The Jewish High Holy Days are a time of heightened spirituality. Rosh Hashana, the new year, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, are preceded by Elul, a month of reflection. (This year, Rosh Hashana begins at sundown Sept. 22 and Yom Kippur begins at sundown Oct. 1. Elul began in late August.)
Spirituality has moved from a buzzword to a widening movement that is affecting the major branches of Judaism, less-mainstream movements and the scores of unaffiliated Jews. Featuring meditation, chanting, prayer, yoga and study, the goal is to deepen faith through Jewish practice. Spirituality is being embraced in new ways in the different traditions of Judaism, a religion known for its emphasis on law and ritual. While such practices also attract some criticism as being too “New-Agey” for Judaism, the major branches have noted the success of renewal movements in attracting nonaffiliated Jews and are encouraging spirituality in congregational life.
The urgent interest in spirituality has obvious roots: Less than half of U.S. Jews affiliate with a synagogue or marry another Jew. As a result, fewer children are being raised Jewish and the number of Jews is dropping, raising fears that Jews are assimilating themselves out of existence (see survey). For thousands of Jews, Judaism has become a cultural rather than a religious connection, and many believe an increased emphasis on personal transformation is necessary to build a more robust future for Judaism in America and beyond.
Jonathan D. Sarna, author of American Judaism: A History, points out that this new interest in spirituality began in the late 20th century, when Jews, led by several charismatic leaders, began complementing Judaism’s emphasis on rational teaching with practices that fed the heart and soul: devotion, emotive religious experiences, mystical teachings (such as Kabbalah), meditation, healing, music and dance. These were encouraged by leaders including Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach (known as the Dancing Rabbi and the Hippie Rabbi) and Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, known as the “granddaddy of the Jewish Spiritual Renewal movement.”
Today, this blossoming Jewish spirituality is being expressed in widely varying ways:
• Jews both inside and outside of Jewish institutions are borrowing practices from other religions – most notably Hinduism (yoga), Buddhism (meditation), and Islam (Sufism), leading to more cross-training in different religious traditions.
• Jewish spirituality is considered a “postdenominational” movement because it transcends the major branches of Judaism and is bringing together religious leaders and followers from the different movements. Programs in Jewish spiritual direction are attracting rabbis from all traditions.
• Jewish renewal movements, such as Aleph: Alliance for Jewish Renewal. and Synagogue 3000 are working to make Judaism and its congregations central in communities.
• Jewish movements are reaching out to nonaffiliated Jews, particularly the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
• The major branches of Judaism are exploring spiritual practices. Orthodox Judaism draws on a strong legacy of mysticism and spirituality. Many Conservative Jewish leaders are embracing spiritual practices for their congregations. And Reform Judaism is increasingly adopting the rituals of traditional Judaism that it once eschewed.
• Reconstructionist Jews, who are a tiny minority of the U.S. Jewish population, are leading a push for spirituality by integrating Jewish culture and religion in a search for relevance in contemporary life.
• Jewish spiritual retreats are proliferating.
• Young people – and the desire to engage them in their faith – provide much of the energy behind the spirituality movement. They are open to innovation, interested in deep spiritual experiences and increasingly disaffected from congregational life.
Why it matters
Personal spirituality is part of American culture and is permeating religious traditions of all kinds, making the United States one of the most religious countries on earth.
Questions for reporters
• Where is Jewish spirituality being encouraged in your community – synagogues, retreat centers, youth gatherings? How do people say an emphasis on spirituality is changing their faith and their approach to everyday life?
• What are synagogues and Jewish leaders doing to attract nonpracticing Jews into the fold?
• How are Jewish youth in your community expressing their faith?
• Are there Jewish Reconstructionist and renewal movements in your community? How are they manifesting themselves?
• Where are Jewish people turning for resources on spirituality – synagogues, books, Web pages, arts events, conferences, educational classes?
• Who is leading the push for Jewish spirituality in your community? (Note for reporters: the term rabbi means teacher and is used by Jewish leaders in all traditions. In Reform and Conservative traditions, rabbis are ordained through a central organization. Orthodox rabbis, however, have no one central authority which grants ordination and rabbis may be ordained by an individual. It is worth noting for Jewish readers and listeners which branch of Judaism rabbis represent – Reform, Conservative, Orthodox or Reconstructionist.)
Jump to background
National sources
• Rabbi Lawrence Kushner is a writer, speaker and teacher at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco. He wrote the book Jewish Spirituality: A Brief Introduction for Christians (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2001). Contact 415-751-2541 ext. 148 or through his assistant Sandy at sbarth@emanuelsf.org.
• Jonathan D. Sarna is the Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., and director of its Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program. He is author of American Judaism: A History (Yale University Press, 2004), winner of the Jewish Book Council’s Jewish Book of the Year Award in 2004. He can discuss the historical roots of Jewish spirituality and how current efforts to draw on them. Contact 781-736-2977, sarna@brandeis.edu.
• Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artsonis dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the University of Judaism in Bel-Air, Calif. He co-wrote the book Making a Difference: Putting Jewish Spirituality Into Action, One Mitzvah at a Time (Behrman House Publishing, 2001). Contact 310-476-9777 ext. 257, bartson@uj.edu. (Ed. note: The University of Judaism merged with Brandeis-Bardin to become American Jewish University in 2007.)
• Alan M. Dershowitz is Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. He wrote The Vanishing American Jew: In Search of Jewish Identity for the Next Century (Simon and Schuster, 1998). In the book, Dershowitz writes that “All Jews should ‘return’ to religious adherence, and religion should once again become the central unifying essence of Jewish life.” Contact 617-495-4617, dersh@law.harvard.edu.
• Ron Wolfson is a Fingerhut Professor of education at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles. He is also president of Synagogue 3000, which helps synagogues become a central part of American Jewish life. He wrote The Spirituality of Welcoming: How to Transform Your Congregation Into a Sacred Community (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2006). Contact 310-553-7930,ron@synagogue3000.org.
• Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins is rabbi emeritus of the Jewish Center of Princeton, N.J.
• His latest book is Rosh Hashanah Readings: Inspiration, Information, Contemplation (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2006). Contact 973-396-2198, dpelkins@patmedia.net.
• Rabbi Eric Yoffie is president of the Union for Reform Judaism (formerly Union of American Hebrew Congregations). He says the most important issue confronting American Judaism is the need for religious renewal because, he says, what really sustains Jews is not unity against anti-Semitism or the status of Israel, but commitment to their own religious traditions. Contact 212-650-4150, presurj@urj.org.
• Jeffrey K. Salkin is rabbi of The Temple in Atlanta. He is also co-chairman of the Commission on Reform Jewish Outreach. He wrote the book Being God’s Partner: How To Find the Hidden Link Between Spirituality and Your Work (Jewish Lights Publishing, 1997). Contact 404-873-1731, jsalkin@the-temple.org.
• Rabbi Zalman Shmotkin is director of Chabad.org and a spokesman for Chabad-Lubavitch, a branch of Hasidic Judaism that tries to reach out to American Jews who it believes have not been exposed to “authentic” Judaism. He says that although there are great problems with apathy and assimilation among American Jews, there is also a renaissance and spiritualization going on. Contact 917-804-7137, zs@chabad.org.
• Debra Kolodny is executive director of Aleph: Alliance for Jewish Renewal, an organization for Jewish renewal congregations and groups. She says the issues confronting Jews today provide opportunities for growth and spiritual revitalization. Contact 301-565-0719, debraruth@mac.com.
• Rabbi Goldie Milgram is founder and executive director of ReclaimingJudaism.org, which offers seminars and Web-based resources on the application of Jewish spiritual practice for spiritual seekers and teachers. She wrote Reclaiming Judaism as a Spiritual Practice: Holy Days and Shabbat (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2004). Contact rebgoldiem@aol.com.
• Rabbi Irwin Kula is president of CLAL, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, a think tank dedicated to training Jewish leaders. Tsvi Blanchard is an Orthodox rabbi and director of organizational development at CLAL. He has written about what it means to be Jewish in the 21st century. Contact Kula at ikula@clal.org or through Ruth Bregman at 212-779-3300 ext. 116. Contact Blanchard at tblanchard@clal.org.
• Rabbi Howard Avruhm Addison is the co-author of Jewish Spiritual Direction: An Innovative Guide from Traditional & Contemporary Sources (Jewish Lights, 2006) and co-founder of Lev Shomea, the first institute to train spiritual directors in the Jewish tradition. A congregational rabbi for 30 years, he is a professor at Temple University in Philadelphia and the G. G. Scholem Professor of Jewish Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Foundation. Contact 215-283-5333, rabbia@temple.edu.
• Rabbi Avram Davis is founder and spiritual leader of Chochmat HaLev, a center for Jewish Spirituality in Berkeley, Calif. He is author of The Way of Flame (Jewish Lights) and Meditation from the Heart of Judaism (Jewish Lights). See the center’s High Holy Days Web site. Contact 510-704-1767, avram@chochmat.org.
• Rabbi Rachel Cowan, a Reform rabbi, is executive director of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, which uses Torah study, prayer, mindfulness meditation, yoga, and spiritual direction and retreats to nurture deeper spirituality among rabbis, cantors and lay people. It has a Rabbinic Leadership Program. Contact her in New York, 212-774-3608, rachel@ijs-online.org.
• Stacy Abramson is executive director of Reboot, which seeks to “reboot” Jewish traditions, particularly for young people, through innovation, including salons across the country, journals, books and films. It’s based in New York City. Contact 212-931-0100, stacy@rebooters.net.
• Hillel is an organization that promotes Jewish life and identity on college campuses. It lists campus groups by state and city. Contact 202-449-6534.
• Jews for Judaism was established by Rabbi Bentzion Kravitz in 1985. An international organization, the group aims to help Jews strengthen their heritage. Its work is also directed at countering attempts to convert Jews to other religions. Contact 310-556-3344, la@jewsforjudaism.org.
• The Elat Chayyim Retreat Center is a place for spiritual contemplation for Jews. During the Labor Day weekend, the retreat moved from its longtime home in Accord, N.Y., to Falls Village, Conn. Contact 800-398-2630.
Background
• OHALAH, the Association of Rabbis for Jewish Renewal, posts a list of Web sites of people, synagogues and organizations committed to Jewish renewal.
• Shamash posts links about Jewish spirituality.
• The JewishYouth.com Webring offers links to Jewish youth Web sites.
• The Web site Jewishealing.com provides information on Jewish spirituality.
• The Web site for the National Study of Youth and Religion offers a listing of Jewish youth organizations.
ARTICLES
• Read a May 12, 2006, column by Jay Michaelson on Jewish spirituality in The Jewish Daily Forward.
• Read the transcript of a Sept. 30, 2005, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly program on Jewish renewal movements.
• Read a December 2005 Washington Jewish Week story about Lev Tahor, a new Jewish spirituality center, and the trend toward Jewish spirituality.
• Read an essay on the Union for Reform Judaism Web site on how to be a spiritual Jew.
• Read Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg’s column, “A Fad That Would Not Pass,” about Jewish spirituality, on Beliefnet.com.
POLLS
• Read the 2006 Reboot poll “Grande Soy Vanilla Latte with Cinnamon, No Foam: Jewish Identity and Community in a Time of Unlimited Choices,” which found that many young Jews are intensely interested in their Jewish identity but disinterested in Jewish institutional life.
According to the 2000-2001 National Jewish Population Survey:
• 47 percent American Jews had married outside their faith and only 33 percent of their children were being raised Jewish.
• 46 percent of American Jews belong to a synagogue and less than one in three adults take part in other Jewish community activities.
• Most Jews observe major religious holidays, with 77 percent taking part in Passover seders, 72 percent lighting Hanukkah candles and 59 percent fasting on Yom Kippur.
Regional sources
IN THE NORTHEAST
• Ellen M. Umansky is a professor of Judaic studies at Fairfield University in Connecticut. She wrote the book From Christian Science to Jewish Science: Spiritual Healing and American Jews (Oxford University Press, 2004). Contact 203-254-4000 ext. 2065, eumansky@mail.fairfield.edu.
• Rabbi Arthur Green is a professor of Jewish thought at Hebrew College in Newton Centre, Mass. He is an expert on Jewish mysticism and spirituality. Contact 617-559-8626, agreen@hebrewcollege.edu.
• Amy L. Sales is director of the Fisher-Bernstein Institute for Jewish Philanthropy and Leadership at the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass. She is an expert on Jewish youth. Contact 781-736-2066, sales@brandeis.edu.
• Barry A. Kosmin is director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture at the Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. He co-wrote The Next Generation: Jewish Children and Adolescents (State University of New York Press, 2000). Contact 860-297-2353, Barry.Kosmin@trincoll.edu.
• Art Green is professor emeritus of religion at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass. He is an expert in Jewish mysticism and the Kabbalah. Contact 781-736-2971, green@brandeis.edu.
• Rabbi Daniel Judson leads Temple Beth David of the South Shore in Canton, Mass., which has a spirituality program that “explores prayer and ritual through a prism of meditation, movement, creative writing and other forms of personal expression that bring the wonder, joy and richness of Judaism into our lives.” He is co-editor of The Rituals and Practices of a Jewish Life: A Handbook for Personal Spiritual Renewal (Jewish Lights Publications, 2002). Contact 781-828-2275.
• Rabbi Elaine Zecher is a rabbi at Temple Israel in Boston, where she has developed spiritual programs including a service for the healing of the soul, Women’s Kallah and Learner’s Minyan. She also works with Synagogue 3000 and is a partner in the Kalsman Institute, which focuses on healing and health. Contact through her assistant, Laurena Rosenberg, 617-566-3960. lrosenberg@tisrael.org.
IN THE EAST
• Robert M. Seltzer is a professor of history at Hunter College, City University of New York. He has written books on the Jewish experience in America, including Toward the 21st Century: Is There a Modern Judaism? (Hunter College of the City University of New York, 1997). Contact 212-772-5490, rseltzer@hunter.cuny.edu.
• Chaim I. Waxman is a professor emeritus of sociology and Jewish studies at Rutgers University in New Jersey. He is an expert on Reconstructionist Judaism. He lives in Jerusalem but can be reached at waxmanci@rci.rutgers.edu or chaim@jpppi.org.il.
• Jacob J. Staub is director of the Jewish Spiritual Direction Program at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pa. He has taught Jewish spiritualism across the country. Contact 215-576-0800 ext. 119, jstaub@rrc.edu.
• Lewis D. Solomon is a professor of business law at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He is an expert on Jewish spirituality and wrote the book Jewish Spirituality: Revitalizing Judaism for the Twenty-First Century (Rowman and Littlefield, 2000). Contact 202-994-6753, lsolomon@law.gwu.edu.
• Rabbi Leila Gal Berner is a Reconstructionist rabbi who founded Lev Tahor: A Center for Jewish Soulwork in Kensington, Md. Lev Tahor translates to “pure heart.” The center offers programs to encourage personal spirituality through Jewish practice. Contact 301-946-1411, leila@levtahorcenter.org.
• Rabbi Tamara Miller leads Capital Kehillah, a center that encourages personal growth through the teachings of Judaism, in Washington, D.C. The daughter of an Orthodox rabbi, she has served in Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist congregations. She is director of pastoral care at George Washington University Hospital. Contact 202-320-6034, info@capitalkehillah.org.
• Rabbi David Shneyer heads Am Kolel (“an inclusive people”), a Jewish renewal center in Beallsville, Md. Contact 301-349-2799.
IN THE SOUTHEAST
• David R. Blumenthal is a professor of Judaic studies at Emory University in Atlanta. He is an expert on Jewish mysticism and spirituality. Contact 404-727-7545, reldrb@emory.edu.
• Vanessa Ochs is the director of Jewish studies at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Her area of research is in Jewish spirituality and healing and new Jewish rituals. Contact 434-924-6722, vlo4n@virginia.edu.
• Heena Reiter is director of the Gesher Center for Jewish Spirituality, Meditation and Healing in Charlottesville, Va. The center works to promote “personal and spiritual growth based on teachings and practices from traditional and contemporary Judaism.” Contact 434-970-7836, meditate@geshercenter.org.
IN THE SOUTH
• Jay Geller is an assistant professor of modern Jewish culture at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. He says American Jewish identity rests too heavily on the Holocaust and Israel and that the next generation must expand that base of identity. Contact 615-353-3968, jay.geller@vanderbilt.edu.
• Lee Shai Weissbach is a history professor at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. He is an expert on small-town Jewish life in America, especially in the South. He says educating American Jews about Jewish heritage is a major issue. Contact 502-852-6817, weissbach@louisville.edu.
• Steven Leonard Jacobs holds the Aaron Aronov Chair of Judaic Studies at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. Contact 205-348-0473, sjacobs@bama.ua.edu.
IN THE MIDWEST
• Byron L. Sherwin is a professor of Jewish studies at the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago. He is an expert on Jewish spirituality and mysticism. Contact 312-322-1769.
• Michael Fishbane is a professor of Jewish studies at the University of Chicago. His research specialties are Jewish mysticism and modern Jewish thought. Contact 773-702-8234, mfishban@midway.uchicago.edu .
• David S. Ariel is president of the Laura and Alvin Siegal College of Judaic Studies in Cleveland. He wrote the book Spiritual Judaism: Restoring Heart and Soul to Jewish Life (Hyperion, 1998). Contact 216-464-4050, dsariel@siegelcollege.edu.
• Rabbi Heather Altman, a Conservative rabbi, is a spiritual director, teacher, yoga instructor and healer based in Chicago. Contact 773-983-9617, ravyoga@rabbiheatheraltman.com.
• Rabbi Aryeh Azriel of Temple Israel in Omaha, Neb., a Reform synagogue, leads the Working Group on Spiritual Leadership for Synagogue 3000. Contact 402-556-6536, aazriel@templeisraelomaha.com.
IN THE SOUTHWEST
• Marc H. Ellis is director of the Center for Jewish Studies at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. He wrote Practicing Exile: The Religious Odyssey of an American Jew (Fortress Press, 2001). Contact 254-710-1510, Marc_Ellis@baylor.edu.
• Gregory Kaplan is the Anna Smith Fine assistant professor of Judaic studies at Rice University in Houston. He is an expert on modern Judaism. Contact 713-348-2778, gkaplan@rice.edu.
• Richard Golden is director of the Jewish Studies Program at the University of North Texas in Denton. Contact 940-369-8933, rmg@unt.edu.
• David Nelson is director of the Jewish Studies Program at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. Contact 817-257-7597, d.nelson@tcu.edu.
• Adam Zachary Newton is interim director of Jewish studies at the University of Texas at Austin. He is an expert on modern Jewish thought. Contact 512-471-8532, adam.zach@mail.utexas.edu.
• Rabbi Shefa Gold is director of the Center for Devotional Energy and Ecstatic Prayer in Jemez Springs, N.M. She teaches workshops and retreats on chanting, devotional healing, spiritual community building and meditation. Shefa combines her grounding in Judaism with a background in Buddhist, Christian, Islamic, and Native American spiritual traditions and says she returned to Judaism because of the Jewish renewal movement. She received her ordination both from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and from Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi. Contact Shefa@RabbiShefaGold.com.
IN THE WEST/NORTHWEST
• Arnold M. Eisen is a religion professor at Stanford University in California. He co-wrote the book The Jew Within: Self, Family and Community in America (Indiana University Press, 2000). The book looks at the results of surveys Eisen and his co-author conducted with American Jews. The book states that American Jews are less attached to Israel and that their primary expression of religious identification is observing Jewish holidays. The authors conclude that Jewish religious leaders need to respond to the changing needs and concerns of the Jewish community. Contact 650-723-0467, arneisen@stanford.edu.
• John Efron is a professor of history and Jewish studies at the University of California-Berkeley. His focus is on the cultural and intellectual history of modern Judaism. Contact 510-643-8887, efron@berkeley.edu.
• Paul Burstein is chairman of the Jewish studies program at the University of Washington in Seattle. He is an expert on the American Jewish community. Contact 206-543-7088, burstein@u.washington.edu.
• Rabbi Sharon Brous is the founder and rabbi of IKAR, a Jewish spiritual community in Los Angeles that emphasizes spirituality and social justice. She was included in The Forward’s annual list of the 50 most influential members of the American Jewish community in 2004 and 2005 and was described as “one of the most dynamic religious leaders to be ordained in recent years.” Rabbi Brous is a regular commentator on National Public Radio, and speaks and writes frequently about emerging spiritual communities. Contact 323-634-1870.
• Linda Thal is co-director of the Yedidya Center for Jewish Spiritual Direction in California and co-director of Morei Derekh, a two-year, retreat-based distance program. She serves as a consultant to the Central Conference of American Rabbis’ Committee on Rabbinic Spirituality and did her doctoral dissertation on spiritual direction. Contact linda@yedidyacenter.org.
