The phenomenon of Jewish renewal in Israel is not just a passing phase. It has been developing and growing from strength to strength for two decades now, and its presence is felt ever more strongly in the public arena, in the cultural realm, and in Israel’s different educational streams. With the start of the new academic year, and after a very difficult summer, pluralistic Jewish education in Israel stands at the threshold of four main challenges. 

Discovering Judaism’s spiritual treasures can be likened to entering a sea of boundless waters. The novice learner is exposed  to varied, plentiful sources that require knowledge and mastery. Bewildered learners often face Orthodox teachers who demonstrate knowledge and self‑assurance on Jewish religious issues. They project authority and are categorical about the boundaries of possible interpretation, which is liable to confuse new learners who lack confidence and authority on such matters.

Indeed, teachers of Jewish studies in Israel’s state education system must turn themselves into scholars and inculcate curiosity and diligence in their students. But that is not enough. Pluralistic learners often are bewildered not because of a lack of knowledge, but rather because they come with a different approach. The traditional learner views traditional interpretation as exclusive and unequivocal, and therefore has looked upon pluralistic learners, who often seek to encourage debate and innovation, as being ignorant and mistaken. State schools seeking to encourage Jewish studies must be careful in their selection of teachers for these subjects. Jewish pluralism must be a prerequisite for Jewish instruction in the school. It is not the personal identity of the teacher that should be the deciding factor; the teacher may be religious, Orthodox, secular, or traditional. The question is, to what extent will the teacher respect a range of ideas? To what extent will the teacher expose students to a diversity of opinions instead of only to his or her personal opinion?

Nationalism and racism

This past summer, we saw how racism and xenophobia can surge in times of conflict and war. Preoccupation with a Jewish identity fuels a positive sense of belonging, but may also engender hate and fear. It must be acknowledged that there are opinions in Jewish tradition that take a negative approach to non-Jews, and yet there are also many sources that promote tolerance and pluralism among all human beings.

It must be the task of the educator to present these various opinions and to discuss them in class, but at the same time to defend a single philosophical approach and explain it to the students. We educate in the framework of a philosophy that sees the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. As such, we must discuss and emphasize those sources and streams of thought in the Jewish tradition that support a democratic approach, which promote human equality and equal rights regardless of religion, race, or gender. We must choose those sources in our multifaceted heritage that are aligned with our moral values and worldview, just as others with different opinions find in Judaism a source of inspiration for their own worldviews. 

Learning as the basis for action

“Study is greater, for it leads to action.” This proverb from the ancient rabbis characterizes a Judaism in which the practical and existential focus on maintaining a Jewish way of life is central to the Jewish identity. The Israeli movement to renew Jewish thought and learning started out by concentrating on studying and opening the Jewish bookshelf to reinterpretation. Such learning is designed to inspire and to provide a platform for moral discussion, as well as to address the eternal questions of the human condition, but it generally lacks a focus on their effective application in practice.

In his classic article, “Halachah and Aggadah” (“Law and Legend”), the great Israeli poet Chaim Nachman Bialik  contended that the conceptual world, learning, and philosophy are not enough to create a culture. Laws are required, as well as deeds and actions. Educators face this challenge as well. Thus, for instance, studying questions of social justice must lead to social action, and addressing the relationship between human beings and nature must shape hands-on environmental activity in the real world. The annual cycle and the Jewish festivals and holidays taught in the education system must be expressed in the form of a regular and binding custom in the school, and in the realm of the family and the community alike.

Prayer and the search for a spiritual experience

The Israeli movement for Jewish renewal began to engage in prayer after realizing that people and communities need spirituality, they need to elevate themselves, and they need sanctity. In this area, too, we find creativity and innovation merging with significant segments of tradition that have not lost their vitality or their potency. This is an important realization, facilitating the transition to the next stages of Jewish renewal in Israel. Many still see prayer as a phenomenon that belongs to the traditional religious world, but presumably, just as the barrier to studying Torah has been overcome, so too will the barrier in the spiritual sphere be overcome. 

Just as liturgy was composed and new prayers added in every generation and in every community and congregation, our generation too bears responsibility for shaping its own prayers. The language of modern Hebrew poetry can contribute greatly to heightening the emotional depth of prayer and transforming it into a shared experience for the community as a whole.

This requires more work in the school and in the community. 

Rabbi Ariel Picard is a research fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem and the educational director of the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Be’eri program. Translated from Hebrew by Katy Lavrovski.