Subscribe to Print Edition | Sun., October 12, 2008 Tishrei 13, 5769 | | Israel Time: 12:03 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
  Back to Homepage
Haaretz Toolbar
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File
Last update - 15:55 30/09/2008
Jewish World / I am warmly disposed toward Reform and Conservative Jewry
By Shulamit Aloni
Tags: synagogue 

Although both my maternal and paternal grandfathers, each in his own city in Poland, were rabbis, my parents were Zionists and Socialists, who immigrated to Palestine (making them the only survivors of their large families, whose other members perished in the Holocaust). When I was a child, secular Jews were called hofshi'im (free-thinkers), whereas religious ones were referred to as adukim (devout).

Although my parents were free-thinkers, they would never let a Friday night pass without their own unique version of Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming the Sabbath). On every Jewish holiday, my mother would prepare a special dish (we did not observe the Jewish dietary laws) and would light festive, decorative candles. Since both my parents were musically inclined and had marvelous voices, our welcome of the Sabbath focused on singing - sacred and foreign songs, in both Hebrew and Yiddish. I do not recall whether my parents ever went to synagogue, but classic cantorial music could always be heard in our house.

When I was a little older, I discovered a record - one of those old vinyl discs that can be played on both sides. On it were the delightful performances of violinist Bronislaw Huberman, who founded the Palestine Orchestra in 1936. On one side of the record was an extremely touching rendition of Max Bruch's "Kol Nidrei," Opus 47, while on the other side was Franz Schubert's "Ave Maria."
Advertisement
Since my parents both served in the British army and I grew up in boarding schools - first in Ben Shemen, then in Jerusalem - I developed the habit of attending synagogue on the eve of Yom Kippur to hear the cantor sing "Kol Nidrei." I was always drawn to the synagogue to hear that melody. Even as an adult and then as a mother, I continued the custom of attending my neighborhood synagogue.

However, by that time, I had to come up with a moral justification for my love for this prayer, which dissolves vows and cancels solemn promises. I understood that "Kol Nidrei" was adopted during the period of the forced conversion of Spanish Jews to Christianity. The new converts became known as Marranos (Secret Jews); they lived during an era marked by persecution and harsh anti-Jewish decrees. To me, the prayer's moral justification remained in force as long as there were Jews whose basic human rights were being denied - including, for example, the Jews living behind the Iron Curtain.

I was also drawn to the synagogue because of our congregation's rabbi, Rabbi Shmuel Avidor Hacohen, of blessed memory - a cultured, learned and extremely intelligent individual. As long as he officiated, I followed the advice of Rabbi Joshua, son of Pirhiya, who is cited in Pirkei Avot as stating, "Choose a rabbi to be your guide, cultivate a good friend, and always give people the benefit of the doubt." Until his death, Rabbi Avidor Hacohen was my rabbi and I learned a great deal from him. Just as talmudic scholars learn how to reply to heretics, I learned from him how to respond to fundamentalist talmudic scholars, who treat women with derision and hate the "other."

All the rabbis I have chosen to serve as my teachers have departed from this life: my first teacher, the wise and cultured Rabbi Elimelech Bar-Shaul, chief rabbi of Rehovot, and, at a later stage, Rabbi Avidor Hacohen. I no longer attend my neighborhood synagogue and the local cantor no longer captivates me.

Nowadays, I feel warmly disposed toward Reform and Conservative Judaism, and when I travel overseas, I attend Reform and Conservative synagogues to hear the liturgy. I particularly love to hear female cantors. In these synagogues, families sit together and the members of the congregation participate in the prayer services in a beautiful, dignified manner. When they celebrate the Sabbath or a holiday, their joy is genuine. It is marvelous to meet in these houses of prayer people who are open-minded and not fanatics about the performance of commandments or about how you should pray. When they gather in the synagogue, they do so as members of an ancient culture that broadcasts a message of love and solidarity. The melodies there are beautiful and the sermons intelligent, and, when we drink wine after the prayer services and say Lehayim when toasting each other, the atmosphere of joyousness is heightened considerably.

Shulamit Aloni's new book, "Demokratia ba'azikim" ("Israel - Democracy or Ethnocracy?") has recently been published in Hebrew by Am Oved.
Bookmark to del.icio.us  
 
Produce problems
Jordan Islamists protest imports of fruit grown on 'land taken by Zionists.'
Payback time?
America's opponents in the Mideast: Financial crisis is divine punishment.
  1.   No to anti-judaism coercion 10:56  |  Harry 12/10/08
 Read & React
Gideon Levy / Acre Jews warn 'The Arabs will kill you with knives'
Responses: 23
Conspiracy theory on Jews' role in Lehman Brothers collapse gains popularity
Responses: 31
ANALYSIS / Gilad Shalit is still in captivity - who is to blame?
Responses: 18
Israel Harel / The inflated price Israel is willing to pay for Shalit is cause for concern
Responses: 3
ANALYSIS / Will Haider's death pave the way to a unified far-right in Austria?
Responses: 1
Mideast Muslims hail U.S. financial crisis as divine punishment
Responses: 136


More Headlines
12:01 Tech stock index tumbles 16% on plunging TASE
11:58 Olmert: Acre residents are held hostage by group of extremists
10:23 Gideon Levy / Acre Jews warn 'The Arabs will kill you with knives'
08:43 IN DEPTH / The 24 hours that could have saved Gilad Shalit
03:34 ANALYSIS / Gilad Shalit is still in captivity - who is to blame?
09:13 Ultra-Orthodox wig shop unveils 'Sarah Palin Wig' based on Alaska governor's famous locks
09:43 ANALYSIS / Will Haider's death pave way to unified far-right in Austria?
21:14 Mideast Muslims: U.S. financial crisis is divine punishment
08:27 For U.S. Jewish groups, crisis means less in donations, more needy
02:34 Fake report about Lehman Brothers moving $400 billion to Israel gets broad circulation
03:15 How many Israelis will lose their jobs due to financial crisis?
06:44 Kadima, Labor make 'significant progress' in coalition talks
Previous Editions
Special Offers
Advertisement
Fattal Hotel Chain
Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel.
Dial 013 for your long-distance calls
and get all your money back
US CITIZENS
Vote for real change. Request your ballot today!
Eldan Rent a Car
Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations
Jewish Singles Personal Ads
Find the love of your life on JDate.com
Israel's Premier Real Estate Website
www. israel-property.com
Hebrew Summer courses
From $39.95
Junkyard
Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt
Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |
Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel
birthright Israel | Search engine marketing
Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.
© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved