A Comprehensive Guide to Humanistic Judaism in the UK
Humanistic Judaism publications – a Jewish Atheist in the Bible Belt
humanistic judaism and circumcision
The recent German Court case which initially ruled against circumcision has created a good deal of debate.
Whilst humanistic jews do not advocate the banning of the practice (if carried out under full medical supervision) they are in favour of baby naming ceremonies to celebrate the birth of a boy or girl, irrespective of whether a circumcision is carried out on the baby boy.
A detailed, although not independent, analysis of the debate from a humanistic jewish perspective is set out in this article published on the Intact website, with further reading resources therein.
new regional contacts for Humanistic Judaism UK
At the inaugural meeting of HJUK in October, it was agreed that we needed to offer contact points across the UK for new and existing subscribers so that it would be easier for small local groups to build up under the umbrella of HJUK itself.
As a result a new regional contacts page has been set up for direct contact to a number of our representatives and our student representative.
We evidently do not cover all the major areas in the UK and we will be happy to add other subscribers as regional contacts in other parts of the UK, where appropriate.
The inaugural meeting of subscribers to Humanistic Judaism UK will be held in Central London on Sunday 16th October 2011.
For further information please contact us directly.
All interested parties are very welcome.
New study into Jewish secular life.
It is worth reading an article at JTA.org by Sue Fishkoff with a number of diffferent points of view given by several interviewees. There are also details of a new study sponsored by an anonymous donor into finding out just how many non-believing Jews are out there seeking a way into spiritual life, and what the Jewish community should, or should not do, to accommodate them.
Please read the article here. Although the study is US based it could equally relate to many in the UK, so please feel free to comment with your views.
Essential Questions and Answers about Humanistic Judaism
The City Congregation In New York (www.citycongregation.org) has kindly given us permission to re-publish an informative guide to humanistic Judaism that they have produced.
Please take the opportunity to download the attached pdf: 9 Essential Questions and Answers about Humanistic Judaism. hjukguide9essentialQ&A[1]
and please feel free to forward further copies to interested parties.
The principles of Big Tent Judaism
The idea of “Big Tent Judaism” is one which is central to the beliefs of humanistic jews as it engenders the ideas of inclusiveness and pluralism which are key for a flourishing Jewish community and people into the future.
There is actually an organisation in the United States called the Jewish Outreach Institute (JOI) which runs a Big Tent Judaism website and organisation at www.joi.org/big tent and whose mission statement is: to engage, support and advocate for all those who would cast their lot with the Jewish people
The organisation has many laudable principles which it requires its member organisations to folllow:
1. Welcome All Newcomers
Welcome everyone interested in finding Jewish meaning and community, including those from intermarried households, the unaffiliated, and other underserved populations;
2. Celebrate Diversity
Celebrate the diversity of today’s Jewish individuals and households; Leave behind assumptions about what Jews “look like” or how families are configured;
3. Offer “Free Samples”
Recognize that outreach is not a membership drive but rather the providing of free and open access to a portion of Jewish communal activities; Increase the number of freely available Jewish activities, with no strings attached;
4. Deepen Jewish Engagement
Deepen the Jewish engagement and identity of all Jewish individuals and households, regardless of their institutional affiliation (or lack thereof), by meeting them on an individual level; learning where they are in their “Jewish journey”; and offering them enticing relevant choices from the entire gamut of Jewish life;
5. Provide Quality “Customer Service”
Acknowledge that Jewish communal professionals at all levels not only build community but also provide services, and therefore work in a “service industry”; As such, provide the same high quality of “customer service” that people expect from all other venues in which they spend their time and money;
6. Lower Barriers to Participation
Identify and lower the “barriers to participation” in Jewish communal life that may be keeping away the less engaged, including but not limited to: cost, language, and expectation of Jewish literacy;
7. Increase Points of Access
Increase access to our community not just by being available when people approach us, but also by going out to where people already are rather than waiting for them to come to us; Hold programs in secular venues, place advertisements in secular media, and partner with secular organizations;
8. Create Partnerships
Collaborate with other Jewish organizations across institutional and denominational lines, because individual organizations cannot be all things to all people; Outreach works best as a community-wide endeavor;
9. Enlist Active Members for Outreach
Energize the “inside” for the mission of outreach by training and sensitizing our most active members to create a warmer and friendlier community for those on the “outside”; Bridge the growing divide between engaged and unengaged Jewish individuals and households;
10. Better Best Practices
Develop, share, and implement outreach best practices to help our communal professionals and volunteer leaders achieve these goals.
Whilst the JOI is primarily a US organisation, its guiding principles can equally be adopted by many UK Jewish organisations and most definately apply to Humanistic Judaism Uk now and into the future.
New reports show that the Jewish population in the USA is growing.
It has been intriguing to read details of the recent reports by Boston and Brandeis Universities which indicates that far from the projected decline in the US Jewish population over the last 10 years as predicted there has in actual fact been a quite significant increase in those identifying themselves as Jewish.
An interesting perspective from a American viewpoint is set out in this post by Rabbi Falick of Miami Florida on his atheist rabbi blog
Evidently the report deals with the Jewish population in the US. but it seems clear that the lessons to be learnt in the UK is that if UK Jewry is openly pluralist fully accepting orthodox, reform, liberal and humanists Jews as differing but representative members of a UK Jewish Community then there are grounds to believe that a stronger, larger and more confident UK Jewish community can thrive into the future, rather than the risk of retreating into a diminishing minority group.