O.C. Jews Hope to Spark Unity at Hanukkah

Not long after Gordon Fishman and his wife, Reta, retired to Newport Beach in 1992, a simple question came to mind: Where are all the Jews?

An ophthalmologist from suburban Detroit, Fishman had shared his synagogue with a congregation of 700 other families. He lived in a neighborhood sandwiched between two predominantly Jewish suburbs and a quick drive from the sprawling Jewish Community Center as well as the nation’s first Holocaust museum.

Orange County’s Jewish community is tougher to find. It is plagued by wide geographic differences, a low affiliation rate with synagogues and, until recently, few cultural activities.

But community leaders say that the Jewish population, estimated at 70,000, is growing and becoming more active. As proof, they expect big turnouts at a series of events to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Israel’s nationhood. Tuesday, the first night of Hanukkah, marks the beginning of what’s billed as Orange County Celebration Jubilee.

“It’s like your long-lost cousin you haven’t spoken to in 15 years,” said Rabbi Alter Tenenbaum of the Orthodox Congregation Chabad of Irvine. “This is their 50th anniversary party, so you’ll go.”

Hanukkah was chosen to kick off the anniversary events for more than just marketing purposes. Both the holiday and the anniversary commemorate historical events that occurred when Jews successfully fought Arab occupation and won religious and political freedom.

Also known as the festival of lights, Hanukkah celebrates a victory more than 2,000 years ago over the Syrians, who took over the Second Temple in Jerusalem and commanded Jews to worship Greek idols instead of their own God.

“There’s a real close connection in the minds of many Jews, and that’s why this holiday has become so significant in our minds,” said Rabbi Allen Krause of Temple Beth El, a Reform synagogue in Aliso Viejo.

Leaders from Australia, Romania and Thailand, in addition to President Clinton and other top officials around the world, will light candles on Tuesday in honor of the anniversary. Locally, the lighting of a 12-foot menorah takes place at 4 p.m. at Fashion Island in Newport Beach.

Throughout the spring, lectures, art exhibits, concerts, a community fair and other cultural activities relating to Israel will be open to people of any faith. But Fishman, who is chairman of Celebration Jubilee, hopes the anniversary will unite a splintered Jewish community. “I want to bring people out who had no other thought about bonding with other Jews,” he said.

Organizers said they will mail a brochure of Jubilee events to every Jewish household in Orange County. Bulk distribution drops are scheduled at Jewish organizations, merchants and, possibly, supermarkets.

Ten years ago, Orange County’s Jewish leaders would not have been as hopeful about participation.

“It’s easier to be a Jew in Orange County or raise Jewish children in Orange County than it was a decade ago,” said Edward L. Cushman, the chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Orange County, which is coordinating Celebration Jubilee.

At that time, there weren’t many Jews living here. And they continue to live in different pockets of the county, particularly in the Newport Beach-Irvine area and in the northern reaches of the county.

When Mel Roth moved to Irvine from West Los Angeles 12 years ago, he said he felt isolated from Jewish culture. Little things bothered him: No kosher products in the supermarket at Passover. No greeting cards geared to Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and other Jewish holidays. “There was just very little of that,” said Roth, the executive director of The Jewish Family Service of Orange County.

Things changed gradually. As more Jews moved to the area, they began contributing to Jewish organizations, which then found there was a bigger population to serve. In 1958, there were two synagogues; now there are 24. The Jewish Federation opened a campus in Costa Mesa two years ago that houses, among other offerings, a preschool program for 160 children and a senior center. When Israeli Prime Minister Yitzak Rabin was assassinated, 600 to 800 people packed the Federation campus for a memorial service.

There are less obvious signs too, such as the opening of Jerry’s Deli in Costa Mesa and the growing selection of Jewish-related books at a Barnes & Noble in Irvine.

“All of these are subtle pieces of the puzzle, but when you put them together, it is a very different place than it was 10 years ago,” said Rabbi Arnold Rachlis of University Synagogue in Irvine. His congregation has grown by 100 households a year, and is one of the fastest-growing synagogues in Southern California, he said.

Many synagogues, in honor of the celebration, are planning trips to Israel, sponsoring lectures and holding special sermons on the day of the anniversary, April 30. But some rabbis said the cultural events probably will not increase the 20% affiliation rate with synagogues. “It does not have those kinds of emotions to bring people in,” said Rabbi Krause.

And to many Jewish leaders, that’s OK. Being active can also mean volunteering at the annual community fair or raising money for a Jewish organization.

“I don’t believe you have to be a member of a synagogue to be Jewish,” Fishman said.