(RNS) — A group of synagogues, nonprofits and small lay-led prayer communities previously on the margins of the Jewish establishment have formed a new association as an effort to better advocate for their emerging vision of Judaism in the 21st century.
The association, the Jewish Diaspora Movement, launched Monday (May 18), consists of 40 groups, mostly in North America, that are united in their rejection of Israel’s ethno-nationalist Judaism. Though not explicitly anti-Zionist, the association is committed to centering the diaspora, rather than Israel, and working toward the liberation of all people, it said in announcing the association.
“We joyfully view wherever we are in the entire world as our home and reject the vision of Judaism that is state-centric, militarist, ethno-nationalist,” said a news release announcing the new association.
The “founding minyan,” or quorum of groups, under the new umbrella includes Jewish Voice for Peace, the largest organization of anti-Zionists in the country, and Rabbis for Ceasefire, a coalition of rabbis that emerged in the wake of Israel’s war on Gaza. It also includes a constellation of synagogues and prayer groups, or chavurot, that have emerged in cities such as Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Hartford, Minneapolis, New York, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh.
The Jewish Diaspora Movement has been in the works for several years and is yet another s …