Labels Can Be Good and Bad

I’ve been thinking a lot about labels lately. I recently wrote an op-ed about denominational labels in Judaism that was published in the Detroit Jewish News and on the Huffington Post website. In it, I explained how ambivalent I am about labeling individuals because these labels don’t always help us understand the individual better. Calling a Jewish person an “Orthodox Jew” doesn’t tell us much about them. In fact it only leads to misperceptions (Are they Modern Orthodox or Ultra-Orthodox? Are they actually unobservant, but affiliate with an Orthodox congregation?).

Read More: @ blog.rabbijason.com

You might also like:

• Moving Beyond Denominational Differences?
• Yes, Orthodox Judaism Changes Too
• The Orthoprax Rabbi: What it’s like to be an atheist rabbi of an orthodox shul
• Mayor of the Minyan
• My Rabbi Saved My Life