Articles

As the pages of this website are constantly reminding us, there are new structural and social realities that are reshaping the contemporary Jewish story. How might we describe the current “state” of the American Jewish enterprise? How Jews are living their lives and expressing their Jewish connections have radically changed. How contemporary Jews are accessing information, creating “community” and building relationships within the Jewish eco-system represent a different paradigm. The changes underway are producing a new type of American Jew.

The events in Charlottesville this past weekend serves as a metaphor for a broader battle over what is America and who are Americans. The alliance of alt-Right groups present in Virginia last Saturday seeks to return this nation to a European-oriented culture of white superiority, where class and race matter. “Jews” served as the lightning rod for what would unfold on Saturday. The language, threats, and intensions of these Gestapo-type units who came to “demonstrate” were on display. Their dress, their weapons, and their demeanor would convey their message of hate.

What divides the Jewish people? Jewish history is filled with communal conflict, disagreements over religious practice, personal conduct, and communal policy. In fact, Jewish texts reflect these controversies, offering at times detailed scenarios depicting the rabbis offering various perspectives. At times, we are introduced to a “majority opinion” accompanied as well by a “minority report.” The rabbis seem to be able to battle through their arguments yet still able to acknowledge their opponents’ ideas, even giving recognition to these dissenting opinions.

The nonprofit sector is one of the fastest growing components of the post-recession economy of this nation. But the larger issue is this field growing too quickly? Are there too many nonprofit organizations? Setting the Background: According to the National Center for Charitable Statistics’ most recent research, “the United States is home to more than 1.5 million registered nonprofit organizations – marking a nearly 20 percent increase over the last 10 years…” These figures are impressive as this sector now employs some 11 million individuals and adds some $887 billion to the nation’s economy.

Jews fortunate enough to flee Nazi Germany and able to enter the United States, would set about rebuilding their lives, establishing themselves financially and seeking to create for themselves and their families alternative communities in their adopted America. Such was the case for some 100-immigrant families who arrived in Richmond Virginia just prior to the Second World War. One needs to put into historic context this unique American Jewish story, especially as it would play out in the 1940’s in Richmond Virginia, the home of the Confederacy.

The Nahum Goldmann Fellowship (NGF) may represent the single most important global Jewish network that exists today. Conceived and operated by the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture (MFJC), the NGF, since its inception in 1987, has brought together more than 1000 young and emerging Jewish leaders from nearly 70 nations. Over the course of the past 30 years, the MFJC has organized 38 leadership gatherings, twenty-nine international Nahum Goldmann Fellowships and nine regional Fellowships in Eastern and Western Europe, North America, South America, Australia, Southeast Asia, South Africa, and Israel.

As this country observes its 241st year of its independence, Jewish Americans can take pride in their contributions to the history, culture and public discourse of this nation. Over the course of their American journey, Jews have helped to reinvent this nation, just as they have redefined themselves in their roles as citizens.

Reflecting on History: There is nothing common or natural about the Jewish experience in America. Outside of the fact that the “founding” Jews, those who came to this nation to help shape its beginnings, like their fellow citizens, were of European origin. They would have little in common with the other immigrant communities arriving here. Indeed, these first Jews were unfamiliar with democracy and had limited understanding of the social mores, economic options, and political values that would define this democratic experiment in living, called the United States of America.

In the Journal of Jewish Communal Service (Volume 80, 2004), I had occasion to publish an article entitled, “Developing a Liturgy for the Jewish Communal Profession.” In that piece I offered the following observation:

Although many of us became Jewish communal professionals because of our commitment to the Jewish tradition and its values, there has been no specific liturgy or ritual related to Jewish communal service. This article explores the religious roots of Jewish communal service and presents a prayer that both defines the special role of the professional and acknowledges the contributions of the field to the Jewish people.

Indeed, throughout our history Jews created individualized mitzvoth that addressed the appropriate charitable obligations that they were expected to exercise on behalf of the community:

In the aftermath of Donald Trump’s surprising November victory, five new developments are reshaping the Jewish landscape in this country. As we observe Jewish political behavior six months into this extraordinary period in American history, what is happening inside Jewish America?

Political Re-Engagement: The Rise of Social Activism
Financial Investment: Reported Increased Giving for Particular Causes
A Cultural Renaissance: Programs, Demonstrations, and Theatre
The Deepening Divide: The Sharpening of the Sword
Political Warning Signals: The Significant Upturn in Anti-Semitism

Over the course of the past 18 months, I have had the occasion to visit more than 15 small and intermediate communities. Indeed, many of these communities across the Northeast, Mid-West and South were at one time the backbone of the Jewish communal system, as they effectively organized their constituencies, delivered essential social and cultural services, and met the educational and religious needs of their communities, while adding to the historic evolution and cultural fiber of the American Jewish heartland. Yet, in some parts of this nation, the story of these communities is being rapidly lost.