A Majority Of American Jews Perceive Anti-Semitism As A Greater Threat To American Jewish Life Than Intermarriage

American Jewish Committee
Monday, 6 April 1998

Jewish Peoplehood And Remembrance Of The Holocaust Most Important Features Of Jewish Identity; Significant Minority Of Orthodox Support Notion Of Religious Pluralism In Israel

A new American Jewish Committee-sponsored public opinion survey of American Jews has revealed that 57 percent believe anti-Semitism is a greater threat than intermarriage to Jewish life in America today, while 38 percent cite intermarriage as the greater threat. More than two-thirds of those surveyed -- cutting across all ages and education levels -- say Holocaust remembrance is "extremely important" or "very important" to their Jewish identity. In addition, strong minorities of Orthodox respondents believe Conservative and Reform representatives should serve alongside Orthodox representatives on religious councils in Israel and that Reform and Conservative conversions in Israel should be recognized equally with Orthodox conversions.

This rich collection of data related to Jewish identity and Jewish communal affairs is the third and final part of AJC's "1998 Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion." The annual survey also examines the views of American Jews on such matters as the Israel-Arab peace process, political and social issues in the United States, and opinions of various countries.

Dr. Steven Bayme, AJC's Jewish Communal Affairs Director and Director of its Institute of American Jewish - Israeli Relations, notes: "It is, indeed, unfortunate that so many Jews perceive anti-Semitism as a greater threat to Jewish life in America than intermarriage. For one thing, it's not true. No society in Diaspora Jewish history has been as welcoming of Jewish participation as America. Moreover, this attitude may divert us from confronting our real challenges of combating assimilation and ensuring future Jewish continuity."

In regard to the data relating to Holocaust remembrance, Dr. Bayme voices a degree of concern. "One generation after the Holocaust, it is clear that American Jews recognize this as the defining event of our time. Our imperative," he stressed, "must be that of zachor (to "remember"). The problem arises, however, when we equate the totality of Jewish experience and Jewish historical memory with the Holocaust and Jewish victimization, ignoring the rich diversity of Jewish history and Jewish teachings. In that sense, the Holocaust is an inadequate prism through which to view the Jewish past and an inadequate basis on which to construct contemporary Jewish identity."

The survey data was conducted for AJC by Market Facts, Inc., a leading survey research organization. A representative sample of 1,001 self-identified adult Jewish respondents were interviewed by telephone between February 19 - March 8, 1998. The survey data are broken down into subcategories including sex, age, denomination, income, education, political ideology and party, marital status, and synagogue affiliation. The margin of error for the sample as a whole is +/- 3 percentage points.

Among the key findings of the survey related to Jewish identity and Jewish communal affairs are the following:

1) In response to the question "In your opinion, which is a greater threat to Jewish life in the United States today -- intermarriage or anti-Semitism?" 38 percent answer "intermarriage," 57 percent "anti-Semitism," 3 percent "both equally," and 1 percent "not sure."

For those respondents who are married and whose spouse is Jewish, 51 percent believe "intermarriage" is the greater threat as opposed to 44 percent who answer "anti-Semitism." Conversely, among those respondents who are married and whose spouse is not Jewish, 10 percent answer "intermarriage" is the greater threat while 85 percent answer "anti-Semitism." Turning to a denominational breakdown, 79 percent of respondents who identify themselves as Orthodox say "intermarriage" is the greater threat, compare with 16 percent who answer "anti-Semitism." The comparable figures for Conservative, Reform and Just Jewish who answer "intermarriage" are 52 percent, 27 percent, and 23 percent. For those who answer "anti-Semitism" the figures, respectively, are 43 percent, 70 percent, and 73 percent.

2) When asked "Which one of the following qualities do you consider most important to your Jewish identity?" 46 percent answer "being part of the Jewish people," 18 percent "religious observance," 5 percent "support for Israel," 15 percent "a commitment to social justice," 14 percent "something else," and 2 percent "not sure."

3) When asked "Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Much talk is heard about Jewish unity, but the reality is that the Jewish community today is badly divided" 68 percent "agree," 29 percent "disagree," and 3 percent are "not sure." Denominationally, 74 percent of the Orthodox "agree," as do 66 percent, 66 percent, and 71 percent of the Conservative, Reform, and Just Jewish, respectively.

4) In response to the request "Please rate the importance of the following to your Jewish identity, indicating whether it is extremely important, very important, somewhat important, or not important" 22 percent say remembrance of the Holocaust is "extremely important," 54 percent "very important," 21 percent "somewhat important," and 3 percent "not important." These figures remain relatively constant across all age groups, educational levels and synagogue affiliation. The other items surveyed, rated in descending order of importance, are: "celebration of the Jewish holidays" (17 percent "extremely important," 50 percent "very important"), "Jewish study" (10 percent "extremely important," 29 percent "very important"), "participation in synagogue services" (8 percent "extremely important," 25 percent "very important"), "Jewish organizational activity" (5 percent "extremely important," 20 percent "very important), and "travel to Israel" (5 percent "extremely important," and "17 percent "very important").

5) In response to the question "Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Conversions performed in Israel by Reform and Conservative rabbis should be recognized as much as Orthodox conversions" 89 percent say "agree," 9 percent "disagree," and 2 percent "not sure." Breaking down this data into a subcategory based upon denomination, the survey reveals that 26 percent of those who identify themselves as Orthodox "agree" with this statement, while Reform, Just Jewish, and Conservative respondents each "agree" by margins of 97 percent, 94 percent, and 92 percent, respectively.

6) When asked "Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? Conservative and Reform representatives should be permitted to serve on community religious councils in Israel alongside Orthodox representatives" 92 percent say "agree," 7 percent "disagree," and 2 percent "not sure." Looking at the denominational breakdown, 41 percent of the Orthodox "agree" with this statement, while Reform, Just Jewish, and Conservative each "agree" by margins of 97 percent, 96 percent, and 94 percent, respectively.

In this survey, 8 percent of respondents identified themselves as Orthodox, 33 percent as Conservative, 2 percent as Reconstructionist, 33 percent as Reform, and 23 percent as "Just Jewish." Fifty-three percent of all respondents say they "belong to a temple or synagogue." When asked "How often do you attend synagogue services," 34 percent answer "never or only on special occasions," 30 percent "high holidays and perhaps once or twice during the year," 19 percent "monthly," and 16 percent "weekly or more."

For more information, or to contact American Jewish Committee, see their website at: www.ajc.org