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Alternative Judaism




Alternative Judaism or '''Agnostic Judaism''' refers to a variety of groups whose members, while identifying as Jew s in some fashion, nevertheless do not practice Judaism as most other Jews.


VARIETY

Generally, beliefs of these groups are not compatible with mainstream Judaism. Instead, their beliefs fall outside of the traditional views of the and God’s Non-corporeal Nature .
"For most American Jews, it is acceptable to blend some degree of foreign spiritual elements with Judaism. The one exception is Christianity , which is perceived to be incompatible with any form of Jewishness. Jews for Jesus and other Messianic Jewish groups are thus seen as antithetical to Judaism and are completely rejected by the majority of Jews". (Kaplan, Dana Evan. ''The Cambridge Companion to American Judaism'', Cambridge University Press, Aug 15, 2005, p. 9).


HISTORY

Alternative forms of Judaism are nothing new in Jewish History , and have appeared in the past in such forms as the Sabbateans and Frankists which fell outside the common Orthodox and Non-Orthodox ( Reform , Conservative , Reconstructionist ) classification of the four major streams of today's Jewish Denominations . These may be combinations of Secular Jewish Culture and Jewish Symbolism with non-Jewish religions and philosophies.


ALTERNATIVE MOVEMENTS WITHIN JUDAISM

Modern alternative movements that have emerged from within traditional Judaism:
  • Humanistic Judaism , an organized group that takes a non-theistic or Agnostic approach to Judaism and which has around 50,000 members worldwide in over 60 congregations. It is cultural and human-centered, rather than spiritual.

  • Jewish Renewal , an organized spiritualist approach to Judaism, incorporating Kabbalah and New Age principles, with around 50 congregations worldwide.



ALTERNATIVE MOVEMENTS OUTSIDE JUDAISM

Movements with origins outside of traditional Judaism: