Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Conservative Judaism, one of the three major streams of U.S. Judaism. Conservative Jews are generally more observant than Reform Jews but less so than Orthodox Jews. The movement is led by the…
Conservative Judaism
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Fast Forward Conservative Movement Leaders Praise Netanyahu for ‘Arab’ Comment Apology
Conservative movement leaders applauded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s regrets for an Election Day statement about Arab Israelis and decried a pledge by J Street to press Jewish groups not to spend in the West Bank. “The Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue for Conservative Judaism welcome and applaud today’s apology by Prime Minister Netanyahu…
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Opinion If Jewish Seminaries Are Empty, Let’s Merge Them
A recent Forward article asked a provocative and troubling question: “Where Are All the Non-Orthodox Rabbis?” It pointed to a steep decline in enrollment at non-Orthodox rabbinical schools, which should prompt some new thinking. Here’s a start: Why not merge the Reform and Conservative seminaries? Last year, the non-Orthodox rabbinical schools admitted fewer than 100…
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Opinion Why I Will Not Simply Accept Intermarriage
Over the past two years, influential Conservative rabbis have begun flirting with performing intermarriages and with relaxing conversion standards, or at least wringing their hands at Judaism’s traditional endogamy norm and the distress it is causing interfaith families. Given pervasive intermarriage — 58% of all American Jews marrying since 2000 wed gentiles — it may…
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Opinion Changing My Mind On Same-Sex Ceremonies
Josh and Mark on the day of their commitment ceremony / Danielle Perelman On a recent Sunday night, I did something that in the past I never thought I would do. Nine years ago, I voted “no” on the most well-known Conservative Movement responsum on homosexuality, the Dorff-Nevins-Reisner teshuvah on “Homosexuality, Human Dignity and Halakhah.”…
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News Where Are All The Non-Orthodox Rabbis?
Lev Meirowitz Nelson grew up at a Conservative Jewish day school and a Conservative synagogue. When he decided to apply for rabbinical school, however, he didn’t even consider a Conservative seminary. Instead, Nelson applied to Hebrew College, the new, progressive, nondenominational seminary in Boston, where he was ordained in 2013. It’s a path that more…
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Life Under Cover: Taxonomy of The Yarmulke
Under Cover from Jewish Daily Forward on Vimeo. If you see my husband and son walking on the street, you will instantly know that they’re Orthodox Jews — because they are wearing small, round cloth caps, more widely known as yarmulkes. Much like the sheitel, or wig, that many Orthodox women wear, you can tell…
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Fast Forward Layoffs at Cash-Crunched United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism’s embattled congregational arm has laid off a handful of senior staffers amid its ongoing financial crisis, the Forward has learned. The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism handed out at least four pink slips, just a week after announcing it would sell its Manhattan headquarters. The USCJ confirmed the layoffs. “We recently had a…
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Fast Forward Conservative Judaism’s Leading Rabbinic School Selling Off Real Estate Assets
The leading rabbinical school of Conservative Judaism will sell development rights at its historic Upper West Side property, and plans to use the proceeds to build a new library and conference center. The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is contacting bidders to offer two residence halls and air rights to its main campus, a total…
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