Why Are There So Many Jewish Streams? A Clear Guide to Choosing Your Path in Judaism

A well-known secular artist once told me that what pains him most is that Judaism isn’t a “registered patent” where everything is clear and beyond doubt. A person who wants to draw closer, to begin keeping Torah and mitzvot, immediately faces real confusion. Today there isn’t just one stream of Judaism.

When deciding which path to choose, there are many questions, but after examining the issue, a surprising picture emerges: from the perspective of Judaism as a whole, the division into different streams is not a flaw, but often an advantage. Similar to the way two very different spouses can complement one another.

“Each person, according to his natural tendencies and the qualities of his soul, is meant to join the stream within Judaism that fits him,” begins Rabbi Yitzchak Fanger.

How To Deal With Disagreements?

Sometimes one group even claims another has gone off-track. “The tracks we must stay on are the halachot, meaning the book Shulchan Aruch,” Rabbi Fanger explains. “As long as someone keeps the Shulchan Aruch, no one has a problem. But if he distorts things and creates an entirely new path — then it’s a different story.

“If he’s within the track — people can argue with him, and object — but it’s not that his whole system has left the framework. Consider Chabad as an example — I can disagree with some elements, but that doesn’t mean I would ever say we can ‘give up’ on Chabad, Heaven forbid. Chabad is a tremendous chassidic movement with a powerful lineage and extraordinary Torah writings. It's impossible to dismiss them. I can debate a specific point of their approach — just like in a harmonious political coalition there are diverse parties.

“And by the way, in the past there were 12 tribes in Israel who were all different from each other. The Arizal even writes that each tribe had its own nusach of prayer, and all of them completed each other.”

Unique Spiritual Strengths

Rabbi Fanger explains:

• Chabad operates through daat — deep intellectual clarity (“Chochmah, Binah, Daat”).

• Breslov emphasizes speech — hitbodedut, heartfelt prayer, yearning.

• Litvaks highlight Torah learning and legal precision.

• Sephardim engage strongly with both halacha and Kabbalah.

“Each one has its strengths,” Rabbi Fanger says. “You can’t say one is better or more correct than another, or that one is dispensable. What’s important is that the consensus is the Shulchan Aruch.”

Rabbi Pinchas Badush also speaks about this complementary nature: “If the entire army were made of one single corps, there would be disasters. True functioning requires many types — nurses, technicians, cooks, cleaners. The same is true for the Jewish streams: all of them together form the unit called Judaism. And certainly, all rivers flow into the same sea — the goal is the same: fulfilling the will of Hashem.”

How Can One Choose the Correct Path?

“This is tradition — ‘Ask your father and he will tell you.’ The Torah also says: ‘Do not switch roles.’ Meaning, it is generally not desirable for a Litvak to suddenly become Chabad. Just as in the army you can’t leave your corps without sufficient reason. There are cases where someone feels he must move to another yeshiva or approach—if he feels stuck or spiritually broken. Then he may be ‘reassigned,’ perhaps to a Chassidic path which will uplift him differently. But it shouldn’t be done without thought. It’s important to continue the family tradition and not break the chain. It’s like changing your last name — you don’t do that lightly.”

“A baal teshuvah can choose where he feels more drawn and where he feels he belongs. Usually, a baal teshuvah has a rabbi guiding him, and that usually determines his stream. But essentially, he truly has an intersection where he can decide which path resonates with him.”

Does God Want That Many Different Streams?

Avraham was the pillar of kindness, Yitzchak of prayer, and Yaakov of Torah. Each contributed a distinct part, but together they form a complete picture.

“If you look at each one alone, the question makes sense. But when you look at all of Israel as one unit, it becomes clear. In fundamental issues there are no differences: everyone prays, eats kosher, keeps Shabbat. The differences are in the deeper layers and in the approach to how we perform the mitzvot.

“Tefillin illustrates this beautifully: the tefillin of the arm has one compartment, while the tefillin of the head has four compartments. Why? Because the arm symbolizes the act — one uniform action. But the head symbolizes understanding, reflecting multiple rooms, and multiple approaches. When it comes to doing the mitzvot — the ‘arm’, everyone carries out the same commandments.”