About Us
Independent Synagogue
Below are a variety of statements and polices of our synagogue.
Please email contact@adatyisraelcda.org with questions or comments.
Adat Yisrael is an independent synagogue. This means that we do not belong to any denomination. We are not Orthodox because we do not all choose to be bound by all of the Torah and Talmud laws deemed binding by Orthodox tradition. At the same time, we deeply respect the service to Judaism done by the multiple streams of Orthodox practice in preserving Torah and traditions while adding wisdom through the centuries. We are not Conservative because we believe that Masorti Judaism has largely failed in conserving Torah values, though we share the original aim of Masorti Judaism in seeking to interpret Torah and tradition in harmony with modern secular knowledge. We are, however, skeptical of modern secular knowledge, especially where it appears to be either convenient for licensing selfishness, or convenient for sacrificing thought and power to a human authority. We are not Reform or Reconstructionist because we believe that these denominations have replaced Torah with an array of false gods, including group identitarianism, cultural relativism, environmentalism (as distinct from conservationism), and the worship of one’s own feelings and desires.
Zionism
Adat Yisrael is a Zionist synagogue. This means we support Israel’s right to defend its existence as a Jewish state. We regret that the extreme Leftward slide of the liberal Jewish denominations has made it necessary to state our Zionism. God; Torah; Israel. A synagogue should be Zionist by definition. Our Zionism does not mean that we agree with every policy or action of Israel’s government, any more than our American patriotism means that we always agree with America’s government.
Why do you spell out “God” instead of writing “G-d”?
Judaism has rules about the treatment of God’s name. For example, a paper with God’s name on it should not be thrown in the trash. However, “God” is not God’s name. Orthodox Jews who write “G-d” know this, but do what they do as part of a practice called “Fence around the Torah”, which means the creation of non-Torah rules designed to keep you from getting close to, and then accidentally breaking, actual Torah rules. Some of us follow this tradition, but for Adat Yisrael’s editorial policy we do not believe that the “G-d” fence is worth the confusion that it causes to newcomers.
Policy on Welcoming Christians
Christians are welcome guests at Adat Yisrael. Christians are welcome to observe, as well as to pray with us if they choose. We seek friendship and mutual support with local churches. We do not, however, believe in interfaith worship, and we do not support non-Jews using Jewish prayer and traditions in order to create confusing hybrids of belief or identity. We ask that “Messianic Christians” do not come to Adat Yisrael unless it is to learn about Judaism on its own terms.
Response to Christian Proselytization
Christians should have an easy time imagining that their pastor would not approve of them spending time with people who are actively trying to get them to abandon their faith in Christ. This is a good basis for empathizing with how Jews feel about being proselytized to, and yet doesn’t capture the emotional context of over a thousand years of history where Jews have been oppressed, tortured, and murdered for not converting, both to Christianity and Islam. However, we believe that most modern Christian proselytization is motivated by love of Jesus and fellow man. We expect, therefore, that in friendships with Christians there will be occasional attempts to offer us Christian salvation. A Christian friend who never made such an attempt would not be a good friend, and so we are not offended. We hope that Christians are not offended when we prefer to remain Jewish, and we particularly hope that Christians will not read supernatural evil into our “resistance” to the Gospel. We ask that Christian friends be sensitive to the asymmetries of shared prayer between Christians and Jews. If you visit us, there is likely no prayer in our liturgy that you could not affirm as a Christian. If we visit you, there is little that we can participate in. It is natural for Christians to be welcoming, and so it is common, for example, for Christians with Jewish guests to extend their hands when beginning a grace before meals. Often in this situation a Jew will take that hand, participating happily in thanks to God for health and bounty. This saying of grace will end one of two ways. Either God is left at “God”, or the grace concludes with “in the name of…” and Jesus is invoked and perhaps the Holy Spirit as well. If the latter happens while a Jewish person is participating, that person has been accidentally “tricked” into violating the Jewish understanding of the First Commandment. The error here is mostly on the part of the Jewish person. Of course the Christians saying this grace had no bad intentions, but the context for Jews is centuries of threats and punishment to compel Christian worship. Christians should please understand that we are not making a request for you to alter your worship for our presence. We would never ask that. We are asking only that if you invite us as Jews into your space you be sensitive to how we can and cannot participate.
5 Goals for how we believe Jews should view Christians
1. Jews should appreciate that American Christianity has been different from European Christianity, particularly in its treatment of Jews. 2. Jews should value the friendship and support of Christians. Fear of American Christians is mostly the result of a pathologized intergenerational trauma and is not a rational process. 3. While Christian theology has been in the past, and can be, a vehicle for antisemitism, Jews should not view Christian theology as antisemitic unless it is targeted specifically or exclusively at Jews. 4. While it is reasonable for Jews to expect Christians to have a sense of the history of both Catholic and Protestant antisemitism, it is not reasonable for Jews to consider Christians to have inherited guilt for these acts. 5. Jews should realize that the freedoms of America and the West depend on a strong Christianity, and Jews should support strong churches and positive Christian expression in American public life. A more sophisticated understanding by Jews of Christian antisemitism requires more than a surface learning of Christian theology. The more one learns of Christian theology the more one may see that the cruel treatment of Jews more typically flows from Christian heresy than orthodox devotion. This is in contrast to Islamic cruelty to Jews, which is a hallmark of their devout. Perhaps the most important piece for Jews to understand Christian antisemitism is to be able to pull apart Christian theology from the corrupting temptations of power. When the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity he burdened the Church with temporal power, a burden which was later transferred to Protestants. Jews should not imagine that if Constantine had converted to Judaism we would have had a 1600-year golden age of peace-loving Torah values. Our own Hasmonean dynasty that followed Judah Maccabee should be ample proof that the corrupting nature of power is not a peculiarly Christian weakness.
Policy on Interfaith Couples and Interfaith Marriage
We welcome interfaith couples to participate in Judaism at Adat Yisrael. However, we cannot affirm the simultaneous practice of Judaism and any other religion. Occasionally in our practice it is necessary to distinguish who is Jewish and who is not. Our intention is not to alienate. People who convert to Judaism study diligently for at least a year. It would not be respectful of their spiritual calling and their effort if we made no distinction in ritual between them and an earnest visitor.
Who is a Jew?
Orthodox tradition is that the mother, not the father, determines if the child is a Jew. Our position is based upon Israel’s Law of Return, which is open to anyone with one Jewish grandparent. All denominations of Judaism accept converts, but the Orthodox do not recognize non-Orthodox conversion. We recognize Jewish converts from any denomination. We believe that Jewish continuity is an obligation for Jews, both in our Covenant with God, and following from the obligation in Genesis to be fruitful and multiply. Marriages where only one spouse is Jewish are unlikely to produce Jewish children, and even less likely to produce Jewish grandchildren. Marriages where only one spouse is Christian are also unlikely to successfully foster Christian faith in their children. Children are harmed by being forced to choose between parents, and often find that choosing “neither” is the least damaging path.
Women's Roles in Religious Life
We do not separate women in worship. We count Jewish women for our minyan and we invite them to contribute and learn with us as equals. At the same time, we honor the complementary separation that God made between the two sexes. We prefer to have women light our Shabbat candles, and we prefer that men and women come to synagogue dressed both respectfully and not like each other. We prefer that men wear kippot. We do not expect women to cover their heads, but if a woman chooses to we prefer that she choose a distinctively feminine covering. We support respectful female modesty, but not to the extent of covering the hair as in some Orthodox communities. We do not expect women to wear tallit, but if one chooses to we prefer that they choose a distinctly feminine tallit. Some liberal synagogues use egalitarian revisions in liturgy. In general, we will not be doing this. Reciting the matriarchs with the patriarchs in the Avot, for example, is not an honest representation of their relative importance in our tradition. We can add in our own time; we cannot change our past.
Policy on Gender and Sexual Orientation
Though Adat Yisrael is a non-Orthodox independent synagogue, and while we have a liberal approach to Jewish ritual observance similar to other non-Orthodox synagogues and denominations, our values are Torah values and we have an Orthodox, not progressive, view of "identity". We believe that God is the Creator of human beings, and that He made us man and woman. Marriage is fundamentally about reproduction, and we believe that every child deserves the best chance at having a mother and father. The roles of mother and father are both spiritual and biological, and not interchangeable. Therefore, Jewish covenantal marriage is between a man and a woman.
What if I disagree with some Adat Yisrael positions?
The purpose of listing these here is to help you find us and understand us. These beliefs and positions are not “dealbreakers” for us. One might be a dealbreaker for you. We value your right to your own beliefs and opinions. We invite you to learn and pray with us despite differences. We invite you to question and argue with us, when the time is appropriate. We do not invite people to spend time at Adat Yisrael for the purpose of making us into something different. We aren’t going to become an Orthodox shul. We aren’t going to become a woke shul. We aren’t going to become Christians.
"The greatest heresy is not to doubt, but to be certain of one's doubt."
- Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
"In a religious tradition which values study and learning, questioning is not only permitted but encouraged."
- Rabbi Louis Jacobs
"Doubt is the ally of faith, not its enemy. It reminds us that our faith is a choice,
not a compulsion."
- Rabbi David Wolpe
