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175-538: The Holy Blossom Temple is a Reform synagogue located at 1950 Bathurst Street in Toronto , Ontario , Canada. It is the oldest Jewish congregation in Toronto. Founded in 1856, it has more than 7,000 members. W. Gunther Plaut , who died on 8 February 2012 at the age of 99, was a long time Senior Rabbi for this synagogue. Notable members and supporters include Heather Reisman and Gerald Schwartz who made donations to create

350-476: A Jewish activities club , a means to demonstrate some affinity to one's heritage in which even rabbinical students do not have to believe in any specific theology or engage in any particular practice, rather than a defined belief system. In regard to God, the Reform movement has always officially maintained a theistic stance, affirming the belief in a personal God . Despite this official position, some voices among

525-456: A brutalist structure must satisfy the following terms, "1, Formal legibility of plan; 2, clear exhibition of structure, and 3, valuation of materials for their inherent qualities 'as found'." Also important was the aesthetic "image", or "coherence of the building as a visual entity". Brutalist buildings are usually constructed with reoccurring modular elements representing specific functional zones, distinctly articulated and grouped together into

700-625: A building will usually be directed against a brutalist one. According to Simon Jenkins , "Few styles in history can have been met with so many pleas from its users to see it destroyed." In 2005, the British TV programme Demolition ran a public vote to select twelve buildings that ought to be demolished, and eight of those selected were brutalist buildings. One argument is that this criticism exists in part because concrete façades do not age well in damp, cloudy maritime climates such as those of northwestern Europe and New England . In these climates,

875-593: A certain faction of young British architects". The first published usage of the phrase "new brutalism" occurred in 1953, when Alison Smithson used it to describe a plan for their unbuilt Soho house which appeared in the November issue of Architectural Design . She further stated: "It is our intention in this building to have the structure exposed entirely, without interior finishes wherever practicable." The Smithsons' Hunstanton School completed in 1954 in Norfolk , and

1050-478: A comprehensible style might emerge", supporting the Smithsons' description of the movement as "an ethic, not an aesthetic". Reyner Banham felt the phrase "the new brutalism" existed as both an attitude toward design as well as a descriptive label for the architecture itself and that it "eludes precise description, while remaining a living force". He attempted to codify the movement in systematic language, insisting that

1225-428: A conceptual framework for reconciling the acceptance of critical research with the maintenance of a belief in some form of divine communication, thus preventing a rupture among those who could no longer accept a literal understanding of revelation. No less importantly, it provided the clergy with a rationale for adapting, changing and excising traditional mores and bypassing the accepted conventions of Jewish Law, rooted in

1400-646: A conference of like-minded young rabbis in Wiesbaden . He told the assembled that the " Talmud must go". In 1841, the Hamburg Temple issued a second edition of its prayerbook, the first Reform liturgy since its predecessor of 1818. Orthodox response was weak and quickly defeated. Most rabbinic posts in Germany were now manned by university graduates susceptible to rationalistic ideas, which also permeated liberal Protestantism led by such figures as Leberecht Uhlich . They formed

1575-877: A conservative Jewish majority had to be accommodated. Most Liberal communities in Germany maintained dietary standards and the like in the public sphere, both due to the moderation of their congregants and threats of Orthodox secession. A similar pattern characterizes the Movement for Reform Judaism in Britain, which attempted to appeal to newcomers from the United Synagogue , or to the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) in Israel. Its philosophy of continuous revelation made Progressive Judaism, in all its variants, much more able to embrace change and new trends than any of

1750-499: A degree that made it hard to formulate a clear definition of it. Early and "Classical" Reform were characterized by a move away from traditional forms of Judaism combined with a coherent theology; "New Reform" sought, to a certain level, the reincorporation of many formerly discarded elements within the framework established during the "Classical" stage, though this very doctrinal basis became increasingly obfuscated. Critics, like Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan , warned that Reform became more of

1925-584: A full understanding of itself and the divine, manifested in moral progress towards perfection. This highly rationalistic view virtually identified human reason and intellect with divine action, leaving little room for direct influence by God. Geiger conceived revelation as occurring via the inherent "genius" of the People Israel, and his close ally Solomon Formstecher described it as the awakening of oneself into full consciousness of one's religious understanding. The American theologian Kaufmann Kohler also spoke of

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2100-415: A general hope for salvation . This was later refined when the notion of a personal Messiah who would reign over Israel was officially abolished and replaced by the concept of a Messianic Age of universal harmony and perfection. The considerable loss of faith in human progress around World War II greatly shook this ideal, but it endures as a precept of Reform. Another key example is the reinterpretation of

2275-523: A greater stress on community and tradition. Though by no means declaring that members were bound by a compelling authority of some sort – the notion of an intervening, commanding God remained foreign to denominational thought. The "New Reform" approach to the question is characterized by an attempt to strike a mean between autonomy and some degree of conformity, focusing on a dialectic relationship between both. The movement never entirely abandoned halachic (traditional jurisprudence) argumentation, both due to

2450-495: A higher and better understanding of divine will, and they can and should unwaveringly change and refashion religious precepts. In the decades around World War II , this rationalistic and optimistic theology was challenged and questioned. It was gradually replaced, mainly by the Jewish existentialism of Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig , centered on a complex, personal relationship with

2625-505: A hub for like-minded intellectuals, interested in the betterment of religious experience. Though the prayerbook used in Berlin did introduce several deviations from the received text, it did so without an organizing principle. In 1818, Jacobson's acquaintance Edward Kley founded the Hamburg Temple . Here, changes in the rite were eclectic no more and had severe dogmatic implications: prayers for

2800-399: A matter of personal choice for the individual and not an authoritative obligation. Circumcision or Letting of Blood for converts and newborn babies became virtually mandated in the 1980s; ablution for menstruating women gained great grassroots popularity at the turn of the century, and some synagogues built mikvehs (ritual baths). A renewed interest in dietary laws (though by no means in

2975-428: A means to engage congregants, abandoning the sanitized forms of the "Classical". Another key aspect of Reform doctrine is the personal autonomy of each adherent, who may formulate their own understanding and expression of their religiosity. Reform is unique among all Jewish denominations in placing the individual as the authorized interpreter of Judaism. This position was originally influenced by Kantian philosophy and

3150-450: A meeting held in London. Originally carrying the provisional title "International Conference of Liberal Jews", after deliberations between "Liberal", "Reform" and "Modern", it was named World Union for Progressive Judaism on 12 July, at the conclusion of a vote. The WUPJ established further branches around the planet, alternatively under the names "Reform", "Liberal" and "Progressive". In 1945,

3325-485: A modernist building in steel and glass before cost considerations meant the structural elements were redesigned in concrete and moved to the outside of the building. Evans Woollen III 's brutalist Clowes Memorial Hall , a performing arts facility that opened in 1963 on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis , was praised for its bold and dramatic design. The University of Minnesota 's West Bank campus features

3500-592: A particularly radical stance, arguing that the halachic Law of the Land is Law principle must be universally applied and subject virtually everything to current norms and needs, far beyond its weight in conventional Jewish Law. While Reform rabbis in 19th-century Germany had to accommodate conservative elements in their communities, at the height of "Classical Reform" in the United States, halakhic considerations could be virtually ignored and Holdheim's approach embraced. In

3675-493: A prominent, visible tower. Rather than being hidden in the walls, Hunstanton's water and electric utilities were delivered via readily visible pipes and conduits. Brutalism as an architectural philosophy was often associated with a socialist utopian ideology, which tended to be supported by its designers, especially by Alison and Peter Smithson , near the height of the style. Indeed, their work sought to emphasize functionality and to connect architecture with what they viewed as

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3850-495: A rabbi is the norm and can take anywhere from several months to several years. The process focuses on participation in congregational activities and observation of holidays and Halakha. Conversions are finalized with a meeting of the Beit Din and usually a Brit Milah and a Tevilah, though the extent to which the practice of Brit Milah is observed varies from country to country. Furthermore, the acceptance of Reform converts by other sects

4025-551: A rabbinical seminary, and the second formally ordained female rabbi in Jewish history, after Regina Jonas. Reform also pioneered family seating, an arrangement that spread throughout American Jewry but was only applied in continental Europe after World War II. Egalitarianism in prayer became universally prevalent in the WUPJ by the end of the 20th century. Religious inclusion for LGBT people and ordination of LGBT rabbis were also pioneered by

4200-478: A renewed stress on Jewish particular identity, regarding it as better suiting popular sentiment and need for preservation. One major expression of that, which is the first clear Reform doctrine to have been formulated, is the idea of universal Messianism . The belief in redemption was unhinged from the traditional elements of return to Zion and restoration of the Temple and the sacrificial cult therein, and turned into

4375-619: A role, but only in deference to tradition, and opposed analysis of the Pentateuch ; and up to Abraham Geiger , who rejected any limitations on objective research or its application. He is considered the founding father of Reform Judaism. Geiger wrote that at seventeen already, he discerned that the late Tannaim and the Amoraim imposed a subjective interpretation on the Oral Torah , attempting to diffuse its revolutionary potential by linking it to

4550-556: A small number of local communities (with many brutalist buildings having become official, if not popular, cultural icons, sometimes obtaining a protected status). The term nybrutalism (new brutalism) was coined by the Swedish architect Hans Asplund to describe Villa Göth , a modern brick home in Uppsala , designed in January 1950 by his contemporaries Bengt Edman and Lennart Holm. Showcasing

4725-481: A steady belief difficult for some. Nevertheless, we ground our lives, personally and communally, on God's reality." The 1999 Pittsburgh Statement of Principles declared the "reality and oneness of God". British Liberal Judaism affirms the "Jewish conception of God: One and indivisible, transcendent and immanent, Creator and Sustainer". The basic tenet of Reform theology is a belief in a continuous, or progressive, revelation , occurring continuously and not limited to

4900-592: A total of 1.5 million presumed to have affinity, since updated to 2.2 million – both registered synagogue members and non-affiliates who identify with it. Worldwide, the movement is mainly centered in North America. The largest WUPJ constituent by far is the Union for Reform Judaism (until 2003: Union of American Hebrew Congregations) in the United States and Canada. As of 2013, a Pew Research Center survey calculated it represented about 35% of all 5.3 million Jewish adults in

5075-402: A unified whole. There is often an emphasis on graphic expressions in the external elevations and in the whole-site architectural plan in regard to the main functions and people-flows of the buildings. Buildings may use materials such as concrete, brick, glass, steel, timber, rough-hewn stone, and gabions among others. However, due to its low cost, raw concrete is often used and left to reveal

5250-482: Is certainly not Law giving" and that it did not contain any "finished statements about God", but, rather, that human subjectivity shaped the unfathomable content of the Encounter and interpreted it under its own limitations. The senior representative of postwar Reform theology, Eugene Borowitz , regarded theophany in postmodern terms and closely linked it with quotidian human experience and interpersonal contact. He rejected

5425-564: Is known for his brutalist academic buildings. Marcel Breuer was known for his "soft" approach to the style, often using curves rather than corners. In Atlanta , Georgia, the architectural style was introduced to Buckhead's affluent Peachtree Road with the Ted Levy-designed Plaza Towers and Park Place on Peachtree condominiums. Many of the stations of the Washington Metro , particularly older stations, were constructed in

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5600-714: Is largely brutalist, designed as an expression of Afrikaans identity. Several universities in Southeast Asia also feature brutalist designs, including those at the Ho Chi Minh City Medicine and Pharmaceutical University , the Royal University of Phnom Penh , and the Industrial College of Hue . A 2014 article in The Economist noted its unpopularity with the public, observing that a campaign to demolish

5775-588: Is political, basically a mirror of the most radically leftist components of the Democratic Party platform, causing many to say that Reform Judaism is simply 'the Democratic Party with Jewish holidays'." In Israel, the Religious Action Center is very active in the judicial field, often using litigation both in cases concerning civil rights in general and the official status of Reform Judaism within

5950-483: Is rare, with many Orthodox and Masorti temples rejecting Reform Converts. The term "Reform" was first applied institutionally – not generically, as in "for reform" – to the Berlin Reformgemeinde (Reform Congregation), established in 1845. Apart from it, most German communities that were oriented in that direction preferred the more ambiguous "Liberal", which was not exclusively associated with Reform Judaism. It

6125-492: Is strongly identified with progressive and liberal agendas in political and social terms, mainly under the traditional Jewish rubric tikkun olam ("repairing of the world"). Tikkun olam is a central motto of Reform Judaism, and acting in its name is one of the main channels for adherents to express their affiliation. The movement's most significant center today is in North America . Various regional branches exist, including

6300-482: The bao cấp era (lit: subsidizing), the period during which the country followed Soviet-type economic planning . Many Soviet architects , most notably Garol Isakovich , were sent to Vietnam during that time to help train new architects and played an influential role in shaping the country's architectural styles for decades. Isakovich himself also designed some of the most notable brutalist buildings in Vietnam, including

6475-585: The Award of Merit by the American Institute of Architects in 1976 for distinguished accomplishment in library architecture. However, in recent years, as public attitudes towards brutalism have shifted, the library has been referred to as one of the "ugliest" buildings in Georgetown and Washington, D.C. Examples of brutalist university campuses can be found in other countries as well. The Robarts Library at

6650-766: The CIS and Baltic States , with 61 affiliates in Russia , Ukraine and Belarus and several thousands of regular constituents; and many other, smaller ones. With the advent of Jewish emancipation and acculturation in Central Europe during the late 18th century, and the breakdown of traditional Jewish life, the proper response to the changed circumstances became a heated concern. Radical, second-generation Berlin maskilim (Enlightened), like Lazarus Bendavid and David Friedländer , proposed to reduce Judaism to little above Deism , or allow it to dissipate entirely. A more palatable course

6825-550: The Central Hall of the University of York with its surrounding colleges, designed by Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall & Partners, who would go on to build the universities of Bath , Stirling and Ulster . A notable pairing of brutalist campus buildings is found at Durham University , with Ove Arup 's Grade I-listed Kingsgate Bridge (1963), one of only six post-1961 buildings to have been listed as Grade I by 2017, and

7000-623: The Conservative or the Orthodox . Outside North America and Britain, patrilineal descent was not accepted by most. As in other fields, small WUPJ affiliates are less independent and often have to deal with more conservative Jewish denominations in their countries, such as vis-à-vis the Orthodox rabbinate in Israel or continental Europe. Conversion within Reform Judaism has been seen as controversial by

7175-555: The Florey Building at Queen's College, Oxford , both also Grade II*), is described in its listing as "a distinctive example of a new approach to education buildings, from a period when the universities were at the forefront of architectural patronage". The building of new universities in the UK in the 1960s led to opportunities for brutalist architects. The first to be built was the University of Sussex , designed by Basil Spence , with

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7350-1256: The Laval University campus in Quebec City; Habitat 67 , Place Bonaventure , the Maison de Radio-Canada , and several metro stations on the Montreal Metro's Green Line ; the Confederation Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown; the National Arts Centre in Ottawa ; the Hotel Dieu Hospital in Kingston; the Ontario Science Centre , Robarts Library , Rochdale College in Toronto ; Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and Canadian Grain Commission building in Winnipeg ; and

7525-542: The Rarig Center , a performing arts venue by Ralph Rapson from 1971 that has been called "the best example in the Twin Cities of the style called Brutalism". Faner Hall at Southern Illinois University Carbondale has long been controversial for its use of brutalism and has been considered an eyesore on campus, deemed to have a "facade only a mother could love" by the university itself. The Joseph Mark Lauinger Library ,

7700-601: The Royal Institute of British Architects . Denys Lasdun 's work at the University of East Anglia , including six linked halls of residence commonly referred to as 'ziggurats', is considered one of the finest examples of a 1960s brutalist university campus. Other notable examples include the Grade II listed lecture block at Brunel University , used as a location in Stanley Kubrick 's 1971 film A Clockwork Orange , and

7875-613: The Saducees who had their own pre- Mishnaic halakha . Having concluded the belief in an unbroken tradition back to Sinai or a divinely dictated Torah could not be maintained, he began to articulate a theology of progressive revelation, presenting the Pharisees as reformers who revolutionized the Saducee-dominated religion. His other model were the Prophets, whose morals and ethics were to him

8050-676: The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) in the United States and Canada, the Movement for Reform Judaism (MRJ) and Liberal Judaism in the United Kingdom, the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) in Israel, and the UJR-AmLat in Latin America; these are united within the international World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ). Founded in 1926, the WUPJ estimates it represents at least 1.8 million people in 50 countries, about 1 million of which are registered adult congregants, and

8225-701: The Union progressiver Juden in Deutschland , which had some 4,500 members in 2010 and incorporates 25 congregations, one in Austria; the Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom , with 3,500 affiliates in 10 communities; the 13 Liberal synagogues in France; the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (5,000 members in 2000, 35 communities); the Movement for Progressive Judaism (Движение прогрессивного Иудаизма) in

8400-516: The University of Toronto was designed by Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde and built between 1968 and 1973. Although it has been called "a crowning achievement of the brutalist movement", its opening in 1974 came after public sentiment had turned against brutalism, leading to it being condemned as "a blunder on the grandest scale". Rand Afrikaans University in Johannesburg, South Africa (now Kingsway Campus Auckland Park , University of Johannesburg )

8575-613: The Vietnam-Soviet Friendship Palace of Culture and Labour (1985). In his later years, Isakovich, who was awarded the Hero of Labor by the Vietnamese government in 1976, is said to have deviated from the brutalist style and adopted Vietnamese traditional styles in his design, which has been referred to by some Vietnamese architects as Chủ nghĩa hiện đại địa phương (lit: local modernism ) and hậu hiện đại ( postmodernism ). In

8750-558: The election of Israel . The movement maintained the idea of the Chosen People of God, but recast it in a more universal fashion: it isolated and accentuated the notion (already present in traditional sources) that the mission of Israel was to spread among all nations and teach them divinely-inspired ethical monotheism, bringing them all closer to the Creator. One extreme "Classical" promulgator of this approach, Rabbi David Einhorn , substituted

8925-453: The immortality of the soul , while the founding thinkers of Reform Judaism, like Montefiore, all shared this belief, the existence of a soul became harder to cling to with the passing of time. In the 1980s, Borowitz could state that the movement had nothing coherent to declare in the matter. The various streams of Reform still largely, though not always or strictly, uphold the idea. The 1999 Pittsburgh Statement of Principles , for example, used

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9100-407: The modernist movement , brutalism is said to be a reaction against the nostalgia of architecture in the 1940s. Derived from the Swedish phrase nybrutalism, the term "new brutalism" was first used by British architects Alison and Peter Smithson for their pioneering approach to design. The style was further popularised in a 1955 essay by architectural critic Reyner Banham , who also associated

9275-468: The restoration of sacrifices by the Messiah and Return to Zion were quite systematically omitted. The Hamburg edition is considered the first comprehensive Reform liturgy. While Orthodox protests to Jacobson's initiatives had been scant, dozens of rabbis throughout Europe united to ban the Hamburg Temple . The Hamburg reformers, still attempting to play within the limits of rabbinic tradition, cited canonical sources in defence of their actions; they had

9450-533: The theophany at Sinai , the defining event in traditional interpretation. According to this view, all holy scripture of Judaism, including the Torah , were authored by human beings who, although under divine inspiration , inserted their understanding and reflected the spirit of their consecutive ages. All the People of Israel are a further link in the chain of revelation, capable of reaching new insights: religion can be renewed without necessarily being dependent on past conventions. The chief promulgator of this concept

9625-410: The "special insight" of Israel, almost fully independent from direct divine participation, and English thinker Claude Montefiore , founder of Liberal Judaism , reduced revelation to "inspiration", according intrinsic value only to the worth of its content, while "it is not the place where they are found that makes them inspired". Common to all these notions was the assertion that present generations have

9800-513: The 'as found' design approach that would later be at the core of brutalism, the house displays visible I-beams over windows, exposed brick inside and out, and poured concrete in several rooms where the tongue-and-groove pattern of the boards used to build the forms can be seen. The term was picked up in the summer of 1950 by a group of visiting English architects, including Michael Ventris , Oliver Cox, and Graeme Shankland, where it apparently "spread like wildfire, and [was] subsequently adopted by

9975-400: The 1810s and 1820s, the circles ( Israel Jacobson , Eduard Kley and others) that gave rise to the movement introduced confirmation ceremonies for boys and girls, in emulation of parallel Christian initiation rite. These soon spread outside the movement, though many of a more traditional leaning rejected the name "confirmation". In the "New Reform", Bar Mitzvah largely replaced it as part of

10150-625: The 1930s and onwards, Rabbi Solomon Freehof and his supporters reintroduced such elements, but they too regarded Jewish Law as too rigid a system. Instead, they recommended that selected features will be readopted and new observances established in a piecemeal fashion, as spontaneous minhag (custom) emerging by trial and error and becoming widespread if it appealed to the masses. The advocates of this approach also stress that their responsa are of non-binding nature, and their recipients may adapt them as they see fit. Freehof's successors, such as Rabbis Walter Jacob and Moshe Zemer , further elaborated

10325-505: The 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the bare building materials and structural elements over decorative design. The style commonly makes use of exposed, unpainted concrete or brick , angular geometric shapes and a predominantly monochrome colour palette; other materials, such as steel , timber , and glass , are also featured. Descending from

10500-400: The 1966 book, The New Brutalism: Ethic or Aesthetic? , to characterise a somewhat recently established cluster of architectural approaches, particularly in Europe. In the book, Banham says that Le Corbusier's concrete work was a source of inspiration and helped popularise the movement, suggesting "if there is one single verbal formula that has made the concept of Brutalism admissible in most of

10675-416: The 1970s in the world. The treatment of the form and details is slightly associating the building with postmodernism and is today one of the rare surviving representatives of this style's early period in Serbia. The artistic expression of the gate marked an entire era in Serbian architecture. In Vietnam , brutalist architecture is particularly popular among old public buildings and has been associated with

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10850-403: The Associated British Synagogues (later Movement for Reform Judaism ) joined as well. In 1990, Reconstructionist Judaism entered the WUPJ as an observer. Espousing another religious worldview, it became the only non-Reform member. The WUPJ claims to represent a total of at least 1.8 million people – these figures do not take into account the 2013 PEW survey, and rely on the older URJ estimate of

11025-403: The British capital include the Barbican Centre ( Chamberlin, Powell and Bon ) and the National Theatre ( Denys Lasdun ). In the United States , Paul Rudolph and Ralph Rapson were both noted brutalists. Evans Woollen III , a pacesetter among architects in the Midwest , is credited for introducing the Brutalist and Modernist architecture styles to Indianapolis , Indiana. Walter Netsch

11200-405: The CCAR headed by Rabbi Denise Eger . The next in size, by a wide margin, are the two British WUPJ-affiliates. In 2010, the Movement for Reform Judaism and Liberal Judaism respectively had 16,125 and 7,197 member households in 45 and 39 communities, or 19.4% and 8.7% of British Jews registered at a synagogue. Other member organizations are based in forty countries around the world. They include

11375-427: The East Campus of the University of Illinois at Chicago ) under a single, unified brutalist design. Netsch also designed the brutalist Joseph Regenstein Library for the University of Chicago and the Northwestern University Library . Crafton Hills College in California was designed by desert modern architect E. Stewart Williams in 1965 and built between 1966 and 1976. Williams' brutalist design contrasts with

11550-401: The English translation (though not in the original), a measure that was condemned by several Reform rabbis as a step toward religious humanism . During its formative era, Reform was oriented toward lesser ceremonial obligations. In 1846, the Breslau rabbinical conference abolished the second day of festivals ; during the same years, the Berlin Reform congregation held prayers without blowing

11725-473: The Gerald Schwartz/Heather Reisman Centre for Jewish Learning at Holy Blossom Temple. Holy Blossom Temple was the merger of two congregations. The Toronto Hebrew Congregation was formed in 1849 by members from Germany (including Bavaria and Alsace), Bohemia , Great Britain, the United States, Russia, Galicia, and Lithuania. The Congregation conducted services in members' homes and founded the Pape Avenue Cemetery , Toronto's first Jewish cemetery. The congregation

11900-406: The Grade I listed Falmer House as its centerpiece. The building has been described as a "meeting of Arts and Crafts with modernism", with features such as hand-made bricks that contrast with the pre-fabricated construction of other 1960s campuses, and colonnades of bare, board-marked concrete arches on brick piers inspired by the Colosseum. It is also considered one of the "key Brutalist buildings" by

12075-468: The Grade II-listed Dunelm House (Richard Raines of the Architects' Co-Partnership ; 1964–66), described in its listing as "the foremost students' union building of the post-war era in England" but only saved from demolition in 2021 following a five-year campaign by the Twentieth Century Society . One of the earliest brutalist buildings in the US was Paul Rudolph 's 1963 Art and Architecture Building at Yale University where, as department chair, he

12250-444: The Jewish people to be its priests. It was grounded on a wholly theistic understanding, although the term "God-idea" was excoriated by outside critics. So was the 1937 Columbus Declaration of Principles, which spoke of "One, living God who rules the world". Even the 1976 San Francisco Centenary Perspective, drafted at a time of great discord among Reform theologians, upheld "the affirmation of God... Challenges of modern culture have made

12425-419: The Jewish public in general, before and during the rise of Reform) in the early stages of the movement. It was a major characteristic during the "Classical" period, when Reform closely resembled Protestant surroundings. Later, it was applied to encourage adherents to seek their own means of engaging Judaism. "New Reform" embraced the criticism levied by Rosenzweig and other thinkers at extreme individualism, laying

12600-476: The MRJ allows its clergy to participate in celebration of civil marriage, though none allow a full Jewish ceremony with chupah and the like. In American Reform, 17% of synagogue-member households have a converted spouse, and 26% an unconverted one. Its policy on conversion and Jewish status led the WUPJ into conflict with more traditional circles, and a growing number of its adherents are not accepted as Jewish by either

12775-590: The Orthodox and Masorti sects. Due to the Reform movement's progressive views on what it means to be a Jew, the conversion process has been criticized and often unrecognized by more conservative sects, yet conversions through the Reform movement are legally recognized by the Israeli government and thus entitled to citizenship under the Law of Return. Converts through Reform Judaism are accepted based on their sincerity, regardless of their background or previous beliefs. Studying with

12950-458: The Orthodox, they insisted that the People Israel was created by divine election alone, and existed solely as such. The 1999 Pittsburgh Platform and other official statements affirmed that the "Jewish people is bound to God by an eternal B'rit , covenant". As part of its philosophy, Reform Judaism anchored reason in divine influence, accepted scientific criticism of hallowed texts and sought to adapt Judaism to modern notions of rationalism. Judaism

13125-511: The Ram's Horn , phylacteries , mantles or head covering , and held its Sabbath services on Sunday. In the late 19th and early 20th century, American "Classical Reform" often emulated Berlin on a mass scale, with many communities conducting prayers along the same style and having additional services on Sunday. An official rescheduling of Sabbath to Sunday was advocated by Kaufmann Kohler for some time, though he retracted it eventually. Religious divorce

13300-622: The Sugden House completed in 1955 in Watford , represent the earliest examples of new brutalism in the United Kingdom. Hunstanton school, likely inspired by Mies van der Rohe 's 1946 Alumni Memorial Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago , United States, is notable as the first completed building in the world to carry the title of "new brutalist" by its architects. At the time, it

13475-504: The U.S., making it the single most numerous Jewish religious group in the country. Steven M. Cohen deduced there were 756,000 adult Jewish synagogue members – about a quarter of households had an unconverted spouse (according to 2001 findings), adding some 90,000 non-Jews and making the total constituency roughly 850,000 – and further 1,154,000 "Reform-identified non-members" in the United States. There are also 30,000 in Canada. Based on these,

13650-569: The URJ claims to represent 2.2 million people. It has 845 congregations in the U.S. and 27 in Canada, the vast majority of the 1,170 affiliated with the WUPJ that are not Reconstructionist. Its rabbinical arm is the Central Conference of American Rabbis , with some 2,300 member rabbis, mainly trained in Hebrew Union College . As of 2015, the URJ was led by President Rabbi Richard Jacobs , and

13825-525: The United Kingdom, brutalism was featured in the design of utilitarian, low-cost social housing influenced by socialist principles and soon spread to other regions around the world, while being echoed by similar styles like in Eastern Europe. Brutalist designs became most commonly used in the design of institutional buildings, such as provincial legislatures, public works projects, universities , libraries , courts , and city halls . The popularity of

14000-424: The United States and in Britain and the rest of the world, is characterized by larger affinity to traditional forms and diminished emphasis on harmonizing them with prevalent beliefs. Concurrently, it is also more inclusive and accommodating, even towards beliefs that are officially rejected by Reform theologians, sometimes allowing alternative differing rites for each congregation to choose from. Thus, prayerbooks from

14175-608: The United States have been recognized, such as the Pirelli Tire Building in New Haven's Long Wharf. The Twentieth Century Society has unsuccessfully campaigned against the demolition of British buildings such as the Tricorn Centre and Trinity Square multi-storey car park but successfully in the case of Preston bus station garage, London's Hayward Gallery , and others. Notable buildings that have been demolished include

14350-682: The University of Sydney (his State Office Block is another), the High Court of Australia and Warringah Civic Centre by Christopher Kringas , the MUSE building (also referred to as C7A MUSE) which was the original Library at Macquarie University before the new library replaced it, and WTC Wharf (World Trade Centre in Melbourne ). John Andrews 's government and institutional structures in Australia also exhibit

14525-407: The age of emancipation . Brought to America by German-trained rabbis, the denomination gained prominence in the United States , flourishing from the 1860s to the 1930s in an era known as "Classical Reform". Since the 1970s, the movement has adopted a policy of inclusiveness and acceptance, inviting as many as possible to partake in its communities rather than adhering to strict theoretical clarity. It

14700-480: The ages. However, practices were seen as a means to elation and a link to the heritage of the past, and Reform generally argued that rituals should be maintained, discarded or modified based on whether they served these higher purposes. This stance allowed a great variety of practice both in the past and the present. In "Classical" times, personal observance was reduced to little beyond nothing. The postwar "New Reform" lent renewed importance to practical, regular action as

14875-573: The backbone of the nascent Reform rabbinate. Geiger intervened in the Second Hamburg Temple controversy not just to defend the prayerbook against the Orthodox, but also to denounce it, stating the time of mainly aesthetic and unsystematic reforms has passed. In 1842, the power of progressive forces was revealed again: when Geiger's superior Rabbi Solomon Tiktin attempted to dismiss him from the post of preacher in Breslau , 15 of 17 rabbis consulted by

15050-477: The basic nature of its construction with rough surfaces featuring wood "shuttering" produced when the forms were cast in situ . Examples are frequently massive in character (even when not large) and challenge traditional notions of what a building should look like with focus given to interior spaces as much as exterior. A common theme in brutalist designs is the exposure of the building's inner-workings—ranging from their structure and services to their human use—in

15225-470: The belief that all religions would unite into one, and it later faced the challenges of the Ethical movement and Unitarianism . Parallel to that, it sought to diminish all components of Judaism that it regarded as overly particularist and self-centered: petitions expressing hostility towards gentiles were toned down or excised, and practices were often streamlined to resemble surrounding society. "New Reform" laid

15400-521: The biblical text . Believing that Judaism became stale and had to be radically transformed if it were to survive modernity, he found little use in the legal procedures of halakha , arguing that hardline rabbis often demonstrated they will not accept major innovations anyway. His venture into higher criticism led him to regard the Pentateuch as reflecting power struggles between the Pharisees on one hand, and

15575-406: The board stated his unorthodox views were congruous with his post. He himself differentiated between his principled stance and quotidian conduct. Believing it could be implemented only carefully, he was moderate in practice and remained personally observant. Second only to Geiger, Rabbi Samuel Holdheim distinguished himself as a radical proponent of change. While the former stressed continuity with

15750-477: The brutalist style. Architectural historian William Jordy says that although Louis Kahn was "[o]pposed to what he regarded as the muscular posturing of most Brutalism", some of his work "was surely informed by some of the same ideas that came to momentary focus in the brutalist position." In Australia , examples of the brutalist style are Robin Gibson 's Queensland Art Gallery , Ken Woolley 's Fisher Library at

15925-407: The central venue for active participation for many affiliates, even leading critics to negatively describe Reform as little more than a means employed by Jewish liberals to claim that commitment to their political convictions was also a religious activity and demonstrates fealty to Judaism. Dana Evan Kaplan stated that " Tikkun Olam has incorporated only leftist, socialist-like elements. In truth, it

16100-502: The ceremonial ones. Reform thinkers often cited the Prophets ' condemnations of ceremonial acts, lacking true intention and performed by the morally corrupt, as testimony that rites have no inherent quality. Geiger centered his philosophy on the Prophets' teachings (he had already named his ideology "Prophetic Judaism" in 1838), regarding morality and ethics as the stable core of a religion in which ritual observance transformed radically through

16275-548: The children of two Jewish parents. This decision was taken by the British Liberal Judaism in the 1950s. The North American Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) accepted it in 1983, and the British Movement for Reform Judaism affirmed it in 2015. The various strands also adopted a policy of embracing the intermarried and their spouses. British Liberals offer "blessing ceremonies" if the child is to be raised Jewish, and

16450-648: The church of the Westminster Abbey in British Columbia. Prominent Vancouver-based architect, Arthur Erickson was responsible for several noteable brutalist developments including Simon Fraser University 's main campus building, the MacMillan Bloedel Building , Vancouver's Evergreen Building, the Museum of Anthropology and Vancouver Law Courts . In Serbia , Božidar Janković was a representative of

16625-419: The civil ones ( memonot ), where the Law of the Land applied. Another measure he offered, rejected almost unanimously by his colleagues in 1846, was the institution of a "Second Sabbath" on Sunday, modeled on Second Passover , as most people desecrated the day of rest. The pressures of the late Vormärz era were intensifying. In 1842, a group of radical laymen determined to achieve full acceptance into society

16800-413: The concept of Brutalism." New brutalism is not only an architectural style; it is also a philosophical approach to architectural design, a striving to create simple, honest, and functional buildings that accommodate their purpose, inhabitants, and location. Stylistically, brutalism is a strict, modernistic design language that has been said to be a reaction to the architecture of the 1940s, much of which

16975-446: The concrete becomes streaked with water stains and sometimes with moss and lichen , and rust stains from the steel reinforcing bars . Critics of the style find it unappealing due to its "cold" appearance, projecting an atmosphere of totalitarianism , as well as the association of the buildings with urban decay due to materials weathering poorly in certain climates and the surfaces being prone to vandalism by graffiti. Despite this,

17150-424: The creator, and a more sober and disillusioned outlook. The identification of human reason with Godly inspiration was rejected in favour of views such as Rosenzweig's, who emphasized that the only content of revelation is it in itself, while all derivations of it are subjective, limited human understanding. However, while granting higher status to historical and traditional understanding, both insisted that "revelation

17325-561: The department, and designed by Colin St John Wilson and Alex Hardy, with participation by students at the university. This inspired further brutalist buildings in Cambridge, including the Grade II listed University Centre and the Grade II listed Churchill College . The Grade II* listed History Faculty Building, the second building in architect James Stirling 's Red Trilogy (along with the University of Leicester Engineering Building and

17500-519: The exterior of the building. In the Boston City Hall , designed in 1962, the strikingly different and projected portions of the building indicate the special nature of the rooms behind those walls, such as the mayor's office or the city council chambers. From another perspective, the design of the Hunstanton School included placing the facility's water tank, normally a hidden service feature, in

17675-515: The first Jewish congregation in Canada, west of the Ontario/Quebec border. For the first 20 years of the Temple's existence, services, conducted in the traditional Orthodox manner, were held in a rented room over Coombe's Drugstore on the southeast corner of Yonge and Richmond streets. In 1876, the congregation built its first synagogue a block east to Victoria and Richmond Street. Barnett A. Elzas

17850-494: The focus of controversy. Its proponents vacillated whether and to what degree it should be applied against the contemporary plight. Opinions ranged from the strictly Orthodox Azriel Hildesheimer , who subjugated research to the predetermined sanctity of the texts and refused to allow it practical implication over received methods; via the Positive-Historical Zecharias Frankel , who did not deny Wissenschaft

18025-460: The former South Vietnam , notable buildings that are said to carry brutalist elements include the Independence Palace (1966) designed by Ngô Viết Thụ , the first Asian architect to become an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects . However, whether South Vietnamese architecture prior to 1975 was brutalism or not remains a matter of dispute, with some architects argued it

18200-481: The gentiles. The short-lived community employed fully traditional ("orthodox") argumentation to legitimize its actions, but is often regarded a harbinger by historians. A relatively thoroughgoing program was adopted by Israel Jacobson , a philanthropist from the Kingdom of Westphalia . Faith and observance were eroded for decades both by Enlightenment criticism and apathy, but Jacobson himself did not bother with those. He

18375-433: The great weight it lent to personal judgement and free will. This highly individualistic stance also proved one of the movement's great challenges, for it impeded the creation of clear guidelines and standards for positive participation in religious life and definition of what was expected from members. The notion of autonomy coincided with the gradual abandonment of traditional practice (largely neglected by most members, and

18550-503: The grudging support of one liberal-minded rabbi, Aaron Chorin of Arad , though even he never acceded to the removal of prayers for the sacrifices. The massive Orthodox reaction halted the advance of early Reform, confining it to the port city for the next twenty years. As acculturation and resulting religious apathy spread, many synagogues introduced mild aesthetic changes, such as vernacular sermons or somber conduct, yet these were carefully crafted to assuage conservative elements (though

18725-465: The lamentation on the Ninth of Av for a celebration, regarding the destruction of Jerusalem as fulfilling God's scheme to bring his word, via his people, to all corners of the earth. Highly self-centered affirmations of Jewish exceptionalism were moderated, although the general notion of "a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" retained. On the other hand, while embracing a less strict interpretation compared to

18900-432: The lavish Atlas of Brutalist Architecture (Phaidon, 2018). Many of the defining aspects of the style have been softened in newer buildings, with concrete façades often being sandblasted to create a stone-like surface, covered in stucco , or composed of patterned, precast elements. These elements are also found in renovations of older Brutalist buildings, such as the redevelopment of Sheffield's Park Hill . Villa Göth

19075-553: The main library of the Georgetown University Library System, was designed by John Carl Warnecke and opened in 1970. Originally conceived with a traditional design similar to other buildings at Georgetown University , the final design of the Lauinger Library embraces brutalism and was intended as a modern interpretation of the nearby Healy Hall , a Flemish Romanesque building. The building once received

19250-623: The mid–20th century onwards incorporated more Hebrew, and restored such elements as blessing on phylacteries . More profound changes included restoration of the Gevorot benediction in the 2007 Mishkan T'filah , with the optional "give life to all/revive the dead" formula. The CCAR stated this passage did not reflect a belief in Resurrection, but Jewish heritage. On the other extreme, the 1975 Gates of Prayer substituted "the Eternal One" for "God" in

19425-503: The more contentious issues to the vernacular translation, treating the original text with great care and sometimes having problematic passages in small print and untranslated. When institutionalized and free of such constraints, it was able to pursue a more radical course. In American "Classical" or British Liberal prayerbooks, a far larger vernacular component was added and liturgy was drastically shortened, and petitions in discord with denominational theology eliminated. "New Reform", both in

19600-515: The movement began to decline in the late 1970s, with some associating the style with urban decay and totalitarianism . Brutalism's popularity in socialist and communist nations owed to traditional styles being associated with bourgeoisie, whereas concrete emphasized equality. Brutalism has been polarising historically; specific buildings, as well as the movement as a whole, have drawn a range of criticism (often being described as "cold" or "soulless") but have also elicited support from architects and

19775-553: The movement with the French phrases béton brut ("raw concrete") and art brut ("raw art"). The style, as developed by architects such as the Smithsons, Hungarian-born Ernő Goldfinger , and the British firm Chamberlin, Powell & Bon , was partly foreshadowed by the modernist work of other architects such as French-Swiss Le Corbusier , Estonian-American Louis Kahn , German-American Mies van der Rohe , and Finnish Alvar Aalto . In

19950-637: The movement. Intercourse between consenting adults was declared as legitimate by the Central Conference of American Rabbis in 1977, and openly gay clergy were admitted by the end of the 1980s. Same-sex marriage was sanctioned by the year 2000. In 2015, the URJ adopted a Resolution on the Rights of Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People, urging clergy and synagogue attendants to actively promote tolerance and inclusion of such individuals. American Reform, especially, turned action for social and progressive causes into an important part of religious commitment. From

20125-494: The need for precedent to counter external accusations and the continuity of heritage. Instead, the movement had largely made ethical considerations or the spirit of the age the decisive factor in determining its course. The German founding fathers undermined the principles behind the legalistic process, which was based on a belief in an unbroken tradition through the ages merely elaborated and applied to novel circumstances, rather than subject to change. Rabbi Samuel Holdheim advocated

20300-523: The notion of "Progressive Halakha " along the same lines. Reform sought to accentuate and greatly augment the universalist traits in Judaism, turning it into a faith befitting the Enlightenment ideals ubiquitous at the time it emerged. The tension between universalism and the imperative to maintain uniqueness characterized the movement throughout its entire history. Its earliest proponents rejected Deism and

20475-401: The notion of "progressive revelation" in the meaning of comparing human betterment with divine inspiration, stressing that past experiences were "unique" and of everlasting importance. Yet he stated that his ideas by no means negated the concept of ongoing, individually experienced revelation by all. Reform Judaism emphasizes the ethical facets of the faith as its central attribute, superseding

20650-487: The only true, permanent core of Judaism. He was not alone: Solomon Formstecher argued that Revelation was God's influence on human psyche, rather than encapsulated in law; Aaron Bernstein was apparently the first to deny inherent sanctity to any text when he wrote in 1844 that, "The Pentateuch is not a chronicle of God's revelation, it is a testimony to the inspiration His consciousness had on our forebears." Many others shared similar convictions. In 1837, Geiger hosted

20825-401: The orthodox concept of the explicit transmission of both scripture and its oral interpretation . While also subject to change and new understanding, the basic premise of progressive revelation endures in Reform thought. In its early days, this notion was greatly influenced by the philosophy of German idealism , from which its founders drew much inspiration: belief in humanity marching toward

21000-489: The other major denominations. Reform Judaism is considered to be the first major Jewish denomination to adopt gender equality in religious life . As early as 1846, the Breslau conference announced that women must enjoy identical obligations and prerogatives in worship and communal affairs, though this decision had virtually no effect in practice. Lily Montagu , who served as a driving force behind British Liberal Judaism and WUPJ,

21175-400: The past and described Judaism as an entity that gradually adopted and discarded elements along time, Holdheim accorded present conditions the highest status, sharply dividing the universalist core from all other aspects that could be unremittingly disposed of. Declaring that old laws lost their hold on Jews as it were and the rabbi could only act as a guide for voluntary observance, his principle

21350-510: The personal spiritual experience and communal participation. This shift was not accompanied by a distinct new doctrine or by the abandonment of the former, but rather with ambiguity. The leadership allowed and encouraged a wide variety of positions, from selective adoption of halakhic observance to elements approaching religious humanism . The declining importance of the theoretical foundation, in favour of pluralism and equivocalness, drew large crowds of newcomers. It also diversified Reform to

21525-633: The prayerbooks and have them express the movement's theology. Blessings and passages referring to the coming of the Messiah, return to Zion, renewal of sacrificial practices, resurrection of the dead, reward and punishment and overt particularism of the People Israel were replaced, recast or excised altogether. In its early stages, when Reform Judaism was more a tendency within unified communities in Central Europe than an independent movement, its advocates had to practice considerable moderation, lest they provoke conservative animosity. German prayerbooks often relegated

21700-414: The proposals of Aaron Chorin and others for a new Sanhedrin , made already in 1826, that could assess and eliminate various ancient decrees and prohibitions. A total of forty-two people attended the three meetings, including moderates and conservatives, all quite young, usually in their thirties. Brutalist architecture Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during

21875-704: The rabbi at the Holy Blossom Temple from 1943 to 1961. Joan Friedman became the first woman to serve as a rabbi in Canada in 1980, when she was appointed as an Assistant Rabbi at Holy Blossom Temple. Her appointment was followed shortly after by that of Elyse Goldstein as Assistant Rabbi from 1983 to 1986; Goldstein has been noted as the first female rabbi in Canada, but that is incorrect. Reform Judaism The origins of Reform Judaism lie in mid-19th-century Germany , where Rabbi Abraham Geiger and his associates formulated its early principles, attempting to harmonize Jewish tradition with modern sensibilities in

22050-473: The re-traditionalization, but many young congregants in the United States still perform one, often at Shavuot . Confirmation for girls eventually developed into the Bat Mitzvah , now popular among all except strictly Orthodox Jews. Some branches of Reform, while subscribing to its differentiation between ritual and ethics, chose to maintain a considerable degree of practical observance, especially in areas where

22225-422: The realities of modern life. Among their early contributions were " streets in the sky " in which traffic and pedestrian circulation were rigorously separated, another theme popular in the 1960s. This style had a strong position in the architecture of European communist countries from the mid-1960s to the late 1980s ( Bulgaria , Czechoslovakia , East Germany , USSR , Yugoslavia ). In Czechoslovakia, Brutalism

22400-412: The recognition of patrilineal descent : all children born to a couple in which a single member was Jewish, whether mother or father, was accepted as a Jew on condition that they received corresponding education and committed themselves as such. Conversely, offspring of a Jewish mother only are not accepted if they do not demonstrate affinity to the faith. A Jewish status is conferred unconditionally only on

22575-414: The reformers were laymen, operating in a country with little rabbinic presence. In the 1820s and 1830s, philosophers like Solomon Steinheim imported German idealism into the Jewish religious discourse, attempting to draw from the means it employed to reconcile Christian faith and modern sensibilities. But it was the new scholarly, critical Science of Judaism ( Wissenschaft des Judentums ) that became

22750-600: The rest are unaffiliated but identify with the movement. This makes Reform the second-largest Jewish denomination worldwide, after Orthodox Judaism . Its inherent pluralism and the importance it places on individual autonomy impedes any simplistic definition of Reform Judaism; its various strands regard Judaism throughout the ages as a religion that was derived from a process of constant evolution. They warrant and obligate further modifications and reject any fixed, permanent set of beliefs, laws or practices. A clear description of Reform Judaism became particularly challenging since

22925-471: The restoration of the Jerusalem Temple; during his inaugural address on 21 November 1825, Harby stated their native country was their only Zion, not "some stony desert", and described the rabbis of old as "Fabulists and Sophists... Who tortured the plainest precepts of the Law into monstrous and unexpected inferences". The Society was short-lived, and they merged back into Beth Elohim in 1833. As in Germany,

23100-496: The rise in subsequent decades of architectural styles which emphasized concrete facades, like Brutalism . The location was fortuitous as, in the years following World War II, the bulk of Toronto's Jewish community migrated north along Bathurst Street and the Forest Hill neighbourhood in which the current structure is situated became a vital Jewish area. Abraham Feinberg , the most famous rabbi in Canada during his lifetime served as

23275-553: The same direction as Hamburg's, was taken across the ocean in 1824. The younger congregants in the Charleston synagogue " Beth Elohim " were disgruntled by present conditions and demanded change. Led by Isaac Harby and other associates, they formed their own prayer group, "The Reformed Society of Israelites". Apart from strictly aesthetic matters, like having sermons and synagogue affairs delivered in English, rather than Middle Spanish (as

23450-399: The second half of the 20th century, it employed the old rabbinic notion of Tikkun Olam , "repairing the world", as a slogan under which constituents were encouraged to partake in various initiatives for the betterment of society. The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism became an important lobby in service of progressive causes such as the rights of minorities. Tikkun Olam has become

23625-526: The so-called "Belgrade School of residence", identifiable by its functionalist relations on the basis of the flat and elaborated in detail the architecture. Known example, Western City Gate also known as the Genex Tower is a 36- storey skyscraper in Belgrade , Serbia , which was designed in 1977 by Mihajlo Mitrović . It is formed by two towers connected with a two-storey bridge and revolving restaurant at

23800-452: The somewhat ambiguous formula "the spirit within us is eternal". The first and primary field in which Reform convictions were expressed was that of prayer forms. From its beginning, Reform Judaism attempted to harmonize the language of petitions with modern sensibilities and what the constituents actually believed in. Jakob Josef Petuchowski , in his extensive survey of Progressive liturgy, listed several key principles that defined it through

23975-403: The spiritual leadership have approached religious and even secular humanism . This tendency has grown since the mid-20th century among both clergy and constituents, leading to broader, dimmer definitions of the concept. Early Reform thinkers in Germany clung to this precept; the 1885 Pittsburgh Platform described the "One God... The God-Idea as taught in our sacred Scripture" as consecrating

24150-413: The state, in particular. While opposed to interfaith marriage in principle, officials of the major Reform rabbinical organisation, the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), estimated in 2012 that about half of their rabbis partake in such ceremonies. The need to cope with this phenomenon – 80% of all Reform-raised Jews in the United States wed between 2000 and 2013 were intermarried – led to

24325-678: The staunchly Orthodox opposed them anyhow; secular education for rabbis, for example, was much resisted). One of the first to adopt such modifications was Hamburg's own Orthodox community, under the newly appointed modern Rabbi Isaac Bernays . The less strict but still traditional Isaac Noah Mannheimer of the Vienna Stadttempel and Michael Sachs in Prague , set the pace for most of Central and Western Europe. They significantly altered custom, but wholly avoided dogmatic issues or overt injury to Jewish Law. An isolated, yet much more radical step in

24500-411: The steep terrain of the area and was chosen in part because it provided a firebreak from the surrounding environment. One of the most famous brutalist buildings in the United States is Geisel Library at the University of California, San Diego . Designed by William Pereira and built 1969–70, it is said to "occup[y] a fascinating nexus between brutalism and futurism" but was originally intended as

24675-421: The strict sense) also surfaced at the same decades, as were phylacteries, prayer shawls and head coverings. Reform is still characterized by having the least service attendance on average: for example, of those polled by Pew in 2013, only 34% of registered synagogue members (and only 17% of all those who state affinity) attend services once a month and more. The Proto-Reform movement did pioneer new rituals. In

24850-580: The style is appreciated by others, and preservation efforts are taking place in the United Kingdom. Although the Brutalist movement was largely over by the late 1970s and early 1980s, having largely given way to Structural Expressionism and Deconstructivism , it has experienced a resurgence of interest since 2015 with the publication of a variety of guides and books, including Brutal London (Zupagrafika, 2015), Brutalist London Map (2015), This Brutal World (2016), SOS Brutalism: A Global Survey (2017), and

25025-660: The style. Canada possesses numerous examples of brutalist architecture. In the years leading to the 100th anniversary of the Confederation in 1967, the Federal Government financed the construction of many public buildings. Major brutalist examples, not all built as part of the Canadian Centennial , include the Grand Théâtre de Québec , the Édifice Marie-Guyart (formerly Complex-G), Hôtel Le Concorde , and much of

25200-668: The term "new brutalism" with art brut and béton brut , meaning "raw concrete" in French, for the first time. The best-known béton brut architecture is the proto-brutalist work of the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier , in particular his 1952 Unité d'habitation in Marseille , France; the 1951–1961 Chandigarh Capitol Complex in India; and the 1955 church of Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp , France. Banham further expanded his thoughts in

25375-766: The time had come to move again. At the height of the depression, with a membership of just over 250 families, enough money was raised to buy the land and to build a sanctuary at a location on the then outer edge of the city. While most of Toronto's Jewish population, immigrant, mostly eastern European, poor and working class, were still located south of Bloor Street, particularly in the area between Yonge Street and Ossington Avenue (in particular The Ward , Kensington Market , Spadina Avenue and Bathurst Street ), almost two-thirds of Holy Blossom's more established, affluent congregants, many of whom were second or third generation immigrants and hailing from western Europe, lived north of St. Clair Avenue. The former synagogue on Bond Street

25550-509: The top. It is 117 m (384 ft) tall (with restaurant 135–140 m (443–459 ft)) and is the second-tallest high-rise in Belgrade after Ušće Tower . The building was designed in the brutalist style with some elements of structuralism and constructivism . It is considered a prime representative of the brutalist architecture in Serbia and one of the best of its style built in the 1960s and

25725-440: The traditional one, Reform also held to this tenet against those who sought to deny it. When secularist thinkers like Ahad Ha'am and Mordecai Kaplan forwarded the view of Judaism as a civilization , portraying it as a culture created by the Jewish people, rather than a God-given faith defining them, Reform theologians decidedly rejected their position – although it became popular and even dominant among rank-and-file members. Like

25900-523: The turn toward a policy that favored inclusiveness ("Big Tent" in the United States) over a coherent theology in the 1970s. This transition largely overlapped with what researchers termed the transition from "Classical" to "New" Reform Judaism in America, paralleled in the other, smaller branches of Judaism that exist across the world. The movement ceased stressing principles and core beliefs, focusing more on

26075-475: The way services were conducted. Music was introduced and mixed seating allowed. In 1920, Holy Blossom invited Rabbi Barnett R. Brickner , ordained at the Hebrew Union College , to be its rabbi and made application to affiliate with the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, now known as the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), the Reform movement's umbrella organization. The first Holy Blossom Synagogue (1897) of Toronto

26250-470: The world's Western languages, it is that Le Corbusier himself described that concrete work as ' béton-brut '". He further states that "the words 'The New Brutalism' were already circulating, and had acquired some depth of meaning through things said and done, over and above the widely recognised connection with béton brut . The phrase still 'belonged' to the Smithsons, however, and it was their activities above all others that were giving distinctive qualities to

26425-567: The years and many transformations it underwent. The prayers were abridged, whether by omitting repetitions, excising passages or reintroducing the ancient triennial cycle for reading the Torah; vernacular segments were added alongside or instead of the Hebrew and Aramaic text, to ensure the congregants understood the petitions they expressed; and some new prayers were composed to reflect the spirit of changing times. But chiefly, liturgists sought to reformulate

26600-400: Was Abraham Geiger , generally considered the founder of the movement. After critical research led him to regard scripture as a human creation, bearing the marks of historical circumstances, he abandoned the belief in the unbroken perpetuity of tradition derived from Sinai and gradually replaced it with the idea of progressive revelation. As in other liberal denominations , this notion offered

26775-725: Was a better epithet. When the movement was institutionalized in Germany between 1898 and 1908, its leaders chose "Liberal" as self-designation, founding the Vereinigung für das Liberale Judentum. In 1902, Claude Montefiore termed the doctrine espoused by his new Jewish Religious Union as "Liberal Judaism", too, though it belonged to the more radical part of the spectrum in relation to the German one. In 1926, British Liberals, American Reform and German Liberals consolidated their worldwide movement – united in affirming tenets such as progressive revelation, supremacy of ethics above ritual and so forth – at

26950-474: Was a new Judeo-Egyptian style templelike building with a front of cut stone, and adorned with a portico with two columns combining intricately detailed stone craftsmanship with Byzantine Revival influences. While the sanctuary of the Bond Street Synagogue was indeed beautiful, space for the growing religious school and social programs was severely lacking. By the 1930s, the congregation recognized that

27125-400: Was actually modernism . In recent years, public sentiments in Vietnam towards brutalist architecture has shifted negatively, but the style is said to have made a comeback recently. An early example of brutalist architecture in British universities was the extension to the department of architecture at the University of Cambridge in 1959 under the influence of Leslie Martin , the head of

27300-415: Was adopted by the movement worldwide as its foundation date. The Seesen temple – a designation quite common for prayerhouses at the time; "temple" would later become, somewhat misleadingly (and not exclusively), identified with Reform institutions via association with the elimination of prayers for the Jerusalem Temple – closed in 1813. Jacobson moved to Berlin and established a similar synagogue, which became

27475-441: Was both client and architect, giving him a unique freedom to explore new directions. Rudolph's 1964 design for the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth is a rare example of an entire campus designed in the brutalist style, and was considered by him to be "the most complete realisation of his experiments with urbanism and monumentality". Walter Netsch similarly designed the entire University of Illinois-Chicago Circle Campus (now

27650-493: Was characterised by a retrospective nostalgia. Peter Smithson believed that the core of brutalism was a reverence for materials, expressed honestly, stating "Brutalism is not concerned with the material as such but rather the quality of material", and "the seeing of materials for what they were: the woodness of the wood; the sandiness of sand." Architect John Voelcker explained that the "new brutalism" in architecture "cannot be understood through stylistic analysis, although some day

27825-459: Was customary among Western Sephardim ), they had almost their entire liturgy solely in the vernacular, in a far greater proportion compared to the Hamburg rite. And chiefly, they felt little attachment to the traditional Messianic doctrine and possessed a clearly heterodox religious understanding. In their new prayerbook, authors Harby, Abram Moïse and David Nunes Carvalho unequivocally excised pleas for

28000-483: Was declared redundant and the civil one recognized as sufficient by American Reform in 1869, and in Germany by 1912; the laws concerning dietary and personal purity, the priestly prerogatives, marital ordinances and so forth were dispensed with, and openly revoked by the 1885 Pittsburgh Platform , which declared all ceremonial acts binding only if they served to enhance religious experience. From 1890, converts were no longer obligated to be circumcised. Similar policy

28175-404: Was dedicated on May 20, 1938. The structure's reinforced concrete frame permitted an interior uninterrupted by structural columns. Using concrete and other modern building materials, the building features a campus-like planning of the institution and includes a parking lot. Holy Blossom Temple is a rare example of a building built with a concrete facade before World War II, which is significant given

28350-525: Was described as "the most truly modern building in England". The term gained increasingly wider recognition when British architectural historian Reyner Banham used it to identify both an ethic and aesthetic style, in his 1955 essay The New Brutalism . In the essay, Banham described Hunstanton and the Soho house as the "reference by which The New Brutalism in architecture may be defined." Reyner Banham also associated

28525-800: Was founded in Frankfurt, the "Friends of Reform". They abolished circumcision and declared that the Talmud was no longer binding. In response to pleas from Frankfurt, virtually all rabbis in Germany, even Holdheim, declared circumcision obligatory. Similar groups sprang in Breslau and Berlin. These developments, and the need to bring uniformity to practical reforms implemented piecemeal in the various communities, motivated Geiger and his like-minded supporters into action. Between 1844 and 1846, they convened three rabbinical assemblies, in Braunschweig , Frankfurt am Main and Breslau respectively. Those were intended to implement

28700-490: Was interested in decorum, believing its lack in services was driving the young away. Many of the aesthetic reforms he pioneered, like a regular vernacular sermon on moralistic themes, would be later adopted by the modernist Orthodox . On 17 July 1810, he dedicated a synagogue in Seesen that employed an organ and a choir during prayer and introduced some German liturgy. While Jacobson was far from full-fledged Reform Judaism, this day

28875-606: Was known as the Daytshishe Shul because of its modern services. In 1856, Lewis Samuel, a Jewish immigrant from York, England arrived in Toronto along with 17 Jewish families from England and Europe and helped them organize the Sons of Israel Congregation. In 1858, the two congregations merged to form the Toronto Hebrew Congregation-Holy Blossom Temple. The Ontario Heritage Foundation lists Holy Blossom as

29050-487: Was listed as historically significant by the Uppsala county administrative board on 3 March 1995. Several brutalist buildings in the United Kingdom have been granted listed status as historic, and others, such as Gillespie, Kidd & Coia 's St. Peter's Seminary , named by Prospect magazine's survey of architects as Scotland's greatest post-war building, have been the subject of conservation campaigns. Similar buildings in

29225-437: Was more prevalent as an appellation for the religiously apathetic majority among German Jews, and also to all rabbis who were not clearly Orthodox (including the rival Positive-Historical School ). The title "Reform" became much more common in the United States, where an independent denomination under this name was fully identified with the religious tendency. However, Isaac Meyer Wise suggested in 1871 that "Progressive Judaism"

29400-778: Was presented as an attempt to create a "national" but also "modern socialist" architectural style. Such prefabricated socialist era buildings are called panelaky . In the United Kingdom , architects associated with the brutalist style include Ernő Goldfinger , wife-and-husband pairing Alison and Peter Smithson , some of the work of Sir Basil Spence , the London County Council / Greater London Council Architects Department, Owen Luder , John Bancroft , and, arguably perhaps, Sir Denys Lasdun , Sir Leslie Martin , Sir James Stirling and James Gowan with their early works. Some well-known examples of brutalist-influenced architecture in

29575-568: Was pursued by Claude Montefiore 's Jewish Religious Union, established at Britain in 1902. The Vereinigung für das Liberale Judentum in Germany, which was more moderate, declared virtually all personal observance voluntary in its 1912 guidelines. "New Reform" saw the establishment and membership lay greater emphasis on the ceremonial aspects, after the former sterile and minimalist approach was condemned as offering little to engage in religion and encouraging apathy. Numerous rituals became popular again, often after being recast or reinterpreted, though as

29750-467: Was rabbi at Holy Blossom from 1890 to 1893. By the 1890s, the congregation had outgrown the Richmond Street Synagogue and made plans for a new one. The dedication of the Bond Street Synagogue on September 15, 1897, attracted much media attention. By that time, Temple membership had grown to 119 families. During the latter part of the 19th century, changes began to be introduced to ritual and

29925-621: Was sold to the city's Greek Orthodox parish and is now Saint George's Greek Orthodox Church and serves as the "mother church" for the Greek Orthodox diaspora in Ontario. Holy Blossom Temple was designed in the Romanesque Revival style in synagogue architecture by architects Chapman and Oxley with Maurice Dalvin Klein. Construction began in 1937 and was completed the next year. Holy Blossom Temple

30100-430: Was that the concept of " the Law of the Land is the Law " was total. He declared mixed marriage permissible – almost the only Reform rabbi to do so in history; his contemporaries and later generations opposed this – for the Talmudic ban on conducting them on Sabbath, unlike offering sacrifice and other acts, was to him sufficient demonstration that they belonged not to the category of sanctified obligations ( issurim ) but to

30275-456: Was the first woman in recorded history to deliver a sermon at a synagogue in 1918, and set another precedent when she conducted a prayer two years later. Regina Jonas , ordained in 1935 by later chairman of the Vereinigung der liberalen Rabbiner Max Dienemann, was the earliest known female rabbi to officially be granted the title. In 1972, Sally Priesand was ordained by Hebrew Union College , which made her America's first female rabbi ordained by

30450-414: Was the reform of worship in synagogues, making them more attractive to a generation whose aesthetic and moral taste became attuned to that of Christian surroundings. The first considered to have implemented such a course was the Amsterdam Ashkenazi congregation, "Adath Jessurun", In 1796. Emulating the local Sephardic custom, it omitted the " Father of Mercy " prayer, beseeching God to take revenge upon

30625-520: Was viewed by Enlightenment thinkers both as irrational and an import from ancient middle-eastern pagans. The only perceived form of retribution for the wicked, if any, was the anguish of their soul after death, and vice versa, bliss was the single accolade for the spirits of the righteous. Angels and heavenly hosts were also deemed a foreign superstitious influence, especially from early Zoroastrian sources, and denied. Notions of afterlife according to Enlightenment thinkers were given to be reduced merely to

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