Empowered Judaism: What Independent Minyanim Can Teach Us about Building Vibrant Jewish Communities

meaning is not just an affirmation of our existing values. Rather, it is the belief that these texts can both challenge us and bring us closer to the divine will.

The peer feedback group was our most successful strategy for improving skills (outside of a formal class). The group bonded beyond the content of the discussions, and they served as informal cheerleaders for each other when any of them led davening.

“Why are we preserving this institution in the first place? What is so essential about it, and are there new institutions that could do a better job at the same goal?”

prayer is not meant to be seen as a flat statement of belief. It is a literary creation with all the power, nuance, and complexity of literary creations. As Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky has written: “Prayer had better be poetry, not prose; it had better be mythic poetry at that, correlating the mortal human heart and the eternal divine spirit.”

If a reflective life is meant to be more than just affirming our existing beliefs, then Torah provides the opportunity to engage with life more fully.

An Empowered Judaism framework recognizes that demand is strong among the general population and responds to that demand by building communities and institutions that offer direct engagement with Jewish life. Responding to this demand is the real challenge of our time.

that is where the deep power of learning Jewish texts actually lies—in the possibility that something unexpected will emerge.

immersion is one of the most effective ways to transform people.

we have to distinguish between the social space of Kiddush and the prayer space of a service.