 | |
| Legal status | Non-profit organization |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Support for people leaving Haredi Jewish communities in the UK |
| Website | http://mavar.org.uk |
Mavar is a UK-registered charitable organisation [1] providing professional support to people who have left or want to leave the Haredi Jewish community. [2] [3] It provides financial, educational, legal, and emotional support enabling people to find new communities and support networks after Haredi Judaism.
According to the Mavar's website, the organisation offers information, one-to-one support, online resources, and referrals to appropriate agencies and organisations, including lawyers or therapists. [4] Mavar also assigns a personal mentor to guide through the issues such as education, employment, welfare, housing, and legal rights. [5] Mavar is described as a "confidential service that helps people from the Haredi community explore new paths in life", which includes LGBT support. [6] [7] Mavar does not campaign or proselytize, and exists to support personal choice. [4]
Mavar is based around a model established by the New York charity Footsteps. [8] Its services are run by volunteers. [7] It is free of charge, relying on private donations, and is strictly confidential.
Mavar translates from Hebrew as "crossings", and to maintain discretion, it meets people asking for help in quiet, but public, places away from the Haredi community such as a library. Typically, Mavar begins by helping to access English lessons, as many leaving the community cannot write or speak English. Mavar will also help access housing and benefits, according to individual need. [9] Mavar may also be able to link to a host family in some circumstances. [9]
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on Mount Sinai and faithfully transmitted ever since.
Haredi Judaism consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to halakha and traditions, in opposition to modern values and practices. Its members are usually referred to as ultra-Orthodox in English; however, the term "ultra-Orthodox" is considered pejorative by many of its adherents, who prefer terms like strictly Orthodox or Haredi. Haredi Jews regard themselves as the most religiously authentic group of Jews, although other movements of Judaism disagree.
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Jonathan (Yonason) Rosenblum is the director, spokesperson, and founder of Jewish Media Resources, an organization which attempts to clarify journalists' understanding of Haredi Jewish society.
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Religious relations in Israel are relations between Haredim, non-Haredi Orthodox, Karaite, Ethiopian, Reform, Conservative, and secular Jews, as well as relations between different religions represented in Israel. The religious status quo, agreed to by David Ben-Gurion with the Orthodox parties at the time of Israel's declaration of independence in 1948, is an agreement on the role that Judaism would play in Israel's government and the judicial system. Tensions exist between religious and secular groups in Israel.
Rabbi Ephraim Padwa is a senior Haredi rabbi in London. He is rabbinical head of the Stamford Hill-based Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations, succeeding his father Chanoch Dov Padwa, who died in August 2000. Padwa is an internationally regarded posek who was listed by The Jewish Chronicle as the 13th most influential Jew in Britain.
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An impressive session I spontaneously attended was about Mavar, a new organization in London that helps young Jews who want to leave the Haredi Orthodox world and need to learn to read, write, and speak in English so they can attend college and get jobs.