Printer-friendly versionAbout Reconstructionist Judaism
What is Reconstructionist Judaism?
Kol HaLev is a member of the Jewish Reconstructionist movement. Reconstructionism developed out of the creative Jewish thinking and living of Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan in the first half of the 20th Century. Rabbi Kaplan defined Judaism as the “evolving religious civilization of the Jewish People.” For Reconstructionists, Judaism is what the Jewish people make it. We have the opportunity and the responsibility to actively create a Jewish way of life that reflects both the richness of our tradition and contemporary American life.
Reconstructionist Judaism in Detail
Reconstructionist Judaism in Detail
The principles of Reconstructionism were formulated by Rabbi Mordecai M. Kaplan, z"l, a professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary, in the early part of the 20th century. He urged that modern American Jews try to understand and keep key elements of traditional Judaism, while also incorporating the best of modern democracy. Many innovations in the larger Jewish world, for example, Bat Mitzvah, had their origin in Reconstructionism. The major principles of Reconstructionism include:
