How to engage the pivotal demographic of American Jewish singles

The Cohen-Kelman kosher studies factory (Professors Steven M. Cohen and Ari Y. Kelman) has put out yet another illuminating report on the state of American Judaism. The topic this time might not be as controversial as intermarriage, but is clearly a hot topic many Jewish professionals have been struggling with: what to do with Jewish singles?

As I often do, let me first give you some of the headlines, and then dive into the numbers I found interesting.

1.

In 1990, merely 33 percent of non-Orthodox Jews aged 25-39 were single. By 2000-01, the number had grown to 50 percent. A "disturbing Phenomenon" the study calls it. Far fewer young adults have had children, and when they do have children, they have them later in life. "Like their married counterparts, single Jews share similar interests in connecting Jewishly, but they shy away from available Jewish institutions in part because congregations, JCCs (Jewish Community Ceners) and federations remain geared to the conventional family unit".

Hence: the "problem."

2.

Single, none-Orthodox Jews, "are the most pivotal demographic for the future of Judaism in the United States", the press release says. Using the kind of catch phrase necessary to spark attention, Cohen calls this group "the 'swing vote' for Judaism in America."

And this swing vote is supportive of the agenda, but not actively involved with the campaign. Bad news? Not really. "Lack of visible involvement in Jewish life by single young adults ought not to be construed as distancing from being Jewish. Their relatively low levels of measurable Jewish behavior have more to do with the available options for expressing engagement than with the putative [reputed] absence of interest in things Jewish".

Hence, the "solution": find ways to make them more involved.

3.

Some numbers:

The singles are proud to be Jewish (67% strongly), have many Jewish friends, want to be more engaged, read more Jewish blogs. But - they practice religion is lesser numbers than the in-married Jewish couples (48% attend High Holyday services, 64% for in-married none-Orthodox couples), and their attachment to Jewish institutions is even lower: only a third are "somewhat attached" to synagogues, only 19% are members of a synagogue (compared to 50% of in-married couples), around 10% feel attached to a JCC, and less than 10% to the Jewish Federation.

4.

My special interest in Israel/Diaspora relations led me to a careful study of the Israel chapter in this study. To be honest, I'm not yet sure if I understand what it means.

Jewish singles see themselves almost as attached to Israel as the in-married couples, they care for Israel in similar numbers, and they are proud of Israel in even higher numbers. How can that be with all the recent findings proving that young American Jews are becoming more detached from Israel?

This study concludes that the reason is intermarriage (mark my words, this will not be the final word on this topic): "It seems that the overall decline in attachment to Israel is due largely to the increasing number of intermarried Jews and their feelings of detachment from Israel".

5.

How can one solve this problem of proud Jewish singles who do not engage Jewishly?

Some of the answers are in the numbers. The singles want to engage, want to learn, talk to their friends about Jewish issues and about Israel. They have a relatively high number of Jewish friends, and even though half of them will eventually marry a non-Jew, the singles attend events for Jewish singles in significant numbers (around 40%). All these point to "the importance of Jewish social networks to this population".

But here are the bad news: singles will not come to synagogues and JCC's even if those were trying harder to have special events for the singles. The reputation they have ? family-oriented institutions - will make it harder for them to compete. The study recommends "seeding, nurture and development of organizations that are created by and for this younger demographic."