katzew and her 22 expert chanters completed the project the Friday before Shavuot.
Cantor Penny Kessler, one of the chanters, is pictured (right) in the "Cantor-in-a-box" recording studio at the Union's offices in New York.
Press play to hear a digital recording about the digitization of the Torah.
By Elise May I received a phone call yesterday that really bothered me. It was from a local Jewish organization that my young son and I belong to. The person (let's call her Miss Smith) was calling to inform me that I was behind in my membership fees. I explained that I send in as much as I can each month when I receive a bill. I was absolutely appalled to be asked, "Is $20 and $30 a month the best you can do?" If that is the amount I am sending in, one might think that is all I can afford, right? The call ended by Miss Smith basically saying that if I do not get caught up with the fees, my son and I won't be able to continue our membership.
To their credit, this organization did offer us a lower fee than the standard membership fee, but it is still much more than I can pay. Thus, I have been sending the $20-$30 per month. After this recent conversation, I feel completely unwelcome and don't know if I want to continue my membership (even if I could somehow get caught up).
By dcc No, it isn't a joke. Rev. Paul Harmon and Rabbi Yossi Liebowitz, better know as "The Cap and The Collar," a guitar strummin', folk singin', religious-harmony promotin' duo, have been together since their first performance in 2003 at the Rotary Club Thanksgiving in Spartanburg, SC. Recently, the two were profiled in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal.
This is the kind of thing that is often overlooked in interfaith workshops or programs. These two regular guys like playing guitar and decided to do so together. Regardless of the fact that they are men of the cloth, they are friends and found common ground in music.
By Michael B. Snyder On the occasion of my second marriage, 20 years ago, I bound myself to a woman whose spiritual path had taken her from being born outside of Judaism, to Reform Judaism, to Conservative Judaism, and most recently to the Conservative rabbinate.
My own background had been solidly within Reform Judaism up to our marriage. Having been exposed to Conservative Judaism through my wife, I have grown perhaps more traditional in my own practice than is the case for most Reform Jews. Thus I stand on the cusp of those two branches of the tree of American Judaism.
By dcc A few weeks ago--even if they didn't know it--the seven California Supreme Court justices gave the state a much needed economic booster shot. The Golden State, often a bellwether of social and economic trends throughout the US, is feeling the pinch of the credit and housing collapse. However due to the Court's ruling on the unconstitutional ban on same-sex marriage, the State's economy may see a finacialupswing, reports NPR's Morning Edition.
California has been working with a major budget deficit for years and the millions of GLBT couples who wish to get married (and spend $684 million dollars on these weddings) may add as much at $64 million to the state budget, closing the gap between the red and green in California.
By Marge Eiseman This Shabbat, we will observe my mom's 17th yahrzeit and then on Monday morning, I'll be saying kaddish for her again at the Yizkor service on the festival of Shavuot. Yizkor means remember. What could be more important than that?
I attended a session on "How to Talk to Your Children about God and Death" on a recent Sunday morning at Congregation Sinai. In the room with me were two women whose husbands had died, leaving them young widows with children, and besides myself, there were at least one or two other bereaved parents. There were people who referred to the death of their own siblings or parents, and yet none of them ever attend the Yizkor services that occur during the year. I don't even know if they attend on Yom Kippur afternoon, but it's the most likely one if they do.
By 
