What does it mean to be Jewish in America?
Also known as the land of immigrants, America houses over 11.4 million immigrants, comprising roughly 13.3% of its population. It is also home to the largest number of minorities in the world, including religious, ethnic, and racial minorities. Amongst these reside approximately 5.4 million Jews, accounting for about 1.4% of the American population. However, are these figures and statistics enough to accurately depict what it means to be Jewish in America?
By religious belief, Jewish people trace their origin all the way back to Abraham, who spread the message of the Oneness of God. However, the documented origin of Judaism started with the conquest of Joshua in 1250 B.C. The presence of Jews in
…show more content…
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.
The Jewish community continued to grow and prosper during the 21st century, paying their fair share and participating in all walks of life. Excelling in education, science, performing arts, economics, and virtually all other fields of the society, the Jews have made themselves quite a name.
A surprisingly common perception (keeping in mind the Jewish population is merely 1.3%) is that Jews have a big hand in controlling the US economy. In the article by Nathan Guttmann, he talks about the ‘Four Jews Shaping the US Economy,’ as he mentions the four Jews in America’s top offices concerning the economy. These include: the Office of the Treasury Secretary, Director of the National Economic Council of the White House, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, and the Office of Management and Budget. This article is a very typical example of how a common American on the streets looks at a Jew: a minority in charge of a country comprised of over 320 million. The list of wealthy Jews who own corporations worth billions is presented as evidence for this argument.
In the
Judaism started in a desert in Southwest Asia. A man named Abraham is the one that started this religion. God promised Abraham to be the father of many people and to give Abraham the holy land which is now Israel. The symbol is the Star of David. It is a relatively new symbol in the church. The book that is called the Bible in Christianity is called the Torah in Judaism. In Judaism women are equal to men, but they are separate. They have different roles and responsibilities than men have. 37% of Jews live in Israel, the land promised to Abraham by God. While 46% of Jews live in North America. Europe is where 12% of the Jews live, the rest are spread out over Asia and the Southern Hemispheres. Judaism has many holy days, the most Holy is Yom Kippur, other days include Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, and Passover.
Judaism has influenced Western civilization in many ways. Judaism is a monotheistic religion. Judaism is believed in by the Jews. It was founded by Abraham in 1812 BC which was during the bronze age. It was founded in the middle East and around 1250 BC Moses gave the Jews the Torah. Out of the five Judaic principles Rule of law influenced Western civilization the most.
Jewish Americans individuals are American citizens of either Jewish faith or ethnicity. The Pew Research Center 2013 survey indicates that the Jewish population, referring only to people whose religion is Jewish, totals at about 1.8% of the entire U.S. adult population, which is 4.2 million people ("Chapter 1", 2013). When looking at the Jewish population of the U.S. (through association of religion or culture) the populace is estimated at between 5.5 and 6 million, making the U.S. the second largest home to the Jewish population, the first being Israel (Sherwin, n.d.). When comparing this data to the 1957 Current Population Survey, is it clear that the numbers have indeed risen. The amount of Jewish adults, by religion, rose about 15% over the last half-century ("Chapter 1", 2013), while not a drastic number it certainly shows the American Jewish population is surely growing. This means that as more Jews continue to come to the United States, it is important that we learn to better understand them and their customs. American Jews are growing and slowly becoming a larger part of our society; by becoming better informed about the Jewish society and issues, we will be able to acquire a new perspective on how they live and incorporate themselves into the American culture.
Jewish immigrants have been treated very harshly, but somewhat “fair” in the 1800’s when Judaism became really popular. Jewish immigrants started migrating to different countries. Jews began migrating to America since 1820 all through today and still continuing, but in the 1600’s about 23 adult spanish-portuguese jews came to New Amsterdam where they had arrived. In 1655 more jews came from Holland. Nine years later, the British came and attempted to take over New York, but failed in the process of doing so . Although, making less than 1 percent of the population, they still made a pattern of Jewish life in America. They lived in the main port cities and had many leaders of the jewish religion who had impacted America positively. America then
According to the broadest definition, there are approximately 9 million Jewish adults in America. Of those, 5.3 million are Jewish because they practice the Jewish religion or who have a Jewish parent and consider themselves Jewish. Non-hispanic blacks make up 2% of that population. (A Portrait of Jewish Americans) Blacks constitute such a small percentage of the Jewish population that they are often considered to be obviously “not Jewish”. This was the experience of Rabbi Shlomo ben Levy.In an article entitled, “Who are we? Where did we come from? How many of us are there?”, Rabbi Levy describes his feelings of marginalization triggered by an advertisement for Levy’s Jewish Rye. The advertisement features a black boy eating a sandwich and
Since the start of time, there has been individuals in society that have been discriminated against based on their religion, culture, race, and sexual orientation. The article “How Did Jews Become White Folks?” by Karen B. Brodkin highlighted the struggles that European immigrants, Jews, and African American faced in the United States pre and post World War two. Brodkin focused in on the idea of “whiteness” in America, and how the word has evolved overtime to include a variety of ethnicities.
To become an effective counselor to Jewish Americans or any race or diverse population is to be aware of one’s thoughts and opinions concerning racism and racial advantage, as well increase knowledge of culture’s different from oneself (Hays & Erford, 2014). Jewish Americans are referred to those Caucasian individuals who have immigrated to the United States from another country, such as Eastern Europe (Hays and Erford, 2014). In this paper, I will identify and provide a description of the Jewish population and how they differ from myself in a variety of ways. Additionally, I will provide a reflection of my immersion into the Jewish culture via my observations and highlight what I have learned
States, the Jews had an easier time when it came to religious freedom and equality. Jews are commonly accepted throughout the United States and around the world today.
Throughout the history of the world, the Jewish people have been persecuted and oppressed because of their religious beliefs and faith. Many groups of people have made Jews their scapegoat. Jews have suffered from years of intolerance because people have not understood what the religion really means. They do not understand where and why the religion began, nor the customs of it's people. For one to understand the great hardships, triumphs, and history of the Jewish people one must open-mindedly peruse a greater knowledge of the Jewish people and faith.
A group that believes in its own superiority will do everything to live up to that image, outperforming other groups and in general staying ahead. The advantage of superiority is noted in a number of groups. The Jews have a long history of superiority, despite numerous hardships, founded in the very core of their religion; seeing themselves as a ‘chosen people.’ “Whether rooted in divine election, history, intellect, morality, or ‘a psychology without content,’ the Jewish sense of being somehow exceptional has lasted three thousand years and is unlikely to disappear anytime soon,” (64). Jews are one of America’s most successful groups, and one of the only groups with no clear sign of decay in that success.
Magid's brilliant introduction really sets the tone for the rest of his book. American Jews or Jewish Americans? American Judaism or Judaism in America? One is; the other describes. It is without question that America has offered Jews the most loving society in the Jewish Diaspora, but at the same time it is also proving to be problematic. Jews are in a current state of transition in that they have to figure out a way to adapt their Jewishness beyond their ethnicity. The Jewish leaders in America have been wondering how to handle the sky rocketing assimilation and intermarriage rates, because they are fearful that it will lead to the end of not
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
Throughout the history of Judaism, Jewish people have faced ongoing persecution and discrimination. Despite these conflicts, the faith remains alive, strong, and continuously growing. Like many religions faced with adversity, Judaism has had to assimilate its faith to survive in an ever-changing world. One significant moment of change in the Jewish history, the fall of the Second Temple, had the opportunity to destroy Judaism, but the Jewish people bonded together and reformulated their religion in order to save their faith. The falling of the Second Temple marks a distinct change in the Jewish faith through the modification of ritual practices to accommodate their new mobile lifestyle. This change would forever impact the Jewish
The histories of Judaism and Christianity detail the story of a branched religion that grows to rival the original. In theological context, Judaism began with God and Abraham. The subsequent covenants and relations with God solidified Judaism not only as a religion but also as a people. The people of Judaism, due to their monotheism and self-separation, became a separate entity from other groups of the time. This formulates them into their own ethnicity and unfortunately opens them to persecution for the majority of history. Beginning with the Jewish Diaspora, the Jewish people were scattered across Europe; the Ashkenazi to Germany and