I grew up very Reform and I can literally count on one hand the amount of times Israel was mentioned or talked about. We barely even talked about what is actually in the Torah. I became very angry when I began to dig into our history. I felt betrayed by my parents, my temple, and my friends. It is shocking how little Jews in the diaspora actually learn about our history and it is shocking how little the parents care.
When I learned the full Hanukkah story, it made total sense that 30% of Jews fought against both King Antiochus and his army and the 70% of Jews who were Hellenized and wanted to assimilate. And of course, many Jews became Nazis by choice in the 1930s and 40s and it's happening again. So shameful that we keep falling for the same things over and over and over again.
Maybe Hebrew school was long and boring in the 1970s but I think many GenX and Boomer parents took for granted the values and history they learned. They wanted to spare their children the boredom and difficulty of feeling different, but Jewish values and history don't just happen and now everyone is acting shocked that kids have no connection to Judaism and Israel.
I must be around the same age as you, because my Jewish education gave me all of the pieces you were discouraged from teaching or didn’t have time for, even in a Reform synagogue. I also went to Israel for three months with the other Sunday school graduates in the entire Bay Area. My family was Jewish and so were almost all of our friends.
I think your theory is spot on. In the “before times”, a lackluster Jewish education might have sufficed.
But, for the last 20 years or so, Jewish kids have also been exposed to “Palestine” and subtly or not subtly shamed for Jewishness, connection to Israel, and whiteness (where applicable) where applicable. They are shamed to be “oppressors of brown people” and they don’t want others to be disgusted with them.
Without the solid Jewish education and identity in place to inoculate them, they adopt the antizionist identity that allows them to belong.
If you’ve heard of a film, Israelism, made by a Jewish woman, it’s the embodiment of that shame. A jewish woman who is literally disgusted with our connection to Israel and who thinks that breaking it off will fix everything.
Diabolical indoctrination of children by teachers indoctrinated themselves.
Spot on, and yes, we have so much stacked against us. Thank you as always for reading and your comments. I think its great you went to Israel for three months with your Reform Temple. I object to comments that Reform Judaism is the ruination of Judaism and connection to Israel. The Reform and Conservative movement do offer Israel education and connections, it is up to the younger generations to take it up and begin to affiliate again.
I checked the website of my family’s synagogue the other day to make sure they weren’t pushing hatred of Israel or shame. Or Tikkun Olam. They’re still good😊 and appear to be thriving - 😃.
I remember having these conversations when you and I were both teaching kids in our respective faith traditions. I was as frustrated as you, but it was not until I read this that I realized the problem wasn't just the minimal engagement, but that ignorance leaves a void that can be filled with malice, hatred and lies. Thank you (I think).
I still rank my Sunday school teaching to be among my great failures.
1. yer right--100%--an' I'm the first ta admit I unintentionally gypped mah own daughters of the "proper" jooish education they deserved--my own "Sundae Skool" eggsperience was so boring, so gawd-awful... that I didn't want ta have my kiddos suffer for hours as I had... of COURSE now as an adult I know it didn't have ta be that way--lackluster teachers, near-zilch history, hebrew sans phonics (hence all vergotten)--whatta mess. The ONLY good stuff wuz the music (we hadda fun cantor) & doin' the plays (purim spiel, etc)... Jewish summer camp was a blast...but not instructional...
So my girls got every holiday celebration, went ta every "show" at Jooish Museum, Yeshiva U, Yiddish Fiddler, sawr a lotta klezmer, an' only "sumtimes" temple (Emanu-El on Park as non-members) when there was a fun concert or event... an' got what I'd call a half-baked chewish education WHICH I'm now regrettin'...a lot too late (my youngest is already 17 an' ta my full chagrin won't even "identify" as jooish...) My heart breaks from this... I'm thinkin' of going to the local Chabad (my kiddos want nuthin' ta do with it) THANKFULLY neither are "woke" an' though less "rah rah" 'bout Israel--at least none have sided with anti-zionists either... (silver lining...) Can this be fixed? dunno...
2. As a mama that homeskooled both mah goils in NYC... I will say that the drudgery of daily or thrice weekly "Hebrew Skool" is not needed.... 5 weekly hours of Sunday School or similar could do wonders cuz I've figgered out it's about HOW ya teach an' USE the precious time ya got makes all the diff....
"Skools" waste time like cwazy an' most of those long dayz include a lotta wasted time--such that homewerk-filled nights are designed ta make up fer the LACK of daytime edge-u-cayshun... (shameful too!) Since my girls had music lessons (& practice), art classes, one a performer (so rehearsals, drama, etc) an' both had dance--our late afternoons & evenin's were spoken for so mornings (3-4 hours daily) got in ALL + MORE than "conventional" skools do. I believe this can be the way forward fer jewish education for our kids -- not takin' a cue from public skools but from homeskoolin' usin' yer time WELL! As homeskoolers were were at moo-see-yums all the time, concerts (includin' jewish music!), etc... That too should be part've a jooish education!
(I say this b/c usin' our time efficiently our younger girl skipped one year of high school BUT arrived at college with 2 years worth of college credits from "college now" classes! An' oddly her public schooled friends never found time in the day ta do much beyond "skool"....)
Sorry this is a mite long but it strikes a loud note with me--an' again, I feel that in tryin' ta avoid the "mess" that consty-tooted mah own jooish education I did short-change my kids..
post script: in senior yr of high school I took mah first jewish lit class taught by a catholic teacher--an' I was HOOKED! Prior ta that I had no clue 'bout jooish lit--wish that intro had happened YEARS before (like 6 years prior!)... what we dunno will "hoit" us... happenin' now ;-(
I grew up very Reform and I can literally count on one hand the amount of times Israel was mentioned or talked about. We barely even talked about what is actually in the Torah. I became very angry when I began to dig into our history. I felt betrayed by my parents, my temple, and my friends. It is shocking how little Jews in the diaspora actually learn about our history and it is shocking how little the parents care.
When I learned the full Hanukkah story, it made total sense that 30% of Jews fought against both King Antiochus and his army and the 70% of Jews who were Hellenized and wanted to assimilate. And of course, many Jews became Nazis by choice in the 1930s and 40s and it's happening again. So shameful that we keep falling for the same things over and over and over again.
Maybe Hebrew school was long and boring in the 1970s but I think many GenX and Boomer parents took for granted the values and history they learned. They wanted to spare their children the boredom and difficulty of feeling different, but Jewish values and history don't just happen and now everyone is acting shocked that kids have no connection to Judaism and Israel.
I must be around the same age as you, because my Jewish education gave me all of the pieces you were discouraged from teaching or didn’t have time for, even in a Reform synagogue. I also went to Israel for three months with the other Sunday school graduates in the entire Bay Area. My family was Jewish and so were almost all of our friends.
I think your theory is spot on. In the “before times”, a lackluster Jewish education might have sufficed.
But, for the last 20 years or so, Jewish kids have also been exposed to “Palestine” and subtly or not subtly shamed for Jewishness, connection to Israel, and whiteness (where applicable) where applicable. They are shamed to be “oppressors of brown people” and they don’t want others to be disgusted with them.
Without the solid Jewish education and identity in place to inoculate them, they adopt the antizionist identity that allows them to belong.
If you’ve heard of a film, Israelism, made by a Jewish woman, it’s the embodiment of that shame. A jewish woman who is literally disgusted with our connection to Israel and who thinks that breaking it off will fix everything.
Diabolical indoctrination of children by teachers indoctrinated themselves.
And then there’s the TikTok lies.
Spot on, and yes, we have so much stacked against us. Thank you as always for reading and your comments. I think its great you went to Israel for three months with your Reform Temple. I object to comments that Reform Judaism is the ruination of Judaism and connection to Israel. The Reform and Conservative movement do offer Israel education and connections, it is up to the younger generations to take it up and begin to affiliate again.
I checked the website of my family’s synagogue the other day to make sure they weren’t pushing hatred of Israel or shame. Or Tikkun Olam. They’re still good😊 and appear to be thriving - 😃.
I remember having these conversations when you and I were both teaching kids in our respective faith traditions. I was as frustrated as you, but it was not until I read this that I realized the problem wasn't just the minimal engagement, but that ignorance leaves a void that can be filled with malice, hatred and lies. Thank you (I think).
I still rank my Sunday school teaching to be among my great failures.
I taught Hebrew school at a local synagogue and I very much got the message that being too proud of Israel is a serious problem.
1. yer right--100%--an' I'm the first ta admit I unintentionally gypped mah own daughters of the "proper" jooish education they deserved--my own "Sundae Skool" eggsperience was so boring, so gawd-awful... that I didn't want ta have my kiddos suffer for hours as I had... of COURSE now as an adult I know it didn't have ta be that way--lackluster teachers, near-zilch history, hebrew sans phonics (hence all vergotten)--whatta mess. The ONLY good stuff wuz the music (we hadda fun cantor) & doin' the plays (purim spiel, etc)... Jewish summer camp was a blast...but not instructional...
So my girls got every holiday celebration, went ta every "show" at Jooish Museum, Yeshiva U, Yiddish Fiddler, sawr a lotta klezmer, an' only "sumtimes" temple (Emanu-El on Park as non-members) when there was a fun concert or event... an' got what I'd call a half-baked chewish education WHICH I'm now regrettin'...a lot too late (my youngest is already 17 an' ta my full chagrin won't even "identify" as jooish...) My heart breaks from this... I'm thinkin' of going to the local Chabad (my kiddos want nuthin' ta do with it) THANKFULLY neither are "woke" an' though less "rah rah" 'bout Israel--at least none have sided with anti-zionists either... (silver lining...) Can this be fixed? dunno...
2. As a mama that homeskooled both mah goils in NYC... I will say that the drudgery of daily or thrice weekly "Hebrew Skool" is not needed.... 5 weekly hours of Sunday School or similar could do wonders cuz I've figgered out it's about HOW ya teach an' USE the precious time ya got makes all the diff....
"Skools" waste time like cwazy an' most of those long dayz include a lotta wasted time--such that homewerk-filled nights are designed ta make up fer the LACK of daytime edge-u-cayshun... (shameful too!) Since my girls had music lessons (& practice), art classes, one a performer (so rehearsals, drama, etc) an' both had dance--our late afternoons & evenin's were spoken for so mornings (3-4 hours daily) got in ALL + MORE than "conventional" skools do. I believe this can be the way forward fer jewish education for our kids -- not takin' a cue from public skools but from homeskoolin' usin' yer time WELL! As homeskoolers were were at moo-see-yums all the time, concerts (includin' jewish music!), etc... That too should be part've a jooish education!
(I say this b/c usin' our time efficiently our younger girl skipped one year of high school BUT arrived at college with 2 years worth of college credits from "college now" classes! An' oddly her public schooled friends never found time in the day ta do much beyond "skool"....)
Sorry this is a mite long but it strikes a loud note with me--an' again, I feel that in tryin' ta avoid the "mess" that consty-tooted mah own jooish education I did short-change my kids..
post script: in senior yr of high school I took mah first jewish lit class taught by a catholic teacher--an' I was HOOKED! Prior ta that I had no clue 'bout jooish lit--wish that intro had happened YEARS before (like 6 years prior!)... what we dunno will "hoit" us... happenin' now ;-(