February 14, 2023
A RELIGION, NOT A RACE:
As non-Orthodox Judaism wanes, a rabbi sees an updated mission in the digital age: In his new book, Danny Schiff urges a return to the religion's roots, shifting focus from synagogue attendance to being a moral beacon in an age of wild technological advancement (TOBY TABACHNIK, 2/14/23, Times of Israel)
"Fundamentally," Schiff writes, "their challenge is one of ideas. The vitality of any enterprise is inseparable from the relevance, importance, and vibrancy of its core vision. The foundational ideas of the Conservative and Reform movements were crafted as cutting-edge concepts for a societal and intellectual milieu that existed when horses were the dominant mode of transportation. They were designed to enable Judaism to contribute its wisdom for uplifting humanity as effectively as possible within the realities of that period. Since then, the insights of that earlier age have been patched and tweaked to adapt to the conditions of the passing decades. It is, however, unrealistic to expect that ideas that are derivatives of a nineteenth-century response to modernity will be well calibrated to a vastly transformed epoch in which self-driving cars controlled by artificial intelligence ply the streets." [...]Judaism, Schiff submits, needs to have a seat at the table to weigh in on the moral implications of these advancements before they get out of hand.Our purpose is not to be passive observers of the cosmos but to be the keepers of life itself"We bear responsibility for our world and its destiny," he writes. "Our purpose is not to be passive observers of the cosmos but to be the keepers of life itself."And, Schiff writes, it will take a reimagined Judaism, relying on Jewish ideas, community and practice -- rather than one obsessed with affiliation numbers -- to carry us into the next century and beyond."Evaluating which elements will best enable Judaism to maximize its contributions in the decades ahead is a different task from assessing what it will take to reinvigorate a commitment to Judaism among a large number of Jews," according to Schiff. "The first concern relates to how Judaism achieves its purpose. The second focuses on strategies for engaging Jews. While there is an understandable interest in the second question, the first is more consequential. After all, more than Jewish tradition has been concerned with keeping the majority of Jews Jewish, it has been devoted to making Judaism pertinent."The book is a must-read for anyone concerned about the future, not just of Judaism, but of the human race.
Posted by Orrin Judd at February 14, 2023 12:00 AM