Edah
Encyclopedia
- Edah, should not be confused with the HarediHaredi JudaismHaredi or Charedi/Chareidi Judaism is the most conservative form of Orthodox Judaism, often referred to as ultra-Orthodox. A follower of Haredi Judaism is called a Haredi ....
communal body in IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
known as the Edah HaChareidis, or the Jewish afterschool program in California also called Edah.
Edah was a Modern Orthodox
Modern Orthodox Judaism
Modern Orthodox Judaism is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize Jewish values and the observance of Jewish law, with the secular, modern world....
Jewish organization, generally associated with the liberal wing of Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and with the Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism
Religious Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism and Jewish religious faith...
movement of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. Its headquarters are located in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Edah states that it is "committed to ... modern Orthodoxy, which maintains a serious devotion to Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
and Halakhah while enjoying a mutually enriching relationship with the modern world ..."
In July 2006, Edah announced plans to close down its operations as a stand-alone entity. Its founder and director, Rabbi Saul Berman
Saul Berman
Saul J. Berman is a prominent American scholar and leading Modern Orthodox rabbi.As a rabbi, scholar, and educator he has made extensive contributions to the intensification of Jewish education for Jewish women on many levels, to the role of social ethics in synagogue life, and to the...
, will be transitioning to an administrative position at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School is a "Modern Open Orthodox" yeshiva founded in 1999 by Rabbi Avi Weiss.Currently located in Riverdale, New York, it seeks to "recruit, professionally train, and place rabbis" who will promote its founder's philosophy...
, a Modern Orthodox yeshiva
Yeshiva
Yeshiva is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim and in study pairs called chavrutas...
in New York City. The reason was that given limited financial resources available to the Orthodox community, a tactical decision was made so that its goals would be able to continue through other means. As such, Orthodox rabbis associated with Edah still will contribute to their goals through their membership in the Rabbinical Council of America
Rabbinical Council of America
The Rabbinical Council of America is one of the world's largest organizations of Orthodox rabbis; it is affiliated with The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, more commonly known as the Orthodox Union, or OU...
, they still will attend conferences, such as the conferences on women, feminism and Orthodox, e.g. JOFA
Jofa
Jofa, originally short for Jonssons Fabriker is a maker of sporting equipment for sports such as ice hockey, bandy, horseback riding, based in Malung, Sweden.Niss-Oskar Jonsson founded Jofa in 1926...
, and they would still publish articles in a continuing form of The Edah Journal. As such, YCT has assumed EDAH's journal, website, and audio-visual library.
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah
Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School is a "Modern Open Orthodox" yeshiva founded in 1999 by Rabbi Avi Weiss.Currently located in Riverdale, New York, it seeks to "recruit, professionally train, and place rabbis" who will promote its founder's philosophy...
Rabbinical School recently announced Meorot: A Forum of Modern Orthodox Discourse. The YCT website states:
- Formerly known as The Edah Journal, the journal has become one of the most widely-read and influential publications in the Jewish world, attracting more than 10,000 online readers per month from the Orthodox and academic communities. In the last five years, the journal has published ground-breaking analyses of the role of women in Orthodox life, Judaism's attitudes toward "the other," Jewish education, the possibilities for holiness in modern life, and the interface of halakhah and modern values.
According to the Edah website:
- Edah is a grassroots movement founded in 1996 to refresh the spirit of the Orthodox Jewish community. Unlike ultra-Orthodoxy, which thrives in isolation from modern society, modern Orthodoxy integrates with and gains strength from its encounters with modernity. Edah entered the scene to promote an open minded and open-hearted Orthodoxy, passionately committed to Jewish Law while remaining receptive to general culture. Through education, leadership training, advocacy, and communications, Edah seeks to renew modern Orthodoxy and its lead institutions and to strengthen the ties between Orthodoxy and the Jewish people at large. Our name comes from the passage in Numbers, עד מתי העדה הרע הזות