Leaving Judaism is not a Tragedy

Jewish World Review Oct. 9, 2013 / 5 Mar-Cheshvan, 5774  Why 71% of Jews believe that leaving  Judaism is not a tragedy  but simply a natural progression By Caroline B. Glick  346 Why bother being Jewish?  JewishWorldReview.com | Why should American Jews bother to be Jewish? According to a new Pew Research Center survey of the American Jewish community, more and more American Jews have reached the conclusion that there is no reason to be Jewish.  Outside of the Orthodox Jewish community, intermarriage rates have reached 71 percent. Thirty-two percent of Jews born since 1980 and 22% of Jews overall do not describe themselves as Jews by religion. They base their Jewish identity on ancestry, ethnicity or culture.  Whereas 73% of Jews say that remembering the Holocaust is an essential part of being Jewish, only 19% said that observing Jewish law is a vital aspect of Jewish identity. Fourteen percent say eating Jewish foods is indispensable for their Jewish identity. Forty-two percent say that having a sense of humor is a critical part of being a Jew.  Gabriel Roth, an intermarried Jewish author, welcomes these numbers. In a column in Slate, Roth claimed that the reason most cultural Jews keep traditions of any kind is a sense of guilt toward their parents and previous generations of Jews. He believes that it's time to get over the guilt. Keeping such traditions has "no intrinsic meaning."  "How much value can 'Jewish heritage' have if it signifies nothing beyond its own perpetuation?" he asked sneeringly.  Obviously, the answer is no value. To do something you feel is intrinsically meaningless just because your forefathers did the same meaningless thing is a waste of time. If Judaism has nothing to offer beyond lox and Seinfeld, then there is no reason to remain Jewish.  The findings of the Pew survey, and indeed, sentiments like those that Roth described are no surprise to those who have been following the downward trajectory of the American Jewish community.  Numerous initiatives have been adopted over the past decade or so to try to reverse the trend toward assimilation and loss of Jewish identity. These initiatives, including websites like JDate that help Jewish singles find and marry one another, and Birthright, which has brought tens of thousands of young, largely unaffiliated Jews to Israel, have had a positive impact in slowing down the trend. But the move away from Judaism for non-Orthodox American Jews remains seemingly inexorable. "We have tried a lot of different things and created a lot of wonderful programs," explains political theorist Yoram Hazony, the founder of the Shalem Center and author of The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, published last year.  (Buy it at a discount by clicking here or order in KINDLE edition at a 44% discount by clicking here) Hazony, who now heads the Herzl Institute, continues, "We've tried everything other than the central thing. Jews need to understand that there is an attractive and compelling idea that makes it valuable to be Jews."  That idea, as Hazony explained in his recent book, is found first and foremost in the Bible. http://www.jewishworldreview.com/1013/glick100913.php3#.W5TMCi2YNE5