TWO RABBIS—Rabbi David Ellenson, president of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and Rabbi Annette Koch of Congregation Beit Haverim in Lake Oswego, at the Feb. 9 presentation by Ellenson at the Portland Hilton. Koch studied with Ellenson at HUC-JIR.

 

Paul Haist

NW Reform leaders hear Rabbi Ellenson

What Reform Judaism’s founder envisioned in the 19th century is said to be in many ways reality for the URJ today

By PAUL HAIST

article created on: 2009-02-15T00:00:00

“In many ways, the vision of (Reform founder) Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise of a unified American Judaism is where we are today,” according to Rabbi David Ellenson, the president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, the Union of Reform Judaism’s four-campus university.

Ellenson, in Portland for the URJ’s Northwest regional biennial conclave the weekend of Feb. 8, spoke that morning to a gathering of Reform professional and lay leaders at Alexander’s atop Portland’s Hilton Hotel. His topic was “The Past, Present and Future of Reform Judaism.”

Rabbi Wise established the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now the URJ) in 1873 and founded Hebrew Union College in 1875.

Ellenson noted that Wise had not envisioned the creation of a new movement within Judaism; rather, a unified American Jewish community.

A major purpose in creating the UAHC, said Ellenson, was to create a financial base for the creation of HUC, which could provide the leadership Wise believed was necessary.

“He believed he could make a union of Jewish organizations in America,” said Ellenson. “Wise thought that without appropriate rabbinic leadership and a union of Jewish congregations American Judaism could never fully realize itself.”

Ellenson suggested that Wise’s vision was realistic prior to 1881 when most American Jews shared common roots in Germany. But beginning in 1881 Jewish in-migration came largely from Eastern Europe and, said Ellenson, Eastern European and German Jews were not compatible then.

Conservative Judaism emerged from the in-migration of Eastern European Jews, for whom the UAHC expression of Judaism was not in every way acceptable, Ellenson explained.

“The Conservative movement became the folk movement of Eastern European Jews,” said Ellenson, adding that in the 20th century it became the largest Jewish movement in America.

But then, some children of the Eastern European immigrants began to cross former boundaries as they became increasingly acculturated.

“These Jews began to filter into Reform congregations,” said Ellenson. “As American Jews began to acculturate, you began to have intermarriage (across Jewish movement boundaries).”

By the end of the 20th century, the Reform movement was growing, said Ellenson. He noted that among younger adult Jews who choose to affiliate, they do so with the Reform movement “almost 2 to 1 over Conservative.”

“We are a community that is much more open and accepting of the reality of intermarriage than any other movement,” said Ellenson. “We are seeing a community that is much more homogenous than ever before.”

He sees the trend continuing.

“The challenge that Rabbi Wise confronted of trying to create a unified American Judaism is much the challenge we face today,” said Ellenson.

He said Reform is “likely to grow stronger” throughout the first decades of the 21st century and “there will be increasing collaboration between Reform and Conservative.”

He noted that URJ President Rabbi Eric Yoffie recently suggested that Reform and Conservative might actually merge in some communities, a suggestion that at the time raised eyebrows among some Conservative leaders in Portland.

Ellenson believes that “the core of our own Judaism has never been stronger” and that Reform will be “the bearer of the tradition” to most American Jews in the 21st century. “I think we will address 80 percent of the community,” he said.

He sees “greater separation from the Orthodox on many issues.”

“The reason you have so little debate between Orthodox and non-Orthodox,” said Ellenson, is that the distance is so great.”

That distance notwithstanding, Ellenson also said, “I wish each movement great success.”