ENGLISH CORNER, CON LINDA JIMÉNEZ – This week’s trivia question: What is the most controversial position of Reconstructionist Judaism nowadays?

Reconstructionist Judaism is a politically and religiously progressive Jewish movement that is the smallest and youngest of the so-called “big four” American Jewish denominations. It is the only one of the major movements that was established in the United States, and is not very well-known in other parts of the world. The movement’s seminary, which is located in suburban Philadelphia, is the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.

Rabbi Mira Beth Wasserman’s work as a rabbi and scholar bridges Talmud study, community building, and the pursuit of social justice. Her ordination is from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.   She has a Bachelor of Arts in Hebrew Literature from the Jewish Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from Barnard College as well as a PhD in Jewish Studies from the University of California at Berkeley. She is Rabbi Emerita of Congregation Beth Shalom in Bloomington, Indiana, where she served for over a decade. She currently serves as director of the Center for Jewish Ethics at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.