CALL FOR PAPERS

Jewish Educational Leadership invites proposals for its upcoming fall 2026 issue, focusing on

Educating for Faith


It has been famously said that Judaism is a religion of deed, not creed. While that may be true in our day-to-day expressions of Jewishness, it can be argued that faith has played a very significant role in the extraordinary resilience of the Jewish people and its ability to thrive under often adverse conditions. Identifying that faith has proved elusive, perhaps because it has adapted to so many different times, places, and circumstances. While some Jewish schools actively engage in educating for and about faith, many are hesitant to broach the topics, while others assume that this is a topic which should remain in the parents’ domain. This issue of the journal explores questions revolving around educating for faith, such as:

  1. What is educating for faith and in what ways is it different from inspiration or spirituality or teaching dogma?
  2. In schools which promote specific beliefs, how do we educate toward faith while avoiding indoctrination?
  3. What is the role of the teacher in faith education? What happens when the teacher’s faith is different from that of the school? Should there be limits on what a teacher can say regarding matters of faith and how much class time should be allowed for discussions about matters of faith?
  4. Does educating for faith conflict with critical thinking which pervades our curriculum?
  5. How does faith change with age, and what structures or frameworks can help students grow their faith as they get more sophisticated?
  6. How can we model different ways of accessing faith? What are some appropriate and effective ways to follow up on that modeling? 
  7. What does educating for faith look like for students who say that they don’t believe in God?
  8. Does it make sense to even speak about a program for faith education? Is education for faith most effective when it is done proactively or reactively?
  9. Does it make sense to discuss assessing faith education, and if so, what does that assessment look like?
  10. What are effective modalities for educating about faith?

The journal is intended for teachers, educational leaders, and interested laypeople across a range of Jewish educational settings. Proposals should be 150-250 words and briefly share the focus of the proposed article and the key points the article will present. Please send proposals or queries to the Editor-in-Chief by March 1, 2026.

Full articles will be 1000-2000 words in length, with no footnotes or academic references.