LITR 5831 World / Multicultural Literature: American Immigrant Model Assignments  2016  model research post 2 (assignment)

Umaymah Shahid

13 July 2016

Jewish Immigration and Americanization

In my previous research post I explored the difference between culture and religion in order to differentiate between cultural assimilation and religious assimilation in the United States. Looking at Hector St. Jean de Crevecoeur’s statement in his Letters from an American Farmer, “He is an American, who leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds” (3.6). Thus to be an American, as I have already established, one has to leave behind his past, including his culture and religion, to adopt the culture and religion of the new America, which was predominantly white and Protestant. From my previous research I had hypothesized that while one can be culturally American, if externally they do not look like the dominant culture (i.e. dress or language) they are not considered wholly American. To prove this hypothesis I look into the Jewish community that first began to settle in America in large numbers during the third wave of immigration starting between 1890-1960s. By tracing four generations of various Jewish communities I am able to observe what steps the religious body and Jewish community took to assimilate and be accepted as true Americans. To do so, according to young rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, “meant modernizing the synagogue, abandoning the life of the itinerant peddler, rejecting foreign languages and customs, and participating fully in the country’s political life” (75). To confront the tide of Anti-Semitism, the Jewish communities took to becoming more American, both outwardly and religiously, to feel more welcomed as citizens of the United States. Through four generations, Jewish immigrants experienced change within their communities as they went from Old World Jews who both outwardly and inwardly practiced their religion to American Jews practicing only within the private confines of their homes.

For centuries Jews were known as a people without a land and were persecuted in many of the areas they settled in, and as Jews were immigrating to the United States from Europe a rise in Anti-Semitism began to occur within the States, which was combated by the Jews through education. Jews were conspicuous to the public because the women wore wigs and handkerchiefs to cover their hair and men had long beards, side locks, skullcaps, and sometimes a hat. Language was also an apparent barrier since a majority of them had immigrated from European Jewish communities and spoke only Yiddish. Thus, “immigrant Jews,” according to Peter Adams, “stood out in their dress, speech, and occupations, all of which differed markedly from those of their Christian neighbors” (75). As long “as Jews remained a community apart and foreign in every aspect,” Simon Wolf, a prominent Jewish leader, believed, “they would be subject to the prejudices of a few conniving politicians” (75). Thus value was put on adopting the English language and “on educational attainment” in order to become American (Goldscheider 213). Calvin Goldscheider explains that gaining education had different meanings and costs for the first couple of generations of Jewish immigrants than the last couple. In the past, Goldscheider points out, education directly resulted in a decline of Jewishness because Jews would be exposed to secular and Christian values, meet non-Jews, and assimilate to American values. Although education led to social mobility through better jobs, which meant better pay, education was also seen to be a means “or escape from the association of foreignness with a foreign language, a foreign culture, and foreign parents” (215). In the past it was believed by the Jews that education could not be attained as a practicing Jew. Thus, education became the means to becoming American but at the cost of losing one’s community and distinctiveness.

Along with the need to take on the English language to assimilate to the dominant culture, Reform Jews found it necessary to reform the synagogue to reflect more Protestant Christian church practices. During the Depression the Jewish community saw a decline in synagogue attendance as well as a detachment of the second and third generations from the Jewish faith due to the spreading of communities outside of Jewish strongholds. Thus the Jews began to assimilate to the practices of the Protestant Church. Isaac Mayer Wise first suggested opening synagogues to non-Jews by having services in English. His belief was that the German language of the Jews detached them from the American people (Adams 77). Despite the conflict over replacing German and Hebrew with English, many Jews knew that by mastering English, one could become a successful American. When it came to modernizing the temple, Reform and Orthodox Jews conflicted because Orthodox Jews wanted to maintain traditions while Reform Jews sought to Americanize Judaism by conducting their services like American Protestant Churches instead of in accordance to European Jewish tradition (78). Influenced by “the organs and choirs of the Protestant churches,” the Reformers introduced music into the synagogue to help “create a more Americanized service” (Adam 112). Opponents to music argued that music was not a Jewish tradition and so Jews were bringing Christian innovation into the synagogues. However, synagogues continued to Reform to more American standards by slowly conforming to “worshipping without head coverings or prayer shawls as well as mixed seating of men and women” throughout Reform congregations (Adam 114). Isaac Wise was the leading reformer of the more American Judaism and he believed that “Reform Judaism was consistent with the American experience and would gain greater respect from the Protestant majority for its rationalism” (115). Not only would the religion be more American, but it would also cater to the “younger and better-educated” Jews who were assimilating into the American culture. Yet, while Reform Judaism became a denomination that was more American, many Orthodox and Traditionalist Jews felt that such rapid and dramatic changes to the Jewish faith would render the “true undiluted faith” lost, and that so much innovation and watering down of Judaism would cause American Jews to lose touch with ancient traditions, causing, as Rabbi Leeser claimed, “indifference, irreligion, and finally atheism” (113). In other words, reforming the Jewish religion to American traditions created a conflict between being a practicing Jew and being American.

With each generation non-Orthodox Judaism experienced the revisiting of the identity crisis of being an American Jew. The second generation of Jews used political power to influence their position in America. Pointing to America’s principles of religious freedom and its celebration of ethnic and cultural pluralism the Jews argued politically and socially to attain the “same status and importance as Protestants and Catholics” (Eisen 233). In order to maintain their distinct identity while also being American, the second generation tried to make Judaism part of the fabric of the United States. In contrast to the second generation, the third generation of Jews found barriers their predecessors faced falling away after World War II. Removed by two generations from their immigrating ancestors, the Jews of the third generation were “highly educated and increasingly successful” (Eisen 234). Unlike their forefathers, however, this generation of Jews was “less averse to public expressions of their Judaism, as long as these seemed to be sanctioned or encouraged by Christian neighbors” (234). During this generation, some prominent Jewish thinkers urged Jews to remember their uniqueness and to embrace it instead of trying to blot it out. The message of these thinkers was not necessarily what the third generation was looking for. Third generation American Jews “were no longer oppressed by an identity they had inherited” but were in search of creating an identity of their own or one they could choose from, and their “belief remained idiosyncratic, and observance eclectic” (Eisen 236). Jewish theology, or doctrine, became something American Jews of the third generation did not particularly commit to. They showed disinterest, according to Arnold Eisen, for two reasons. First, “theology is inherently particularistic,” which means that it “concerns a single-faith community and its relation to God,” making the party purposefully distinct and closed off (236). Secondly, theology required living a life on which one could reflect on. By the third generation, the American Jewish community had disintegrated and only a minority, Orthodox Jews, practiced Jewish law. Unlike the Orthodox Jews, Reform rabbis preached about the idea of “a Jewish mission” and “rhetorically conjured up the illusion of action, of Jews doing something for God or for the good,” which was doable by Jews who were not as active in their religious duties (Eisen 237). Thus, a separation between Jewish identity and Jewish theological practice is seen amongst the third generation of American Jews, and they begin to choose how much they would like to display their chosenness by God.

By the fourth generation (1975 to present), the political and religious climate began to change and again forced to Jews inquired into how Jewish they wanted to be in America. With the creation of Israel and the Holocaust taking front and center of the political dialogue, Jewish leaders found themselves questioning their survival as Jews. To get more American Jews involved, Reform prayer books were revised to include more Hebrew, women were ordained as Rabbis, and Jewish practices became considered more universal. After conducting an interview with various fourth generation American Jews, Eisen and sociologist Steven Cohen concluded that although American Jews were Jewishly active enough to be considered “moderately affiliated” and were not ashamed of their Jewishness, they preferred the practice and teachings of their religion in their private lives, to be lived and celebrated with family instead of displayed to the public (Eisen 240). By the fourth generation, Judaism seemed “less and less of a matter of public declarations and commitments and more and more an identity performed in the intimate spaces of home and family or even inside the individual self” (Eisen 242). During this time Judaism began shifting from a religious phenomenon to one that was more cultural. Movements began to emphasize “Judaism as a culture and not as a religion, even if this culture involves religious markers” (Roy 88). Thus the celebration of Judaism as a culture without referring to the traditional practices as religious allowed for fourth generation American Jews to maintain the hyphenated identity of American-Jews.

Following the story of the Jews, I have confirmed my hypothesis that immigrants are not, for the most part, considered complete Americans until they are externally assimilated. Wearing a veil or having side locks are identifiable examples of foreignness, signifying that the individual and group collectively have not left behind their “ancient” practices.  Recently in the news, the city of New York was dealing with a case on discrimination related to having a designated women’s only time at a public pool in which a large number of Hasidic Jewish women came to swim. Making an exception for women, and in this case Hasidic women taking advantage of it, Americans debate whether it is accommodation for a certain religious group or discrimination towards others who are not of the faith. Although America might be a melting pot and may be tolerant to many faiths, cultures, and traditions, Americans still question the extent to which the practice of other faiths is tolerable, and at which point it becomes a discomfort to others or forces them to adjust certain practices in their lives. As Eisen states, by the fourth generation of Jews, “American tolerance of religious and cultural distinctiveness ha[d] greatly increased, particularly when that difference [was] expressed in the private sphere and when the people expressing it [were] linked by class, race, and ethos to the still-regnant majority culture” (242). The Jews became part of the American society by assimilating to the American outward culture and becoming involved in the social and intellectual sphere of the country. Thus the question continues till today with other religious groups that show outward differences. Will they have to assimilate to the dominant culture to become American or will they have to pay the price of not being seen as wholly American in order to practice their religion?

Works Cited 

Adams, Peter. Politics, Faith, and the Making of American Judaism. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2014. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 3 July 2016.

Eisen, Arnold. “Choosing Chosenness in America: The Changing Faces of Judaism.” Immigration and Religion in America: Comparative and Historical Perspectives. Eds. Richard Alba, Albert J. Raboteau, and Josh DeWind. New York: New York UP, 2009. 224-245. Print.

Goldscheider, Calvin. “Immigration and the Transformation of American Jews: Assimilation, Distinctiveness, and Community.” Immigration and Religion in America: Comparative and Historical Perspectives. Eds. Richard Alba, Albert J. Raboteau, and Josh DeWind. New York: New York UP, 2009. 198-223. Print.

Roy, Olivier. Holy Ignorance: When Religion and Culture Part Ways. New York: Columbia UP, 2010. Print.

White, Craig. Hector St. Jean de Crevecoeur: Letters from an American Farmer. Online Texts for Craig White’s Literature Courses. University of Houston Clear Lake, n.d. Web. 9 Jun. 2016.