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Jewish outreach works, says study,
but some question survey's methods.
and get
JULIE WIENER
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
New York
0
utreach efforts to intermar-
ried Jews increase Jewish
involvement and synagogue
affiliation rates, say spon-
sors of the most comprehensive evalu-
ation yet of such attempts.
But some skeptics of outreach to
intermarried Jews say the study sets
too low of a bar in the way it meas-
ures Jewish involvement.
The disagreement over the study
reflects a broader debate over the effi-
cacy and goals of Jewish outreach.
The new study by the Jewish
Outreach Institute (JOI) looks at 735
participants in 11 outreach programs
throughout North America, ranging
from groups for intermarried families
with small children to a series of
Jewish holiday activities in shopping
malls.
In addition to concluding that out-
reach programs increase participants'
involvement in Jewish life, the study
reports that outreach projects open to
all Jews, whether intermarried or not
--- such as the shopping mall celebra-
tions — tend to be more effective
than ones limited to intermarried
families.
The study a'so found that syna-
gogue-based programs are less likely
than other venues to attract families
with little involvement in Jewish life,
and that the lower the participants'
previous engagement in Jewish life,
the greater the increase in interest
they reported.
"This research study makes a com-
pelling case for 'outreach' — the wel-
coming of intermarried families and
uninvolved Jews into the community
— as the best way to ensure Jewish
continuity in the face of widespread
intermarriage and assimilation," the
study's executive summary says.
"Outreach is doable and has an
impact," said Egon Mayer, founding
director of the institute and one of
the study's authors.
Among the many positive responses
the study quotes is a Toronto woman
who said her program, based in the
Jewish community center, made
Jewish education and customs mean-
ingful for her children.
"For the first time, they 'feel'
Jewish,''' she said.
Assessing Results
Among the study's findings:
• The percentage of intermarried
respondents reporting they are mod-
erately involved in Jewish life rose
from 30 percent prior to program
contact to 47 percent afterward.
• Thirty-five percent of interfaith
families said the program had "some
impact" on their Jewish home life,
and 19 percent reported it had "con-
siderable impact."
• Thirty-five percent of interfaith
families who had not previously
belonged to a synagogue joined one
after participating in the outreach
program, and another 25 percent said
they were considering synagogue
membership.
• After the program, 60 percent
reported sometimes going to syna-
gogue services, compared with 33
percent who said they did so before.
Participation at Shabbat dinners
increased to 65 percent from 35 per-
cent; participation in "Jewish cultural
activities" increased to 51 percent
from 32 percent.
The study is based on mail-in sur-
veys completed in 2000 by partici-
pants in programs that took place in
1998 and 1999. The programs were
funded, in part, by the institute.
Reaction to the study has varied so
far, reflecting differing views in the
American Jewish community on what
the goals of Jewish outreach should
be.
For some communal leaders, Jewish
outreach is successful if it encourages
interfaith families to incorporate
some Jewish activities into their lives.
In that camp is Ed Case, publisher
of Interfaithfamily.com , a Web maga-
zine for intermarried families, who
described JOI's findings as "very good
news."
"We need to get the word out to
more" intermarried families "that
these programs exist and that the
SURVEY on page 22
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