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Home > Special Sections > The New Activism
The Social Justice Split: Covenantal Vs. Tribal Jews
With each passing generation, covenantal Jews make up a larger and larger percentage of the American Jewish community. They will not respond to the tribal appeals based on fear that worked on their parents. by Sidney Schwarz Now, a newly published anthology, “Righteous Indignation: A Jewish Call for Justice,” brings to public attention an impressive array of young, new voices that explore many facets of Jewish social justice. Not content to deal only in the realm of analysis and theory, the editors of the new volume gathered at an organizing conference in Boston last month to galvanize young Jews around some of the compelling issues of the The success and growth of organizations committed to a Jewish approach to social justice (e.g., American Jewish World Service, Jewish Funds for Justice, Avodah, Hazon, etc.) are not a fad. They have been happening for more than two decades. Forward-thinking philanthropists are making more resources available to help these organizations grow. Still, the organized Jewish community has yet to capitalize on this phenomenon in a way that might prove to be a win/win for both the orbit of Jewish social justice groups and for Jewish continuity. Many of the Jews drawn to Jewish social justice causes and organizations have values that run deep in Judaic teachings. Values like reaching out to the stranger (ahavat ger), lifting up the destitute (hakem takim imo), extending oneself towards one’s enemies in a spirit of reconciliation and peace (bakesh shalom v’radfehu) are part of Judaism’s covenantal tradition of justice (tzedek). But we also know that many of these covenantal Jews are ambivalent, if not overtly hostile, towards the Jewish community when it comes to more tribal manifestations like joining synagogues, making gifts to Jewish federation campaigns and providing unqualified support for pro-Israel organizations and campaigns. The organized Jewish community is not very good at understanding and validating this kind of covenantal Jewish identity when it is not coupled with elements of communal (tribal) loyalty. Yet in a social milieu in which fewer and fewer Jews deem ethnic affiliation a necessity, the Jewish community is desperate to attract marginally affiliated Jews to its ranks. Jewish social justice organizations represent an untapped opportunity for the organized Jewish community. They reach a constituency of Jews that the organized Jewish community could never hope to access. And there are hundreds of thousands of more Jews who spend their time, dollars and passions on progressive causes, but who have yet to be reached by even these Jewish social justice organizations. Take the hypothetical American Jew who is an active member of a human rights organization, an environmental organization, or a civil liberties organization, or who is active in local politics. Assume that this individual is not a member of any Jewish organization and gives no money to any Jewish causes. Engage this person in a conversation about what drives his or her volunteer and philanthropic activity and, in many cases, you will find that it traces back to that person’s Jewish roots, be it a grandparent role model, identification with one or more aspects of the Jewish historical narrative, or even exposure to Jewish popular culture. Expose that person to a Jewish institution that speaks to his or her values, to a Jewish teacher who frames those values in the words of classical Jewish texts, to a social justice initiative sponsored by a Jewish organization, and there is a very good chance that this person can be drawn closer to the Jewish community. I know. I have been part of such education and outreach for three decades and I can count hundreds of such Jews who “discovered” that there are Jewish institutions through which they can fulfill their personal passions. These Jews represent a gold mine of talent that is largely unrecognized and untapped by the organized Jewish community. Further, many of these young Jews today are not satisfied simply to ally with the most vulnerable members of our society. Increasing numbers of Jews are eager to root such behavior in the language of Jewish texts and to do the work under identifiable Jewish banners. This is cause for celebration, and it points to a healthy maturation of the American Jewish community. The Jewish community must be able to articulate why particularism is OK, why religion can be a force for good, and why Judaism is a worthy and morally compelling life path. The Jewish community desperately needs to attract these covenantal Jews. With each passing generation, they make up a larger and larger percentage of the American Jewish community. They will not respond to the tribal appeals based on fear that worked on their parents or grandparents. They are, mostly, highly educated, affluent and interested in those things that might give their lives added meaning and purpose. They will not affiliate with the Jewish community unless they can relate to a piece of the message. The Jewish passion to repair the world is not a passing fancy. It has been a feature of Jewish life for much of our communal history and nowhere has it been more manifest than in America. While the Jewish community must continue to attend to threats to Jewish survival at home and abroad, it would do well to make social justice for all humanity a much larger part of its communal program and profile. Such a commitment just might result in a most unexpected renaissance of American Jewish life. n Rabbi Sid Schwarz is the founder/president of PANIM: The Institute for Jewish Leadership and Values. He is the author of “Judaism and Justice: The Jewish Passion to Repair the World” and “Finding and Spiritual Home: How a New Generation Can Transform the American Synagogue,” both published by Jewish Lights. |
 
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