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

Although ―Jew-ish‖ residents, by definition, are not dues paying members of a synagogue, 48
percent were at some point. Unsurprisingly, 78 percent report attending services only several
times a year or hardly ever, most likely on the Jewish Holidays or other rites of passage. Less
than one-quarter are members of other Jewish organizations.
Most ―Jew-ish‖ residents consume news about Israel weekly or monthly (81 percent), though
fewer say that supporting Israel is a very important aspect of Judaism (57 percent). Very few (9
percent) attend East Bay Jewish events weekly or monthly, although when the time frame is
expanded to include annually, the number increases to 53 percent.
Figure 84: Participation among “Jew-ish” Residents
100
90
80
70
For each of the following actions, please tell me how often you do each one - at least once a week, once or twice a month, a
couple times a year, hardly ever, or never (Percent of ‘Jew-ish’ who say ‘weekly/monthly’ or ‘weekly/monthly/annually’)
81
91
Weekly/Monthly
Weekly/Monthly/Annually
60
50
40
30
30
45
37
53
29
20
10
11 9 9
0
Read news about
Israel
Read Jewish
publication
Volunteer
Attend East Bay
Jewish events
Attend spiritual
events
Although the connotation of "Jew-ish‖ might be young and single, the reality is quite a bit
different. A plurality is between the ages of 50 and 64, and 57 percent are married. Almost twothirds
grew up in homes with two Jewish parents, and 55 percent are repeating that pattern as
adults. Among the 44 percent who are in interfaith relationships, a plurality are married to
Catholics, and well over 70 percent report that their non-Jewish spouse always or sometimes
participates in Jewish life.
One-quarter of the ―Jew-ish‖ have adult children and a surprising number of those children are
still living at home (42 percent). Of the 27 percent with children under 18, 57 percent have
children younger than age five. More than half say that providing a Jewish education for their
children is a very important aspect of Judaism, and many are putting their money where their
mouth is. Forty percent are already providing a Jewish education for their children, and 30
percent do not currently have their children enrolled in a formal Jewish education program but
are very interested in doing so.
89