Written by Emily Rothstein
As an active reform Jew in the States, I found this session both thought provoking and unsettling. Friday night concluded with a session with Rabbi Raz, an active reform Rabbi in the Yaffo area. The essence of what Rabbi Raz said resonated consistently with the set of beliefs with which I grew up - robotically going through the motions of Jewish prayer and tradition makes the actions hollow. It is our intention behind these actions that moves ancient heritage to a modern and fulfilling life. In an ideal world, Rabbi Raz would have conveyed that message in a clear, passionate, and concise way, and used the subsequent Q&A as a mode for helping us fill in whatever blanks we might still have. Unfortunately, what I did not realize prior to this conversation is that Reform Judaism in Israel is a lot different than Reform Judaism in America. Factors like politics, the divide between secular and religious Jews, and the stigma of liberal Jews in Israel were clearly reflected in the way Rabbi Raz views Judaism. Personally, I found her presentation to be full of contradictions. While she passionately spoke about the need for the Jewish people to come together as equals in order to act as a force of positive social change, she simultaneously spent time pointing out what she viewed as flaws in the other sects of Judaism. As a room of Jewish leaders on a program designed to openly explore pluralism, many of us were put off by this facet of her presentation. One of my goals of being on this program is to learn how to put aside the difference of the movements in order to create a tight-knit, cohesive Jewish community. In many ways, we learned as much from what we appreciated about her presentation as we did about what polarized us from her views. The session pushed many of the Fellows to ask poignant, direct questions and to come together as a community. We could all feel that the energy was unsettling throughout the whole room and we were unsure how to react. After being involved in many conversations about why it was important that we are not just leaders, but Jewish leaders, it was hard to hear Rabbi Raz speak about how anyone could be a Jewish leader, whether they are Jewish or not. It made me feel unimportant and confused about how that idea could exist in a world where people were specifically donating money to create more committed Jewish leaders.
I left the room in a state of confusion. Rabbi Raz reflected no Reform Judaism that I have ever been a part of. What I did learn from this conversation is that even when you have a community from the same movement of Judaism, views can and do vary. Not only should I be focusing on how to get all the movements together, but on a smaller scale: how to get the Reform movement to be more cohesive. Although I was not happy with how the conversation went, I could see why it was important. Hearing thoughts about Judaism that I don't agree with only continues to strengthen my Jewish identity. It helps me continue to explore my identity and gather more information to create a well-rounded and well-thought out Jewish sense of self.
