1. Marybeth Gallivan
EDU 627
April 28, 2012

2.  “The worldwide Jewish population is 13.3
million Jews (LeElef, 2012).” “The population
of American adherents of Judaism was
estimated to be approximately 5,128,000 or
1.7% [5] of the total population in 2007 (301,
621, 0000; [6] including those who identify
themselves culturally as Jewish (but not
necessarily religiously), this population was
estimated at 6, 489,000 (2.2%) as of 2008 [7]
(Wikipedia.org, 2012).”

3.  “Jews represent a group of people rather than a
distinct race or ethnicity. Although Jews originally
came from the Middle East, many races and people
have mixed together in Jewish communities over the
centuries, especially after the Jews were forced out of
Palestine in the second century C.E. What binds the
group together is a common Jewish heritage as
passed down from generation to generation. For
many Jews, the binding force of Judaism, a term
usually referring to the Jewish religion but sometimes
used to refer to all Jews. There are, however, Jewish
atheists, and agnostics, and one does not have to be
religious to be Jewish. In general, one is Jewish if
born of a Jewish mother or if he or she converts to
Judaism (Kamp, 2012).”

4.  ” For centuries Jewish culture thrived in Palestine
until the Roman occupation beginning in 63 B.C.E For
more than 100 years Jews endured life with the
oppressive, violent Romans. By 70 C.E., when the
Romans destroyed the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem,
Jews had begun migrating to the outer regions of the
Roman Empire, including the Near East, North Africa,
and southwestern, central, and eastern Europe. In
135 C.E. the Romans officially banned Judaism, which
marked the beginning of the Diaspora, or dispersal of
Jews. Forced out of Palestine, Jews in exile
concentrated less on establishing a unified homeland
and more on maintaining Judaism through biblical
scholarship and community life (Kamp, 2012).”

5.  “The first Jewish immigrants to settle in the
United States were 23 Sephardic Jews who
arrived in New Amsterdam (later known as
New York) in 1654 ( Kamp, 2012).”
 “The largest wave of Jewish immigrants was
eastern Europeans Jews who came to America
between 1881 and 1924. During these years
one third of the Jewish population in eastern
Europe emigrated because of changing
political and economic conditions (Kamp,
2012).”

6.  “In the late nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries, tens and sometimes hundreds of
thousands of Jews arrived in America
annually. The immigration of some 2.4
million eastern European Jews boosted the
American Jewish population from roughly a
quarter million in 1881 to 4.5million by 1924
(Kamp, 2012).”

7.  The most recent Jewish immigrants to come to
America were in the 1980’s during the political
turmoil of the Soviet Union. Since then the Jewish
population has decreased. “Limits on
immigration and a Jewish birth rate of less than
two children per family- lower than the national
average-have lowered the Jewish proportion of
the American population to under three percent.
This proportion has remained relatively stable,
even as the American Jewish population
approached six million in the 1990’s (Kamp,
2012).”

8.  “Jewish Americans found it rather easy to
assimilate to American society and really wanted
to establish themselves. During the late
nineteenth century Jewish people would “combat
anti-Semitism and negative stereotypes of “dirty
Jew”, but for the most part Americans appreciate
the goods and services provided by Jewish
merchants. The religious freedom guaranteed by
the United States Constitution coupled with the
increasing prosperity of nineteenth-century
German Jews enabled Jews to enjoy considerable
acceptance in American society (Kamp, 2012).”

9.  In terms of Jewish customs and traditions
Jewish families have passed on their beliefs
and practices on through the home and
through religious schools that teach
traditions. Jewish schools have been
influential in keeping traditional beliefs and
customs central to Jewish families while
allowing Jewish children to integrate into
mainstream American culture.

10.  The most important Jewish traditions stem from
the mitzvot, which are the 613 holy obligations
found in the Torah and Talmud, consisting of
248 positive commandments and 365 negative
commandments (Kamp, 2012).” “The basic
beliefs common to all Jews, except atheists and
agnostics, were articulated by Moses Maimonides
(1135-1204) (Kamp, 2012).” The Thirteen
Principle of faith are the common beliefs and
most Jews are faithful to them and share these
beliefs.

11.  Other traditions and beliefs are structured
around food and holidays in the Jewish
tradition. There is no specific Jewish food
however the preparation and food laws are
practiced by many Jews.

12.  . “Kashrut is a system of food laws for eating kosher
food and avoiding trefa foods. Kosher foods are
simply ones that are, by law, fit for Jews; and include
fruits, vegetables, grains, meats from cud-chewing
mammals with split hooves, fish with scales and fins,
domesticated birds, and milk and eggs from kosher
mammals and birds. Kashrut also involves keeping
milk and meat separate because of the Biblical
commandment not to stew a kid in its mother’s milk,
Jewish law has interpreted this to mean that meat and
dairy products cannot be prepared together. Trefa
foods are forbidden by Jewish law, simply because of
biblical decree (Kamp, 2012).”

13.  Some of the holidays that are important to the
Jewish culture are as followed. “Rosh Hashanah,
which occurs sometime in September or October,
is a ten day period in which Jews reflect on their
lives during the previous year (Kamp, 2012).”
“Yom Kippur is a holiday at the end of Rosh
Hashanah that is the “Day of Atonement” (Kamp,
2012).” “Hanukkah is a festival in December that
is 8 days long and has become a time of family
celebration with games and presents for children
(Kamp, 2012).”

14.  One way that many Jewish families stay connected is through the
practice of keeping of Sabbath. “Observing Shabat, or day of
delight, is one of the Ten Commandments and is essentially a
matter of taking a break from work to devote on day of the week
to rest, contemplation, and family and community togetherness.
Just prior to Sabbath, which last from sunset on Friday to late
Saturday night, the family must complete al the preparations for
the day because no work is to be done once the Sabbath begins,
traditionally, the mother starts the Sabbath by lighting candles
and saying a special prayer. Afterwards, the family attends a
short service at the synagogue, then returns home for a meal
and conversation and singing. The following morning the
community gathers at the synagogue for the most important
religious service of the week. On Saturday afternoon observant
Jews will continue to refrain from work and either make social
visits or spend time in quiet reflection. A ceremony called
havdalah takes place on Saturday night, marking the end of
Sabbath and the beginning of the new week (Kamp, 2012).”

15.  “Recently the National Foundation for Jewish Genetic
Diseases published a list of the seven most common
genetic diseases suffered by Jews: Blood Syndrome:
causing shortness of height, redness in skin, and high
susceptibility of respiratory tract and ear infections.
Affected men have infertility and both sexes have a higher
risk of cancer. Familial Dysautonomia: congenital disease
affecting the nervous system. Gaucher Disease:
characterized by easy bruising, orthopedic problems, and
anemia. Niemann-Pick Disease: Fatal disease that
characterized by the build up of fatty material in the
central nervous system. Torsion Dystonis: a disease
causing loss of motor control couple with normal to
superior intelligence affecting children between the ages
of 4-16 (Kamp, 2012).”

16.  “Economically Jews have always had a high
level of economic earning and used their
business sense and work ethic to prosper in
the American economical society. Many
Jewish people have profited from jobs and
businesses in “investment banking, the
garment industry, shoe manufacturing, and
the meat processing industry (Kamp, 2012).”

17.  “With unprecedented access to education and
advancement in American society, younger
Jews entered college and embarked upon
successful professional careers at about twice
the rate of preceding generations. Rather
than gravitating towards the clothing
industry, as many of their parents and
grandparents had done, postwar Jews turned
to a range of fields, including management,
communications, real estate, entertainment,
and academia (Kamp, 2012).”

18.  “Since the first Jews arrived in Colonial America,
Jews have enjoyed a high degree of political
freedom and have taken an active role in politics
and government (Kamp, 2012).” When the First
Amendment was passed in 1789, guaranteeing
religious freedom Jews became more involved in
politics. It is known that the majority of Jews are
part of the Democratic Party a large number of
Jews have begun to favor pragmatism and
conservatism. As of now the only political office
not held by a Jew is that of American President.

19.  I
 Media: Commentary, An organ of the American Jewish Committee Jewish magazine. info@ajc.org
 Jewish Press, National weekly newspaper covering issues and events of Jewish life. jpeditor@aol.com
 Radio:
 KCSN-FM (88.5) www.kcns.org

 WMUA-FM (91.1) wmua@stuaf.umas.edu
 Television:
 Israel Broadcasting Authority- Washington D. C
 Israel Broadcasting Authority Radio and Television- New York City
 Organizations:
 American Jewish Committee (AJC) www.ajc.org
 92nd Street Young Men’s and Young Women’s Hebrew Association (YM-YWHA) www.92ndsty.org
 Museums and Research Centers
 American Jewish Historical Society ajhs@tiac.net
 U.S. Holocaust Museum www.ushmm.org
 The Jewish Museum www.jewishmuseum.org
 Leo Baeck Institute www.users.interporl.net/~lbi1


 Bibliography
 Kamp, J. (2012). Jewish Americans. Retrieved from www.everydaycultur.com/multi/Ha-La/Jewish-
Americans.html
 LeElef, N. (2012). World Jewish Population. Retrieved from www.simpletoremember.com/vitals/world-
jewish-population.html
 Wikipedia. (2012). American Jews. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Jews

20.  Kamp, J. (2012). Jewish Americans. Retrieved
from www.everydaycultur.com/multi/Ha-
La/Jewish-Americans.html
 LeElef, N. (2012). World Jewish Population.
Retrieved from
www.simpletoremember.com/vitals/world-
jewish-population.html
 Wikipedia. (2012). American Jews. Retrieved
from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Jews
