20 world religions and faith practices 151

Robyn Lebron

interpreted by the rabbis to reflect modern sensibilities and suit modern
conditions, although great caution should be exercised in doing so.

econstructionist Judaism It started as a stream of philosophy by
Mordechai Kaplan, a conservative rabbi, and later became an independent
movement emphasizing reinterpreting Judaism for modern times. Like
Reform Judaism, Reconstructionist Judaism does not hold that Jewish
law as such requires observance, but unlike Reform, Reconstructionist
thought emphasizes the role of the community in deciding what
observances to follow.
eform Judaism It is called liberal or progressive in many countries
and originally formed in Germany in the late eighteenth century ad
in response to the Enlightenment. Its defining c haracteristic w ith
respect to the other movements is its rejection of the Jewish ceremonial
law and belief. Instead, individual Jews should exercise an informed
autonomy about what to observe. Reform Judaism initially defined
Judaism as a religion rather than as a race or culture, rejected most of
the ritual ceremonial laws of the Torah while observing moral laws, and
emphasized the ethical call of the prophets.

asidic Judaism It is a stream of Haredi Judaism based on the
teachings of Rabbi Yisroel ben Eliezer. Hasidic philosophy is rooted in
the ƒ„„ƒŽƒŠǤ Kabbalah is an esoteric system of interpretation of the
scriptures and is based on the belief that every word, letter, number,
and even accent contained mysteries interpretable by those who knew
the secret. The two principal sources of the kabbalists are the ‘‘ ‘ˆ
”‡ƒ–‹‘ ƒ† –Š‡ ‘‘ ‘ˆ ’Ž‡†‘”Ǥ asidic Jews accept the kabbalah as
canonical sacred scripture. They are distinguished both by a variety of
special customs and practices, including reliance on a supreme religious

leader and a special dress code particular to each Hasidic group. Hasidic
Judaism eventually became the way of life for many Jews in Europe.
Waves of Jewish immigration in the 1880s carried it to the United
States.20

Jewish

enewal It is a recent North American movement that was

begun by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, a Hasidic rabbi, in the 1960s.
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