‘Jewish Theology in Our Time’ appears to be a smorgasbord

Jewish Theology in Our Time: A New Generation Explores the Foundations and Future of Jewish Belief,  edited by Rabbi Elliot J. Cosgrove, PhD. Jewish Lights Publishing, Woodstock, VT;  ISBN 978-1-58023-413-9 ©2010, $24.95, p. 224 plus notes and suggestions for further reading.

By Fred Reiss, Ed.D.

Fred Reiss, Ed.D

WINCHESTER, California —Jewish Theology in Our Time is a collection of twenty-four short essays by contemporary Jewish scholars who identify with the current major Jewish sects—Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform Judaism. Some of the authors are pulpit rabbis, while others are teachers or associated with religious institutional programs.

In the preface, written by Rabbi Carole B. Balin, Professor of Jewish History at the New York campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, theology is defined as “the process of piecing together a personally meaningful understanding of God.” And that’s the rub. Is there an authentic Judaism, or are there many authentic Judaisms? If the former, which one, and if the latter, then can any Jewish-belief system be inauthentic?

 The doctrines of faith presented in these essays are so unique to each author that a reader could justly conclude that there are as many Jewish theologies as there are Jews. Perhaps the French philosopher Rousseau encapsulates this state of affairs best when he said that “God created man in his own image. And man, being a gentleman, returned the favor.”

There is one binding viewpoint, however, running through the essays. It is the core belief that there is interplay between the Torah, the scroll of the Five Books of Moses, and the cherished idea that there is a covenant between God and His chosen people. The various theologies manifest themselves in each author’s view of the Torah’s origin. A Torah, for example, dictated by God directly to Moses leads to beliefs that distinguish themselves from a theology created by one who believes that divinely-inspired authors wrote the Torah. The conviction that anonymous scribes wrote the Torah to capture Jewish legends and myths for political purposes leads to yet another set of ideas.

Differences among the various authors become clearest in the juxtaposition of the essay “Five Pillars of Orthodox Judaism or Open Charedism,” by Orthodox Jewish Rabbi Asher Lopatin, with the essay by Reform Rabbi Michael Marmur, “Toward a New Jewish Theological Lexicon.” Lopatin has a conversation with a Satmar Chasid, a type of Jewish orthodoxy that many call ultra-Orthodox. For example, Satmar Chasidim separate themselves from secular society by living in insular communities, wearing black and white clothing, speaking Yiddish, and reading only books on an approved list. As a result Lopatin asks, “Was my modern Orthodox lifestyle, which embraces and engages the Western world while still clinging to the details of traditional Jewish law and practice, less religious than his?” He concludes that his form of Judaism “is not only authentic but essential for the well-being of Judaism….I believe modern Orthodoxy is the ideal form.” Why? He doesn’t say. Yet, would not the Satmar Chasidim assert that only through separation can a minority religion be certain that its members strictly adhere to God-given laws and ordinances?

In contrast, Marmur argues that many Jews have difficulty talking about God, Torah, and Israel. They are in search of a new vocabulary that expresses social metaphors to replace Jewish “formulation of ready-to-wear axioms.”Among other beliefs, Marmur maintains that as a Reform Jew he can reject traditional Jewish halakhah (Jewish law). Yet without halakhah, he insists, there is no Judaism. He chooses to cull Jewish law, select that which is most appropriate for him, and then vow (neder in Hebrew) to follow them. “Neder is a wow I make freely. Once I have made it, however, my words have consequences.”

Reform Rabbi Rachel Sabath Beit-Halachmi makes a similar claim in her essay, “Radically Free and Radically Claimed.” She writes, “As a non-Orthodox modern Jew, I am ultimately religiously free to determine which rituals and commandments to observe, what prayers to say, and free to reinterpret, abandon, or even reclaim nearly any and all aspects of Jewish practice and belief.” Is this acceptable to God? Is there any basis in Jewish tradition for arbitrarily rejecting biblical laws? In his essay, “On This Sacred Ground”, Eliyahu Stern, who received his ordination from Yeshiva University, asserts that “approaching this question anew entails distinguishing Halakhah from its common nineteenth- and twentieth-century definition as law. Halakhah and law are two distinct worldviews with radically different goals.”

Jewish Theology in Our Time raises important questions, but gives no answers. With so many intellectuals carving their own path to God, is it any wonder that rank-and-file Jews are confused about Jewish beliefs? Many claim to know the right answer. Perhaps they are all wrong.

Jerome Mintz relates the story that Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, the founder of the Satmar Chasidim taught, based on the teachings of Rabbi Chaim of Sanz, that even though the enthusiasm that the Baal Shem Tov brought to Jewish life is still felt in the Jewish Community, his teachings and ways have slowly become forgotten. When asked to explain this, Rabbi Teitelbaum responded, “The Skverer Rebbe, Rabbi David Twersky, said, ‘Nobody follows the right way except me’. The Vizhnitzer Rebbe, Rebbe Menachem Mendel Hager, also says, ‘Nobody follows the right way except me’. The Gerer Rebbe, Rabbi Yisroel Alter, says the same, too. I say, nobody has the right way, including me”.

Jewish Theology in Our Time eloquently makes the case that individuals, even those trained in the best higher-educational religious institutions, can and do struggle with the right ways to approach God. From that perspective, it is an enlightening book. But the authors do not represent the entire spectrum of Jewish life, which the editor willingly acknowledges. Consequently, Jewish Theology in Our Time does not support its subtitle. The book neither lays a coherent foundation for, nor foretells the future of Jewish theology.

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Dr. Fred Reiss is a retired public and Hebrew school teacher and administrator. He is the author of The Standard Guide to the Jewish and Civil CalendarsAncient Secrets of Creation: Sepher Yetzira, the Book that Started Kabbalah, Revealed; and Reclaiming the Messiah. The author can be reached through his website, www.fredreissbooks.com.