This is 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
The Latest
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Fast Forward USCJ Sells Manhattan Headquarters To Stem Red Ink
Facing a continuing financial crunch, Conservative Judaism’s congregational arm plans to soon sell its two-story Manhattan headquarters. The proposed sale, announced January 20, would mark the second time the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism has sold its offices in less than a decade. In the meantime, the group has suffered years of financial crises from…
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Opinion ‘Pope’s Rabbi’ Wants New Argentina Terror Probe
Rabbi Abraham Skorka chats with Pope Francis during their visit to Holy Land last year. /Getty Images (JTA) — Rabbi Abraham Skorka traveled from Buenos Aires to Washington to wax lyrical about his passion – interfaith dialogue – and intimate about his well-known pal, Pope Francis. Also to plug his movement, the Masorti movement, and its…
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Opinion Did We Get USY’s Interfaith Dating Shift Wrong?
lior zaltzman Ever since publication of my Dec. 23 story on the decision by United Synagogue Youth to relax its rules barring teenage USY board members from dating non-Jews (“USY drops ban on interdating”), JTA has found itself at the center of a firestorm about coverage of the Conservative youth movement’s decision. Rabbi Julie Schonfeld,…
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Opinion Sticking by Shabbat Was Real Story at USY
(Haaretz) — The Jewish Telegraphic Agency wire service ran an article about the United Synagogue Youth’s annual international convention, under the headline “USY drops ban on interdating.” Unfortunately, this headline, which was widely circulated among Jewish news outlets, failed to capture the real issue that emerged from the confab. A more apt headline would have been…
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Fast Forward United Synagogue Youth Eases Rule on Dating Non-Jews
lior zaltzman (JTA) — United Synagogue Youth voted to relax its rules barring teenage board members from dating non-Jews. The amendment was adopted Monday in Atlanta at the annual international convention of the Conservative movement’s youth group. The USY board also elected not to adopt a controversial proposal to eliminate the organization’s requirement that teen board…
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News Rabbi Wesley Gardenswartz Backs Off Controversial Plan for Intermarriages
(JTA) — Within days of floating a proposal that woud have allowed Conservative rabbis to perform interfaith marriages, Rabbi Wesley Gardenswartz of Temple Emanuel in Newton, Mass., backed away from the controversial plan. In a recent email, Gardenswartz asked congregants to consider a proposal for a new shul policy that would enable him to officiate at…
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News Rabbi Harold Schulweis, Pathbreaking Thinker, Dies at 89
(JTA) — As a pathbreaking thinker, innovator and activist, Rabbi Harold Schulweis’ role extended far beyond his base as the spiritual leader of his Los Angeles-area congregation. “Harold Schulweis was widely regarded as the most successful and influential synagogue leader in his generation, a public intellectual who redefined what it is to be a Jew, an…
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Fast Forward British Lawmaker Gets ‘Dirty Pig’ Death Threats for Being Jewish
A member of Britain’s Parliament said he has received death threats because he is Jewish. Lee Scott, the Conservative lawmaker of the Ilford North constituency, said he has received five death threats in the past year. On Tuesday, during a debate on anti-Semitism in Parliament, Scott detailed some of the abuse, including an incident in…
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