Jewish culture thriving outside the synagogue

amNewYork, April 16, 2008

April  16, 2008, amNewYork

Leah Hochbaum Rosner

It used to be that when Jews in New York wanted to connect with other Jews in New York, that they'd join their local synagogue. Today, well, not so much.

"There are plenty of Jews in New York who rarely go to synagogues," said Jonathan D. Sarna, a professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University, and author of "American Judaism: A History."

"They're more attracted to forms of Jewish culture."

These Jews make up the popcorn-chomping audiences at Jewish film festivals, are regulars at lectures at the 92nd Street Y, and are voracious readers of the decidedly anti-establishment Jewish magazine, Heeb. "They find that Jewish culture speaks to them more than the regular practice of Judaism," said Sarna. "Young Jews in New York particularly feel that Judaism isn't meeting the needs of their generation."

With an abundance of bagel shops, kosher restaurants, shuls, and, well, other Jews, New York has long been a draw for members of the tribe. But while many European Jews came here decades ago for the inalienable right to freely practice the only Judaism they knew how to practice, today's New York Jews are only as Jewish as they decide to be.

"We're in an era in American religion where individuals choose their affiliation--and often, it isn't what their parents were," said Shuly Rubin Schwartz, who's taught American Jewish History at New York's Jewish Theological Seminary for 16 years. "There's a richness of American Jewish culture in New York," she said, noting the great quantities of Jewish art, music, books, films and studies programs. "There are so many ways to be Jewish in New York that you can't possibly measure the intensity of Jewish life from rates of affiliation with established synagogues."

But while it may seem that fewer Jews belong to temples in the city than once did, that perception might also have something to do with the fact that the Jewish population of New York City has decreased.

The U.S. Census doesn't ask questions about religion, but according to a once-a-decade study conducted by UJA-Federation of New York in 2002, there are five percent fewer Jews in the Big Apple than there were in 1991.

The study said that there were 972,000 Jews in New York City in 2002 -- less than half of the two million Jews who'd lived in the five boroughs in the late 1950s. On the whole, the Jewish population in the eight-county region covered by UJA-Federation (the five boroughs, as well as Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk Counties) is at about 1.4 million.

Additionally, the number of Jews who consider themselves Orthodox has risen sharply, up 19 percent from 13 percent. Proportions of Jews who identify with the Conservative and Reform movements have decreased. "There's been a tremendous amount of natural growth in terms of the numbers of children being born in Orthodox families," said Jennifer Rosenberg, director of Research at UJA-Federation. Indeed, the fact that many ultra-Orthodox couples view the use of birth control as a violation of Jewish law might account for the Orthodox population boom in areas of Brooklyn such as Crown Heights and Borough Park.

Numbers of nondenominational or secular Jews in the city have risen, as well. Rosenberg speculates this may be attributed to the large immigration of Russian Jews to New York in the past decade, many of whom tend to be more secular than religious.

Additionally, she feels that these numbers "reflect a national pattern of declining proportions who identify as Reform or Conservative, and increasing proportions who identify as non-denominational or 'Just Jewish.'" But, she stressed, it's unclear if these people are "eschewing denominational labels or are becoming more secular and less affiliated."

The study, which was based on phone interviews with 4,533 randomly selected households, also found that a commitment to religious and communal life remains high, with 92 percent in the eight counties saying that the survival of Israel was of paramount import to them.

"The influence of Israel in the last 60 years, including the growth of Zionist organizations, has also enriched Jewish culture here," said Schwartz of the theological seminary. "You don't have to go to synagogue, but you can go out and get a falafel. It's another way to feel connected."

But while many young Jews in the city don't feel they need to join their parents' synagogues in order to feel linked to other Jews, lately, numbers of independent prayer groups (or minyanim) that don't have rabbis or even, sometimes, buildings (many meet in schools, hotels or even churches), have markedly increased.

On the Upper West Side, for example, Kehilat Hadar and Darkhei Noam have become all the rage among twenty-and-thirtysomething Jews in the area. Services at both are led by peers instead of a rabbi, and both men and women participate in leading prayers. These minyanim were started by local Jews looking for services that would combine traditional prayer, study and social action in an egalitarian, lay-led setting.

"Minyanim like these have become popular because of the grassroots model that's utilized," said Elie Kaunfer, a co-founder of Kehilat Hadar, which meets in the basement of the Second Presbyterian Church on W. 96th Street. "When people are involved at all levels, they get excited," he said. Roughly 200 people--mostly singles or young marrieds--typically attend Hadar services on any given Saturday morning.

"Young New York Jews have an ability, a freedom, and maybe even a responsibility to shape forms of Judaism with which they're comfortable," said Sarna, the Brandeis professor, who believes that the development of these minyanim is one of the most exciting things to happen in Judaism in recent years. "There's also a large number of Jewish singles in New York," he said. "Many traditional synagogues had been having difficulty incorporating them."

Schwartz of the theological seminary is unsure what will happen to the minyanim once the young people who run and populate them get married, start families and move away. "They're an exciting development," she said. "But it's not yet clear if they'll be able to sustain themselves."

Kaunfer disputes the notion, saying that the Hadar has already gone through a number of leadership changes in the seven years it's been in existence. "It's an important step to move beyond the founders, though, and it's something we're working on because we have to," he said.

Whether or not these independent prayer groups are the future of Judaism in New York remains to be seen. But Schwartz believes that these types of innovative institutions need to work in tandem with more established ones in order to sustain themselves and the religion. "There's a lot of richness in terms of education and community that comes out of older institutions," she said. "So it's important to bring together the wisdom of the older ones and the creativity and freshness of the younger ones."

Copyright © 2008, AM New York