| Reconstructionist Judaism and Marriage Equality
This session will examine the historic role Reconstructionist Judaism has played in relation to the issue of marriage equality, illustrating how Reconstructionist Judaism approaches this subject from the perspective of economic justice, public commitment, and pro-natalism. We will look at religious ceremonies Reconstructionist rabbis have created for same-sex couples, including the Brit Ahavah, and examine the rabbinic reaction to and experience with those ceremonies. We will also evaluate political efforts the movement and individual Reconstructionist rabbis have made on behalf of civil marriage equality.
Rebecca T. Alpert is Chair of the Department of Religion and Associate Professor of Religion and Women's Studies at Temple University. She is a graduate of Barnard College and was ordained as a rabbi at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. She is the co-author of Exploring Judaism: A Reconstructionist Approach, with Jacob Staub; author of Like Bread on the Seder Plate: Jewish Lesbians and the Transformation of Tradition, editor of Voices of the Religious Left: A Contemporary Sourcebook and co-editor of Lesbian Rabbis: The First Generation with Sue Elwell and Shirley Idelson. She is currently at work on a volume about Jews, race and sports. She teaches in the areas of religion and sexuality, the politics of race and gender, and religion in American public life.
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