God-Optional Judaism

By Seid, Rabbi Judith
Citadel Press, 2001, Hardcover, 226 pp., ISBN: 0806521902, $19.95

This is a handbook for Jews looking for creative and meaningful new ways to express their own way of being Jewish.

Many feel that their Jewishness is best expressed through community, a love of nature, a celebration of Jewish history and culture, and an ongoing evolution of Jewish identity rather than through prayers and God-centered rituals.

God-Optional Judaism provides alternative, non-theistic ways to celebrate every Jewish holiday and all of the rites of passage in life, including baby-naming ceremonies, bar/bat mitzvahs, weddings, and funerals.

Cultural Jews celebrate the historical roots of a holiday or occasion and its moral or spiritual meaning to the Jewish people, as well as to the rest of humanity: A Passover seder may acknowledge not only the end of Jewish bondage in Egypt thousands of years ago, but also the persistence of slavery in some parts of the world today and the hope for the end of the world slave trade in modern times. God Optional Judaism discusses the historical evolution of the Jewish religion and takes up the question of what it means to be a ‘cultural Jew,’ citing anecdotes and using quotes from Jews across North America. But primarily it is a how-to book that provides specific ways to practice cultural Judaism with ceremony, study, and songs. Also included is resource information about how to find or found your own alternative Sunday school or congregation in your community.