Many Jewish Parents Fail to Pass On Traditions, Panel Says

The Jewish community of North America is facing “a crisis of major proportions” that has been caused by the lack of commitment to passing on Jewish ethnic and religious traditions to a new generation, according to a national commission that has studied the situation for two years.

The Commission on Jewish Education in North America, a body composed of 44 scholars, educators, philanthropists and community officials, says it has found that “large numbers of Jews have lost interest in Jewish values, ideals and behavior, and there are many who no longer believe that Judaism has a role to play in their search for personal fulfillment and identity.”

The commission says this situation “has grave implications, not only for the richness of Jewish life but for the very continuity of a large segment of the Jewish people.”

According to the commission, nearly 60% of the 1 million Jewish children of school age in North America do not receive any formal Jewish education. It says that only 40% of the Jewish children in the United States and 55% of those in Canada are currently enrolled in a Jewish school.

In schools, the report says, “the presentation of the subject matter is often uninspiring, and there is a dearth of high-quality curricular and educational materials.”

Among other things, the commission recommends the raising of $25 million to $50 million over the next five years to help to professionalize Jewish education, raise it to the top of the Jewish communal agenda and establish three to five “lead communities” to function as local laboratories for change.