Union for Traditional Judaism
Encyclopedia
The Union for Traditional Judaism is an ostensibly non-denominational Jewish educational, outreach and communal service organization. The UTJ, as it is known, sees itself as trans-denominational, and works to encourage traditional observance among all Jews. The UTJ maintains various educational and religious programs, and makes these available to the wider community. Though officially non-denominational, the UTJ is understood http://en.allexperts.com/q/Conservative-Judaism-951/Judaism-9.htm to have many components typically associated with a religious denomination
, i.e. a seminary, an association of clergy, and a committee which has authority over religious issues. The UTJ is often viewed http://www.bnaibrith.ca/institute/millennium/millennium11.html as representing a denomination or inhabiting an ideologic space nestled between Conservative Judaism
and Orthodox Judaism
.
The UTJ is headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey
, USA.
Talmud
professor David Weiss Halivni
, who broke with the movement because of ideological differences, including the Conservative's approach to changes in Halakha
and the manner in which the issue of admitting women to the rabbi
nate was addressed.
Halivni and other traditionalists claimed that in this and other decisions the Conservative movement had made decisions to change from traditional practices in a legislative rather than a judicial fashion, by poll or majority vote. Traditionalists believed that halakhic
decision-making should be made by Talmud and Halakha
scholars following a process of legal reasoning.
While still a Conservative rabbi, Halivni had written a responsum
supporting the ordination of women as rabbis, although by a more gradual process than the one approved by the Conservative movement. Halivni withdrew this responsum prior to leaving the Conservative movement and founding the UTJ. The UTJ issued a responsum opposing the ordination of women as part of its first volume of responsa.
The Union originally intended to form the elements of a separate denomination, including an association of rabbis, a rabbinical school, and an association of synagogues. The organization subsequently described itself as being trans-denominational in character.
, with what it regards as classical approaches to interpreting and making decisions
regarding Jewish religious law
. As such, it stands in between Modern Orthodox Judaism
, which retains a belief that the current written Torah
and Oral Torah
were transmitted in an unbroken tradition from what was received by Moses
on Mount Sinai
through Divine revelation, and Conservative Judaism, which in the UTJ's view has sometimes permitted personal views to override classical halakhic
scholarship. The Union endorsed women's prayer groups http://www.utj.org/faq.html#q9. The Metivta, its rabbinical school, does not ordain women as rabbis.
David Weiss Halivni
, one of the Union founders and the head of its rabbinical school, has written extensively on an approach to harmonizing the perspectives of contemporary biblical criticism
(as well as critical study of the Talmud
) with traditional religious belief. In his books Peshat and Derash and Revelation Restored, he developed the concept he called Chate'u Israel ("Israel sinned"), in which he argued that the biblical texts were originally given to Moses on Mount Sinai, but they subsequently became irretrievably corrupted and the texts we currently have were redacted by editors in an effort to restore them.
In Jewish Choices (Bernard Melvin Lazerwitz et al.) The Union for Traditional Judaism is viewed as a denomination within Conservative Judaism, p. 8.
When describing the creation of the UTJ Stefan Reif
refers to the founding members of the UTJ as "traditionalists" within the Conservative movement.
Many other sources, however, describe the Union for Traditional Judaism as a new religious movement positioned between Orthodoxy and the Conservative movement.
, also known as the Metivta, is the rabbinical school sponsored by the UTJ. The Metivta trains men for the rabbinate, and also offer study programs for men and women which do not lead to ordination.
Graduates of the rabbinical program have been hired by both Conservative and Orthodox synagogues.
Religious denomination
A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name, tradition, and identity.The term describes various Christian denominations...
, i.e. a seminary, an association of clergy, and a committee which has authority over religious issues. The UTJ is often viewed http://www.bnaibrith.ca/institute/millennium/millennium11.html as representing a denomination or inhabiting an ideologic space nestled between Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
and 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...
.
The UTJ is headquartered in Teaneck, New Jersey
Teaneck, New Jersey
Teaneck is a township in Bergen County, New Jersey, and a suburb in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 39,776, making it the second-most populous among the 70 municipalities in Bergen County....
, USA.
Origins
The Union for Traditional Judaism, originally known as the Union for Traditional Conservative Judaism, began as a rabbinic rather than a lay movement. It was founded by a group of traditionalist Conservative rabbis, led by former Jewish Theological Seminary of AmericaJewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism, and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studies.JTS operates five schools: Albert A...
Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
professor David Weiss Halivni
David Weiss Halivni
David Weiss Halivni is an American-Israeli rabbi, scholar in the domain of Jewish Sciences and professor of Talmud.-Biography:...
, who broke with the movement because of ideological differences, including the Conservative's approach to changes in Halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
and the manner in which the issue of admitting women to the rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
nate was addressed.
Halivni and other traditionalists claimed that in this and other decisions the Conservative movement had made decisions to change from traditional practices in a legislative rather than a judicial fashion, by poll or majority vote. Traditionalists believed that halakhic
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
decision-making should be made by Talmud and Halakha
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
scholars following a process of legal reasoning.
While still a Conservative rabbi, Halivni had written a responsum
Responsa
Responsa comprise a body of written decisions and rulings given by legal scholars in response to questions addressed to them.-In the Roman Empire:Roman law recognised responsa prudentium, i.e...
supporting the ordination of women as rabbis, although by a more gradual process than the one approved by the Conservative movement. Halivni withdrew this responsum prior to leaving the Conservative movement and founding the UTJ. The UTJ issued a responsum opposing the ordination of women as part of its first volume of responsa.
The Union originally intended to form the elements of a separate denomination, including an association of rabbis, a rabbinical school, and an association of synagogues. The organization subsequently described itself as being trans-denominational in character.
Beliefs and practices
The Union for Traditional Judaism attempts to combine modern approaches to studying Judaism's sacred texts, including the use of critical methods and the study of approaches such as the Documentary hypothesisDocumentary hypothesis
The documentary hypothesis , holds that the Pentateuch was derived from originally independent, parallel and complete narratives, which were subsequently combined into the current form by a series of redactors...
, with what it regards as classical approaches to interpreting and making decisions
Posek
Posek is the term in Jewish law for "decider"—a legal scholar who decides the Halakha in cases of law where previous authorities are inconclusive or in those situations where no halakhic precedent exists....
regarding Jewish religious law
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
. As such, it stands in between Modern Orthodox Judaism
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....
, which retains a belief that the current written 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 Oral Torah
Oral Torah
The Oral Torah comprises the legal and interpretative traditions that, according to tradition, were transmitted orally from Mount Sinai, and were not written in the Torah...
were transmitted in an unbroken tradition from what was received by Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
on Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai , also known as Mount Horeb, Mount Musa, Gabal Musa , Jabal Musa meaning "Moses' Mountain", is a mountain near Saint Catherine in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. A mountain called Mount Sinai is mentioned many times in the Book of Exodus in the Torah and the Bible as well as the Quran...
through Divine revelation, and Conservative Judaism, which in the UTJ's view has sometimes permitted personal views to override classical halakhic
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
scholarship. The Union endorsed women's prayer groups http://www.utj.org/faq.html#q9. The Metivta, its rabbinical school, does not ordain women as rabbis.
David Weiss Halivni
David Weiss Halivni
David Weiss Halivni is an American-Israeli rabbi, scholar in the domain of Jewish Sciences and professor of Talmud.-Biography:...
, one of the Union founders and the head of its rabbinical school, has written extensively on an approach to harmonizing the perspectives of contemporary biblical criticism
Biblical criticism
Biblical criticism is the scholarly "study and investigation of Biblical writings that seeks to make discerning judgments about these writings." It asks when and where a particular text originated; how, why, by whom, for whom, and in what circumstances it was produced; what influences were at work...
(as well as critical study of the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
) with traditional religious belief. In his books Peshat and Derash and Revelation Restored, he developed the concept he called Chate'u Israel ("Israel sinned"), in which he argued that the biblical texts were originally given to Moses on Mount Sinai, but they subsequently became irretrievably corrupted and the texts we currently have were redacted by editors in an effort to restore them.
Relationship to Conservative Judaism
Major differences between UTJ and USCJ exist due to UTJ rabbis generally choosing halakhic options with regards to issues related to women, or in the use of siddurim. For instance, UTJ synagogues follow the practice of having separate seating for men and women, and women not acting as a shaliach tzibbur, both positions still considered halakhically valid by Conservative rabbis.In Jewish Choices (Bernard Melvin Lazerwitz et al.) The Union for Traditional Judaism is viewed as a denomination within Conservative Judaism, p. 8.
When describing the creation of the UTJ Stefan Reif
Stefan Reif
Stefan Reif is professor emeritus at the University of Cambridge. He was born in Edinburgh on January 21, 1944.He has a PhD from University College London and a Doctor of Literature from Cambridge. He held the following positions at Cambridge:...
refers to the founding members of the UTJ as "traditionalists" within the Conservative movement.
Many other sources, however, describe the Union for Traditional Judaism as a new religious movement positioned between Orthodoxy and the Conservative movement.
The Institute of Traditional Judaism/The Metivta
The Institute of Traditional JudaismInstitute of Traditional Judaism
The Institute of Traditional Judaism, also known as the Metivta or the ITJ, is the rabbinical school sponsored by the Union for Traditional Judaism. The Metivta trains men for the rabbinate, and also offer study programs for men and women which do not lead to ordination...
, also known as the Metivta, is the rabbinical school sponsored by the UTJ. The Metivta trains men for the rabbinate, and also offer study programs for men and women which do not lead to ordination.
Graduates of the rabbinical program have been hired by both Conservative and Orthodox synagogues.
Financial Difficulties
The Union for Traditional Judaism filed for bankruptcy in 2010 following a decrease in donations. It emerged from bankruptcy in January 2011, but had to sell its headquarters building in Teaneck, NJ in order to pay its debts. The building was purchased by Congregation Netivot Shalom, which had been UTJ's Teakneck congregation. Netivot Shalom subsequently broke from the UTJ.Important figures
- David Weiss HalivniDavid Weiss HalivniDavid Weiss Halivni is an American-Israeli rabbi, scholar in the domain of Jewish Sciences and professor of Talmud.-Biography:...
- Rabbi, talmud scholar, and Reish MetivtaRosh yeshivaRosh yeshiva, , , is the title given to the dean of a Talmudical academy . It is made up of the Hebrew words rosh — meaning head, and yeshiva — a school of religious Jewish education...
of the UTJ's rabbinical school. - David NovakDavid NovakDavid Novak is a Jewish theologian, ethicist, and scholar of Jewish philosophy and law . He is an ordained Conservative rabbi and has also trained with Catholic moral theologians...
- Rabbi and theologian. He currently teaches at the University of Toronto and the Institute of Traditional Judaism. - Isaac S.D. SassoonIsaac S.D. SassoonIsaac S.D. Sassoon is an observant Sephardic rabbi and educator. Hakham Sassoon was born into the Sassoon family of London. His initial education was under the tutelage of his father, the renowned scholar Rabbi Solomon David Sassoon, Hakham Yosef Doury, and others. Later studies were at the...
- Sephardic Rabbi and scholar. He currently teaches at the Institute of Traditional Judaism. - Bruce Ginsburg - Rabbi, spiritual leader of Congregation Sons of Israel, Woodmere, NY, past president of UTJ
See also
- Conservadox JudaismConservadox JudaismConservadox is the term sometimes used to describe Jews whose beliefs and practices place them on the religious continuum somewhere between Conservative Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism...
- Conservative JudaismConservative JudaismConservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
- Modern Orthodox JudaismModern Orthodox JudaismModern 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....
- Biblical criticismBiblical criticismBiblical criticism is the scholarly "study and investigation of Biblical writings that seeks to make discerning judgments about these writings." It asks when and where a particular text originated; how, why, by whom, for whom, and in what circumstances it was produced; what influences were at work...
- HalakhaHalakhaHalakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
- Conservative HalakhaConservative HalakhaConservative Judaism views Halakha as normative and binding. The Conservative movement applies Jewish law to the full range of Jewish belief and practice, including thrice-daily prayer, Shabbat and holidays, marital relations and family purity, conversion, dietary laws , and Jewish medical ethics...
- Role of women in JudaismRole of women in JudaismThe role of women in Judaism is determined by the Hebrew Bible, the Oral Law , by custom, and by non-religious cultural factors...
External links
- - The UTJ Homepage
- - The UTJ Statement of Principles.
- - The UTJ FAQ
- - The Institute of Traditional Judaism / The Metivta
- - Gradofsky, Being a Halachic Jew
Synagogues
- Traditional Congregation of Creve Coeur, MO
- Temple Israel of Long Beach, NY
- Northbrook Congregation Ezra Habonim, Northbrook, IllinoisNorthbrook, IllinoisNorthbrook is a village located at the northern edge of Cook County, Illinois, which is also a North Shore suburb of Chicago. The population was 33,170 at the 2010 census....
- The Traditional Congregation of Mount Dora, FL
Further reading
- Ament, Jonathon. The Union for Traditional Judaism: A Case Study of Contemporary Challenges to a New Religious Movement. Doctoral Dissertation, Department of Near Eastern and Jewish Studies, Brandeis University, 2004. Reviewed in "Dissertations in Jewish Studies", Jewish Quarterly Review, Volume 95, Number 3, Summer 2005, pp. 601–608