Religion, Secularism, and the Jewish Left

On the Nose

On March 29th, Jewish Currents began publishing a short commentary on the parshah—the portion of the Torah that Jews traditionally read each week—in the Shabbat Reading List newsletter. A note introducing this new feature situated it in the context of mainstream Jewish communal support for Israel’s war on Gaza: “While it might seem strange for a historically secular magazine to embark on such a project . . . we are trying this now because many in our community have expressed an unprecedented alienation from most Jewish institutions, alongside an urgent need for spiritual fortification.” While many readers have written in to express their gratitude and enthusiasm for the series, some people with long histories of close involvement with Jewish Currents have been upset by the inclusion of religious content. The range of reactions highlights an enduring dispute over the place of religion at Jewish Currents. The magazine was founded by a stridently secularist American Jewish left, which was forged in opposition to the reactionary constraints of religion and in alignment with the Communist Party. But this has given way to a movement that’s more interested in religious texts and ritual as generative elements of Jewish identity, and as politically meaningful tools.

On this episode of On the Nose, editor-in-chief Arielle Angel, managing editor Nathan Goldman, JC councilmember Judee Rosenbaum, and contributing writer Mitch Abidor argue about the parshah commentaries, the meaning of secularism at Jewish Currents, and the evolving role of religion on the Jewish left.

Thanks to Jesse Brenneman for producing and to Nathan Salsburg for the use of his song “VIII (All That Were Calculated Have Passed).”

Articles Mentioned and Further Reading:

“Complex Inheritances,” Joy Ladin, Jewish Currents

“Yiddish Anarchists’ Break Over Palestine,” introduced and translated by Eyshe Beirich, Jewish Currents

“Camp Kinderland at 100,” On the Nose, Jewish Currents

“Zhitlovsky: Philosopher of Jewish Secularism,” Max Rosenfeld, Cultural and Secular Jewish Organization (previously in Jewish Currents)

“Secularism,” Daniel May, Sources

Letter to the editor on religious coverage at Jewish Currents, with editors’ response

“Secular Jewish Education, A Critique,” Bennett Muraskin, Jewish Currents

“Why I’m Not a Jewish Secularist,” Mitch Abidor, Jewish Currents

“Why I’m Not a Jewish Secularist: A Response to the Responses,” Mitch Abidor, Jewish Currents

“The Discourse on Voluntary Servitude,” Étienne de la Boétie