13
votes
Accepted
Why does the Reform Siddur cut out most of Krias Shema?
Rabbi Richard Sarason, a faculty member at Hebrew Union College (the Reform seminary), talks about the history of these passages in an article about the newest siddur, Mishkan T'filah. He writes (...
- 56.4k
6
votes
"Reverend" as title for a Rabbi?
I believe the volume you're looking at is Pentateuch with Rashi's Commentary Translated into English, by Rev. Morris Rosenbaum and Dr. Abraham Silbermann. According to the Wikipedia article linked ...
- 47.8k
6
votes
Do Reform Jews believe in a theistic God?
The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) is the Reform Rabbinic leadership organization. They came up with a number of "platforms" that are "documents capturing the state of Reform Jewish ...
- 48.1k
5
votes
Do Reform Jews believe in a theistic God?
As in any group of Jews, there is variation in what people believe. The blog posts (which are not official positions of the Reform movement) bear this out, as do the survey results you reported.
The ...
- 56.4k
5
votes
Is there an authoritative source on the similarities and differences of the denominations?
The Economist had a good report on Judaism and the Jews - alive and well. They used the following illustration to describe some key denominations of Judaism.
- 48.1k
5
votes
Questions about Conversion to Reform Judaism
Quick Note: I am a Jew of Orthodox affiliation. I will try to steer clear of stating my own thoughts, ideas, etc. I will, however, tell you where Orthodox and Reform Judaism diverge on various issues.
...
- 18.5k
5
votes
What is the Reform view of the origin of the Torah?
The Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) is the Reform Rabbinic leadership organization. They came up with a number of "platforms" that are "documents capturing the state of Reform Jewish ...
- 48.1k
5
votes
Accepted
Is Reform conversion recognized by the Conservative movement?
See this teshuvah by R. David Novak, adopted by the Rabbinical Assembly in 1982.
To quote from its conclusion (emphases mine):
I find no cogent basis in halakhah for accepting, even ex post facto,
...
- 41.8k
5
votes
Accepted
Did Reform add anything new vis-a-vis responsa?
Reform Judaism has responsa which are intended to address practical issues within the framework of Reform Judaism. (As noted by JoshK in comment.)
As for something “new”, one example is the question ...
- 274
4
votes
How to create a Seder to accommodate a large age/education range?
I've found that I get the most engagement at a "mixed levels of religious interest" seder when there are lots of questions. Less-engaged people don't necessarily want to hear prepared divrei torah, ...
- 56.4k
4
votes
Accepted
How do members of a given denomination understand what happens on events from other denominations?
I think Rabbi Kaii has provided this an excellent answer. He has given the broad strokes, and I would emphasize that the experience of many Orthodox Jews would be that they would feel "at home&...
3
votes
Accepted
Does this prayer "Lord we thank you for your gift of hope" that a British Reform synagogue does on Shabbat morning, exist in Orthodox Siddurim?
The prayer seems to have been authored by Reform Rabbis Lionel Blue and Jonathan Magonet and first appeared in the prayer book they edited, "Forms of Prayer for Jewish Worship, Vol. 1, Shabbat ...
- 24.9k
3
votes
Accepted
How does Reform Judaism regard converts who leave Judaism?
Finally, I decided to send in the question on the Q&A section in ReformJudaism.org. Here is the response I received from Reform Rabbi Julie Zupan:
A person’s conversion is permanent, unless there’...
- 24.9k
3
votes
What is the Reform view of the origin of the Torah?
To me, I don't think you can really quantify "Reform Jewish theology". It's really dependent on the individual Reform Jew. Unlike in traditional Judaism, there really isn't a "creed" per se (I'm ...
- 18.5k
3
votes
How should an Orthodox Jew respond to questioning by Conservative/Reform Jews?
I once was asked to speak to a conservative bar/bat mitzvah class to introduce Orthodox Judaism. The other 3 rabbis had already spoken in previous meetings. Shavuot was approaching. After I finished, ...
3
votes
Questions about Conversion to Reform Judaism
This is a broad group of questions. Please permit me a focused answer. By the time you read to the end, I hope you will understand why I think there's no need to address each part individually.
You ...
- 350
3
votes
Prospective Jews and Shabbat observance
In either January of 1984 or April of 1983 (I can't tell because of the format of the book online) the Reform Movement published a responsum (#165) about whether a non-Jew may light Shabbat candles. ...
- 24.7k
3
votes
Accepted
Kiruv and outreach arguments
From my personal experience, discussion with others and much reading, I find that the crucial turning point is when a Jew realizes that "Torah is actually and entirely true", i.e., it comes ...
- 48.1k
2
votes
Does Reform Judaism recognize children of Jewish father as Jews?
In 1983 the CCAR ruled that a person with only a Jewish father could be considered Jewish and be entitled to all the rights thereof provided that such a person was raised with an exclusive Jewish ...
- 18.5k
2
votes
Accepted
Is there an authoritative source on the similarities and differences of the denominations?
This is a tough question to answer since there are many grey areas ,but I found this chart on this website(http://orthodoxjudaismlou.blogspot.com/2012/02/orthodox-vs-other-branches.html?m=1) and it ...
- 41.1k
2
votes
How do members of a given denomination understand what happens on events from other denominations?
Yes and no.
Within traditional denominations (ones that preserve the tradition without modification), there is a near universal phenomena of mutual understanding. A sefardi orthodox jew can pray in an ...
- 7,221
2
votes
Where can I find polemics between Reform and Orthodoxy?
There is an interesting sefer called אלה דברי הברית which talks about all the bans and halachos which came about due to the Reform movement . It includes letters from the Chasam Sofer ,Reb Akiva Eiger ...
- 41.1k
2
votes
Where can I find polemics between Reform and Orthodoxy?
Here's an amazing book on the topic:
One People, Two Worlds: A Reform Rabbi and an Orthodox Rabbi Explore the Issues That Divide Them
For a non-lechatchila answer.
- 739
2
votes
Accepted
Is it true that on Shabbat Purim, one holds a mock service instead of a real one?
It's hard to prove a negative, but I've never heard of what you describe, and I'm somewhat familiar with the Reform community. (I see you tagged your question reform-judaism.)
There is a tradition ...
- 56.4k
2
votes
How does the Torah reading cycle work in Reform and Conservative communities?
While I do not love this system, I am familiar with it. Most of the weekly parshas are divided into three roughly equal sections. A few special ones (Haazinu comes to mind) are not divided and ...
- 5,263
1
vote
Accepted
What siddur is used by Reform communities in Israel?
I found that there are actually Israeli Reform siddurim. The Israeli Reform Movement puts out two siddurim, an older version called העבודה שבלב and a more recent publication, סידור תפילת האדם.
- 18.5k
1
vote
Can one sign as a witness on a Conservative/ Reform Ketubah?
הוכח תוכיח את עמיתך, rebuking a person who is doing a sin.
[Vayikra 19:17] "You shall surely rebuke your fellow, but you shall not bear a sin on his account."
[See Rambam (Sefer Hamitzvos, Assei, ...
- 4,892
1
vote
Birkat Hamazon: Chaverai vs Rabotai
The word chaveirai was introduced by early religious Zionists who had been introduced to communism and we're trying to integrate communism with Judiasm. Chaveirai was the Hebrew way of saying "...
- 5,051
1
vote
Accepted
Birkat Hamazon: Chaverai vs Rabotai
Chaveirai means "my friends"; Rabotai means "gentlemen".
I'm not too familiar with Reform customs, but do they include women in the zimun? If so, calling to the people around you with "gentlemen" is ...
- 23k
1
vote
Prospective Jews and Shabbat observance
You may certainly do the prayers and make the kiddush.
It would be best if you're still doing something that's not Sabbath-observant at some point in the day. (E.g. drive a car, or light a fire.)
...
- 131k
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