What are popular sects of Judaism?

Answer 1

Orthodox is the most traditional. Reform is the largest. But there is no one denomination that can be called "the main sect". All of the denominations of Judaism are tied together (despite the opinions of some). For example, Reform Jews who keep kosher depend on Orthodox butchers. Orthodox communities within large Reform communities must interact with Reform Jews in community based situations such as local Jewish newspapers and some events.

Answer 2

Answer:Denominations of Judaism: Jewish movements, often referred to as denominations, branches or sects of Judaism, differ from each other in some beliefs and thus in the way they observe Judaism. Differences between Jewish movements, in contrast to differences between Christian denominations, derive from interpreting Jewish scriptures in more progressive/liberal or more traditional/conservative ways rather then from theological differences.

1. Orthodox Judaism:

Orthodox Jews believe that God gave Moses the whole Torah (Written and Oral) at Mount Sinai. Orthodox Jews believe that the Torah contains 613 mitzvot (commandments) that are binding upon Jews. Modern Orthodox Jews strictly observe halakhah (Jewish Law), but still integrate into modern society. Ultra-Orthodox Jews, which includes Chasidic Jews, strictly observe Jewish laws and do not integrate into modern society by dressing distinctively and living separately.

2. Conservative Judaism:

Conservative Judaism maintains that the ideas in the Torah come from God, but were transmitted by humans and contain a human compontent. Conservative Judaism generally accepts the binding nature of halakhah (Jewish Law), but believes that the Law should adapt, absorbing aspects of the predominant culture while remaining true to Judaism's values.

3. Reform Judaism:

Reform Judaism believes that the Torah was written by different human sources, rather than by God, and then later combined. While Reform Judaism does not accept the binding nature of halakhah (Jewish Law), the movement does retain much of the values and ethics of Judaism as well as some of the practices and culture.

4. Reconstructionist Judaism:

Reconstructionists believe that Judaism is an "evolving religious civilization." In one way it is more liberal than Reform Judaism - the movement does not believe in a personified deity that is active in history and does not believe that God chose the Jewish people. In another way Reconstructionist Judaism is less liberal than Reform Judaism - Reconstructionists may observe Jewish Law, not because it is a binding Law from God, but because it is a valuable cultural remnant.

5. Humanistic Judaism:

Humanistic Judaism, founded in 1963 in Detroit, Michigan by Rabbi Sherwin T. Wine, offers a nontheistic alternative in contemporary Jewish life. Humanistic Jews believe in creating a meaningful Jewish lifestyle free from supernatural authority, in achieving dignity and self-esteem, and in reviving the secular roots of Judaism. Humanistic Judaism embraces a human-centered philosophy that combines the celebration of Jewish culture and identity with adherence to humanistic values.

There are many denominations within Judaism, and the major denominations vary by country:

• In North America there are 4: Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist.
• In the UK there are 4: Orthodox, Masorti, Reform, and Liberal/Progressive.
• In Ireland there are 2: Orthodox and Progressive.
• In Israel there is 1: Orthodox (although other denominiations are now starting to gain acceptance1).

Chassidic Orthodox

Conservative

Reform

Reconstructionist

Answer 3

As with any religion, Judaism is split between the left, right and everywhere in between.

The reform and conservative Jews sit on the left, don't necessarily take all the laws etc literally and favor a more modern approach.

In the middle sit the 'regular' Jews, the modern orthodox through to orthodox. They typically keep all the laws, attend the synagogue, learn the Torah etc though at the same time, live in the modern world and fit their religion into the world.

On the right you have the ultra-orthodox, the Chassidish sects who seek to preserve their heritage more. They may typically wear the traditional garb of the Eastern European Jews; long coats, black hats etc. They seek to keep the tradition as it was for hundreds of years. Many of these people learn in kollel, a house of study for married men. They belive that we were put on this earth to study the ways of Hashem, and his laws. They are usually very refined, down to earth people, in keeping with the commandments of Hashem.

Don't have any resentment on Jews who study all day. All lawyers out there, who have never seen a page of Gemara (Part of the Jewish law), they are missing something amazing. The gedolim (great leaders of our generation in Torah) know about world events, you can have talks with them about current events. If you are the intelectual type, they will be more than happy to talk to you about religion, G-d, or whatever you wish to talk about. Philisophical? Try reading the Kuzeri by Rebbi Yehudah HaChasid. Great Torah scholars have written books on hot topics, such as human cloning.

Note: In this article, when reffering to Ultra-Orthodox, we don't meen the ones who throw rocks at cars on Shabbath in Israel. They are misguided. They are going against the laws in the Torah. They are an embarresment to the Jewish nation.

Answer 4

In Judaism, they are called movements, not sects.

The popular movements in the United States are Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform.

There are many different kinds of Orthodox- Chasidim, Hardedim, Chabadniks, Yeshivish, Modern Orthodox, and even a blend of Orthodox and Conservative called Conservadox.

However, the most popular sect (in terms of sheer numbers) of Judaism is Secular Judaism or Cultural Judaism even though the Orthodox are seen as being the representatives of "true" Jewish religion.

Answer 5

That's a very complex questions which deserves a longish answer.

In terms of religious observance, the main streams of Judaism are considered to be (in general "order" of adherence to Jewish law), Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, Humanist and Secularist - although the lines between Humanist and Secularist are thin indeed. It's important to note that the term Orthodox is a 19th or 20th century invention; in the 19th century, one was either observant or not.

The Reform movement began in the time of the French Revolution, but really took hold in 1840's Germany. The Conservative movement (also known as the Masorti movement) began in the United States when a number of members felt that too much was given away by completely rejecting Jewish law as given by G-d. The Reconstructionist movement, in turn, was sort of an outgrowth of the Conservative movement.

Socially speaking, though, Jews are broadly defined in three groups; Ashkenazi Jews, whose recent ancestors (going back approximately 1000 years) hail from Northern and Central Europe, Sephardi Jews, whose recent ancestry is in Spain and Portugal, and Mizrahi Jews, whose ancestry is in what is now the Arab world; significant and ancient Jewish populations were in the modern countries of Morocco, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen and Egypt, as well as a smaller population in India. A smaller group of Jews lived in Ethiopia, and called themselves Beta Yisrael; non-Jewish Ethiopians called them (derogatorily) Falashas, or outsiders.

Answer 6

First of all, it should be stressed that all Jews have the same Torah.
Jews may be classed according to lifestyle, geography, or outlook.

Lifestyle: there are Jews who are more stringent (Orthodox) or less stringent (Conservative, Reform) in their observance of the Torah's commands.

Orthodox Jews believe that the Torah must be fully observed (Deuteronomy 13:5). They keep the laws of Judaism as codified in the Shulchan Arukh (Code of Jewish Law), which lists the laws of the Torah and Talmud. Torah-study is seen as very important (Deuteronomy 5:1); and the modern world is seen as subservient to the Torah (Talmud, Nedarim 32a), not the other way around.
Other Jewish groups (Conservative, Reform) adapt, curtail or change the Torah-laws in contemporary life, to a greater or lesser degree.

• Modern challenges for observant Jews
  

Geography: there are Ashkenazi (Western) Jews and Sephardi/Mizrahi (Eastern) Jews. In Medieval times, the Ashkenazim were in France and Germany, the Sephardim were in pre-expulsion Spain, and the Mizrahi (Edot Hamizrach) were in North Africa, Turkey and Iraq. (There are others too, such as Yemeni and Romaniote (Greek Jews), but the above are the largest groups.)

Outlook: among the religious Jewish communities, there are the Yeshiva (Litvish) community, Hassidim, and Modern Orthodox. (Hassidim are the ones who wear long frock-coats.)

Answer 7

All Jews have the same Torah.Orthodox Jews believe that the Torah must be fully observed (Deuteronomy 13:5). They keep the laws of Judaism as codified in the Shulchan Arukh (Code of Jewish Law), which lists the laws of the Torah and Talmud. Torah-study is seen as very important (Deuteronomy 5:1); and the modern world is seen as subservient to the Torah (Talmud, Nedarim 32a), not the other way around.
Other Jewish groups (Conservative, Reform) adapt, curtail or change the Torah-laws in contemporary life, to a greater or lesser degree.See also the Related Links.

Link: Types of Jews

Link: What is life like for religious Jews

Link: Modern challenges for observant Jews

Answer 8

Orthodox, conservative and liberal.

Othodox are extra conservative!

Answer 9

It is not clear that the word sect is right, but Judaism does have movements or schools of thought. Working roughly from right to left, the major movements are Hassidic Jews (sometimes called Ultra Orthodox) and Modern Orthodox Jews (both of which could be lumped together as Orthodox Jews). Then, there are Conservative Jews, Reconstructionist Jews, Reform Jews, the Jewish Renewal Movement, and Humanistic Jews. All of the latter are classified as Liberal movements. Many people just divide Judaism 3 ways, into Orthodox, Conservative and Reform streams of thought.