This week, something truly historic happened. Reform and Liberal communities across the country voted to be part of something bigger; to come together as part of one new larger movement – Progressive Judaism.
This isn’t just an organisational combination. It is also a statement of hope. It is a vision of a Jewish communal life in which we are not divided by things on which we differ, but in which we choose to embrace diversity and cooperation within shared values and shared commitments.
As Progressive Jews, we are continuing the work of many generations who came before us. We think of Lily Montagu z”l, who challenged Judaism to meet people as they are, with justice and spiritual depth, and Rabbi Leo Baeck z”l, who in 1946 enjoined us that: “We must not, as Jews, deny ourselves to the problems of the time, nor hide ourselves in the face of them. We are Jews also for the sake of humanity.”
As we build a new movement together, we are building on the vision of figures such as Rabbi Hugo Gryn z”l, who reminded us that at times of division, it is “all the more important to swim against the tide and demonstrate a commitment to greater unity”.
And of Rabbi John Rayner z”l, who, in 1983 – when a unification was last seriously proposed, but not fulfilled – wrote: “People rejoice when they see friendship rather than enmity, generosity rather than pettiness, cooperation rather than rivalry, and integration rather than fragmentation.”
This moment also gives expression to something long felt in our communities: that movements can be more than organisational structures. They can be sources of belonging, commitment and creativity.
In a time when many institutions are struggling to hold trust, we are saying that Jewish communities still believe in one another, in working together to achieve more, in the power of coming together.
This new Movement for Progressive Judaism will honour what each community brings. It will remain pluralist and rooted in congregational autonomy. But it will be louder in voice, deeper in learning, and clearer in purpose.
This is the first time our communities have been asked if they want to be part of a wider movement. They have said a resounding “yes”. But that “yes” comes with responsibility: to shape a Jewish life for today that can carry our values forward for generations to come. We have a responsibility to build for them – for those who will inherit our synagogues, our siddurim and our stories. For those who will one day ask what Progressive Judaism means – and look not only to books or leaders, but to the communities we are building right now.
Rabbi Rayner once wrote, “If we want to do, we must dare; if we wish to make progress, we must take risks. The religious person needs courage to say: “I will not accept the slavery of Egypt because the freedom of Canaan is uncertain.”
We have dared to make the leap. Now we build together.
