Last Friday, our group concluded its review of Noah Feldman’s rejection of certain secular claims offered to explain why Jews sometimes think of themselves as “The Chosen” (Part 3, Chapter 2 of To Be A Jew Today). To those who attribute Jewish chosenness to something in our DNA, Feldman says there is no empirical evidence that genetics can explain Jewish accomplishment. To those who assert that Jewish chosenness might be accounted for due to an abundance of Jewish Geniuses (measured, for example, by the number of Jews who have been awarded Nobel Prizes– roughly 22% of all recipients despite making up only about 0.2% of the global population), Feldman argues that “these outsize accomplishments are time-bound and contingent.” Feldman notes that “Jewish dominance is declining in a variety of environments (e.g., admissions to top universities for Jews). He posits that there is evidence that the “drive to succeed” that motivated first generation Jewish immigrants diminishes with each succeeding generation.
Feldman observes that any presumption of Jews as being exemplars of capitalist success (they account for 18% of U.S. billionaires) can be countered with factual data on Jewish fraudsters (Bernie Madoff/ Sam Bankman-Fried) or statistics on Jewish poverty (16-20% of Jews report annual incomes of less than $30K). Similarly, he notes that any presumption of Jews as being models of menschlikeit (people you can rely on to do the right thing) can be countered with factual data on cases of Jewish domestic abuse (15-25% of families–consistent with the national average). He warns about the danger of using positive stereotypes to advance notions of Jewish superiority, noting that “the tendency to seek after Jewish uniqueness as a secularized form of chosenness leads to extremely suspect generalizations.”
Our group then moved on to Feldman’s discussion of marriage between Jews and non-Jews–a hot button issue that many of us acknowledged was a central concern of our families and congregations when we were growing up. Even among non-observant Jewish families, opposition to intermarriage was, as Feldman describes it, “a learned, conditioned response that functioned as powerfully as instinct.” We acknowledged, however, that times have changed significantly in many Jewish communities wherein intermarriage is no longer treated as the taboo that it once was. As Feldman notes, any religion that rejects inter-faith marriages will now find itself opposed to the widely held beliefs of its constituents. While Orthodox Jews still tend to treat anyone who marries a non-Jew as having removed himself/herself from the community, other denominations are more liberal–although even at the end of the 20th century, many rabbis would not sanction nor officiate at interfaith-faith marriages. Feldman explains that arguments against intermarriage were intended to keep as many Jews as possible affiliated with the Jewish religion. Such arguments were predicated upon the idea that marrying outside of one’s faith would threaten Jewish continuity and survival. Our discussion of these issues–and how they may foster undesirable “us” vs. “them” attitudes will continue this week.
This Friday, we expect to finish our exploration of To Be A Jew Today by discussing Feldman’s views on the effects of tribalism, totems, and taboos in his chapter entitled “The Marriage Plot.” We will then discuss Feldman’s short chapter, “Struggling together with God,” and his Conclusion, “A Jew for All That” (pp. 343-357).
Our informal discussion group, which is currently in its 26th year, meets via Zoom every Friday from 12-1 (check CBI’s web site or weekly announcements for updates and a link). All are welcome to attend. If you have questions, contact Jay Jacoby atjbjacoby@charlotte.edu.
