Is Jewish community in peril?

Editorial

A Pew Research Centre survey of 3,475 American Jews provided the first comprehensive look at American Jewish life in the 21st century – and the response it is receiving ranges toward fatalism.

Significant findings in the study include the fact that 58 percent of Jews marrying are marrying non-Jews, compared with 43 percent in 1990 and 17 percent in 1970.

An estimated 6.8 million Americans identify as Jewish, however, more than one in five identify themselves as Jews of no religion – and this number ranges from a low of seven percent (among Jews born before 1927) to more than one-third of Jews born since 1980. Jews of no denomination have now surpassed Jews who identify as Conservative or Orthodox. Respondents identifying themselves as affiliated with the Reform movement represent 35 percent of Jewish Americans, followed by 30 percent who say they have no denomination, Conservatives at 18 percent and Orthodox at 10 percent.

In addition to the immediate implications of these numbers, they herald potentially serious longer-term clouds on the Jewish horizon. Of those who identify with a religious stream, 90 percent are raising their children Jewishly. Of those who do not identify religiously, fewer than one-third are raising their kids in a significantly Jewish way. In couples where both partners are Jewish, 96 percent are raising their children as Jews by religion. Among intermarried couples, that number is 45 percent.

While we have long debated what defines us as Jews, the survey offers this: asked what it means to be Jewish, 73 percent cited remembrance of the Holocaust, followed by leading an ethical life (69 percent), working for justice and equality (56 percent), caring about Israel (43 percent) and having a good sense of humor (42 percent); 19 percent said observing Jewish law defined their Judaism. Sixty-two percent said being Jewish is a matter of ancestry and culture, with 15 percent saying it is a matter of religion.

There is plenty to dissect in this study. The numbers suggest that Orthodox Jews are maintaining their numbers, while other denominations are declining, and those with no religious affiliation are not passing Jewish traditions along to their children in numbers sufficient to replenish the population.

There is certainly cause for concern. Yet, several studies as dire as this one have been released over the years, each leading to communal handwringing and efforts at ameliorating real or perceived dangers. In fact, a perusal of eight decades of this newspaper suggests that the issues raised by this study have been with us throughout living memory. Perhaps the most memorable and comprehensive analysis of the ongoing challenge was represented by Alan Dershowitz’s 1998 book The Vanishing American Jew, which set off, or at least was concurrent with, a major rededication to Jewish continuity among our varied institutions.

And yet, here we are.

The results of the Pew study likely reflect the situation in Canada as well, despite everything that our local, national and international institutions (and individuals) have attempted and/or accomplished in recent decades. The scope of the issue is such that it requires the broad diversity of the entire community to respond to it, which is why the Jewish Independent, as an organization whose responsibility is to reflect and inspire thoughtful discussion in the Jewish community, is turning to individual community members – affiliated or not, in leadership positions or not, religious or not – for ideas.

As the Jewish people face yet another of the occasional demographic analyses that suggest our continued viability is in peril, we are asking our readers this crucial question: What more can – or should – we do? In the interest of launching a dialogue that is both innovative and accessible, we are inviting people with ideas to respond to this question in 180 words or less, to be published over the coming weeks in these pages. We are especially welcoming of fresh, innovative and brash thoughts from the vast majority of readers whose opinions are not routinely heard. We hope that this process will begin – continue, really – a fruitful consideration of our place and our future as a people. Please send your thoughts to [email protected].

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