Reform Judaism: What does it stand for?

From the time that I was born until I moved to Munster, Indiana and became a Hoosier at the age of 10, I had always considered myself to be raised as a Reform Jew. My parents raised me that way to the best of their ability and growing knowledge of Judaism. I vividly remember going to Temple Sholom's Gan Shalom in the heart of Chicago when I was just a toddler and having a blast there along with some childhood friends that I still remain somewhat in touch with to this day. I never knew what certain things at the Gan meant such as the Megillah scrolls or any of the Brachot or blessings over anything besides the candles, wine, and challah, or maybe I didn't remember since I was so little, but I knew they had to do with the aspect of living a Jewish life.


But, I digress.

My first actual memory of being a Reform Jew came when I was kid living in Glencoe, Illinois, a suburb just North of Chicago. It was the regular Sunday School routine at Am Shalom, in which we had our select multiple classes or activities, followed by kid-oriented service in the beautiful sanctuary there. What made it so Reform to me? I remembered that we did most of the service in English, with some of the songs and prayers in Hebrew (such as the Sh'ma and the Amidah) with just about everything sung at a campy tune accompanied by guitar. Another thing I remembered: the community in the synagogue was so warm and welcoming! I spent a good chunk of my childhood there, and I enjoyed it a lot.

So why connect these nostalgic childhood memories to Reform Judaism? For starters, Temple Sholom (Gan Shalom) and Am Shalom are both members of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ). Second, and more importantly, both of these institutions basically introduced me to Judaism as a whole at first-hand. I wouldn't be the kind of Jew I am today without it.


That's what I feel what Reform Judaism is best for: a sort of Introduction to Judaism to those that are getting more and more into it.

The layout to reformjudaism.org is a very good one. It's a very simple set up with short and to-the-point explanations. It signiture explanation in the 'What is Reform Judaism' section, is that it introduces innovation to the Judaism, while still preserving it's age-old tradition. It also stresses the importance of embracing Judaism as well as inclusion, choice and even diversity, which are all important factors that help make Reform Judaism the largest denomination of Judaism today. The inclusions of homosexuals to actively participate in the community as well as having women larger roles in the communities such as being rabbis, cantors or synagogue presidents. These factors make a huge breakthrough in the thousands of years of tradition in Judaism.

To further bring about the introductory aspect to Reform Judaism, this umbrella website lists and explains many of it's programs really well. It's almost like a Hitchikers Guide to Judaism of sorts, and the layouts of the sister sights that it lists (such as URJ, RJ.org, and AZRA and NFTY, to name a few) are vibrant, colorful and are good attention getters to the younger audience, and they give out simple explanations as to what they stand for as well: to help understand Judaism more. The blogs on the sidebar of RJ.org are awesome resources to look off of in terms of diving deeper into Reform Judaism.

However, problems arise. One major factor to consider is observance. In a commentary given by Jack Wertheimer, he quotes Rabbi Yoffie distinguishing Judaism practiced by Reform from other forms of Judaism (6): "If you take it all upon yourself as an obligation rather than as a choice, you've reached the point at which you are no longer a Reform Jew."

So where would the line (or lines) be drawn here?

If one feels that observance is a choice, than said one is Reform, but when choice becomes obligation, that's where the line is crossed into non-Reform; the line to the right.

On the other hand... are there limits when it comes to choice? Is there a line to the left that goes further? Possibly. That line could be drawn if people choose not to practice, and just drop Judaism, but still keeping the title of Reform Jew. The problem here according to Wertheimer is the lack of Jewish education, or motivation to continue Jewish education (5-6). Most drop out the supplementary Jewish classes before seventh grade, and the "overwhelming majority" shuns religious study when it comes to worship at a Reform temple. When this happens, what can be done?

When it comes down to it, Reform Judaism explains and uses Judaism in a great way because it is so inclusive and diverse, serving as an initial guide to Judaism, and I take that to heart becasue of my experiences when I was a kid. But if you ask me, one can only go so far as to calling it that before the line is drawn past it into something deeper.