Judaism and the Jews in New York - Term Paper Example

? Judaism and the Jews in New York Introduction The Jews have a history of more than 5700 years that traces back to the Biblical times. Despite the intense warfare and nomadic life style, the Jews developed their own religious, cultural identity, which turned to be the basis for all other Western Religions. Evidently, it was the invasion of foreigners, especially which of the Babylonians, and the crusaders ousted them from their own lands. The Jews in New York refers to Jewish individuals and institutions that were settled in New York and impacted the overall socio-economic aspects of the city. American Jews are American citizens having Jewish faith and Jewish ethnicity and whose origin also is from other countries. A wide range of Jewish cultural traditions and a full spectrum of Jewish religious observance are apparent in the Jewish community of America. The Jews of America live overwhelmingly in the suburbs of the largest American cities. The American Jews by every measure constitute to be one of the highest socio economic groups of the United states and they share almost all the characteristics of the upper middle class urban Americans. Depending on demographic studies and religious definitions, the United States is home to the world’s second largest Jewish community. This paper in particular intends to describe Jews in New York and their religion ‘Judaism’. Who is a Jew? The Jews represent a group of people having some unique characteristics rather than a distinct race or ethnic group. Although the Jews originally came from the Middle East, many a number of races and people have joined together in Jewish communities over the centuries, especially after Jews were forced out of Palestine in the second century A.D. In America, they engaged in marriages with Christians and formed a mixed community. It is evidently, a common Jewish heritage that passed down from generation to generation that binds the group together. And for the Jews in New York also, the binding element is their religion. Although most often, Judaism is used as a term referring to the Jewish religion, sometimes it is used to refer to all Jews. In other words, one does not have to be religious to be Jewish. In general, one is Jewish if one is born of a Jewish mother or converted to Judaism. Unlike Christians, they are still waiting for the arrival of a Savior who would integrate all the Jews who have been scattered and gone astray. Advent of Jews to America There is no unanimous opinion among the historians as to when the first Jews came to America. Although many believe that Jews reached America in the ancient period either when they were attacked by aliens or when they faced persecution from the Christians, no solid evidences are available to prove this argument. As Adler and Huhner point out, still it is believed that the first Jews came to North America in 1654 and settled in the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam which was later renamed as New York. Most of those who came were refugees from Recife, a Dutch colony in Brazil. It was when the Portuguese attacked the colony the Jews left Recife and headed to Holland. But as they ran out of money they were forced to settle at the Dutch colony of North America (Adler and Huhner). The newly came people were granted permission to inhabit in the American soil and to practice their religion and customs and this marked the beginning of a new community and religion in the land of America. The migrant Jews assimilated into the culture of Native Americans in all aspects of life. In other words, they had to imbibe the basic characteristics of the American community as forming distinctiveness was not possible challenging the customs of the natives. All together, the modern Jewish culture in America embodies an international culture of secular communities of Jewish people and the indigenous practices of the natives. Jews continued migrating to America on realizing it was a secure place for them. During the middle decades of the 19th century, there were considerable immigrations from central Europe to New York. Obviously, this made the population of Jews in America significant. As Raphael points out, around 50 years ago, New York had more or less two million Jewish populations who constituted one fourth of the population of New York. Today, when New York City has 8 million people, the Jews are only 12 percent. The reason for the fall in the population of Jews is both migration and the falling Jewish birth rate (8). Jewish Contributions to America When Jews became the citizens of America, they started contributing to the nation to a great extent. The major contributions were in the field of defense, medical science, and literature. The service of the American Jews during the time of independence was really praiseworthy. In 1776, around 2000 Jews lived in America, most of them with their origin in Spain or in Portugal. They played a prominent role in the struggle for American freedom. In the struggle for freedom, a revolutionary called Francis Salvador attained martyrdom becoming the first Jew to die for America. Apart from providing physical support, they also played a key role in financing the revolution. In the same way, at the time of Second World War, around 500,000 of American Jews, which is about half of the Jewish male population between the age of 18 and 50 were enlisted for military service. In addition to this, the Jews made noticeable contribution to the medical and health care field. The major contribution to this area includes the Mount Sinai Hospital set up in 1852 as ‘The Jews’ Hospital in New York. Though the aim behind the setting up of the hospital was to serve the immigrant Jewish population, its services were extended to the non Jewish population as well. Today Mount Sinai Hospital is one of the well known hospitals in New York that serves an average of 400000 patients annually (“The Jews of New York”). After the war, the Jewish families joined the new trend of suburbanization, as they became wealthier and more mobile as compared to the Native Americans. During this period, the Jewish community expanded to other major cities as well. Their major destinations included Los Angeles and Miami. Their young people attended secular high schools and colleges in these cities and met Christians. Subsequently, the intermarriage rates rose to nearly 50%. However, the synagogue membership grew considerably from 20% of the Jewish population in the 1930s to 60% in the 1960s. Judaism: the Religion of Jews The official religion of the Jewish community is Judaism. Judaism is an Abrahamic religion and their faith recognizes Abraham as their Patriarch. The sacred book of the Jews is Torah that includes only the first five texts of the holy bible. As Robinson describes, the first text of Torah that is the book of Genesis describes the events relating to the lives of the three patriarchs of the Jewish community namely Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. While the Christian community accepts Joseph as a fourth patriarch, the Jews do not agree to it. Among the ancient Israelites Moses is considered to be the next major leader who led them to the Promised Land of Cana from the captivity and slavery of Egypt. After decades of wandering through the wilderness, Joshua the next prominent leader and head of the Israel army led the tribes into the Promised Land, driving out the Canaanites through a series of military battles. Today, there are many divisions among Judaism. It can be classified as Conservative, Orthodox, Reform and ultra Orthodox. All modern types of Judaism emerged as a response to both Enlightenment and Emancipation. There was no unanimity among these sections regarding the programs of emancipation and enlightenment. For instance, Hasidism, one branch of Judaism is more concerned with doing piety. In everything he does, a Hasid tries to find joy in God. Baal Shem Tov, founder of this movement believed that there should be joy whenever one worships. Orthodox Jews, another denomination share many common beliefs and practices with the Hasidim. They hold the law in high consideration. They view the written and oral law as a binding. They believe that any problem they face can be solved in the teaching of the law. There is a strong emphasis on religious training for the children and they strictly follow the Sabbath. And, like the Hasidim, the Orthodox looks for a powerful, personal Messiah who will come to correct the wrongs that have been perpetrated throughout the human history. Meanwhile, the Conservative Jews think in a way similar to Reform Jews. But they have a strong desire to preserve their Jewishness in worship as well as in family life. In every aspect of the Jewish life, the Conservative Jews compromise between the Orthodox and Reform traditions. He worships in a Conservative synagogue the services of which are conducted half in Hebrew and half in colloquial language. Conclusion In brief, Jews constitute one of the ancient religions of the world. No matter where they live, they have an intrinsic feeling in them that unite them despite all ideological divisions. Though the Jews in New York were aliens their perseverance and ability to accommodate changes made them equal to the Native Americans in all regards. They perceived America as their mother land and donated wholeheartedly to its overall growth. The Jewish role in the current day American culture also cannot be undermined, for the presence of a Jew is visible in almost every area of social concern. Works Cited Adler and Huhner. RECIFE. Jewish Encyclopedia. Web 23 Nov 2011 http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12617-recife-pernambuco “The Jews of New York”. Mount Sinai Hospital. (2008). Web. 23 November 2011. Robinson, B. A. “Description of Judaism: Jewish History and Texts.” Religious Tolerance.org. (11 January 2011). Web. 23 November 2011. Raphael, Marc Lee. The Colombia History of Jews & Judaism in America. New York: Columbia University Press, 2008. Print. Read More