Ask Me If I'm Jewish

The recently publicized survey from the Pew Research Center’s Religion and Public Life Project has many members of our community highly concerned. The survey paints “a very grim portrait of the health of the American Jewish population in terms of their Jewish identification,” according to Jack Wertheimer, professor of American Jewish history at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York. The results were devastating.

This is certainly not the first time questions have been raised about Judaism’s future.

In this week’s Torah portion, we are introduced to the father of Judaism, Avraham. Seeing that Avraham and Sarah were already elderly, Og conducted a poll, and the results showed conclusively that Judaism would surely die with them. Sarah, the only Jewish mother was 90 and childless. At the time, 100% of 90-year-old women could not have children. So, how could there be a future? His poll was airtight with no margin for error. The results were devastating.

But as we know, Og was proven wrong and Avraham and Sarah had a son, Yitzchak. At Yitzchak’s brit milah, people pointed out to Og, “Look, you were mistaken.” But Og maintained his stance. “You’ll see,” he said, “Yitzchak will assimilate into the world; there’s no way a young child will believe the foolishness of Judaism.”

Again, Og was wrong. Judaism not only survived, but flourished.

Last week a reporter phoned me. She was conducting a study about Israelis living in New York. Does living away from Israel increase or decrease their connection to Judaism, she wanted to know.

I explained that in my experience, Israeli’s living far from home are often more likely to be involved in Judaism. In Israel, they feel connected just by living in the holy land. Outside of Israel, they often seek out a synagogue or Jewish community because they do not have that automatic, organic connection they have at home.

She asked me to suggest some people who might be happy to talk to her and I gave her the names of five friends and congregants. A week later, she called me back, quite unhappy.

“I called all five people,” she said, “and they all gave me the opposite impression from what you said.”

I was incredulous. “What did you ask them?” I asked.

“I asked them, ‘Are you religious?’ and they all said no! I asked, ‘Are you Orthodox?’ and they all said no. I asked if it’s easier to fulfill the commandments in Manhattan than in Israel and they all went on a rampage about how distracting Manhattan is, filled with all sorts of temptations.”

I laughed, finally seeing what went so wrong.

“You were asking the questions the wrong way,” I explained. “Instead of asking, ‘Are you religious?’ ask ‘Do you put on tefillin daily? Do you go to services? Did you shake the lulav and etrog? Do you light Shabbat candles?’ Ask them about specific mitzvoth, and if they did these mitzvoth in Israel, or only in New York.”

What these five Jews were essentially saying, is, “Don’t describe and categorize my Judaism by asking me if I’m orthodox, or religious. That is not what defines me. Don’t limit or label me. Just ask me if I’m Jewish!

One hundred percent of the Jews polled by the Pew Research Center have powerful neshamas (souls) burning inside of them. And 100% of those Jews have a deep and intrinsic love of G-d (even if it’s buried so deep they’re not aware of it). That eternal connection cannot be shattered.

A Jew is not defined by the amount of Torah he or she knows, or by the amount of times she or he fasts on Yom Kippur. We are not defined by the amount of Pesach Seders we have attended, or by the synagogue we attend or the branch of Judaism we affiliate with.

We are defined by our essence—the Judaism ingrained in the very fabric of our being. No matter how much we do or don’t do, we are still 100% Jewish.

This is the message G-d conveyed to Avraham in this week’s Torah portion. Do not underestimate the power and intensity of a Jewish soul! The Jewish nation will exist forever, just as we have existed for the last 4,000 years. Other empires rose and faded but Judaism continues, despite much battering throughout the ages. We are not in danger of fading away; as a nation, we will be around for eternity.