Machar is a welcoming and diverse congregation founded on the principles of Humanistic Judaism and dedicated to enhancing Jewish cultural identity. We believe that Judaism is more than a religion or “religious civilization.” It is a complete and vibrant culture with a rich history and evolving ethical outlook, and an array of languages, music, literatures, and folk traditions. The Jewish people are an international family with a diverse and continually changing culture. We use reason to understand the world. We rely on human will and intelligence as the forces that guide human destiny, rather than faith.
Machar means “tomorrow” in Hebrew. Our congregation, founded in 1977, develops and conducts services for Jewish holidays and life-cycle events that clearly express our secular and Humanistic outlook. We teach children in our Jewish Cultural School program to value their Jewish heritage and to respect all people. Our philosophy motivates our members to participate in a variety of social action and community service activities to make our ideals a reality. We have a range of social, cultural, and educational activities for members of all ages and interests.
We are proudly affiliated with the Society for Humanistic Judaism, through which we participate in the national and international movement of Secular Humanistic Judaism.
Our congregation is founded on these principles, which are our northstar:
As a Humanistic Jewish congregation, Machar holds to the idea that we should say what we believe and believe what we say. We affirm the values and beliefs we share among ourselves as a congregation, rather than ideas that we don’t have in common. The
blessings, poems, and other readings we use are inspired by human dignity and the natural world, rather than by religious concepts we might not share with one another. This distinguishes us from other congregations in an important way: our members and guests can be comfortable sharing in authentic Humanistic Jewish practice.
The forms of our blessings and other materials are usually familiar to those with backgrounds in Jewish religious practice. We adapt common prayers or blessings, or we use similar adaptations from the broader Humanistic Jewish movement. For example, we adapt the shehecheyanu blessing to mark special occasions. We invite congregants to reflect on and lift up the goodness in humanity, community, and nature so that they will take action in their own lives, rather than invoke ideas of religious faith:
Let us bless each generation that
has kept us alive and sustained us,
and brought us to this moment.N’-varekh kol dor va-dor
she-hekheya-nu v’-kiyy’ma-nu,
v’-higgi’a-nu la-z’man ha-zeh. Amen.נְבָרֵךְ כָּל-דּוֹר וָדוֹר
שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיַּמְנוּ
וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמָן הַזֶּה אָמֵן
When we use Hebrew or any other language in our services, we sing songs or recite passages that reflect our Humanistic Jewish beliefs. If the Hebrew or other language is inconsistent with those values, we adapt the original language and provide an English translation that reflects what the adapted language means. We say what we believe and believe what we say in any language we might use.
What about ancient stories and generations of teachings that are central to Jewish tradition? We are honest in our translations of these. We place them in a context grounded in secular and Humanistic beliefs and historical and literary, rather than religious, viewpoints.
In 1963, Rabbi Sherwin Wine created a movement when he announced publicly that he would lead a non-theistic Jewish congregation in the Detroit area. He left Reform Judaism to found what is now called the Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Metro Detroit (for decades known by its original name, the Birmingham Temple), which would practice a new form of Judaism he called “Humanistic Judaism.”
Two dedicated members of the then-Birmingham Temple, Jules Abrams and Mary Perica, moved from Michigan to the D.C. area and set to work to start a similar group here. In December 1977, they rented a hall at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington. People from around the area came to hear Rabbi Wine articulate his very unorthodox message that one can find fulfillment in a form of Judaism that does not require compromising one’s rational, naturalistic understanding of the universe.
Soon, others joined Jules and Mary in their efforts, and they would work through the following decades to build the congregation that grew out of this first public meeting. These individuals included Ann and Harold Black, Henrietta Wexler, and Joe and Millie Goodman. The congregation celebrated Jewish holidays, organized a Sunday school for children, initiated adult education programs, and involved itself with social action and community service activities.
As Machar grew, new generations took on the responsibilities of leadership, but the principles did not change, and the dynamism remained undiminished. In 2001, Rabbi Binyamin Biber became the congregation’s first rabbi and served in this role until 2013. Rabbi Nehama Benmosche served Machar from 2013 to 2017. Rabbi Jeremy Kridel became Machar’s rabbi in fall 2017.
Today, Machar is an established part of the larger Jewish and Humanist communities, and continues to thrive, continuing its efforts and collaborating with other congregations on a range of dynamic programs for all ages.