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Renewal|
The
Light of Jewish Renewal
By
Debbie Ellison
As
the Jewish people of Biblical times
wandered in the wilderness for forty
years, many Jews today wander in the
spiritual wilderness, searching for
a way out of their confusion. Many
Jews, not finding the spiritual fulfillment
they seek in traditional Judaism,
have turned away from their religion,
denying their birthrights in favor
of their quest for religious meaning.
Many of these Jewish seekers are now
returning “home,” finding
in the Jewish Renewal movement that
which they were unaware existed in
Judaism, a bridge between traditional
Judaism and the mysticism and spiritual
depth for which they search.
Jewish
Renewal is a transdenominational movement
blending Judaism's mystical and
prophetic traditions. It is an all-inclusive,
“hands-on” Judaism that
stresses a personal, creative approach
to practicing Judaism. Its experiential
practices include meditation, chanting,
dancing, singing, and an emphasis
on direct spiritual experience and
Kabbalistic (Jewish mystical) teachings.
Actually these practices are nothing
new in Judaism, but are ancient beliefs,
long “hidden.” Jewish Renewal
has renewed these practices and made
them accessible, stressing our oneness
with God, social justice, gender and
sexual equality, and ecology and planetary
transformation.
Jewish
Renewal is based on the teachings
of Rabbis Zalman Schachte - Shalomi
and Shlomo Carlebach, both trained
in the Lubavitch Chassidic movement,
which is derived from mystical Jewish
teachings. Both later founded their
own religious organizations which
began a worldwide movement called
Jewish Renewal.
Reb
(Rabbi) Zalman, as he is affectionately
called, founded B'Nai Or Religious
Fellowship (Sons of Light) in 1962.
The organization later evolved into
P'Nai Or (Faces of Light), and
currently operates as Aleph: Alliance
for Jewish Renewal. Aleph states it
is “dedicated to reclaiming the
Jewish people's sacred purpose
of partnership with the Divine in
the
inseparable tasks of “tikkun
olam” (Hebrew for “healing
the world”) and “tikkun
halev” (Hebrew for “healing
our hearts”). Jewish Renewal
helps heal the world by promoting
justice, freedom, responsibility,
caring for all life and the earth
that sustains all life.”
Ten
years ago, the Network of Jewish Renewal
Communities (NJRC) was formed. The
tremendous growth demonstrates the
strong need within the Jewish community
for a more experiential approach.
One of those communities is the Atlanta
Center for Experiential Judaism (CEJ).
CEJ was founded in early 2000 by Jacob
Kabb and Joel Rachelson and grew out
of their personal search for spiritual
meaning in a Jewish context. “Jewish
Renewal feels like a spiritual home
for my soul,” Rachelson explains,
“in that it is inclusive and
accepting, non-hierarchical, and offers
a mystical approach to Judaism.”
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