Reform Judaism in 1000 Words offers short but deep articles written by rabbis from across the country to explore and expand your engagement with Reform Jewish thought and practice in the 21st century.
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Each of us has an individual relationship with Judaism, with our own theology and passions. Similarly, every community will define many of its own boundaries. This diversity of approaches is integral to what makes Reform Judaism so special. Uniting us are shared values, common challenges, and a core ideology and approach. In this series, we address those commonalities, while recognising our diversity of voices. Each essay is written by one member of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis UK , addressing one area of being a Jew today.
The articles are introduced by the editors, Rabbis Josh Levy of Alyth Synagogue and Debbie Young-Somers, Reform Judaism’s Community Educator. We would not all have written the same article, and will not all choose the same journey through the materials. The hope is that they help you to express your own Judaism more clearly.
Shavuot 2022
Since Pesach, we’ve been counting; when that count gets to 49 days, or 7 weeks, it’s time to celebrate Shavuot. Whether you see Shavuot as the festival of first fruits,…
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Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Simchat Torah
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Simchat Torah Context Early Reformers frowned upon excessive kissing, bowing, sometimes even the parading of the Torah as somewhat…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Sukkot
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Sukkot Context As one of the three Temple oriented Pilgrim Festivals, Sukkot has traditionally been deeply connected…
Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Yom Kippur
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Yom Kippur Context The confessional is not a part of Jewish life. Although we may constantly strive to…
Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Rosh Hashanah
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 words: Rosh Hashanah Context Rosh Hashanah is one of 4 New Years in the Jewish calendar, and certainly the…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Brit Milah
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Brit Milah Context Circumcision regularly appears in secular discourse as an example of a problematic religious practice. Those…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Tisha B’Av
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Tisha B’Av Context For many years, the fast of Tisha B’Av was not marked, and was barely even…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Shavuot
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Shavuot Context Celebrating the giving of Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai may not sound like the most…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: The Messianic Age and Redemption
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: The Messianic Age and Redemption Context What does it mean to speak about redemption, the Messiah or a Messianic…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Pesach
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Pesach Context Pesach is one of the most well-known of our festivals. It holds memories of childhood…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Purim
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Purim Context Purim is the festival that is most frequently depicted in documentaries about Jews, because it is…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Tu BiShvat
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Tu BiShvat Context For those coming new to Jewish life, Tu BiShvat is often a surprise. The…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: The History of Reform Judaism
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: The History of Reform Judaism Context Jewish history has always been a process of evolution and struggle, in relation…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Chanukah
Click here to download a PDF of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Chanukah Context Chanukah has become one of the most well-known festivals of the Jewish calendar. Yet this is…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Authenticity
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Authenticity Context The concept of authenticity in Jewish life is one that exercises many across the denominational spectrum.…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Business Ethics
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Business Ethics Context Judaism is not just a religion of the synagogue, but seeks to guide our behaviour…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Jewish Time
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Jewish Time Context We all live within a variety of calendars, with different rhythms and markers – the…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Halachah and Progressive Integrity
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Halachah and Progressive Integrity Context As Reform Jews, we are sometimes accused of an approach to Jewish life…
Reform Judaism In 1000 Words: Death and the Afterlife
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Death and the Afterlife Context In recent years, a great deal of attention has been directed to the…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Birth and New Ritual
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Birth and New Ritual Context How are Reform Jewish values expressed in practical situations? One way is through…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Prayer and Liturgy
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Prayer and Liturgy Context The liturgy that we hold in our hands as we pray articulates our…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Revelation and Truth
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Revelation and Truth Context Many classical religious traditions make claim to being the sole route to understanding…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Reading Torah and Haftarah
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Reading Torah and Haftarah Context For those members of our communities who attend services regularly, the annual cycle…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Ritual
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Ritual Context Ritual is a core part of most religious lives. Classically, participation in ritual by Jews…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Kashrut
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Kashrut Context Reform Rabbis, like all Jews, approach Jewish practice in diverse ways, with a variety of levels…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Israel
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Israel Context What are our guiding principles about the State of Israel? Do we have shared understandings, opinions,…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Intermarriage
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Intermarriage Context According to a recent Pew Report [i], one in five American adults was raised by…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Social Justice
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Social Justice Context For much of the last 200 years, Reform Judaism has strongly identified with ‘Prophetic Judaism’…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Interfaith Dialogue
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Interfaith Dialogue Context Interfaith initiatives - local and national, theological and practical – are a regular part of…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Bar and Bat Mitzvah
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Bar and Bat Mitzvah Context Becoming bar/bat Mitzvah simply means to reach the age at which one is…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Jewish Status
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Jewish Status Context “Who is a Jew?” is both an interesting ‘academic’ question, and a fraught and painful…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Welcoming Converts
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Welcoming Converts Context Since the early rabbinic period, Judaism has had a formal process by which those who…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Gender
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Gender Context One of the distinctive features of Reform Judaism is our unequivocal commitment to gender equality. Or…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Marriage
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Marriage Context Though marriage, as an institution, is no longer an inevitable step in a couple’s journey, it…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Shabbat
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Shabbat Context Shabbat has been described as Judaism’s gift to the world, framing the working week with time…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Kabbalah
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Kabbalah Context In earlier generations of Reform Judaism, Talmud was rarely studied. In our time, it is regularly…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Chosenness
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Chosenness Context The idea of being a chosen people has often been a sticky issue for Jews, and…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Personal Autonomy in Jewish Life
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Personal Autonomy in Jewish Life Context Our belief in personal autonomy as a religious value is often used…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Torah
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: Torah Context One of the great challenges of religious life is how we engage with our foundational texts,…
Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: God
Click here to download a pdf of Reform Judaism in 1000 Words: God Context In recent years, Reform Jews have grown increasingly confident in expressing a diverse set of personal…