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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Community Want to help Israel? Recite this four-part mantra
What can we do to help Israel’s fragile new government survive? During three intense days this month, as part of a leadership delegation sponsored by Masorti (Conservative) Judaism, I met with a full panoply of Israeli leaders from across the political spectrum, inside the new government and in the opposition. The new government knows that…
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News For the Conservative movement, an audit of ethics policies might be overdue
When the Conservative movement censured an upstate New York rabbi in 2019 for a problematic relationship with a woman who had received his rabbinic guidance and attended services, there was no public written record of the offense or the punishment. There was no announcement to the congregation, Temple Beth-El in Poughkeepsie, indicating any problem with…
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News For many synagogues, live-streamed services are here to stay after the pandemic
When the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered synagogues across the nation a year ago, many congregations that previously avoided technology use on Shabbat embraced live-stream and video conferencing as the only viable and safe solution to maintaining community. Now, for many, the needle has moved, and post-pandemic, synagogues intend to keep those options available indefinitely. “I have…
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Culture The obvious biblical beef with the Golden Trump
Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference, two men were seen hauling a gold statue of Donald Trump through the Hyatt Regency Orlando lobby. Clergy, coreligionists and people with eyes for easy metaphors all asked: Where’s the beef? The golden calf jokes aren’t subtle and wry when they make it all obvious like that https://t.co/mNQzwjgGsh…
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News Pinched by the pandemic, congregants are cutting synagogues dues from their household budgets
Across denominations and across the United States, Jewish families under financial pressure from the coronavirus pandemic are deciding that synagogue dues are an expense they can cut. “More congregations are seeing declines in members than are seeing growth,” said Amy Asin, vice-president of Strengthening Congregations, the synagogue advising arm at the Union of Reform Judaism….
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News Why I’m leaving The Forward to become a rabbi
My grandparents were concerned for my safety amidst a steady rise in attacks. My parents worried about long hours with little gratitude. My brother warned of trends indicating I was entering an unstable and shrinking job market. I decided to become a journalist anyway. Working at The Forward was the fulfillment of a childhood dream,…
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News Now that Conservative Judaism is O.K. with livestreaming, how is it different from Reform?
Conservative and Reform Judaism — the United States’ two biggest egalitarian denominations — have been converging for decades. Now coronavirus has wiped out yet another difference between them. Even before the pandemic, Reform communities had embraced streaming services. Conservative synagogues, however, mostly avoided it in order to keep technology from creeping into Shabbat observance. Now…
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News Reform leader: merging national organization with others ‘a very real possibility’
The national leader of American Judaism’s biggest denomination said he is considering the possibility of merging parts of its operations with those of other liberal Jewish movements. It’s “a very real possibility” despite some religious differences between the denominations, said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the leader of the Union for Reform Judaism, which has over 850…
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