Younger Jewish leaders not so worried about intermarriage

Jewish leaders younger than 40 aren’t as bent out of shape about intermarriage as their older colleagues.

That’s a not-very-surprising finding of "Generation of Change: How Leaders in their Twenties and Thirties are Reshaping American Jewish Life," anew survey of young leaders of Jewish organizations  commissioned by the Avi Chai Foundation.

Those younger Jews in leadership positions, both in "establishment" groups like the ADL and American Jewish Committee as well as "nonestablishment" groups such as Hazon and the independent minyan movement, come across as passionate about building Jewish identity, concerned about social justice and creating meaningful entryways to Jewish expression, and willing to commit their professional lives to making it happen.

In keeping with the millennial generation’s non-exclusivist ideology, these younger Jewish leaders don’t see intermarriage in quite the same light as Jewish leaders over 40 do:

Older establishment leaders tend to view intermarriage as a threat to Jewish life and as a violation of long-standing communal norms. During interviews, younger nonestablishment leaders described intermarriage as an obstacle to Jewish participation, but felt it could be overcome with genuine commitment and involvement. Moreover, they tended to believe that the Jewish community is unwise or not entitled to take a stance on personal choices such as marriage.

Citing her own "personal obsession with intermarriage," Jewish Week writer Julie Wiener discussed the findings in her In the Mix blog:

Thirty-nine percent of young leaders, compared to 45 percent of older leaders disagree/disagree strongly with the following statement: "Jews should marry whomever they fall in love with, even if not Jewish." (Which, I assume, means that 60 percent of young leaders and 55 percent of old-timers agree with the statement or have no opinion?)

Only 36 percent of little pishers (my terminology, not Jack’s), compared to 44 percent of alter kockers (again, my language) agree with this statement: "It is important to encourage Jews to marry Jews." (I assume this means that 64 percent disagree with that statement.)

 If Wiener’s weary of distinguishing between establishment and non-establishment Jewish groups, I wonder how long an organization merits the title "new." Hazon has been around for 10 years, as has IKAR and the indie minyan movement. When does one join the ranks of the established, at least linguistically?

For more on the study, check out The Fundermentalist: http://blogs.jta.org/philanthropy/article/2010/10/12/2741180/newsletter-mental-notes5