Pluralism as the road to survival

Temple Sholom Synagogue and Temple Sholom Sisterhood hosted Reform Rabbi Gilad Kariv over the course of Shabbat Vayakheil-Pekudei, March 12-13.

An Israeli and American-trained lawyer and rabbinical graduate of Hebrew Union College, Kariv serves as executive director of the Israeli Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ), the umbrella organization that represents Reform Judaism in Israel.

Over the course of two days, Kariv spoke about the growth of the Reform movement in Israel and discussed the need for increased pluralism in Israeli social policy. He focused his discussion on the work of the group Women of the Wall, who, for the last two decades, have gathered at the Kotel in Jerusalem, to advocate for women’s right to freely gather and pray.

Below, two Temple Sholom congregants, Violeta Moutal and Arthur Wolak, share their impressions of Kariv’s take on pluralism and the growth of the Reform movement in Israel, respectively. Versions of these articles appear in the synagogue’s newsletter and are republished with permission.

The Women of the Wall

When he was in Vancouver, Rabbi Gilad Kariv spoke on the current state of affairs in Israeli society, which he believes calls for the development of pluralism as a means of survival not only for Jews, but also of Judaism, both in Israel and in the Diaspora.

In order to support the Reform movement’s growth, Kariv said, “Israel is in need of Diaspora Jewry’s moral support, not only its financial support.”

Both Diaspora Jews and the state of Israel have pivotal roles to play in the world, he said, given the shared history of antisemitism and the need to look out for each other and the preservation of Jewish life and the Jewish homeland. Each is unique and faces different challenges and both have much to learn from one another. While Diaspora Jews can share their experience with dialogue among denominations and a tradition of pluralistic religious practice, Jews in Israel have much to teach Diaspora Jews on the value and importance of peoplehood.

Kariv addressed several issues currently percolating in Israeli society, including a pending new law regarding conversion, gender equality in public transportation and recent developments with Women of the Wall (WOW).

On all these fronts, he explained, Israelis are experiencing resistance and opposition from the ultra-Orthodox community, whose members feel under threat from the forces of modernity. Kariv pointed out, however, that this group is undergoing an “internal revolution” of sorts, as some Orthodox Israelis consider broader ideas of freedom of choice.

Kariv said that as many as 60 percent of ultra-Orthodox women are now working outside the home and discovering a different way of life. There is no question, he said, that this phenomenon alone will change centuries-old beliefs and assumptions on religious observance, gender roles and family life. The Internet has also had an effect, exposing them to the world at large. “How can you prevent that alone from causing change?” Kariv asked.

Kariv gave a brief overview of WOW’s history to introduce the main subject of one of his lectures. For the past two decades, a group of women, Orthodox, Conservative and Reform, have been gathering monthly before the Kotel on Rosh Chodesh (the first day of the Jewish month) to pray together. Traditionally, women’s prayer at the Wall has remained constrained by Orthodox customs, leaving out parts of the service reserved for men and omitting the need for a minyan.

Since 1989, WOW has fought a legal battle asserting its right to conduct organized prayer at the Kotel, ultimately leading to two Israeli Supreme Court cases and to a series of debates in the Knesset.

Though it ruled in WOW’s favor in 2002, the Supreme Court reconsidered in 2003 and upheld the ban prohibiting WOW from meeting on the plaza, on the grounds that continued meetings represented a threat to public safety and order. Then, last November, while 40 women prayed at the Kotel, a young woman donning a tallit and holding a Torah was arrested by police and held for questioning.

Kariv noted that, ironically, while arrests were happening at the Kotel, 200 American women were in Israel attending their ordination ceremony. When these female rabbis return to their homes, they will be the role models and leaders for women in the Jewish world who already enjoy donning a prayer shawl and taking equal part in public prayer.

“This is the first time in history that we are finally in the battlefield of change in Israel,” Kariv said proudly. In spite of the extremes in Israeli society, between a secular majority and an ultra-Orthodox minority monopoly, he said, Israelis are voicing more and more their acceptance of pluralism, making room for freedom of choice on religious expression and gender equality.

– Violeta Moutal is vice-president, programming, Temple Sholom Sisterhood

Growth of Reform in Israel

In his evening address to the Temple Sholom congregation last month, Rabbi Gilad Kariv spoke about the growth of Reform Judaism in Israel.

Referring to the movement’s role in helping shape the future of Judaism in Israel, Kariv discussed the trend toward increasing Jewish observance in Reform Judaism and how it has led to a stronger Reform movement in Israel.

While it is not uncommon to hear contemporary Israeli pop singers using traditional Jewish liturgical texts to create number-one hits – a phenomenon unheard of in prior decades – young Jews are becoming increasingly interested in traditional Judaism and are often the ones leading the trend toward greater Jewish observance in their homes.

According to Kariv, this trend actually lends itself to the strengthening of Progressive Judaism because Jews who wish to rediscover their traditions outside the boundaries of Orthodox Judaism need somewhere to turn, and many are increasingly turning to the Reform movement. Today there are 30 Reform congregations and more than 60 Reform preschools throughout Israel. Kariv aims to help double the size of the Reform movement in Israel over the next 10 years. The option to choose a Reform congregation, he maintains, is key to providing otherwise secular Israeli Jews with knowledge of Judaism and Jewish practices.

Speaking about the proliferation of Reform kindergartens and their effect on fostering religious communities, Kariv gave the example of the rapid growth of one new congregation that took just six months to establish itself after the school was opened. This quick development occurred because the families of these children, and their neighbors, desired such a congregation to celebrate weekly Shabbat services. All they need now is a rabbi.

Kariv shared a little about his personal story as well. Raised in a secular household, his own entry point to Judaism and Jewish life was through an Orthodox congregation in Tel Aviv. At 16, he joined Tel Aviv’s newly opened Reform congregation, which led to the strengthening of his Judaism and decision to enter the rabbinate. In addition to his rabbinical work, Kariv is legal advocate for Progressive Judaism in Israel, and also helps provide legal defence, when necessary, for members of Women of the Wall, a prayer group striving for greater access to the Kotel.

– Arthur Wolak is a freelance writer living in Vancouver

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