Jewish Identity in the U.S. and Israel
Author(s)
Charles S. Liebman
Publication Name
New Jewish Identities: Contemporary Europe and Beyond
Publication Date
Publisher
Central European University Press
Abstract
Strong Jewish identity, for the purposes of this paper, is understood to be an effort to express the Judaic tradition in one's own life, a strong sense of attachment to the Jewish people and a concern for its welfare. The author writes that observance of Jewish law (religion) and commitment to the Jewish people (ethnicity) are correlated and this correlation is especially true of those who are strongly observant of Jewish ritual. The author moves from these claims to construct an exploration of comparative trends in Jewish identity in the United States and Israel, focusing upon the nature of ethnic and religious boundaries, who sets them and how they change; the relationship between ethnicity and religion and what influences how ethnic and religious minorities relate to the State of Israel and wider society. Liebman argues that a commitment to liberalism has remained central to American Jewish identity encouraging a personalization of religion that has also impacted Israeli society. The immediate consequence for American Jewry has been a radical decline in ethnic commitments and in the importance of a systematic observance of mandated Jewish rituals, but he also discusses the important factors in maintaining a high level of Jewish identity among Israeli Jews.
Editor
Gitelman, Zvi
Kossman, Barry
Kovacs, Andras
Kossman, Barry
Kovacs, Andras
Geographic Coverage
Israel
United States
United States
Copyright Info
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BJPA Record
Bibliographic Information
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