On our Tiyul to HUC, we heard four different people speak about their stream of Judaism that they practice; reform, modern orthodox, ultra orthodox, and a conservative. They talked about their family history, how they adapted their religion, and some struggles that they went through when practicing.
The main difference between the different strands of Judaism is how much we believe that God has impacted our lives and how strictly they follow to Torah and the ten commandments. In Reform Judaism we are taught to constantly question what we are being told, to explore different elements of our Judaism. It’s an inclusive community where everyone should feel comfortable being who they are, and believing their own beliefs; even if it means they do not believe in God. We are able to mold the torah around our own ethics, and shift it to align in what we believe in. We use Judaism to help form us as people and the values we live our lives by.
In the Orthodox community, it seems as if their entire life revolves around God and praying. The Ultra Orthodox communities are very sheltered to the outside world, and selective to what they allow their children to see. Most of their lives are gender separate; men and women do not pray together, and starting at age three boys and girls go to different schools. Genders often don’t collide until a couple meets to see if they are suitable for marriage. Men wake up especially early to go to temple and pray, and then the rest of their day is shaped around when they need to pray. God plays a very big role in their lives, most orthodox believing that God has already planned out their entire life. They also believe that their souls will never leave Earth because it is a part of God, and God is eternal.
The bridge between these two streams is Conservative. Conservatives preserve the tradition elements of Judaism, while also allowing people to modernize it. They see the Halacha as an element that unites people, saying it’s important but not crucial. I believe that being a Conservative Jew is very similar to being a Reform Jew because you are allowed to modernize and change it.
Something new that I learned was how sheltered the Orthodox community is. When Rabbi Tamar was talking about her childhood being raised as Orthodox I was shocked to hear that she didn’t know of any other stream of Judaism until she was older. I can’t even begin to imagine what it is like to have something so big hidden from you.
This tiyul made me very proud to be a reform Jew. I love that we are able to explore Judaism, and question it without being judged. I can’t imagine having my entire life being revolved around praying and being a Jew. I think that if it was that way I wouldn’t feel as much pride in being Jewish because it wouldn’t be special and unique to me.
Some questions that I was left with were mainly for the Ultra Orthodox, Yoshua. I wanted to ask him if he ever wished that he was able to not be as religious as he is, or if he ever felt that being Jewish was a burden. I also wanted to ask Tamar how her parents were able to keep so many things from her, and how she felt when she saw them for the first time.
Which speaker did you connect to the most? Do you ever find yourself wishing that you were not a reform Jew?
Personally, I connected most with the reform jew. All of the ideologies that he had I really agreed with. I liked it when he said to always question what we are being told and to never be satisfied with what he had. I think that this is the best way to make judaism a very progressive religion for all. I never found myself wishing that I was not a reform jew during the talk because I did not really connect very well with the other speakers that we were able to see at HUC.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I connected the most with the Conservative speaker. My family identifies themselves as Conservative Jews and most of what the speaker had talked about, related to my family beliefs. The speaker focused it's attention on Conservative Jews preserves the the tradition elements of Judaism, but at the same time, it allows people to modernize. Because my family identifies as Conservative, I never found myself doubting myself as a Conservative Jew and I'm very happy with being one because it allows me to become close to my religion while living a perfectly modernize life style.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I connected most with the reform Jew. I have always been reform, partly because I was born into it, but also because I believe it is the most advantageous way to explore Judaism while keeping a liberal and open life. Being Jewish has always been and will continue to be a huge part of my identity, and although I respect every individual’s way of keeping a closer relationship to God or ‘being observant’, I sometimes find that enlisting huge constrictions and limitations (such as the ultra orthodox and perhaps to some extent the conservative Jew does), can distract away from the core of why we keep Judaism in the first place - to continue to be moral, righteous people; which the miztvot guide us through. I also like that Reform Judaism is more progressive and open minded to keeping diverse for a broader range of individuals.
ReplyDeleteI really connected with the Conservative speaker. I really loved her message of inclusivity and mixing of cultures. Even right now, I don't consider myself to be a Reform Jew. Although my family attends a Reform synagogue, I go to a very religious summer camp and I actually really like the stricter structure of Judaism there. In the future I don't know how observant I will be, but I can definitely see myself moving away from Reform Judaism.
ReplyDeleteI most connected with the woman speaker. Her story was one of a very strong and independent woman, which showed many feminist characteristics I support and identify with. I love being a reform Jew and feeling as though I have many opportunities and that I can be a part of my jewish and american culture. But I also think it would be interesting to experience ultra orthodox culture, where life revolves around my religion.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all I just want to say that this is very well written and I agree with a lot of the points made in this blog post :) I think I connected most with Tamar not just because she is a female Rabbi and I immediately look up to her for that, but because of her backstory. A lot of what she said about her curiosity for Judaism sounded exactly like my attitude toward Judaism and how I feel about my own Jewish knowledge. I thought her speech wa incredibly powerful and it really inspired me. I love love love reform Judaism and I would not want to be a part of any other denomination (even though I recognize that reform Judaism is supposed to be very open-minded and my firm grasp on one denomination is a little bit contradictory to that.) I have always felt that my family and myself have been most accepted in reform Judaism and I feel like I can really thrive in this denomination and community. A lot of my ideals and values have been based off of reform Judaism and because of that, I feel like I want to continue to live and strive for a reform lifestyle. I do however think that each denomination is unique in its own way while I still accept each denomination as equally Jewish and a part of the same large Jewish community.
ReplyDeleteI find I connected with the conservative rabbi the most. Although me and my family are reform, I feel I am a little more religious, and would consider myself conservative. I also agreed with most of her opinions. I mostly disagreed with the opinions of the ultra-orthodox rabbi. Even though he was a really interesting man, his views on women, creation, and evolution I could not agree with. I do wish I was alittle more religious, but I am happy to consider myself reform and I do not regret being reform at all.
ReplyDeleteI feel I especially connected with Tamar, the conservative speaker. On the surface, I was instantly interested in what she had to say because of her amazing speaking skills; I felt that she truly captivated an audience of listeners. Furthermore, her story was extremely inspiring. The amount of courage it must have took to challenge the notions of orthodoxy that she had been raised to know with her whole heart is hard for me to imagine. Especially at such a young age, I respect how she was able to recognize that she did not necessarily agree with everything that she had been taught to practice. Of course, her now being a female rabbi is also interesting to me. As a reform Jew, I personally know many female rabbis. However, I am always given hope and inspiration upon meeting more individual female figures in the Jewish world. Her words made me understand that I have value as a female Jew and that it is worth it for me continue pursuing a stronger Jewish identity for myself.
ReplyDeleteI connected with the female rabbi the most because I loved her story about becoming a rabbi. It was truly inspiring going against how she was brought up and doing exactly what she wants for her life. Even with her dad and hiding it from him for so long was crazy. I just really enjoyed hearing her speak.
ReplyDeleteI connected the most with the reform speaker. I resonated with the his idea that you can ultimately practice Judaism in any shape or form that you prefer. There is not a certain way in which to observe Judaism, it is a personal preference. Growing up as a reform Jew, I have always found ways in which to follow Judaism and I would not consider myself less Jewish than a conservative or Orthodox Jew. I can really only see myself as a reform Jew because that is the way I was raised and that is how I was learned to observe my Judaism.
ReplyDeleteAs a Reform Jew, I loved what the reform Rabbi had to say at the beginning that we embrace change and innovation. I also agree with his statement that, "Judaism is here to make us better people." And I love that it doesn't specify who, US, is because we focus so much on inclusivity in reform Judaism and believe that jewishness is our possession. I am proud to be a Reform Jew
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