Reconstructionist Judaism is a Jewish movement based on the concepts developed by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan (1881–1983) that views Judaism as a progressively evolving civilization rather than just a religion. The movement originated as a semi-organized stream within Conservative Judaism, developed between the late 1920s and the 1940s before seceding in 1955, and established a rabbinical college in 1967. Reconstructionist Judaism is recognized by many scholars as one of the five major streams of Judaism in America alongside Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Humanistic.
Sherwin Theodore Wine, Hebrew name שמעון בן צבי, Shimon ben Tzvi, was an American rabbi and a founding figure of Humanistic Judaism, a movement that emphasizes Jewish culture and history as sources of Jewish identity rather than belief in any gods. He was originally ordained as a Reform rabbi but later founded the Birmingham Temple, the first congregation of Humanistic Judaism, in 1963.
Humanistic Judaism is a Jewish movement that offers a nontheistic alternative to contemporary branches of Judaism. It defines Judaism as the cultural and historical experience of the Jewish people rather than a religion, and encourages Jews who are humanistic and secular to celebrate their identity by participating in relevant holidays and rites of passage with inspirational ceremonies that go beyond traditional literature while still drawing upon it.
The Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ), founded by Rabbi Sherwin Wine in 1969, is an American 501(c)(3) organization and the central body of Humanistic Judaism, a philosophy that combines a non-theistic and humanistic outlook with the celebration of Jewish culture and identity while adhering to secular values and ideas.
The City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, abbreviated as The City Congregation or TCC, is the only Humanistic Jewish congregation and synagogue, that is located at 30 West 26th Street, Lower Manhattan, New York City, New York, in the United States. It is the first Humanistic congregation in New York City to be led by a Humanistic rabbi.
The Rockdale Temple, formally Kahal Kadosh Bene Israel, is an Ashkenazi Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in Amberley Village, a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, in the United States. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest Jewish congregation west of the Allegheny Mountains, the oldest congregation in Ohio, the second oldest Ashkenazi congregation in the United States and one of the oldest synagogues in the United States.
Temple Beth El is a Reform synagogue located at in Bloomfield Township, Oakland County, Michigan, in the United States. Beth El was founded in 1850 in the city of Detroit, and is the oldest Jewish congregation in Michigan. Temple Beth El was a founding member of the Union for Reform Judaism in 1873, and hosted the meeting in 1889 during which the Central Conference of American Rabbis was established.
The International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism (IISHJ) is the academic and intellectual center of Humanistic Judaism. It was established in Jerusalem in 1985 and, with its second center of activity based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The Institute offers professional training programs for spokespersons, educators, leaders, and rabbis, in addition to publications, public seminars, and colloquia for lay audiences. It has also trained music leaders and cantors, though those programs are not currently active.
Congregation Beth Israel is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue located at 5600 North Braeswood Boulevard, in Houston, Texas, in the United States. The congregation, founded in 1854, is the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas; and it operates the Shlenker School.
Temple De Hirsch Sinai is a Reform Jewish congregation with synagogues at campuses in Seattle and nearby Bellevue, Washington, in the United States. The congregation was formed as a 1971 merger between the earlier Temple De Hirsch and Temple Sinai and is the largest Reform congregation in the Pacific Northwest.
Stephen Wise Temple is a large Reform Jewish congregation in the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, in the United States. Founded in 1964 by the late Rabbi Isaiah Zeldin, with 35 families, the congregation grew rapidly. At various times in its history it has been stated to be the largest, or one of the largest, Jewish congregations in the world, at one time having a membership of approximately 3,000 families, six rabbis, two cantors and two cantorial interns, and four schools on three campuses. As of 1994, it was the second-largest synagogue in the United States. The congregation was founded as the Stephen S. Wise Temple, in honour of Stephen Samuel Wise; and 2014 it was renamed as the Stephen Wise Temple.
Tamara Ruth Kolton is an American non-denominational rabbi and clinical psychologist. She was the first person ordained as a member of the Humanistic Jewish movement. Over time, her religious position evolved from agnosticism to a more spiritual perspective that drove her away from Humanistic Judaism. Kolton later became known for her controversial feminist reinterpretation of the Biblical Eve, which has received both support and criticism from other religious and spiritual writers.
Or Emet, officially the Minnesota Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, is a Humanistic Jewish synagogue and congregation in Minneapolis – Saint Paul, Minnesota, in the United States. The congregation is a member of the Society for Humanistic Judaism. It is a community of cultural Jews, secular Jews, Jewish humanists, and other humanists, united by a commitment to humanism and by respect and support for Jewish culture, traditions, and Jewish identity, and by those traditional Jewish values most consonant with humanism — tikkun olam, social justice. Or Emet embraces a human-centered philosophy that combines rational thinking and scientific inquiry with the celebration of Jewish culture and traditions.
Temple Emanuel is a Reform Jewish synagogue located at 12166 Conway Road, near the corner of New Ballas Road, in Creve Coeur, Missouri, in the United States. Organized in 1956, it is affiliated with the Union for Reform Judaism (UAHC). It has a membership of 300 families.
Machar, officially Machar, The Washington Congregation For Secular Humanistic Judaism, is a Humanistic Jewish congregation located in the metro area of Washington, D.C., in the United States. Affiliated with the Society for Humanistic Judaism, the non-theistic congregation was founded in 1977, and celebrates Jewish culture, education and celebrations. The congregation has a Jewish cultural school, social action committee, and regular newsletter, and welcomes interfaith couples.
Jews have been living in Metro Detroit since it was first founded, and have been prominent in all parts of life in the city. The city has a rich Jewish history, but the Jewish community has also seen tensions and faced anti-Jewish backlash. Today, the Jewish community is quite established and has a number of community organizations and institutions, based nearly completely outside Detroit city limits.
Oraynu Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, founded in 1969, is Canada's first Humanistic Jewish congregation. It is based in Toronto, Ontario and is affiliated with the Society for Humanistic Judaism.
Tree of Life – Or L'Simcha Congregation is a Conservative Jewish synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The congregation moved into its present synagogue building in 1953. It merged with Congregation Or L'Simcha in 2010, bringing its membership to 530 families.
On February 12, 1966, Richard Wishnetsky entered Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Michigan during weekly Shabbat services and, brandishing a firearm, ordered everyone except Rabbi Morris Adler off of the synagogue's bimah. After condemning the congregation, Wishnetsky shot Adler and himself.
