“Give Me a Reason to Affiliate” cont’d
For instance, here are the results of the
question, “How important is being Jewish
in your life?” For Jews by religion, 90
percent responded “very important” or
“somewhat important.” For Jews of no
religion, only 36 percent responded “very
important” or “somewhat important.”
Despite the fact that 90 percent of Jews by
religion find being Jewish to be important
in their lives, only 39 percent are currently
affiliated. The numbers are more stark for
Jews of no religion. Only 4 percent are
currently affiliated.
These results are sobering. However, I
am not saying we need to push the panic
button. The Pew Center has provided us
with a snapshot of American Jewish life.
The more we understand where we are
as a community on a national scale, the
more we can understand how Temple
Chai fits within this greater context. In
addition, we can gain insight of how to
make our congregation more relevant and
meaningful to those who are currently
affiliated and those who are not yet
affiliated.
We must remember that the overwhelming
majority of those who are Jewish – whether
they are single, married to Jews, married
to those who are not Jewish, parents,
empty-nesters or retired – affiliate with a
congregation at some time in their lives.
Our challenge, therefore, is not only to
create an environment that welcomes
affiliation, but an environment that
maintains affiliation.
Temple Chai may be affiliated with the
Union for Reform Judaism, but our
congregants run the gambit of religious and
non-religious backgrounds. As we move
forward as a congregational family and act
to welcome more into our family, we have
to keep in mind how we define ourselves
Jewishly.
The Pew Study has revealed that 35
percent of American Jews self-identify as
“Reform.” Eighteen percent self-identify as
“Conservative.” Ten percent self-identify as
“Orthodox.” Thirty percent do not identify
with a particular Jewish denomination.
4
Let me repeat that: 30 percent consider
themselves to be “nones,” taking part in no
particular Jewish denomination.
Let’s dig deeper with that number. Twenty
percent of the total American Jewish
community consider themselves to be
“nones.” Thirty-three percent of those ages
30-49 call themselves “nones.” This number
rises to 41 percent of those ages 18-29.
This is who we are. The “nones” consider
themselves to be “spiritual.” They believe
in God. They have personal religious
practices. They consider worship to be
meaningful. However, they are slow to
join a particular house of worship and
would rather create a sense of “spiritual
community” on their own terms with likeminded individuals and/or families.
I believe that Temple Chai is in a wonderful
position to reach out to the “nones” and
express how we have created our own
“spiritual community” worthy of joining.
We also need to communicate how we
are open to their sharing with us what
they have learned about creating their
own spiritual communities. This will only
deepen our sense of inter-connectedness.
I am confident that we will discover we
have much more in common than we ever
expected.
Right now, for American Jews, being part
of a Jewish community ranks 7th in what is
essential to being Jewish. We have a sacred
responsibility to bump this number up.
In the short amount of time my family and
I have been a part of Temple Chai, I have
enjoyed getting to know you, learning more
about your particular spiritual journeys
and how you define yo urselves Jewishly
or spiritually. Temple Chai is a place of
meaning, purpose and blessing. May we
only deepen our relationships and use the
insights from the latest Pew study to reach
out with open arms to those outside our
congregation.
Rabbi Barry Cohen
RAINBOWS Begins in January
The RAINBOWS program in its 19th year
at Temple Chai will be starting up again in
January 2014. It is open to both members
and non-members. RAINBOWS is the
world’s largest not-for profit international
organization dedicated to helping children
cope with pain caused by a significant life
altering loss such as death, divorce or other
trauma in their families. During the past
30 years, RAINBOWS has helped to heal
more than 2.6 million broken hearts and
provides a healthy path toward healing
to those who grieve. This 14 week peer
support curriculum for children ages 5
through 13 meets on Thursday evenings
from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. at Temple Chai.
The Sisterhood of Temple Chai generously
supports and funds this program. This
includes training, workbooks and supplies.
Thank you for your continued support to
provide healing by letting children look
into themselves to find inner strength and
offer a secure and safe place to share their
feelings.
Thank you to all our past and present
facilitators, Sari Greenberg , Risa Feinstein,
Cydney Weisberg and Laurie Pereira for
your continued support and dedication
to help one more child see the bright
“rainbow” after their family’s storm. Our
trained facilitators will lead all RAINBOWS
meetings and all sessions are strictly
confidential. Now is the time to look into
the program if you are a parent, relative or
friend of such a child in need.
Please contact coordinator Edye Sylvan at
847-550-1402 / [email protected]
for more information.