Connecticut Jewish Ledger
An Independent Weekly Jewish Newspaper since 1929

By Mara Dresner

Imagine a branch of Judaism that observes holidays from Purim to Passover. Where Sunday School and adult education programs are key. B'nai mitzvah are held. Sabbath candles are lit and wine is blessed. All without a single mention of G-d's name.

Welcome to the world of Humanistic Judaism, a branch of Judaism where G-d is not viewed as central to a belief system or way of living Jewishly.

With a logo of a "humanorah" -- a combination of a person and the traditional menorah, Humanistic Judaism was founded in 1963 by Rabbi Sherwin Wine, in Detroit, when he organized eight families into a congregation.

Humanistic Judaism presents itself as a non-theistic alternative in contemporary Jewish life. There are an estimated 30,000 affiliated Secular or Humanistic Jews worldwide, with about 30 congregations and 15,000 Jews in the United States and Canada. The movement has estimated that close to 20 percent of world Jewry embraces Secular Humanistic Judaism, although most are unaffiliated.

According to "The Guide to Humanistic Judaism", the branch is "a voice for Jews who value their Jewish identity and who seek an alternative to conventional Judaism. Humanistic Judaism affirms the right of individuals to shape their own lives independent of supernatural authority."

Thus, holidays are celebrated and prayers are said, without the inclusion of G-d. Torah is studied, but as a document written by men, serving as a symbol of the Jewish saga.

"It's a new way of looking at the Jewish experience and the Jewish people. The traditional way said that the basic power for solving Jewish problems and ensuring Jewish survival was divine power," explains Wine, rabbi at The Birmingham Temple in Farmington Hills, Michigan, and co-chair of the International Federation of Secular Humanistic Jews. "In the end, we cannot count on the kindness of the fates. The basic power for guaranteeing justice and survival is human power. It's limited power, but it's the power that's available to us and the power we have to train."

Wine, originally ordained as a Reform rabbi, is planning on retiring from his congregation in June. "What triggered [starting the movement] was an awareness that I was not a Reform Jew and didn't believe in the basic principles of Reform Judaism.

"I realized I could leave [the rabbinate] or pretend I believed what I didn't believe. I really enjoyed being Jewish and a rabbi. I had a very strong sense of Jewish identity and [decided to] go out and create something new."

Although the Humanist Movement has developed various training programs, including the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism, with campuses in Jerusalem and Detroit, it is only recently that a rabbinic school has been established, located in Michigan. According to Wine, the first ordination will take place in 1999. There are currently seven students in the program and Wine is "confident our student body will grow."

The Humanist movement does provide leadership training and has graduated 42 leaders-- or madrichim, which Wine describes as "para-rabbis."

In Connecticut, the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Fairfield County is now in its 31^st year, serving about 75 families. The congregation meets in the homes of members for smaller gatherings, such a s Friday night services and stud groups, and at local schools for High Holiday services, religious school and other larger events.

Fred Ury, a Westport attorney, is currently president of the congregation. "Our congregation is about a caring and sharing community. It sounds simplistic, but it is what it is," he says.

Ury explains that while traditional Jewish holidays and life cycle events are celebrated and observed, it is done with a non-traditional approach. "On Simchat Torah, we asked people what was the book they read that meant the most to them. What was there [in that book] that made a difference? The theme was "books that nourish us."

On Yom Kippur, a service as held written by congregants, who were asked to reflect on their deeds. The service makes no mention of devine forgiveness, although the traditional words of Kol Nidre were chanted.

To Ury, the question of one's belief in G-d is not necessarily central to the members of his congregation. "I'm sure we have members who believe in G-d. It's not the primary focus of what we do," he says. "There's a lot of history of the Jews, Jewish holidays, a lot of ethics, the Jewish moral base. It's all part of the tradition. We look at Torah, we talk about Talmud. We look at it as part of Jewish history. There are good things to take out of it.

"We are responsible for our own actions," he continues. "Philosophically, we are a secular congregation versus a theistic or G-d-based congregation."

"Each year, members of the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Fairfield County select a theme that carries through in services and programs throughout the year. This year's theme is "Can Judaism Survive Beyond the Year 2001?"

We discuss what Judaism needs to do to survive," notes Ury. "We're focusing on community and how do you foster community." The theme was selected by about 30 members who attended a yearly fall retreat.

Ury says that his congregation is comprised of former members of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox branches of Judaism, as well as one member who was raised in the Humanistic tradition.

"People are looking for someplace to feel comfortable.. I think that's a fair statement," Ury says.

In fact, the congregation tries to be as inclusive a s possible and has a number of inter-married couples as members.

"Inter-marriage is going to occur," says Ury, whose wife, Debbie, is not Jewish. "We have more tolerance for inter-married couples. Non-Jewish spouses are very welcome. It's hard to tell who's Jewish and who is not."

Rochelle Green, her husband Philip Garrison, and their daughter Lauren (now age 13), joined the congregation five years ago, after moving to Westport from Brooklyn, New York.

"I was never comfortable with more traditional congregations; my upbringing was more secular," says Green, who attended both Conservative and Reform synagogues while growing up. "I had strong pride in being Jewish, celebrating my Jewish heritage and the holidays, but I didn't feel comfortable with traditional prayer." Green says she likes the alternative Humanist prayers, which are presented as a communal outpouring of values, concerns and hopes, as explained in the "Guide to Humanistic Judaism.

Green and her family also belong to Tempe Israel, a Reform synagogue in Westport, where Lauren recently celebrated her bat mitzvah.

"I enjoy Temple Israel; it's very warm and welcoming We take a lot of sustenance from both," says Green, noting they joined the synagogue because Lauren wanted to experience a more traditional Jewish environment.

But Green says she feels most at home at the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism.

"Temple Israel [recalls] memories from long ago. I'm more comfortable with the Humanists. I had trouble saying traditional blessings; they didn't feel truthful to me. I'm [now] saying things I believe in, that I understand. It's a way to express my spiritual thoughts with a community that feels likewise," she adds.

Because the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism does not have any paid employees- including a rabbi-- members plan and develop everything from prayer services to study groups to holiday celebrations.

"We're run communally, by committees. It's people giving a lot of themselves, giving to each other," explains Green. "It makes us a strong community."

"We have access to rabbinical services. But we function very nicely without a rabbi," remarks Ury. "We do the rabbinic function as a group."

Wine has words of praise for the congregation. "It's a wonderful community that has basically, over the past 30 years, relied on leadership coming out of their own congregation," he says. "They're very talented people. I have always admired the spirit and talent of the congregation and its self-reliance."

The Humanistic movement continues to grow, and Ury says it is becoming popular in Eastern Europe, as well as gaining recognition in the United States. "Our congregation will continue to flourish. There will always be a need for alternatives to traditional Jewish congregations. I don't think it's going to take over and that's not the intent. It's an alternative to what already exists," he says.

Green admits that prior to moving to Westport, she had never heard of Humanistic Judaism. "I had wished that there was something that would make me feel aligned and part of the Jewish community. After I started going and became part of the community, I realized this is what I had been looking for all my life."

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