|
January 30, 2009
Think identity versus genetics
There are many positives that can arise from Jewish intermarriage.
MIRA SUCHAROV
Last summer, I participated in an Ontario-wide study to check for the presence of the breast and ovarian cancer gene in Jewish women. As I filled out the family background questionnaire, I recall feeling a sense of satisfaction as I ticked "Ashkenazi Jewish" for all four of my grandparents. It was as if ethnic sameness corresponded to some kind of cosmic symmetry.
At the same time, and although I'm no genetics expert, I could not help but think that the predisposition among Ashkenazi Jews towards certain cancers results largely from inmarriage, and that a little intermarriage might actually help the Jewish people thrive.
I hesitated to write this particular column – after all, what culture wants to consider eroding its robustness? But I think that there are some constructive implications from this line of thinking – ones that go beyond the issue of biological disease, and honors the collective Jewish desire to perpetuate the group.
Put simply, I think that we need to adjust the cultural view of what it means to be Jewish from a genetic definition to one that focuses on Jewish identity. Of course, there are Jews around the world of various races and ethnicities. Similarly, those who formally convert to Judaism (including adopted children of non-Jewish origin) have always been welcomed – so much so that it is considered improper to publicly point out a convert. But there are many adults to whom conversion simply does not make sense, given their own personal and spiritual path, yet who are willing to support their Jewish spouse in raising Jewish children.
As well, according to halachah, any child born to a Jewish mother is considered Jewish – so much so that the idea of being "half Jewish" doesn't exist within Orthodox tradition. This certainly works to the advantage of Jewish-identifying kids who have a non-Jewish father and a Jewish mother. But there are many other cases of interfaith families who are being alienated from Jewish life because of this rule.
Focusing on identity rather than genes would mean that the teenager born to a Jewish father and a non-Jewish mother would not be barred from joining a synagogue youth group. These youth directors – and the parents they serve – want their kids to meet and marry Jewishly, so as to have a Jewish family. I would venture a guess that most kids interested in attending a synagogue youth group would likely want to raise Jewish kids themselves.
Taking seriously people's own Jewish subjectivity means that a rabbi approached by an interfaith couple to conduct the wedding would not avoid returning the phone call. (What is the likely outcome for Jewish continuity if potential parents of future children are denied a chuppah?)
It would mean that instead of treating a case of intermarriage as a small family tragedy, the non-Jewish partner would be welcomed into the warm embrace of Jewish tradition. Chances are good that the new home would include layers of Jewish identity; chances are also good that the son or daughter would be more likely to reject his or her Jewish heritage if the new partner is shunned.
As research into the Jewish community has shown, many Jews – particularly those "unsynagogued" Jews, as well as those with mixed parentage – view their Jewish identity as curiously racial, despite almost all evidence pointing to Jews not actually being a race. Yet this biological view obscures the more telling perspective of Jewish identity. For instance, a "half-Jewish" woman I know who married a "half-Jewish" man and feels strongly that her daughter is – and should – be Jewish, though she's only what ... one-quarter Jewish? She has had trouble finding a place that would welcome that daughter as a bat mitzvah. One point for Jewish alienation; zero for Jewish continuity.
Some inroads to Jewish welcoming are being made. The New York-based Jewish Outreach Institute sponsors a program called the Grandparents' Circle, which encourages constructive approaches to exposing grandchildren from interfaith families to their Jewish heritage. This topic is no doubt emotional for many. These kinds of programs can help legitimate those feelings, while helping participants actualize their hopes for Jewish continuity along positive lines.
The point is, genetic determinants of identity are weak, at best. Where they are strong is with ascription – a fancy word social scientists use to refer to how others see us. In the case of race and other visible markers of ethnicity, ascriptive identity can carry significant implications. In cases of "invisible mixed parentage identity" among our fellow Jews, we should not need to tell each other who is "in" and who is "out." Instead, we could be honoring the idea of klal Yisrael and widening the Jewish circle, thereby giving Jewish continuity a fair shot – and providing a chance for one heck of a hora.
Mira Sucharov is an Ottawa freelance writer and an associate professor at Carleton University.
^TOP
|
