ISRAEL-CENTERED
EDUCATION IS CRUCIAL
TO THE JEWISH FUTURE
Across the board, statistics pulled from population studies confirm what we all intuitively
knew: Our global Jewish family is in decline. And we’re not speaking figuratively. The fact of
the matter is the Jewish population declines by more than 100 people every day.
It is not coincidental that intermarriage is up, while Jewish connection, identity and
commitment to Israel are down. There are young people around the world whose
connection to their Jewish identity and to our people literally hangs in the balance. It is not
a question of a profound erosion of connection and commitment; most have simply never
known anything different. Ignorance, indifference and unparalleled freedom have made
assimilation almost a given.
The remarkable events of the 20th century that anchored Jewish consciousness and served
as the foundation for Jewish unity—the Holocaust and the drama of Israel’s rebirth—are not
even a memory for the next generation. These are simply more pages in history that get lost
in the endless, streaming and pervasive cultural clutter.
Since the start of the intifada, there has been a radical drop in teen travel to Israel. More
than 50% of Jewish children throughout the world receive no Jewish education. With the
exception of a few large centers of Jewish life, Jewish educational systems throughout the
world suffer from a severe shortage of qualified personnel, materials and curricula.
In the case of Argentina, a community still struggling to recover from a catastrophic
convergence of events, the scenario is far more disturbing. Barely 40 percent of Argentinean
Jewish children receive any Jewish education at all—and what they do receive falls far short
of what was provided a decade ago. In an environment where Jewish education is the
strongest—if not only point of connection—this puts the next generation at high risk of
assimilation; a risk we’re not willing to take.
As a direct provider of educational services, through its multifaceted and intense work in
the Argentina the Jewish Agency has demonstrated that instilling—and continuously
reinforcing—Jewish-Zionist self-identity among youngsters is key to securing the future of
this community. Even as we stand in solidarity to confront external forces that threaten the
future of Israel, we must not lose focus on the serious issues emanating from within. The
bottom line is that 2.5 million Diaspora youth are at risk. If they are at risk, the Jewish
future is as well.
More information....
|
