| Society for the Advancement of Judaism (SAJ) | |
|---|---|
 The SAJ synagogue inManhattan | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Reconstructionist Judaism |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Synagogue |
| Leadership |
|
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | 15 West 86th Street,Upper West Side,Manhattan,New York City |
| Country | United States |
  Location inManhattan | |
| Coordinates | 40°47′09″N73°58′12″W / 40.785798°N 73.970121°W /40.785798; -73.970121 |
| Architecture | |
| Founder | RabbiMordecai M. Kaplan |
| Established | 1922 |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheSociety for the Advancement of Judaism, also known asSAJ, is aReconstructionistsynagogue andJewish organization in New York City, onManhattan'sUpper West Side. Founded in 1922 byMordecai M. Kaplan, therabbi who founded Reconstructionist Judaism, the synagogue is affiliated with the Reconstructionist movement.
The current rabbi is Lauren Grabelle Herrmann, who succeededMichael Strassfeld on July 1, 2015.[1]
SAJ was founded by Mordecai Kaplan in order to put into practice his conception of Judaism as an evolving civilization.[2] At the dedication of SAJ's new building in 1926, Kaplan explained the goals of the Reconstructionist Movement in general and the SAJ in particular in the form of the "Thirteen Wants"[3]
The first AmericanBat Mitzvah was held at the Society for the Advancement of Judaism on Saturday morning, March 18, 1922, forJudith Kaplan, daughter of RabbiMordecai Kaplan.[4]
In 1927 the board of SAJ voted to replace theKol Nidre prayer withPsalm 150 in the liturgy for theYom Kippur service. Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan justified the change, arguing that the actual text of Kol Nidre was overly legalistic and not in keeping with the spirit of the Yom Kippur holiday.[5] Lack of satisfaction from congregants later pushed Rabbi Kaplan to restore the recitation of Kol Nidre.[6] However, despite reintroducing Kol Nidre, Rabbi Kaplan added a line to the prayer that specified that only vows that "estrange ourselves from those who have offended us, or to give pain to those who have angered us" should be annulled by the recitation.[7]
In 1945, Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, along with Rabbis Ira Eisenstein and Eugene Kohn published the "Sabbath Prayer Book." The publication of thissiddur led theUnion of Orthodox Rabbis to issue aherem against Rabbi Kaplan.[8] In the wake of this controversy, Rabbi Kaplan gave a lecture at SAJ entitled "Excommunication vs. Freedomof Worship" and advertised it in the New York Times.[9] The herem also caused controversy for the synagogue including causing one of the secretaries at to resign.[9]
After Michael Strassfeld became the Rabbi at SAJ in 2001, SAJ ended its dual affiliation with the Reconstructionist andConservative movements, becoming solely affiliated with theJewish Reconstructionist Federation, nowReconstructing Judaism.[10]
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Rabbi Lauren began her term on July 1, 2015.
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Media related toSociety for the Advancement of Judaism at Wikimedia Commons
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