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From: harry@ucbvax.UUCP (Harry I. Rubin)
Newsgroups: net.religion.jewish
Subject: Re: Where Are the Non-Orthodox (& Why)?
Message-ID: <1534@ucbvax.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 7-Aug-84 23:57:08 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.1534
Posted: Tue Aug  7 23:57:08 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 10-Aug-84 02:17:56 EDT
References: <65@whuxk.UUCP>
Organization: U.C. Berkeley
Lines: 23

I suspect that many of the individuals who affiliate with non-orthodox
movements, or do not affiliate with any but consider themselves non-orthodox,
do so because it is more convenient, it interferes less with leading an
"American lifestyle" (whatever that is). It requires less time, energy,
and commitment.

There are real philosophies involved in the non-orthodox movements,
many of them good, none of them trivial, and some people choose their
movements according to philosophy and belief. Do not take this note as
a denigration of the movements or the people in them in general. The
point I am making is that some people, I believe many people, choose
the movement to affiliate with according to convenience and not according
to philosophy.

I have a friend who frequently laments that the big problem with the Reform
movement is that Reform parents will bring up their children with a Reform
Jewish education. This includes relatively little Judaica, and so, as
he puts it, "these kids won't know what they are reforming from." In 
only a few generations most of Judaica would be lost.

						Harry I. Rubin
						harry@berkeley
						...!ucbvax!harry