This week’s Daily Kavanot will serve as a four-part series, focusing on insights gleaned from the most recent Pew Research Center survey of the American Jewish Community.

The summary of the survey’s findings read, in part: “U.S. Jews are culturally engaged, increasingly diverse, politically polarized and worried about antisemitism.”

We who dedicate our lives to the Jewish community contemplate these regular Pew reports each time they appear. We take the results into account as we plan our programs, grow our styles of leadership, and even design the very structure of the temple.

Over the next few days, I will share some of the more intriguing statistics from from this report, and ask you the same questions which we Jewish professionals ask ourselves, because the Pew data is not just relevant for clergy, educators, and Jewish administrators; it should warrant the attention and response from all those who care about the Jewish future.

Today’s topic: How do we identify ourselves?

The study’s more granular statistical breakdown can be found here, but these are the figures germane to today’s topic:

  • 73% identify themselves as Jews by religion (the others identify as cultural Jews)
    • For younger Jews (18-29), the split is 60/40 (religious vs. cultural)
  • 37% are Reform, 17% are Conservative, 9% are Orthodox
    • 32% don’t identify with any branch
      • For young Jews, it’s closer to 30/10/15, with 41% not identifying with any branch
  • 72% of recently-married, non-Orthodox Jews are intermarried, and they are much less likely to raise their children as Jews (67%) compared to Jews who marry other Jews (96%).

Here’s the real thought provoker: 65% of Jews say it’s more important for their grandchildren to share their political convictions than their spiritual identity. Wow! That does not bode well for the Jewish future.

At Wise, your educators, senior administrators, and clergy are acutely aware of these trends in the Jewish community. We are committed to creating a vibrant, thriving Jewish future and are constantly developing programs and paths to Jewish engagement that seek to leverage these trends into strengths.

So, here’s your kavanah for today: If you believe that Jewish identity is something worth preserving, what are you doing—right now—to ensure that the succeeding generations embrace Judaism as deeply as you do?

​​​​​​​—Rabbi Ron Stern