30.04.2026 –, (EG) Grimm Sprache: English
Contemporary Christian worship music has transformed prayer into a powerful pop-rock experience—often drawing directly from the Hebrew Bible for its lyrics. Can Jewish worship adopt this energetic style while remaining true to Jewish tradition? In this interactive session, Orit Arfa explores the rise of Christian worship music and its overlap with Jewish liturgy, and looks at Jewish and Israeli artists who come close to this style, with an eye toward inspiring more moving individual and communal Jewish prayer.
Walk into a mega-church these days, and you’ll feel like you walked into a rock concert. Christian worship music (CWM), often performed in pop-rock style, is a billion dollar industry. And while Christian themes permeate some songs, many, in fact, take their inspiration and lyrics straight out of the Hebrew Bible. Following in the tradition of Gospel, CWM has elevated praise of God into a distinct art form meant to literally move congregations and open their hearts to the divine. In the words of a leading Christian songwriter: “We are plagiarizing King David.”
Is it possible for Jews to embrace this pop-rock worship style, without the Christian themes? What attempts have been made to make Jewish liturgy and synagogue service more emotionally powerful? In a musical and interactive presentation, Orit Arfa will review some of the trends in CWM, show their clear overlap with Jewish liturgy, showcase Jewish artists who come close to this style, discuss rabbinic warnings against such worship, and offer a vision for how Jewish liturgy can take from the best of this genre while still remaining authentically Jewish.
Orit Arfa is in her final year of rabbinical school at Geiger College. A journalist, novelist and singer-songwriter, Orit has devoted much of her studies to determining how to create a creative synagogue service while keeping true to Jewish tradition. She holds a BA in Bible and Journalism from American Jewish University and an MA in Bible and Jewish Thought from the Jewish Theological Seminary.