Biography and Book Report on Shaul Magid

As displayed by Revealing World Religions, Judaism contains many sects, and Hasidic and Reform Jews are perhaps the most contrasting. Reform Jews use their religion as a segway to adapt traditional beliefs to today’s world. Their form of Judaism serves as a middle ground between modernism and tradition. Hasidic Jews are entirely different in that they utilize their religion as a means by which to form a direct connection to God. This is done by the strict observance of Jewish laws which as a result segregate them from modern life.

Regardless of the growing frequency of Jewish migrating to the United States, the community continues to confront the many issues as part of their assimilation. Through this process of assimilating,

Sitting in a comfortable leather chair on a cloudy January day, I sat in a house and interviewed Susan Gustavson, a life long Jew that is in her mid-fifties. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Columbia University, where she got an MBA in marketing. She told me about her opinions on the Judaism.

(Kaye/Kantrowitz 1) Meanwhile, it is not uncommon for black Jews, who usually prefer to be called Hebrews or Israelites, to describe white Jews as the products of conversion or intermarriage and that Judaism is the true religion of their African ancestors. (Parfitt 84-88) This dynamic shapes the mutual mistrust that exists between black Jews in America and the overwhelmingly Ashkenazi majority.

Throughout the 1800’s to the mid-1900’s one problem restricted and threatened the Jewish race. Through trials, battles, immigration, and more the jews couldn’t catch a break. They were a despised people suffering due to an inability of the Jewish people to fully assimilate into other societies. This issue highlighted the political and cultural atmosphere and events throughout the time periods we studied. From beneath all the destruction and chaos occurring during this time period lies an important message.

The early waves of Jewish immigration and immigration restriction were followed by the Holocaust, which destroyed most of Europe’s Jewish community. This turned America into the home of the largest Jewish diaspora in the world. On a theological level, American Jews are divided into a number of Jewish denominations that the majority belongs to: Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, and Orthodox Judaism.

Hasidic Judaism is a branch of Orthodox Judaism established in Eastern Europe during the 1800’s that put spirituality and a connection with God through mysticism at the forefront of its beliefs. In order to understand Hasidic Judaism, one must understand that Judaism is not only a religion; it is also a philosophy and a way of life for the Jewish people. One of the oldest monotheistic religions, Judaism has evolved over the years since the time of the founding fathers. Like any culture or religion, however, Jews have never been without conflict or disagreement amongst its people. Schisms amongst Jews over long periods of time have led to a branching out of sects and Jewish institutions. What led to the separation of denominations within

During the interwar period of the twentieth century, Jewish immigrants and American born Jews faced increasing ant-Semitism and discrimination. The external pressure of anti-Semitism and discrimination led to many Jews facing internal anxieties and conflicts about being Jewish and fitting into American society. Assimilation during this period meant fitting into the white gentile majority’s standard of appearance, mannerisms, and middle class ideals. Common stereotypical images from the time depict Jews with large noses and curly hair, women were often portrayed as dominant over their Jewish husbands, and Jews were often seen as manipulative, controlling, and money grubbing. Jews’ limited social acceptance came on by completely abandoning

There was a sense of community rather than a religious longing and yearning to return to Palestine. Reform Jews were considered to be more of a social gain than a religious cult, some even saw the Reform movement as bringing Judaism ‘up to date’. It is difficult to determine the type of Judaism represented in Falsettoland as no explicit references are made, however, throughout the course of this paper, the use of features of both traditional Orthodox Judaism and Reform Judaism suggest that Falsettoland depicts a hybrid of the two. Judaism in America began growing in the 1830s when the Jews of Germany began to arrive on American soil. An important factor in the Jewish immigration is that these Jews were either Reform Jews or were secular Jews who had, for whatever reason, dropped Judaism altogether.

Throughout the decades and centuries in American history, the Jews have undergone various events and experiences that have affected them positively and negatively. In the article of “The Periodization of American Jewish History”, Jacob Marcus goes to the roots of Jewish foundation. He says that American Jewish history is divided into four periods. The four periods are the Spanish-Portuguese, the German, the East European, and the American periods. The Spanish-Portuguese Jews moved into America in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. During these times, the Jews did not have full religious and economic rights, and as a result, the Sephardic Jewish community failed to thrive. The situation was like this until 1776, the year that the Declaration of Independence was signed. The Jews received economic opportunities along with fair civil and religious rights. By this time, lots of German and Polish Jews immigrated to America, outnumbering the Sephardic Jews. The German and Polish Jews made their own communities and synagogues, and they became dominant between 1841 and 1920.

It bears mentioning that the ardent advocates of Jewish proselytization are not pious Haredim—men who spend their days poring over the timeless texts of tradition—nor are they of the Modern Orthodox persuasion, a coterie who attempts the Sisyphean task of synthesizing values both ancient and modern. No, these zealous purveyors of Judaism have emerged from the lonely pews and desolate temples of the more progressive Reform and Conservative movements, a truth which is acutely revelatory.

The Jewish Orthodox Community of New York showed us, the values, desires, and history of the Hasidic community. The Hasidic community came to America predominantly in the 1950s because of World War II. At first they believed they could never continue being Hasidic in America, but eventually they adapted. In Hasidism both male and female have specific roles they must fulfill. The men must learn the Torah, while the women are prepped from a young age on how to run a household, and is deemed as the most important unit of the family. Hasidism does not have the same beliefs as the average American. Hasidism deems that attending a University is the height of impurity because of the mixture of men and women working close together at a hormonal

Judaism is a religion that almost seems uncommon in today’s era. Currently, the United States is occupied with just two percent of individuals who believe in judaism; Globally, only .2 percent of the population is Jewish, which means this religion isn’t practiced heavily by many. The USHMM (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) indicates that World War II was responsible for the death of more than six million innocent jews; this still impacts the jewish community today. Jews

In the years just after World War II, Zionism (the desire to rebuild a Jewish national presence in the Promised Land) became a popular Jewish cause all around the world. Many Jews who were not practicing Judaism at all with religion became involved with the establishment of the State of Israel. Even today, many years after the successful founding of the State of Israel, there are Jews whose only real tie to Judaism is their belief in Zionism and their support for the State of Israel. They are joined by many Jews who are members of synagogues and support a modern Jewish religious movement, but who also find their prime identity as Jews in the Zionist cause.

"Roots of the U.S.-Israel Relationship | Jewish Virtual Library." Home | Jewish Virtual Library. Accessed October 25, 2016.