JEWISH IDENTITY AND THE SENSE OF SHARED FATE

The vast majority value their Jewish identity and feel a connection to other U.S. Jews

The overwhelming majority of self-identified American Jews regard being Jewish as important to them. Over three quarters (80%) say being Jewish is important to them, with 44% saying it is “very important.” This is almost unchanged from two years before (2019) when 81% said it was important, and 46% said “very important.”

How important is being Jewish to you?

Jewish identity is stronger for Orthodox (97% very important) and Conservative (59% very important) Jews. But even among those who do not identify with a particular denomination, 60% say that being Jewish is important to them and 21% that it is very important.

Jewish identity is somewhat stronger among parents with children under 18 years who live at home. Nearly all of these parents (90%) feel it is important, and 51% feel it is very important.

Jewish Identity Index paints a clearer picture

The majority of American Jews (82%) feel that what happens to Jews in this country will have “something to do with what happens in [their lives].” Over a third (38%) believe it has a lot to do with their life. There is little difference when it comes to age, with levels as high as 81%-83% across three age groups: under 40, 40-59, and 60+ years old. This sense of shared fate is higher among Orthodox and Conservative (both 93%) than Reform (80%) Jews, and remains strong even among the non-denominational (74%).

Even among the 20% who feel that being Jewish is not important to them, over a third (65%) feel this connection. One-fifth of American Jews who place less value on their Jewish identity do not feel as strongly about shared fate; only 13% of them feel it “a lot.” Still, a certain level of acknowledgment of a common bond exists.

We combined the responses to these two questions to establish a Jewish identity index based on shared fate and the importance of being Jewish. One in four (25%) is in the high range of the Jewish Identity Index, with the highest-level responses for both questions. Being Jewish is “very important” to them, and they believe that what happens to other Jews has “a lot” to do with their lives.

Just over a quarter (27%) are in the medium index range, with no more than one top answer of “very” or “a lot.” The identity index correlates with denomination. A 64% majority of Orthodox Jews are in the high index, decreasing to 32% for Conservative Jews, and to 11% for those who do identify with any denomination.

Contrary to what some may expect, younger Jews, under 40 years old, are more apt to be in the high index than older Jews. Among the younger Jews, 30% are in the high Jewish identity index, compared to 20% of middle-aged Jews and 23% of seniors.

This index provides helpful context for some of the findings that follow.