What I Wish My Christian Friends Knew about Judaism. Robert Schoen

Reform movement originated in Germany during the early nineteenth century. It then began to flourish among German Jewish immigrants to the United States. The Union for Reform Judaism estimates that over one million Reform Jews are affiliated with approximately nine hundred congregations in North America.

      Today, Reform Judaism is a combination of traditional practice and modification of that practice, and it emphasizes a need to interpret the Jewish tradition from a modern and individual perspective. Complete equality of the genders is the rule, and many female rabbis and cantors lead Reform congregations. (My second marriage was performed by a female rabbi and a female cantor.) New chants, hymns, and melodies are continually added to the traditional prayers and sacred music of worship services, and these prayers are written in language that is gender-neutral.

      While at one time the Reform movement did away with traditional prayer garb, it now encourages worshipers to follow their own beliefs and to wear prayer shawls and head coverings if they wish to do so.

      Reform Judaism places decisions regarding rituals and observances more on the individual than Orthodox or Conservative Judaism does. With this individual religious autonomy, many Reform Jews shape a spiritual life for themselves by choosing from among the many holidays, rituals, and “rules” and by finding, over a period of time, which ones allow them to lead the Jewish life and lifestyle that is most comfortable for them. One rabbi I know stresses “informed choice”: first study, then choose.

       To Conservative . . .

      In the late nineteenth century, there was a large increase in the Jewish population in the United States as a result of immigration from Russia and Eastern Europe. Not all of these Jewish immigrants were happy or comfortable with the Reform movement. Eventually, a schism occurred between the more traditional and the more “radical” leaders, and in the early twentieth century, this breakup led eventually to the Conservative movement in Judaism. The United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism estimates that today there are approximately eight hundred affiliated Conservative congregations representing some one and a half million members.

      Conservative Judaism represents a mix of both traditional and more modern views. It accommodates the needs of Jewish life in contemporary society but at the same time accepts the divine inspiration of the law of the Torah. For example, it’s okay to drive to the synagogue. This is because of the difference in lifestyles in the United States versus the traditional small Eastern European Jewish communities of a hundred or more years ago. Today, the need to get to the synagogue on Shabbat from a distance too far to walk overrides the prohibition of “lighting a fire” (starting the car ignition).

      The emphasis of Conservative belief lies between the Reform and the Orthodox. Personal decisions are based not as much on individual conscience as on the accepted practice of the Jewish community, the ritual committees within each congregation, and the guidance of Jewish scholarship through the ages. Conservative Judaism thus tends to be more traditional than Reform Judaism in its services, practices, and beliefs. However, some Conservative congregations appear more “reform” than some Reform congregations and vice versa, and it is not uncommon to find many Conservative congregants quite orthodox in their religious behavior and practices. In addition, clergy members who have trained and graduated from Conservative seminaries sometimes serve in Reform Congregations, and vice versa.

       To Reconstructionist

      Many people in the general population may not have heard of the Reconstructionist movement. It was inspired by the vision of Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, a faculty member of a Conservative rabbinical seminary who helped found a new rabbinical college at the urgings of his students and supporters. Kaplan’s concept was that Judaism is more than just a religion; it is a “civilization” that evolves and progresses and must therefore be “reconstructed”—rediscovered, and reinterpreted on an ongoing basis—to be kept alive.

      In much the same manner as contemporary Conservative and Reform congregations, Reconstructionist congregations embrace a wide variety of traditional and non-traditional Jewish backgrounds, experiences, and lifestyles, and they operate in a gender-neutral environment. The Reconstructionist congregation often decides how it will honor traditional Jewish customs, molding them to accommodate what it considers the realities of modern life.

      While Reconstructionist Jews have a strong commitment to tradition, they also search for contemporary meaning in the liturgy and religious service. If a particular Jewish custom is questionable in view of contemporary society, it will be examined and “reconstructed”; new meanings will be found in the old forms or they will be developed into more meaningful, innovative practices.

      Reconstructionism diverges from Conservative and Reform Judaism in how it views the interpretation of traditional Jewish law and in how far Jewish law can be amended. Reconstructionism also differs from Conservative and Reform Judaism in its concept of ethical monotheism and its belief that the basic tenets of Judaism need to be reexamined and restated for our age. In general, Reconstructionist congregations fall somewhere between Reform and Conservative in terms of religious practice; they may be described as liberal in their ideology. As with many aspects of Judaism, there is a considerable range of practice and belief within the Reconstructionist movement.

      The Jewish Reconstructionist Federation lists more than one hundred congregations in North America. A number of these congregations are organized as havurot. A havurah (singular) is a gathering of Jews who meet to worship and study together. The havurah is a religious group, but it also functions as a fellowship group and an extended family (see “Contemporary Synagogues and Congregations”).

      Although Reconstructionist congregations tend to be small, the concepts and philosophy of the movement have affected modern Jewish belief and practice.

       Contemporary Synagogues and Congregations

      As the nature of society has changed in modern times, so have the Jewish community and, consequently, the synagogue. At one time, Jews lived in small shtetlach (singular shtetl; Yiddish for ghettos, villages, or settlements), closed communities in Eastern Europe or elsewhere. This is generally no longer the case in the United States, except for a few Hasidic communities located in New York and other cities. As Jews became more assimilated into mainstream society, the Jewish community became more disseminated, and Jews now live almost everywhere. As a result, the synagogue has become a place of gathering for Jewish people, a center not only for prayer and study but also for sharing heritage and culture, socializing, and growing within the faith.

      The word synagogue derives from a Greek word that means “to congregate or to gather together.” Evidence has been discovered of synagogues from two thousand years ago. Some congregations call their institution a synagogue, while others call it a temple, a word derived from Latin. The use of the word temple may refer to or be a symbolic reminder of the original temples of Jerusalem that were destroyed centuries ago (see “The Temple”).

      Through the years, synagogues have been built everywhere Jewish people live. Many reflect the architecture of the times or a country’s specific style, whether baroque, Gothic, art deco, or contemporary/modern.

      Some Jewish groups simply call themselves a congregation, while others refer to the synagogue as a shul, which is a Yiddish word that means “school.” Still others organize and support a local community center, which provides a place for community events, nursery or other schools, youth activities, adult education, and often Shabbat services.

      It is not necessary that a congregation have a full-time rabbi and/or cantor on the payroll to function. Often, a small congregation runs its worship services, religious school, and social functions