By Marge Eiseman Many years ago, I got married in my parents' living room. For years afterwards, every time I walked into that room, I felt the warmth of that day, as if the love still lingered in the walls and the air.
At the time, there just wasn't any good space at our synagogue for a small-ish wedding - either one used the conference room which held 20-30, or the sanctuary, which looked empty with less than 100. Now of course, we could use our new Living and Learning space, one of the five simultaneous additions/renovations of our synagogue that was recently completed.
by William Berkson The latest expression of the principles of Reform Judaism is the six-page "Pittsburgh Principles" of 1999. The book A Vision of Holiness: The Future of Reform Judaism, by Rabbi Richard Levy, begins with this statement, and expands on it to explain it more fully.
One of the questions that was put to focus groups concerned autonomy and mitzvot: "... It is a given that Jews have the autonomous right to choose what beliefs and practices will inform their lives, but for Reform Jews the hard question is the role of Torah and mitzvot in their lives."
Let me propose to you today that, by God, we Reform Jews need a new name. Keep reading for more.
Names are important to us Jews. God gets different names ascribed to him throughout the Torah and many believe each name to be reflection of God's different aspects, the idea that when God does thing X, his name is Y, and when he does thing A, his name is B. And if he were to repeat A later, B would be his name again. But there is one inaccessible, inpronouncable name of God, which we are told is his all-important real name. This could be compared to the fact I might be called Blogger when I blog and Shaliach Tzibur when I lead services, but truly my personal name is David.
By William Berkson As I explained in previous posts, Reform Judaism can become much stronger by serving families. And it can do this by showing how the personal ethics of the Talmud, updated, can powerfully assist sacred relationships, strong marriages and families.
However, before this we first have to convince teens that Judaism can make a difference to their lives. As is well known, there is a huge drop off of students attending religious school after Bar and Bat Mitzvah. What can we teach teens that will be compelling evidence that it will help them to have Judaism as part of their lives?
My perusal of the rest of Rabbi Berman's post and of the Principles page of the SCRJ website leads me to believe that beyond [supporting] an increasingly outmoded aesthetic, there are no differences between SCRJ and the mainstream of the movement. Certainly the ideology the SCRJ labels Classical is no more than standard Reform ideology.
While I am not sure which theological camp is right (or more to the point if any camp can be "right"), it does seem a bit out of place to go to the extremes that have often been supported in posts and comments this blog. My hope for the future of Reform Judaism is that we move past these broad stroke definitions and focus on our mandate to be the light onto the nations, have our youth see those vision and do justice while we walk humbly with our God.
By Larry Kaufman As regular readers of this blog may have noticed through my comments on other people's posts, I've recently returned from a river cruise through Ukraine -- fortunately arriving home before the Georgian crisis erupted -- and want to share some thoughts in three general areas:
Differences between Jewish and secular travel
The changes that appear to have taken place in Ukraine since my prior trip in 2001
By Larry Kaufman My teacher, Rabbi Fred Schwartz, used to remind us that synagogue leaders, both lay and professional, have to remember and cater to the congregation's two constituencies - the Prayers and the Payers.
Just as Torah can stand for the full body of Jewish learning as well as only for the five books of the Pentateuch, the Prayers as the rabbi used the term are not just those who attend services, but include all those who participate on a regular basis in the life of the congregation. The Payers, on the other hand, may be those who show up only for the High Holy Days and perhaps for yahrtzeit, but who unfailingly send in their dues (and maybe even more) to assure the financial stability and continuity of the institution.
By Eboo Patel (First posted on Newsweek/Washington Post's On Faith) "Nobody believes you guys actually exist," I said to the group I was eating dinner with.
I was sitting with the North American Board of Reform Judaism's youth movement (called NFTY) at their summer leadership camp, Kutz.
These five teenagers were responsible for leading programming for thousands of young Reform Jews across the country. This year's study theme: Muslim-Jewish Relations. And these young leaders couldn't be more excited it.
By William Berkson In the previous installment in this series, I pointed out that there has been a quiet revolution in theology of liberal Jews. Most Reform Jews, including Rabbis, have rejected an interventionist God, but still accept and find meaningful a God who gives unity and purpose to the universe and to humanity.
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.
Leslie Bass hails originally from Austin, Texas. This fall she will be a junior at the University of Denver, where she is a double major in Digital Media Studies and Journalism. This July, she will be travelling to Brisbane, Australia to study abroad at the Queensland University of Technology for five months. In high school, she was an active member of NFTY-TOR and board member of her local TYG. She attended the URJ Kutz Camp in the Summer of 2005 and spent the Summers of 2006 and 2007 as Kutz Camp staff.
The article has been the subject of discussion on the Union's iWorship list-serv, and was particularly well summarized there by Dr. Randi Thompson, based on discussion of the article by the Board of Congregation Albert in Albuquerque, led by Rabbi Joe Black. Here's the collective New Mexican take on what Wertheimer said:
Reform Judaism has avoided the decline that Mainline Protestants have experienced by being welcoming to the intermarried and to the GLBT community, inclusive of women, and liturgically diverse.
JanetheWriter Today marks the first anniversary of my visit to Oświęcim, the Polish shetl town in which the Nazis built the Auschwitz concentration camp. Sometimes, still, when I close my eyes, I see the infamous "Arbeit Macht Frei" entry gate and the iconic low brick building that marks the entrance to Birkenau, the neighboring extermination camp. On that long, long day last year, I walked the railroad tracks, stood in the barracks and in the crematoria. I gazed into the glassy water of the pond whose dark depths still cradle the bones and ashes of those whose lives were snuffed out there. I saw their tallitot, their tefillin. I saw their shoes, their eyeglasses, their hair. I saw the canisters of Zyklon B used to kill them. Their names--known and unknown--are indelibly etched in my heart. I know these people. I am a witness to their history--to my history.
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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 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 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.
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 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.
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 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:
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.
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).
Laurance Kaufman My rabbi used to tease me about being a Litvak. Having read Y. L. Peretz, I knew this was not an ethnic pigeon-holing; it was a character assessment. It was Peretz's Litvak who scoffed when the townspeople explained the rebbe's mysterious disappearance early each Elul morning by saying he was visiting Heaven.
Only a Litvak would have followed the rebbe to see where he really went. And perhaps only a Litvak, discovering that the rebbe was disguising himself as a peasant and gathering firewood to see an impoverished elderly widow through the winter, would have commented the next time the townspeople talked about the rebbe going to Heaven, "If not higher."
Green Camp
June 10, 2008
(1 Comment)
At a meeting of URJ Camp directors in early March the Reform Jewish summer camps took the first steps as a system in partnering with FUSE (Faiths United for Sustainable Energy) to work to make camp "greener." Since that time, many camps initiated a partnership with FUSE to demonstrate this commitment to the environment. Lisa David, associate director of URJ Camps explains some of these projects in this new RJ.org podcast.
By William Berkson As I was walking back from the 60th anniversary celebration on the National Mall last Sunday, I was thinking about what I had learned in the past year about the histories of Israeli and American Judaism.
Reform Judaism as a movement was originally opposed to Zionism, and only became Zionist after the rise of Hitler. I had been long aware of this, puzzling at it as an odd fact of history. But over the past year I became aware that there were fundamental issues involved. And it seems that the switch to Zionism took place without really addressing them. And the unresolved issues still are important for the relationship of Reform Judaism--indeed American Judaism as a whole--and Israel.
The two stories behind American and Israeli Judaism are in fact two nearly opposite responses to modern historical events.
By Emily Grotta At the editorial board meeting for Reform Judaism magazine in Pittsburgh, we talked about how we might extend the conversation that began in the latest issue of the magazine.
One member of the editorial board talked of getting Reform Jews of all ages -- particularly teens and college students -- to write about what Reform Judaism means to them in an upcoming issue of the magazine. Another wanted us to reach out to Progressive Jews in the FSU, South Africa, Israel, Europe and elsewhere, creating yet another special section on "Jews of the World."
As a member of the board but also a member of the staff, I try to be as respectful as possible. That means I try to follow the standard brainstorming mantra that no idea is a bad idea. But it's sometimes hard to figure out how to make what is a criticism and add to a suggestion. But this one was easy.
"Teens and college students aren't reading the magazine," I said. "And neither are the Jews abroad. But maybe, just maybe, they'll read and contribute to the blog," I continued.
So here's the challenge: any teens or college students out there? What about the budding Progressive community in the FSU? Please speak up and let us know!
By Marge Eiseman One of my friends asked me today, "Why do we need synagogues?" She and her family used to belong to a big congregation that venerated their building (so much so that many people quit when the old building was sold). Now they are building again, and she's worried that the focus will again be on the building and not what is going on inside. And even though the rabbi and cantor are menschen, she still hasn't joined again.
I have my own reasons for asking the question, since it is the season for renewing membership. We just got the annual letter from the executive director, explaining that we have to choose our dues category. Realistically, I don't think a family that earns $40-50,000 a year can pay $1,639 in dues.
Even if one avoids the "for what?" approach of fee-for-services (no pun intended), it's hard to believe that after food, shelter and clothing, such a large percentage of one's income could be directed this way. The synagogue becomes an elitist institution, or less-affluent congregants have to ask for dispensation on dues, which, even if easily granted, is still mildly embarrassing. Why do we need this affiliation?
I was raised in a small town in Arkansas, total Jewish population 6! Up until the 6th grade, I didn't realize I was that much different from my friends.
However, 6th grade was a turning point--it was the first time I was teased because of being a Jew. I remember it to this day (even though it was 27 years ago), my teacher had asked us to write one word to describe each student in the class. My friend, Kim, wrote "Jew" by my name. After that point, my Jewishness seemed to really make a difference. Whenever my friends and I had a disagreement, they always made a negative remark about me being Jewish. Growing up as the only Jewish child in town, I felt profoundly isolated and alone. I felt like the only Jewish kid on the planet.
Thirty years ago keeping posted, the predecessor to Reform Judaism magazine, was devoted to “What is Reform Judaism?” Editor Aron Hirt-Manheimer wrote that Reform Judaism “is often described in negatives.” Here he talks about the changes since 1978.
By 
Thirty years ago keeping posted, the predecessor to Reform Judaism magazine, was devoted to “What is Reform Judaism?” Editor