Don't Miss ur September Re lating Sale We Also Repair, Fix, Mend & Restore: Crystal • China • Porcelain Ceramics • Most Metals 25% OFF Outreach ... Is it good for Judaism? Ann Arbor or years, many people have felt that children brought up in interfaith homes feel little connection with Judaism. A recent study conducted by the Jewish Outreach Institute, however, has inject- ed great doubt in that notion. The survey focused on 90 detailed interviews with adult children of interfaith cou- ples. It found that nearly 70 percent JIM KEEN of them felt that Columnist • being Jewish was somewhat" or "very very • important to them. While only 30 percent of the respondents considered themselves religiously Jewish, the overwhelming majority identified with Jewish culture and causes. Think how much higher that 30 percent would be with more outreach programs to encourage Jewish choices. I recently asked our rabbi, Bob Levy of Temple Beth Emeth in Ann Arbor, what a study like this means. "The problem with surveys like this is that the interviewees are a genera- tion removed," he said. Well, that couldn't be good I thought. But, he continued: "Think of the progress in outreach we've made in those 25 years since these adult chil- dren were born. Think about how your children would respond if asked in the future." He's right. I am Protestant; my wife is Jewish. Back in the early 1990s, when we decided to raise our children exclusively as Jews, there were fewer outreach programs than there are now We were lucky to find our way. For r HOUSE OF RENEW CUSTOM REPAIR In Business Since 1976 (248) 642-0363 251 Merrill 2nd Level Birmingham Closed Mondays • Free Estimates " A school for kids who learn differently. 1755 Melton, Birmingham, MI 48009 248.642.1150 www.etonacademy.org • September 13, 2005 Open House 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Open To The Public! • Meet counselors and recruiters from colleges and universities with special resources for students who learn differently. JN 9/ 1 2005 22 • November 6, 2005 Open House 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. Open To The Public! • Learn more about our mission, tour the school, and meet faculty, students, and parents of Eton Academy. 1014940 those interfaith couples married a decade before, the lack of acceptance must have made their choices even more difficult. My wife and I have been able to give our children a con- sistent Jewish message. I have a sneak- ing suspicion how they would respond. 'Another potential problem in a sur- vey like this," Rabbi Levy continued, "is the question of religious identity and the people interviewed. Some never feel close to their Judaism any- way. They marry a Jew or non-Jew, have kids and never go near religion again. These people would have answered the same way. It's like asking someone who doesn't enjoy football, `who will win the Super Bowl?'" In other words, the important part of the study is the high number of respondents who feel a connection to Judaism, and how the Jewish commu- nity can give them the vehicle in which to express it. Jewish Survival I wondered why so many of these adults feel that their Jewishness is important? Is it cultural pride? Is it like me dressing in a kilt and going to the Detroit Highland Games? Maybe. Rabbi Levy believes it has to do more with a desire to pass it on. In fact, the study also showed that an even higher number, 78 percent, wanted to "transmit" their Jewish identity to their children. So what is it that the Jewish com- munity is looking for from interfaith families? What is Jewish enough? Is it enough to simply feel Jewish? If so, then that's been achieved. Or is it that these adult children should go to temple? If that's the case, then I'm more Jewish than some of my friends who grew up in a family with two Jewish parents.