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'I Have a Certificate of Not Being Anti-Semite"- Identity of a 'Social Jew': Its Roots in Life History

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Should our Readers be asked were they would investigate the nature of Jewish identity, theymight be somewhat surprised at the question for they would think it is a matter of fact to do soamong the Jews, wherever else? Nevertheless, Jewish identity of non-Jewish intellectuals is to be discussed below. Given the fact that two Jewish schools were recently established inBudapest, we decided to study the identity forming function of these schools by means of narrative life history interviews. While making the interviews we found that many non-Jewish parents took their children to these schools and the interviews also suggested that these parents have a kind of positive Jewish identity or consider some of their features Jewish or Jewish-like. We do not have the common case here, when, for example, non-Catholic childrenwere sent to convent schools for the good reputation of the school while overtly keeping their own religion. The families discussed in our study take their children to a Jewish school not asthose belonging to some other religion (even though they are actually non-Jewish) but on thegrounds of culture and values common (or considered to be common) with Jewry.

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24(1)

Page Number

181-204

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Kovács, Éva, Vajda, Júlia 'I Have a Certificate of Not Being Anti-Semite"- Identity of a 'Social Jew': Its Roots in Life History. East Central Europe. 1997: 181-204.  https://archive.jpr.org.uk/10.1163/187633097X00169