[Judaism] what do we mean by "egalitarian"?

[cellio]

One of my ongoing frustrations with many Reform services (and prayer books) is what I think of as dumbing down the service to be accessible to all, in the process alienating some of the dedicated people who were already there. (There's a vicious cycle in there that leads to needing to do so because everyone else has fled.) I wondered a little whether I was being hyper-sensitive or something, because when I've brought it up in conversation I've mostly gotten surprised looks.

I recently came across rethinking egalitarianism and found myself emphatically saying "yes yes yes!" while reading. Excerpt:

Let's rethink what we mean by "egalitarianism." What if it meant "open to all who bother to make the effort"? What if synagogues distributed fliers that said: "Welcome! We are very glad you are here. Our service is somewhat traditional, because that traditional form works for us. You may be a little lost at first. So we warmly invite you to join our weekly Siddur 101 class, where you can learn the ropes." People who choose to accept the invitation obtain the rewards. Those who don't, don't. Not only would such an approach allow longtime participants to get more out of the prayer experience, but it would also suggest to newcomers that there's something worth working toward. Things that come cheap usually feel that way.

As I understand it, this is part of Rabbi Elie Kaunfer's argument in his recent book, "Empowered Judaism" (Jewish Lights Publishing). What the Jewish world needs, Kaunfer writes, is not more dumbing-down but more empowerment of individuals to opt in if they so desire. Before Kaunfer, this argument was Maimonides's: The best Judaism is really only for philosophers, but the opportunity to become a philosopher ought to be open to everybody.

American Jews have long prized education and knowledge. So why do we suddenly throw those values out the window when it comes to synagogue life? Is it really more inclusive to be patronized by a service aimed at the lowest common denominator?

Thoughts?

Comments

[cellio]

What was this empowerment service like? Did it come in the form of going more slowly, explaining the theology behind the prayers, breaking down the Hebrew text, teaching melodies, something else?

[ichur72.livejournal.com]

I don't know first-hand what it was like, not having attended myself. But based on second-hand reports, the beginner's service was a bit more talk-oriented -- this is the broad outline of the davening, this is a bit about the parshah of the week, this is where the rabbi opens up the floor to questions. The empowerment service, by contrast, delved more deeply into the nitty-gritty of the davening. It essentially helped people who weren't yet fully comfortable with Hebrew learn the structure of the services so they could know what was going on and work towards following along, even if they had to rely heavily on the English translations and the page-number sign at the front of the room.