Rabbi Singer Exposes the Tectonic Historical Chain Reaction That Gave Birth to Reform Judaism

Added: 2026-05-21

[00:00:00]So if there's no black death, which was one of the worst human catastrophes in recorded history, I can't say there never would have been a reformation, but it wouldn't have happened then. The Catholic Church was weakened. They had the great schism in the Catholic Church at the end of the 14th century, early 15th century with three, four popes there at the same time. Don't don't ask.

[00:00:19]So it's in that context, in that millu the Catholic church is collapsing. By the time you get to the end of the 30-year war, religion is on the out and that triggers the enlightenment.

[00:00:37]>> Okay, Henry. Uh Henry, you're live on the air. Go ahead and present your question to Rabbi, sir.

[00:00:42]>> Yeah. Hi, Rabbi. Um yeah what um I was say I was saying to um to William I said uh we how do we defend our faith because that's now hiding Jews. We need to defend our faith because >> I've heard you say that um Paul he's influenced by the Greco Roman Greek stuff to all these dying manic >> influenced by their culture and that what do we say when people say well what about the Jews then they've been exiled everywhere are they not influenced by the other gods and their cultures >> yes they are do you think that the Jews were not influenced by surrounding events and the culture True. Of course they were. And they became heretical.

[00:01:32]Take for example, you sound like you have a European accent. I don't know. Irish, British, I don't know what that was. So, there's a a 30-year war, right? One of the most important wars in human history.

[00:01:51]It the consequence is staggering.

[00:01:55]begins in 1618 and culminates in 1648.

[00:01:58]It is to this day the bloodiest religious war in human history in which 8 million people are killed, slaughtered.

[00:02:07]And in those days it wasn't like they had AR-15s where you or it was more complicated to kill people. The consequence of that was just an explosion of criticism against religion because it was an an internal Christian war which many other non-Christians got killed and it happened in the Holy Roman Empire which means it happened in Germany but essentially it was so catastrophic that the time was done Germany was eviscerated. I mean just the you can't even imagine. I'm not going into it but it actually happened because the natural catastrophes that were earlier meaning the black death of the 14th century led to the reformation which led to the 30-year war. If you understand history, you understand how all these things happened. If there was no black death in the 13 early late 40s 1345 to basically a decade where 50 60% of Europe was eviscerated 90% of Catholic priests and bishops were killed don't ask the the and then you had John Wickliffe translating the Bible for the first time into the English language in 1382. This launches he's a precursor to the reformation. If there was no black death, just see I want you to understand history as a living organism. So if there's no black death, which is one of the worst human catastrophes in recorded history, the I can't say there never would have been a reformation, but it wouldn't have happened then. The Catholic Church was weakened. They had the great schism in the Catholic Church at the end of the 14th century, early 15th century with three, four popes at the same time. Don't don't ask. So it's in that context in that millu that the Catholic Church that great inst a great in quotation marks institution is collapsing because of wow right so then you have the war the 30-year war the 30 year by the time you get to the end of the 30-year war religion is on the out and that triggers the enlightenment see one thing triggers the next thing so spinosa a Jew. You think he just popped out of nowhere and started expressing all these things that were unflattering about religion? No. Spinosa was a product of the environment. That's why Spinosa emerges after that point. You think that in Germany specifically all this critical studies of the Bible and everything will all Germany? Why Germany? Why not China? Well, it's that's where it happened. That was ground zero. So, just understand that Jews of course were affected. The reform movement emerges from the from the enlightenment movement. Now, I know the word enlightenment sounds like a good thing, but it it wasn't because it damaged faith and belief in in Hashem properly and the promises of Hashem. Now there was there were many other things that came down the line that had very big effect on the reform movement. So it was anti-semitism. There was tremendous amount of conversion to Christianity by Jews. The reform movement wanted to stop it but had the opposite effect. If you're a reformed Jew, I really apologize. I don't mean this in any um offensive way. But you the earliest reform services I think the first service of the of what would become the reform movement was held in 1810 with Lutheran prayers and organs and black robes. They was it was a church service and eventually in the middle of the 19th century they they they were they had there were full movement had synagogues that were holding their Sabbath service in German on Sunday. Forget they weren't wearing yamama. What do you think would this happen? Just they fell out of the sky. No. And you don't think the emancipation of the Jews during the Napoleon era during the French Revolution? I mean it's mind-blowing. So the the emancipation was superficially a good thing. I mean Jews had equal rights. They were released from the ghettos and until Napoleon is defeated in 1815, Jews were emancipated. They were full rights. But but right as a religion not for nationality you don't think that had an a huge impact on the reform movement who said like Abraham Ger one of the founding fathers of the reform movement said we're a religion we're not a nation you know what the consequences of that were but incidentally everything I'm sharing with you now I know I'm an orthodox rabbi this is standard history there's no I'm not coloring anything and to um just the reform movement later rethought that. So they had a Pittsburgh platform in 1880s which sent we we reject Messiah resurrection all that stuff out out rewrote it rewrote the alleu don't ask what happens and the Hebrew Union prayer book is written it should be said that a reform movement dramatically changes views in the 20th century about Israel state of Israel about tradition and they're trying now to try to bring back more tradition they're trying and reform rabbis is young men and women. Some of the brightest kids are coming out of the for movement. You know, they're they're good kids. They went to the Green family camp, whatever. But they're trying to now recapture tradition that was jettison. They tried to imitate the German Lutheran churches. This is not If you went to a reformed rabbi, they would tell you exactly what I'm telling you now. Everything I'm telling you now is what happened.

[00:08:06]This is not simple, but the reform movement was a response to anti-semitism and massive apostasy to Christianity.

[00:08:15]The reform movement was an anti-missionary movement in that way. It isn't. That's oversimplification. But the reform movement thought, well, if we're going to what we're going to do is if if we having all these Germans Jews who are converting to Christianity, why don't we just bring the church into the synagogue so they won't go out? I'm not kidding. But the reverse happened. Why?

[00:08:35]You have to stick to the Tyra. Again, I don't don't say anything negative to a reform leader today or reformed Jew today. They don't the reformed rabies who are very well educated would know this. This all what I'm telling you now is standard. There's no I'm not embellishing anything to hurt. On the contrary, therefore moment is trying. Is it a little is it a little too late?

[00:09:02]What am I going to say? It's a very very bad situation they're confronting today.

[00:09:07]But you have to understand the emergence of different movements. Full movement is not the only movement. There are many different movements that emerge at a certain time. Not to equate the two. But the shoptight sphere debacle of fall following a false messiah that didn't happen in a vacuum. That happened in a context of tremendous trauma of the Kelmenski massacres and hell of pgrams and persecution of Jews where Jews lost all hope in anything. And then this very charismatic person steps forward in history. He's he's helped by uh Nathan of Gaza, a very charismatic person who sold him. You don't think there was a context in which the shop site sphere debacle could have occurred? Of course.

[00:09:58]So of course, of course, of course in Jewish history. And who is left today?

[00:10:03]The remnant. That's it. We come from if you're a Jew today and you're a religious Jew. So you either were born into a religious family or you repented or you converted. But you come through a very very small bottleneck. the vast majority of Jews who opted for anything but orthodox Judaism a term incidentally invented by the Haskell and by the reform movement not by us we didn't like that term Orthodox they they took it from the orthodox church which they saw as rigid they saw us as rigid I don't mean that against reformed temples they they don't they might not even know that but that's what it was um but just said yes yes yes we're always vulner vulnerable to all these kinds of changes which had very often a cataclysmic effect on Jewish history. And therefore there were great rabbis not many very few but there were some great rabbis who had the understanding that in fact the emancipation under the Napoleonic period during the Napoleonic period actually catastrophic for the Jews. There were people like them but not many the majority were just swept away by something they had never seen before. So without giving a history in in lesson yes all yes Jews are affected by the world around them and it's only a very the shisel as the novi says only a remnant of Israel that survives and perseveres and is God's witness to bear the truth.

[00:11:36]Period. Full stop. Shalom. Thank you for your thoughtful question. If you enjoyed this program, please like and subscribe.