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The Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom (Dutch Union for Progressive Judaism; until 2006: Verbond voor Liberaal-Religieuze Joden in Nederland, Union for Liberal-Religious Jews in the Netherlands) is the umbrella organisation for Progressive Jews in the Netherlands, and is affiliated to the
World Union for Progressive Judaism The World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) is the international umbrella organization for the various branches of Reform, Liberal and Progressive Judaism, as well as the separate Reconstructionist Judaism. The WUPJ is based in 40 countries ...
. It was founded in 1931. The "Verbond" claims a membership of some 3,700, spread in ten different congregations throughout the country. The biggest one is the congregation in Amsterdam, with some 1,700 members. Other congregations exist in The Hague, Rotterdam, Utrecht,
Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...
(LJG
Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...
), Tilburg (LJG
Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...
), Enschede (LJG Twente), Heerenveen,
Zuidlaren Zuidlaren (Noordenvelds: ''Zuudlaoren'') is a village in the province of Drenthe in the Northern Netherlands. Zuidlaren has just over 10,000 inhabitants and is situated on natural heightened land which is called the Hondsrug. The village is part ...
(LJG Noord-Nederland) and
Almere Almere () is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, Netherlands, located about 20 km to the east of Amsterdam (as the crow flies) across the IJmeer. Bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde, the municipality of Almere compr ...
(LJG Flevoland). The NVPJ's rabbis are: Menno ten Brink, David Lilienthal, Awraham Soetendorp, Edward van Voolen, Marianne van Praag, Tamara Benima and Albert Ringer. It publishes its own magazine six times a year, ''Levend Joods Geloof'' (lit. Living Jewish Faith). The ''Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom'' has separate organisations for women (FLJVN) and youngsters ( Netzer Holland); there is also a separate Zionist organisation based on Progressive Jewish grounds,
ARZA Arza (; ) is a small populated town and township, east of Lhasa in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It belongs to Lhari County (Jiali Xian) of the Nagqu Prefecture Nagqu (also Naqu, Nakchu, or Nagchu; ; ) is a prefecture-level city in t ...
. It is also connected to four Jewish cemeteries: one in Hoofddorp (1937) and one in
Amstelveen Amstelveen () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands with a population of 92.353 as of 2022. It is a suburban part of the Amsterdam metropolitan area. The municipality of Amstelveen consists of the historical villag ...
(2002). The Liberal communities in The Hague and Rotterdam also have their own cemetery in the town of
Rijswijk Rijswijk (), formerly known as Ryswick ( ) in English, is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Its population was in , and it has an area of , of which is water. The municipality also includes th ...
, Beth Hachaim. The cemetery was founded in 1990 after several requests from members from both communities. The Congregation in Twente has its cemetery Gan ha-Olam in Enschede.


History

Progressive Judaism was brought to the Netherlands in the 1930s by German immigrants, many of them fleeing Nazi persecution. The first Progressive rabbi in the Netherlands was Meir L. Lasker, followed by German-born Rabbi Norden. The first congregation was founded in 1931 in The Hague, in the same year followed by one in Amsterdam. The congregations grew rapidly throughout the years, mostly because of the arrival of thousands of German Jews (of whom most were part of the Reform tradition). On 18 October 1931, the ''Verbond van Liberaal-Godsdienstige Joden'' (lit. Union for Liberal-Religious Jews) was founded. Services were held regularly, and the Union published its own paper, ''Nieuw Joods Leven'' (lit. New Jewish Life). At the eve of World War II, the Amsterdam community alone had some 900 members; ten years earlier, Progressive Judaism had virtually been non-existent in the Netherlands – the religious landscape was limited to Ashkenazi Orthodox Judaism and a smaller community of Sephardi Jews.


The Holocaust

World War II saw the destruction of most of Jewish life in the Netherlands during the Holocaust; more than 75% of Dutch Jews were killed by the Nazis. But the community was vibrant, and small initiatives were started in the years after the Second World War to revitalize Jewish life again, although this was hard in a country where the Jewish community had diminished from more than 140,000 in 1940 to a mere 25,000 in the 1950s. A new Liberal community was started in Amsterdam in 1946; the community had some 50 members, only a fraction of the 900 six years earlier.


1945–2006

It was not until the 1960s that Progressive Judaism started to grow once again in the Netherlands. Much of its success was related to the hard work of Rabbi Jacob Soetendorp, rabbi for the Liberal community in Amsterdam since 1954. Because of his hard work, new communities started to spring up again within the Jewish Netherlands – sometimes much to the disagreement of the Orthodox Jewish community in the Netherlands, combined in the ''
Nederlands Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap The Nederlands-Israëlitisch Kerkgenootschap ( en, Dutch Israelite Religious Community) (NIK) is the umbrella organisation for most Ashkenazi Jewish communities in the Netherlands, and is Orthodox in nature, while to be described as traditional i ...
'', which, until this day, does not fully recognize the ''Nederlands Verbond voor Progressief Jodendom''. The 1990s and the first years of the 21st century saw a new impulse to Progressive Judaism in the Netherlands with the establishment of three new communities: one in Utrecht in 1993; one in Heerenveen (''Beth Hatsafon'') in 2000; and one in Almere (''Beth B'nei Jonah'') in 2003.


Levisson Instituut

The Levisson Instituut was founded in 2002 with the aim to provide rabbinical training for Dutch Jewish students affiliated with the NVPJ. The institute is based on the premises of the University of Amsterdam and receives educational assistance from the
Leo Baeck College Leo Baeck College is a privately funded rabbinical seminary and centre for the training of teachers in Jewish education. Based now at the Sternberg Centre, East End Road, Finchley, in the London Borough of Barnet, it was founded by Werner van ...
in London, amongst others. Currently, seven students are training at the Institute and are providing liturgical and pastoral support within the Liberal communities. Dean of Studies is Swedish-born Rabbi David Lilienthal.


Overview


LJG Amsterdam
1,700 members, some 725 families. Rabbi for the community is Menno ten Brink. The synagogue of the community is located in the Jacob Soetendorpstraat since 1966. A new synagogue is in construction at the moment. As of October 2007 the community has been relocated from the Jacob Soetendorpstraat to the Stadionweg, awaiting its new synagogue to be inaugurated. The community was established on October 31, 1931; it celebrated its 75 year jubilee on October 26, 2006, with
Queen Beatrix Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husba ...
of the Netherlands as honorary guest. The community publishes a quarterly called "Kol Mokum", translated as "Voice of Amsterdam" or "Whole of Amsterdam" (Amsterdam is also known as Mokum, which comes from the
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...
spoken by the first Jewish immigrants to the city and which is derived from the
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
word "Makom", which means "place" or "town"; Mokum is used both by Jews as well as non-Jews when referring to Amsterdam).
LJG Rotterdam
Rabbi for the community is Albert Ringer. Founded in 1968 by rabbi Avraham Soetendorp, son of Jacob Soetendorp. A new synagogue was put into use on August 25, 1995.
LJG The Hague Beth Jehoeda
some 325 families are members of congregation Beth Jehoeda, which makes it the second largest Liberal Jewish community in the Netherlands (after the one in Amsterdam). Although a community was established already in 1931 (the first Progressive Jewish congregation in the country), the Second World War meant a devastating blow to the community and it was not until 1962 before the community was re-established again with the finding of a new shelter in the Stadhouderslaan (the community was already informally re-established in the 1950s, but had no place for worship). In the years following however, plans were made to use the old Sephardic synagogue in The Hague (the Snoge) as a new shelter for the community. During the Second World War the Sephardic community in The Hague was completely destroyed, leaving the synagogue empty after the War. Eventually, on September 3, 1973, plans became reality when the synagogue was inaugurated as the new place of worship for the Liberal community in the presence of
Queen Juliana Juliana (; Juliana Louise Emma Marie Wilhelmina; 30 April 1909 – 20 March 2004) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1948 until her abdication in 1980. Juliana was the only child of Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Sh ...
of the Netherlands. Rabbi for the community is Marianne van Praag.
LJG Gelderland, Kehillath Adath Jesjoeroen
more than 70 families are members of this congregation; rabbi for the community is Marianne van Praag. The community was established on February 14, 1965, in
Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...
. In 2010 the congregation moved to a newly restored synagogue in the nearby small town of Dieren, to give the community a place of worship.
LJG Brabant Aree Hanegev
founded in 1981 in Tilburg, Aree Hanegev attracts Liberal Jews from the provinces of
North Brabant North Brabant ( nl, Noord-Brabant ; Brabantian: ; ), also unofficially called Brabant, is a province in the south of the Netherlands. It borders the provinces of South Holland and Gelderland to the north, Limburg to the east, Zeeland to the ...
, Limburg and
Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...
, as well as from Flanders. Rabbi for the community is Corrie Zeidler.
LJG Utrecht
the community was established on December 7, 1993. Rabbi for the community is Nava Tehilah Livingstone-Shmuelit. The congregation has had its own synagogue since the end of 2004.
LJG Twente Or Chadasj
this community was established in 1972 in the city of Enschede. Rabbi for the community is Albert Ringer. Its synagogue, built in 1828, is situated in
Haaksbergen Haaksbergen () is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands, in the province of Overijssel, in the Twente region. The ''Buurserbeek'' flows through the municipality of Haaksbergen. Population centres Topography ''Dutch Topographi ...
. The congregation owns her own cemetery in Enschede.
PJG Noord-Nederland Beth Hatsafon
in 1997 house meetings were first started. In 1998, this group adopted the name "Liberaal Joods Lernminjan Noord Nederland" (''Liberal Jewish Lernminjan Northern Netherlands''); meetings were held in the village of
Goutum Goutum is a village in the municipality Leeuwarden in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. It had a population of around 2,945 in January 2017. It is still an independent village, but is surrounded by the city of Leeuwarden on all sides. Th ...
. In 1999 the group changed its name to "Liberaal Joodse Vereniging Noord-Nederland" (''Liberal Jewish Association Northern Netherlands''). Eventually, in 2000, the group became part of the LJG and established its base in Heerenveen. The community now has some 36 members. Rabbi Tamara Benima is rabbi for the community. In May 2006, the community announced its plans to relocate the congregation to the small town of
Zuidlaren Zuidlaren (Noordenvelds: ''Zuudlaoren'') is a village in the province of Drenthe in the Northern Netherlands. Zuidlaren has just over 10,000 inhabitants and is situated on natural heightened land which is called the Hondsrug. The village is part ...
, where they hire the old synagogue which was renovated; as of late 2007, services are held there. With the move came a name change, "Liberaal" was replaced by "Progressief".
LJG Flevoland Beth b'nei Jonah
established in 2003, the community of Flevoland, located in
Almere Almere () is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, Netherlands, located about 20 km to the east of Amsterdam (as the crow flies) across the IJmeer. Bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde, the municipality of Almere compr ...
. The community is rapidly growing due to its proximity to Amsterdam, which harbors some 15,000 Jews. At the moment the community harbors some 16 members."We can't learn from each other if we are the same"
Geheugen van Almere. ''Accessed 1 December 2006'' Rabbi for the community is Marianne van Praag.
LJG Heerenveen “Tsliliem Chadasjiem”
split in 2004 from Beth HaTsafon, became on 1 March 2007 the association “Beth haChidoesj haTsfoni”, an independent Jewish community, which in 2009 contacted the NVPJ, which it joined in December 2010 as its 10th recognized community. Its rabbi is Tamara Benima.


References


External links


Jewish Broadcasting special on Progressive Judaism in the Netherlands
*
Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands celebrating the 75 years existence of the LJG

Union for Liberal-Religious Jews in the Netherlands

Levisson Institute


{{DEFAULTSORT:Nederlands Verbond Voor Progressief Jodendom Jewish Dutch history World Union for Progressive Judaism Reform Judaism in the Netherlands 1931 establishments in the Netherlands Jewish organisations based in the Netherlands Leo Baeck College