East Bay Jewish Community Study - Jewish Federation of the ...

More than half of the unaffiliated do not have a strong sense of belonging to the Jewish faith,
and a slight plurality do not identify with one of the main denominations of Judaism. Most of
those who do affiliate, though, say that they are Reform.
Figure 88: Denomination Among Unaffiliated Jews
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Referring to Jewish religious denominations, do you consider yourself to be Reform, Conservative, Orthodox,
Reconstructionist, or something else (Percent of unaffiliated)
30
25
23
20
20
18
15
10
5
10
8
6
5
3
2
0
Reform Nothing Conservative
Non
practicing
Cultural Jew
Athiest/
agnostic
Catholic Other Don't know
Jewish family life is also not a likely entry in to the Jewish community for the unaffiliated;
marrying Jewish is an extremely low priority. A slight plurality (42 percent) grew up in homes
with only one Jewish parent, and an overwhelming majority is repeating that pattern as adults —
85 percent report that they are in an interfaith marriage.
The percentage of children under the age of 18 is slightly lower among the unaffiliated, with 70
percent reporting that they do not have children in this age group. Among the 30 percent who
do have young children, 45 percent have children under five years old, and 34 percent have
children six to ten years old. None report that they are already providing a Jewish education for
their kids, and, unsurprisingly, a strong majority is not at all interested in providing such
education. Slightly fewer than 20 percent say that financial concerns have prevented them from
enrolling their children in a Jewish education.
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