Reform Judaism
The Reform movement began in Germany in 1819, but emerged independently in Britain in 1842 with the establishment of the West London Synagogue. The various Reform congregations eventually joined together and the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain is now a national movement with 42 Congregations. One in six of all Jews in the country now belong to the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain.
Like the emergence of Protestantism, Reform Judaism developed partly out of a need for internal religious changes and partly because of wider factors operating in society at large.
The issue of change is one that constantly challenges all faiths: how much can be altered to accommodate new lifestyles and attitudes? Who decides what is and is not permissible, and by what authority? It also begs the question of which parts of the faith are core values and immutable, and which are social custom and time-bound.
* The road to Reform
In Judaism the decision-making body had historically been the Sanhedrin, the Jewish parliament of 71 rabbis. It was established at the turn of the first millennium and had the task of adapting the faith to ever-changing conditions. Their debates are recorded in the Mishnah and Talmud. They reformed Judaism to such an extent that what emerged was no longer recognisable as Biblical Judaism and became known as Rabbinic Judaism.
It was they who effectively abolished the death penalty even though it is frequently commanded in the Bible. Similarly they declared that the verse in Exodus 21.24 "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" should be divested of any sense of physical retribution but interpreted to mean financial compensation instead.
However the demise of the Sanhedrin in the fifth century robbed Judaism of its dynamic reforming process and a central authority to implement major changes. Leading scholars did effect some modifications but there was a general reticence to reverse rulings made by rabbis of previous centuries, who were considered to be more pious than modern ones. The result was an increasing stultification within the faith, and the gulf between Jewish Law and everyday reality widened. Conformity became the hallmark of religious authenticity.
This did not stop Jewish life from continuing. For centuries Jews were forcibly separated from wider society by discriminatory legislation and this had the effect of keeping them cocooned in their own world and unaffected by changing trends. The problem only became a crisis in the nineteenth century when the social and legal barriers around them came down, and Jews were catapulted into modern society.
For some, the sudden transition was too overwhelming, and it led to them abandoning Judaism. Others reacted by retreating back into their faith and deliberately shunning any contact with life outside. Another group sought to inhabit both worlds, loyal to their tradition but also part of modernity. That was the creation of Reform Judaism.
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