The real crisis about the Jewish future

The real crisis about the Jewish future is not how many Jews there will be.

It’s whether or not Judaism does more good than harm in the world. It’s what kinds of people this religion helps raise up.

This is the same moral test that all religions have to face, all the time.

But the rise of nationalist, messianic, Arab-hating, democracy-disdaining Judaism in parts of Israel and, to a lesser extent, in the Diaspora, really has me wondering if we’re failing this basic litmus test.

I’m a rabbi. A rabbi committed to a progressive, non-dogmatic, non-literalist, anti-fundamentalist, humanistically informed approach to Judaism. I believe that progressive, pluralistic, humble, open-minded, open-hearted, risk-taking religious communities of all faiths do more good than harm, by and large. But what I can’t tell anymore is whether my religion writ large – Judaism – as it lives in various forms and ideological configurations in 2019 – is a net plus for humankind. And that makes me feel both sad and motivated to get off my ass and make my best effort to make a difference.