I. What are we to think about Bach, who commissioned lyrics to his "Passion of St. John and St. Luke" that are quite anti-Semitic? Do we stop listening to his music? And let us not forget that Wagner did not write for Hitler. Wagner was dead before Hitler was born. When music is used for immoral purposes, does that make the music immoral?
Barbara Andrews
Emanuel Congregation
Chicago, Illinois

Dear Barbara,

Thank you for your thoughtful questions.

Bach and Wagner were great composers, both of whose music moves me deeply.  Jews should not stop listening to or performing music written by anti-Semites or containing troubling texts. We Jews should become more highly educated and informed about those whom we label as artists, composers, playwrights, etc. If we ask our children to do this when we complain about the effect of their listening to racially hate-filled popular music, we should do the same.

As a cantor, I cannot publicly sing words that suggest that Judaism is a dead religion or music by composers whose own stated relationship to the Jews is anti-Semitic or whose music was co-opted by people and political systems who wished the Jews ill.

Music has no morality beyond that which listeners invest in it, and that is the crux of the struggle. Wagner may or may not be the perfect example: Chopin was known to be a rabid anti-Semite, but his music is performed by Jews all over the world. However, Wagner’s anti-Semitic writings and worldview of German nationalism were taken up by the Nazis and become irreconcilably linked to Jewish suffering

II. Penny Kessler's naming Christianity as "the antithesis of Judaism" is problematic for me at several levels:
1. The first century, post-crucifixion of Jesus and destruction of the Second Temple was certainly a period when both traditions were working together and separately to learn how to be faithful to the Abrahamic covenant.
2. In twenty-first century America, post-Vatican II and post-Holocaust, and presently a time of frequent intermarriage and cross-cultural exchange among many contemporary religious institutions, it is hard to see many aspects of liberal religion—Judaism, Christianity and Islam—as antithetical. The challenge for me is to learn as much as possible about the richness and long history of cultural interchange, especially in music, among Jews living in may different communities.
3. The first melody that I learned in the Germanic synagogue that I grew up in during the forties was a niggun by Mozart, accompanied by the organ, from the Union Hymnal! I knew this as Jewish music and in many ways this was a good introduction to my active adult position in two civilizations, American and Jewish, both significant parts of my identity.

C. Swartz

Dear  C,

Thank you for your insightful comments.

You make some excellent points, and it is true that Christianity, Judaism and Islam share many similarities. However, this doesn’t change the reality that there are serious and irreconcilable differences. Beliefs inherent to Christianity such as that Jesus is the messiah or that the Jews’ Covenant with God was superseded by Christianity (and then by Islam) are antithetical to Judaism. This is not a bad thing, though there are core beliefs in Christianity, Islam and other religions that are not compatible with Judaism.

That said, I agree that the challenge is for us to be Jews and members of the worldwide community. Men and women of many faiths (or no religious faith at all) have made many wonderful contributions to music, art, literature, dance, etc. Over the millennia we Jews have incorporated much of that culture into our own, including prayers set to music from popular culture. This is one of the glories of Judaism that has allowed it to remain alive and vibrant rather than stagnating.

There is no conflict between adapting outside cultural traditions and maintaining Jewish integrity; indeed, the two have gone hand in hand for over two thousand years. The challenge is to be aware of when we are crossing the line between healthy adaptation of other cultures’ customs and losing our own unique identity.

I. Cantor Barak,
In the United Kingdom's progressive Jewish community, Rabbi Pete Tobias (The Liberal Synagogue Elstree) recently published a condemnation of the youth movement's  (LJY-Netzer) Birkat Hamazon in the community newspaper TheJewish Chronicle. The specific reason given was, "It would seem [to youth movement members] that a nice tune is more important than the words it accompanies." As someone who helps the movement negotiate the liturgy, I have the option of changing words to fit the original tune, simply cutting the prayers in question from our version of Birkat Hamazon, or just keeping things the same. When do you think it is appropriate to change a traditional text so that, as the late Rabbi John D. Rayner said, "We may not say with our lips what we do not believe in our hearts"?

L'Shalom,

Jordan Helfman, Education Officer, The Youth Movement for Liberal Judaism

It is difficult for many people to express their like or dislike for a certain piece of music because it is a topic threaded with emotion rather than logic. Rabbi Tobias' quote, as I interpret it, would appear to me to be a criticism of the musical setting of the blessing after meals, implying a trivial melody that does not serve the words well. This is all too common today and very sad. But Mr. Helfman seems to be saying that if the tune is nice and popular, then it’s all right to change the words to fit the music. However, this is not a chicken-or-egg dilemma. The words did come first, and the music, according to the rabbi, does not respect the words. I am perplexed by the juxtaposition of two different subjects (in my mind at least): the esthetic quality of a melody and whether the words of a prayer or blessing are meaningful or not to the congregation. If Mr. Helfman is talking about creating new liturgies, then that is an entirely separate issue.  My concern is that, no matter what liturgy is agreed upon and published, the music written to reflect those words does just that. Unfortunately there is much disagreement about what constitutes good and prayerful melodies. 

II. I liked Cantor Barak's comments about listening to music assumed to be Christian. I say assumed because, like me, I'm sure many people don't know who wrote these pieces. The Hallelujah Chorus was written by Handel, so why is Wagner's name involved?

I am not a Catholic, but I think there is no more beautiful piece of music in the world than the "Ave Maria" and I certainly never believed that Mary was the mother of God—impossible! The founder of the Salvation Army was once criticized for his use of bright music, which some deemed to be unchristian. He responded, "Why should the Devil have all the good music?"

Though I'm no longer a practicing Christian, the one thing I do miss is the beautiful music. Much of the non-religious Christmas music was written by Jews. Quite frankly, I can't think of any Jewish music played during services as very melodic, which surprises me, as the Jewish composers have turned out lovely music in show business.
Moira Eicholtz

Ms. Eicholtz’s comments made me smile. I would invite her to my synagogue to hear some lovely Jewish music created by the finest synagogue composers—Ben Steinberg, Max Helfman, Charles Davidson, Abraham Binder, Isadore Freed, Meir Finkelstein and many others. For those of us cantors who are fortunate enough to employ a professional choir (or a very good volunteer choir), this music is heard regularly. But sadly, the trend today is to replicate the music of the Jewish camp movement, and the revered instrument of the day is the guitar. Actually I love the guitar but I minimize its use in services. I still adhere to a philosophy of creating awe and majesty in worship. I believe, as many of my colleagues do, that the sound of the synagogues should be unique.

As for the mention of Wagner, it was just an example of prohibited music, based on the anti-Semitic proclivities of the composer. It was the topic originally brought to the table via The New York Times article regarding Handel’s motives for composing “The Messiah.” I maintained that the music is not a harmful agent in itself, and the motives, while perhaps historically interesting, are not really relevant to the experience of listening to a great composition.

III. I was interested in the two columns from Week Two. How quick was the diversion from Christian to Jewish texts. Living in the United States, attending "Winter Assemblies" and even hearing "elevator music" in the stores, there is no getting around the proclamation of Jesus Christ as deity. As a child, when I sang with the school choir, I would not sing parts of the song I felt were not "Jewish," i.e. "born is the King of Israel." Now I look at who the singing is for. If I catch myself singing to the elevator music, I make sure not to say those words, but if I am performing at a senior center who has requested a holiday repertoire, and there have been special requests, I sing all the words because I am doing it for others who find their own meaning. Thank you for examining this topic.
Judith Kleinstein

I agree with Ms. Kleinstein that we in America are saturated with Christian messages through music. It is difficult to be a minority in this culture. But it is possible to occasionally participate in the music of the wider culture without being absorbed by it, as long as we know it for what it is—lovely melodies with texts that may be contrary to what we believe, but nevertheless have artistic value. I echo Cantor Kessler’s remark that our profession does inhibit our participation in these songs. Were I not a cantor, I ‘d be first in line to audition for the soprano role in Poulenc’s “Gloria,” one of the most exquisite pieces of Christian religious music ever written, but which would not be proper for me to sing in public. Sigh.