Orthodox Judaism Research Articles

Using habitus and ethnic identity theory to investigate the decision-making of Canadian Modern Orthodox young people

ABSTRACT Students’ access to higher education is significantly shaped by the cultural and social capital they hold and aspire to gain. This study examines Canadian Modern Orthodox high school graduates pursuing higher education, exploring the factors that influence their choices. By framing Canadian Modern Orthodox Judaism as an ethnic minority identity, the research reveals how this identity shapes the decision-making process of young adults. The study integrates Bourdieu’s concept of habitus and Phinney’s theory of ethnic identity to understand how students in a close-knit community plan their futures, balancing considerations of reputation, marriage, and career. Based on eight years of teaching at a Modern Orthodox high school in Southern Ontario, the study uses institutional ethnography to identify two key pathways: Pathway 1 involves students taking a gap year in Israel, postponing their minority status on North American campuses, while Pathway 2 sees students entering directly into secular universities, where they become ethnic minorities for the first time. The paper also explores how students manage their post-secondary experiences and the impact on their cultural and social capital. Those who choose a gap year in Israel often accumulate greater cultural and social capital within their community compared to those who enter university directly.

Hartman, Jehuda. Patriots without a Homeland: Hungarian Jewish Orthodoxy from the Emancipation to Holocaust. Translated from Hebrew by Shaul Vardi. Boston: Academic Studies Press, 2023. 393 pp.

Hartman, Jehuda. Patriots without a Homeland: Hungarian Jewish Orthodoxy from the Emancipation to Holocaust. Translated from Hebrew by Shaul Vardi. Boston: Academic Studies Press, 2023. 393 pp.

Jessica Roda: For Women and Girls Only: Reshaping Jewish Orthodoxy Through the Arts in the Digital Age. NYU Press, 2024, 336 pp.

Jessica Roda: For Women and Girls Only: Reshaping Jewish Orthodoxy Through the Arts in the Digital Age. NYU Press, 2024, 336 pp.

Social Sciences (Miscellaneous): Categories of Morality and Ethics in Modern Dominant Socio-Philosophical Concepts

Annotation. This article is devoted to the analysis of the categories of morality and ethics in the modern socio-philosophical concepts dominating in the world. The work provides a comprehensive analysis of the concepts of "morality" and "ethics" as socio-philosophical categories and as phenomena of social reality. In particular, morality in the work is understood as a set of ideas accepted in a particular society (which can be formalized in the form of regulations, legal customs and judicial precedents, or reflected in traditions, folklore, linguistic culture and other stable forms of social communication) about possible and acceptable boundaries of human behavior and his relationship to the surrounding reality (primarily society, man and nature), through the prism of which a person manifests himself as a thinking being with freedom of internal choice. In turn, ethics in work is understood as the internal side of morality, which is formed in a person in the process of interiorization of his psyche, which is a set of ideas conscious and accepted by a given person about the possible and acceptable boundaries of his behavior, as well as about his relationship to the surrounding reality (material and the immaterial world). The article substantiates the concept of a dominant socio-philosophical concept and provides a system of features identifying it. The authors analyze current trends in the positioning of the concepts of "morality" and "ethics" in the main socio-philosophical concepts dominant in the modern world: neoliberalism; neoconservatism; liberalism; conservatism; neo-anarchism; neo-marxism; marxism (proletarian internationalism); anti-globalism; alter-globalism; global constitutionalism; Islamic radical fundamentalism; Shiism; Sunnism, traditional and Orthodox Judaism, Chabadism. The work substantiates the position that the processes of globalization, which currently cover all of humanity, lead to an extremely negative tendency to smooth out contradictions regarding the ideas of the dominant socio-philosophical concepts on the model of man within their framework, one of the typifying features of which is the formation in human society of a new morality (an anti-moral person), whose behavior and attitude to the surrounding reality is increasingly determined by the system of his desires and needs, which, in turn, are increasingly formed in a manipulative manner by the global managing elites represented by the global managing class, without having any relation to the real needs of both individual citizens and society as a whole, ensuring their preservation and full development as rational, self-aware and free individuals.

Isaac Breuer's Antiliberal Neo-Kantianism and the Politicization of Jewish Ultra-Orthodoxy

This article centers on the early writings of Isaac Breuer (1910–17), arguing that Breuer's radicalization of neo-Kantianism anchors his revolutionary call to politicize Jewish Orthodoxy. Moreover, it contends that neo-Kantianism, which is normally associated with liberal or social-democratic politics, was given a thoroughly antiliberal reading by Breuer that led to an antiliberal Orthodox politics. While the rise of non-Zionist political Orthodoxy is often regarded as an obsolete traditionalism unattuned to the nature of mass politics, Breuer's politicization of Orthodoxy reveals a coherent antiliberal political theory that addresses the aporias of the democratic age. Breuer uses neo-Kantianism to develop an anti-Weberian “science of politics” which attempts to overcome the modern plurality of values by positing Judaism as coercive public morality. Reading Breuer's Jewish writings through the lens of his quarrels with Weber, Stammler, and Cohen, this article explores Breuer's attempt to overcome the association of Kantian morality with liberalism, by legitimizing coercion politically, philosophically, and theologically. This enabled Breuer to criticize apolitical forms of Jewish Orthodoxy, Zionist programs to politicize Judaism, and democratic politics more generally.

Review of “Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel”

Review of “Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel”

Book Review: Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel by Orit Avishai

Book Review: <i>Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel</i> by Orit Avishai

Orthodox Jewish anti-LGBTQ+ ideologies, with implications for clinical practice with Orthodox Jewish LGBTQ+ persons

ABSTRACT Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) clients experiencing conflict over personally-held conservative religious beliefs benefit from their clinicians’ having knowledge of their movements’ specific anti-LGBTQ+ ideologies. This paper examines anti-LGBTQ+ ideologies found in Ultra-Orthodox, and Modern Orthodox Judaism. Orthodox Jewish anti-LGBTQ+ ideologies are impacted by historical and intellectual traditions, their adherents’ privileged or oppressed positions in society, their institutions’ relationships to national and global politics, and various historical, social, and economic forces that they help their adherents face. Orthodox Jewish institutions are also associated with certain benefits of staying and costs of leaving, which may draw LGBTQ+ persons to remain involved with them despite having to cope with an intolerant milieu. We suggest classic theories of rational choice, identity development, and religious judgment as ways of understanding and working with LGBTQ+ persons experiencing conflict over personally-held Orthodox Jewish ideas.

Les jeunes, cœurs de cible et promoteurs d’une orthodoxie juive globalisée

Since the 1970s, there has been an ‘orthodoxization’ of Judaism worldwide, particularly in France, the United Kingdom, the United States and Israel. This movement is primarily driven by young people. However, until now, studies have not sufficiently addressed the conjunction of globalization, youth and religion in this evolution. This article examines the globalization of an Orthodox Jewish movement, the Lubavitch movement. How does it include youth in a globalization strategy? What are the effects on their religious practice? This faith-based NGO is an important vector of ‘orthodoxization’ among young people. It invests in youth as a priority, in particular through a specific educational system: it aims to encourage integration into the Lubavitch community, through a standardized orthodox training. But within the movement, young people are also agents: they promote a globalized Jewish orthodoxy.

Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel, By Orit Avishai

Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel, By Orit Avishai

Strauss, Spinoza &amp; Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith, ed. by Jeffrey Bloom, Alec Goldstein, Gil Student

Strauss, Spinoza &amp; Sinai: Orthodox Judaism and Modern Questions of Faith, ed. by Jeffrey Bloom, Alec Goldstein, Gil Student

Orit Avishai, Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel (NYU Press, 2023). ix + 300 pp

Orit Avishai, Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel (NYU Press, 2023). ix + 300 pp

Book Review: Queer Judaism: LGBT activism and the remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel

Book Review: Queer Judaism: LGBT activism and the remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel

Religious Disaffiliation From Orthodox Judaism: Social, Psychological, and Intellectual Factors Related to Exiting

Studies investigating disaffiliation from Orthodox Judaism typically utilize samples composed of disaffiliated individuals, without a comparison group of affiliated individuals for reference. This research investigation measured 21 social, psychological, and intellectual experiences in disaffiliated and affiliated Orthodox Jewish individuals primarily in the United States to determine which factors were predictive of disaffiliation, a type of religious change. Experiences were measured with Yes/No questions and a Likert rating scale to indicate the extent to which respondents believed each factor contributed to their disaffiliation. Participants were 730 individuals who grew up practicing Orthodox Judaism and had either stopped or continued practicing (disaffiliated N = 387; affiliated N = 343). Based on regression analysis, factors predictive of disaffiliation were: (1) emotional abuse, (2) feelings that Orthodoxy is restrictive, (3) diagnosis of/treatment for a psychological disorder, (4) poor secular education in school, and (5) intellectual conflicts regarding Orthodox Judaism or questioning God. When rating each factor’s contribution to their disaffiliation, exiters most frequently reported moral or social conflicts with Orthodox Judaism, intellectual conflicts regarding Orthodox Judaism or questioning God, and feelings that Orthodoxy is restrictive. These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of religious exiting and draw out the factors uniquely predictive of disaffiliation in this population.

Negotiating Gender and Religion: Comparative Perspectives from Judaism and Islam

Abstract: Women in Orthodox Judaism and mainstream Islam are discriminated against in Muslim and Jewish family law; subjected to rulings elaborated by men regarding female purity and reproductive rights; segregated in the spaces of synagogues and mosques; and excluded from advanced study, interpretation of religious law ( fiqh and halakha ), and spiritual leadership. Gender-nonconforming believers have no place, either. Nonetheless, since the mid-twentieth century, Jewish and Muslim women as well as sexual minorities have been making claims for gender justice, attempting to change from within these conservative religions. The article shows convergences and divergences in women's strategies to undermine male hegemony on religious authority in both faiths. If numerous works have dealt with female agency and resistance to patriarchy in each tradition, comparative studies are still lacking, and this article suggests areas in family law, ritual purity, and procreation to further feminist and queer interreligious research.

Negotiating Gender and Religion: Comparative Perspectives from Judaism and Islam

Abstract: Women in Orthodox Judaism and mainstream Islam are discriminated against in Muslim and Jewish family law; subjected to rulings elaborated by men regarding female purity and reproductive rights; segregated in the spaces of synagogues and mosques; and excluded from advanced study, interpretation of religious law ( fiqh and halakha ), and spiritual leadership. Gender-nonconforming believers have no place, either. Nonetheless, since the mid-twentieth century, Jewish and Muslim women as well as sexual minorities have been making claims for gender justice, attempting to change from within these conservative religions. The article shows convergences and divergences in women's strategies to undermine male hegemony on religious authority in both faiths. If numerous works have dealt with female agency and resistance to patriarchy in each tradition, comparative studies are still lacking, and this article suggests areas in family law, ritual purity, and procreation to further feminist and queer interreligious research.

Gender Differences in Disaffiliation from Orthodox Judaism

Abstract Religious disaffiliation from Orthodox Judaism is becoming more prevalent and of interest to researchers. In Orthodox Judaism, though gender norms dictate everyday life, research on the role of gender in disaffiliation is scarce. This study analyzed data from a parent study describing the personal experiences of men and women raised as Orthodox Jews who either disaffiliated from the practice (Nwomen = 153, Nmen = 153) or continued practicing (Nwomen = 168, Nmen = 146), examined through the lens of gender. Gender differences had a divergent pattern: disaffiliated women reported adverse social/emotional experiences at a significantly higher rate than disaffiliated men and all affiliates, while all men reported adverse education experiences at a significantly higher rate than women. These patterns may, in part, be due to community norms and differential willingness to report outcomes by disaffiliated and affiliated individuals. Our findings highlight the influence of gender on the experiences within the religious community and the complex process of disaffiliation.

Queering Eve: Imagining Transgender Acceptance in Orthodox Judaism

While the Reform and Conservative Jewish movements have made a concerted effort to welcome transgender Jews in the last twenty years, transgender congregants are often shunned by Orthodox rabbis and synagogues in the United States. Studies about Orthodox Judaism’s relationship with transgender identity often focus exclusively on Talmudic justifications for the acceptance or rejection of transgender Jews, ignoring the increasingly sizeable effect that secular politics has on the American Orthodox community. To address this gap in the academic understanding of transgender Jewish issues, this analysis takes a more holistic approach to the issue of transgender acceptance in Orthodox Judaism by (1) assessing the potential for the acceptance of transgender Jews in ultra-Orthodox and Modern Orthodox Jewish communities in the United States using halakhic rulings on intersex and transgender issues and (2) tracing the potential effects of the American political landscape on the Orthodox community’s acceptance of transgender identity.

Va-yo'el Moshe : The Most Anti-Zionist and Anti-Israeli Jewish Text in Modern Times

Abstract: It is important to remember not only that many Jews rejected Zionism but also that for some it symbolized an abomination, heresy, and the worst collective sin the Jewish people have ever committed. Since it was first published in 1960, Va-yo'el Moshe —a book written by Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum, the SatmarRebbe—is considered the most radical anti-Zionist text written by a Jew in modern history. During the ensuing sixty years, the book has reappeared in more than a dozen full editions and been translated into several languages. At least thirty further volumes have offered interpretations, adapted it for children, compiled digests, or reviewed its relevance to various ideological issues or halakhic rulings. The essay presents the history of Jewish anti-Zionist texts published prior to Va-yo'el Moshe and briefly reviews Teitelbaum's biography to explain his motivation for writing the book. It then outlines the book's contents and the religious principles that support its main theses. Last, it reviews the Jewish public's reaction to the book and explains how and why it became a canonical text among Jewish Orthodoxy's most radical wing, which in this article is titled Extreme Orthodoxy.

Reasons for Leaving: Causes and Initial Triggers for Disaffiliation from Orthodox Judaism

AbstractInvestigating both the causes and initial triggers for disaffiliation from Orthodox Judaism is an important part of understanding the complex lived experiences of exiters. This study documents an extensive number of causes for leaving Orthodox Judaism, as well as initial triggers, a less‐often investigated, yet important component of disaffiliation. Using an online survey, over 700 open‐ended responses were collected from 303 participants who self‐identified as having grown up practicing Orthodox Judaism but had since stopped practicing. Content analysis was used to organize responses, resulting in distinct categories that fit into two themes: intellectual and social‐emotional, the former more often reported by males and the latter by females. The most commonly reported causes and initial triggers, respectively, were issues with the community and lack of belief in Torah and Orthodoxy. Our results give voice to exiters by documenting nuanced accounts of the full disaffiliation journey, beginning with the initial trigger.