This lecture will demonstrate why the contemporary Jewish reality in Central and Eastern Europe cannot be adequately understood through the traditional conceptual frameworks of Jewish religion and identity. The case study will focus on the rabbinical training programme of the Hungarian Rabbinical Seminary, which has been in operation for nearly 150 years. The main challenge of rabbinical training lies in developing curricula that are both theoretically relevant and practically applicable to a Jewish community that has undergone profound transformations. Although traditionally part of European Jewry, today this community exists in a post-European political and social milieu. It can be characterized not only as post-denominational—eschewing rigid affiliations with traditional Jewish movements—but perhaps also as post-religious, with many members redefining their Jewish identity in cultural, historical, or ethnic terms rather than through religious observance. The lecture will explore how these shifts impact rabbinical education, focusing on the tensions between maintaining continuity with European Jewish traditions and addressing the radically changed realities of Jewish life in a secularized, globalized world. It will also discuss the implications of these dynamics for the future of Jewish communal leadership in the region.