How Long Will Liberal Jews Lie to Themselves?

American Jews have been associated with the Democrat Party since they first immigrated from Europe. The desire to be accepted in the larger society was prevalent, as Jews wanted to expand their opportunities for success and assimilation. For many, assimilation provided the road to being “like everyone else,” and their Judaism became less of a barrier. The German Jews in particular brought Reform Judaism to America, which abandoned many of the rites and traditions of Orthodox Judaism. In fact, they tried to make the Jewish liturgy resemble Protestant Christianity. European Jews were determined to fit into the larger society, so adapting their practices to the culture around them seemed to be a sensible step. As Progressivism made inroads in Europe in the 19^th century and America in the 20th century, secularism and universalism became a dominant theme, and these belief systems gradually moved them away from key Jewish values, such as following the Torah and Orthodoxy. Most Jews practiced Judaism superficially, deciding which observances fit their lifestyle and maintained their acceptance in the larger community. Ruth Wisse, a Jewish scholar paraphrased Sholem Aleichem saying, “It is harder to be a Jew”: It was easier to call oneself a liberal, leading a Jew further away from the Jewish community to defend universalist values, such as social justice and equity.

Over time, many Jews gravitated to socialism and Communism, too. It fulfilled their dreams of social justice and equity, and demonstrated their desire to be accepted by the Progressive community.

Over time, with minimal commitment to the Jewish religion, allegiance to the Democrat Party took on a religious quality; this transition especially became obvious when the Progressives in the party began to take more control. Compliance with Progressive orthodoxy was expected from Democrats. Those expectations also contributed to the current polarization between Conservatives and Progressives: any divergence from the “party line” was considered heresy.

But the one value that remained dominant among Jews was education. For a period of time, they were informally banned from colleges and universities. But once those doors opened, they flooded these institutions, far exceeding the number of students from the general population. In time, they not only excelled in upper education, but many aspired to be teachers and professors. Unfortunately, these efforts to teach at the universities contributed to the dominance of the “Progressive religion” in the universities and further abandonment of Jews from their religion of birth: the Jews could not “serve two masters.”

As the Jews assimilated into U.S. society, however, with ever greater success, they also began to see the signs of anti-Semitism. Early on, they assumed that those who professed those beliefs were a tiny group and could be tolerated; after all, they were otherwise all in alignment with the greater Progressive values. So, Jews ignored the slights, the Jewish tropes and the criticisms to keep the peace in the Progressive community.

But when Israel became a state, it projected the Jewish community onto the world stage.

And as Israel matured and excelled in many fields such as technology and medicine, their success became more widely acknowledged (and perhaps resented).

But with the establishment of the Jewish state, the controversies in the Middle East grew and festered. The newly named “Palestinians” who had lived in the territory but not previously been identified as a group, were in a kind of limbo after the 1948 war. No other Arab countries were willing to take them in, yet they decried the plight of the Palestinians. In spite of millions, even billions of dollars, which were given to the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, they refused in many ways to improve their own lot and demanded that the Israelis be expelled from the land which they called their own.

Jews in America over the decades have watched the Israeli-Palestinian situation with mixed feelings. Some of those who were still Liberals sided with the Palestinians, acceding to the mythical history which was created for the “refugees,” and condemning Israel for invading the land. Other Democrats, who knew the facts about Israel and the roles of Israelis and the Palestinian residents, were often torn about where to place their allegiance. Americans in general were mostly supportive of Israel, but raised concerns about the living conditions of the Palestinians, particularly in Gaza.

Fast-forward to the massacre of October 7. The anti-Semitism that had been brewing in the U.S. now exploded, particularly in the universities. Instead of only condemning the Israelis and sympathizing with Hamas, students were accusing all Jews of having colonized the land, and were defending Hamas. They insisted, in spite of all evidence to the contrary, that the atrocities of October 7 had never happened. They chanted “From the River to the Sea, Palestine must be free,” but many had no idea which river or sea was being referred to. It was clear that something was triggered in this country that may have lain dormant for decades, but was ready to be embraced.

As Liberal Jews study the current political environment, they have many different reactions. Some claim that they have no idea how blatant anti-Semitism has swept through this country. Others have seen evidence that anti-Semitism was appearing, but seemed to be rare (from their perspective) and tolerable. And many now know that anti-Semitism has been brewing for quite a while, and hoped that they would find a way to stay allied with the Democrats/Progressives that otherwise form the basis of their life view.

The cognitive dissonance for some must be devastating.

For those of you who have Liberal friends who realize it is time to make a change of political affiliation, but are not sure which direction to take, here are a few suggestions:

1. Ask them to make an assessment of their values and determine what their heart and intellect tells them. Are they still in alignment with Progressive values, or have they moved beyond them?
2. Take another look at Judaism and the teachings with a new mindset. There are organizations, such as Partners in Torah that provide study partners who can lead them through the Torah and help them re-explore their religion of birth. Sometimes studying the teachings at a mature age provides a new perspective on Judaism. They would also have a person sharing their journey who could provide them with emotional and spiritual support.
3. Expose themselves to writers who have a reputation for positive and sound conservative beliefs, just to broaden their perspective. These people might be hard for them to identify, since they have probably been pre-occupied with demonizing and rejecting them. But consider the work of Thomas Sowell, Victor Davis Hanson and Charles Krauthammer; they are thoughtful, conservative writers.
4. Most importantly, suggest they make a statement by leaving the Democrat/Progressive Party.

It’s long past time.