Tradition, Innovation, Conflict: Jewishness and Judaism in Contemporary Israel

5. The Identity Dilemma of Non-Orthodox Religious Movements: Reform and Conservative Judaism in Israel

5The Identity Dilemma of Non-Orthodox Religious Movements: Reform and Conservative judaism in Israel EPHRAIM TABORY Religious movements must develop plausibility structures that are responsive to the needs ofthe target population ifthey are to remain viable organizations in a pluralistic society (Berger 1967). This chapter analyzes the manner in which liberal religious movements that developed and flourished in a pluralistic environment cope and respond when theyestablish new branches in a society in which their original forms and structures are seen to be discordant with mainstream religion. The case analyzed dealswith the manner inwhich the organizational movements of Conservative and Reform Judaism in Israel respond when theyencounter apathyon the part ofthe general population and, in addition, are depicted as deviant and as "inauthentic "forms ofreligion bythe dominant Orthodox Jewish establishment . The central focus is on the efforts of the movements to clarify their religious identity when they encounter, in effect, a hostile environment , and the dilemmas that emerge from their reaction to the pressures of the external environment.1 The thesis ofthis analysis is that the problem ofidentity for reli- *The analysis presented herein is based on interviews with national and local leaders in the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel conducted on a regular basis from 1978 to the present. I would like to acknowledge the fmancial support of the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture and the National Institute for Mental Health, United States Public Health Service, during the course of this study. 136 The Identity Dilemma ofNon-Orthodox Mavernents gious organizations is analogous to that ofthe individual. It is necessary for organizations, as for individuals, to formulate a concrete identity in order to regulate and regularize interaction with others. A clear and focused identity is also important for the way individuals, and organizations, relate to their internal needs and for the establishment of a concrete sense of self. The group identityofan organization relates to its cultural orientation , that is, its shared patterns of thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and values. Without some degree of shared culture, there is no group but only an aggregate ofpeople. The shared, cons•ensuallyvalidated, set of definitions that comprises the group culture and that is passed on as the correct way to define the situation can be grouped into an external and internal set of issues. External issues relate to the manner in which the leaders and members define then determine how to survive in the environment. The internal issues relate to the defmition of how to organize relationships among members ofthe group to permit survival in the specific environment through effective performance and the creation of internal comfort (Schein 1985). The problems of external adaptation, according to Schein (1985), relate to the definition ofthe core mission and strategy ofthe organization, the specification of the goals that derive from the mission , the development of consensus regarding the means to achieve the goals, and agreement on how to measure the group's performance and how to correct faults that might emerge. The internal-external distinction generally corresponds to Mintzberg's (1983) focus on the publics that the organization must consider in its power game. There are similarities between personal identityand between the collective identity of a group or organization. Personal identity is "a typified selfat a stage in the life course situated in a context oforganized social relationships" (Weigert, Teitge, and Teitge 1986). Individuals have more than one facet to their identity, and multiple identities are communicated through displays of appearances, behavior, and language. While classical symbolic interactionist theory emphasizes the interactive process in the mirror theory ofidentity, it focuses specificallyon the identitythat results from the reflected image. McCall and Simmons (1978) elaborate on this by pointing out that identities are also affected by counter-role models. These models serve as a backdrop or framework against which identityis defined and demarcated. The perception ofwho one is is affected bythe cognitive orientation as to who one is not. This is more than a complementaryrole model. The counter-role of a teacher is not only a pupil, for example, but also peers who are not teachers, and even teachers in other types ofshcool Jewishness and Judaism in Cantemporary Israel 137 systems. The case of Reform and Conservative Judaism illustrates how religious leaders who focus on external factors in analyzing the sue-. cess or failure ofthe group they head can get caught up in a dilemma relating to their identity. Their focus on an external explanation for their...