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Neshama Carlebach
Fascinating. According to this article (tweeted by R' Gil Student), Neshama Carlebach, daughter of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach and a singer of whom I'm fond, went to the URJ biennial last week and decided (on the spot?) to join the Reform movement. Given her Orthodox background that's a bit of a surprise, though I always did wonder how she reconciled Orthodoxy's prohibitions on women singing in front of men with her career.
Perhaps ironically, while she feels drawn in by the Reform movement, I've been feeling pushed away from it in recent years. I could imagine the possibility of ending up Orthodox someday. I know of two factors at play right now, one in each direction, that prevent my serious consideration of the idea. And neither of them is theology.
What keeps me in the Reform movement and, specifically, my congregation, is my absolutely wonderful rabbi (and by the way our Shabbat morning minyan, which he leads, but not just that). Despite all the other problems that sometimes come up -- "entitlement" services that are more about performance than about worship, the disregard by many congregants for those of us who actually are observant, lowest-common-denominator practice, and others -- I, have a spiritual and learning home there, at least so long as my rabbi is leading things.
And what keeps me out of the Orthodox movements (there's more than one) is not theology but the limitations I would experience as a woman. Being told that I can never represent the community, never lead prayers nor read from the torah, never fully engage spiritually except in women-only groups -- I can't go there. So the article about Neshama Carlebach and the challenges she faced in that community struck rather close to home for me.
Perhaps ironically, while she feels drawn in by the Reform movement, I've been feeling pushed away from it in recent years. I could imagine the possibility of ending up Orthodox someday. I know of two factors at play right now, one in each direction, that prevent my serious consideration of the idea. And neither of them is theology.
What keeps me in the Reform movement and, specifically, my congregation, is my absolutely wonderful rabbi (and by the way our Shabbat morning minyan, which he leads, but not just that). Despite all the other problems that sometimes come up -- "entitlement" services that are more about performance than about worship, the disregard by many congregants for those of us who actually are observant, lowest-common-denominator practice, and others -- I, have a spiritual and learning home there, at least so long as my rabbi is leading things.
And what keeps me out of the Orthodox movements (there's more than one) is not theology but the limitations I would experience as a woman. Being told that I can never represent the community, never lead prayers nor read from the torah, never fully engage spiritually except in women-only groups -- I can't go there. So the article about Neshama Carlebach and the challenges she faced in that community struck rather close to home for me.
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ETA: I looked it up and they merged with Tree of Life, but you knew that already. Is it any good?
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I've been there a few times for Friday nights and a couple times for yom tov, but not Shabbat morning so far. Friday nights seem very casual and family-oriented -- not something I really connected with but not actively bad or anything. And, to be fair, my congregation has been moving in the direction of Friday-night services that don't engage me, so. The yom-tov services seemed like conventional Conservative services -- complete, not especially engaging, but quite reasonable. He also tries to encourage lay participation, which is how, on Shavuot, I led musaf even though I don't know musaf. That was exciting. :-)
I like Rabbi Chuck as a person. I haven't yet had the opportunity to hear him give a sermon or d'var or talk, so I don't know what he's like from an intellectual/scholarly angle.
He's no longer part of the Rabbinic Assembly, by the way, and I believe the congregation is not part of the Conservative body. So they're now Conservative-style but not affiliated, I guess.
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Egalitarian tends to have no mechitza, and women count in the minyan. Women can lead shacharit and mussaf, etc.
Partnership doesn't have that. They have a mechitza, women don't count in 10, and they can only lead things like Pzukei, Torah service, etc.
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