Minority Within A Minority

By Abe Fried-Tanzer
KOC Assistant Editor
New York University

I realize that as a Jew, I'm already in a minority. Jews make up at most 2% of the population of the United States, and much as I may feel like there are tons of Jews everywhere I go in New York, it's a fact that there are a lot of people who practice other religions out there. As a Conservative Jew, I'm in an even smaller minority.

Conservative Judaism is hardly as traditional as Orthodox Judaism, and those who have little desire to consider themselves active or practicing Jews often associate by default with the Reform Movement. That distinction is hardly a rule, and there are certainly exceptions, but it's tended to be the case for a good deal of the people I've met in my life. Conservative Judaism is a sort of middle ground, where traditions of observance are preserved, but, as I see it, accommodations for modern society and changing times are sometimes made. Conservative Judaism is what I grew up with, and as a result it's the stream of Judaism with which I feel most comfortable.

The particular aspect of Conservative Judaism that both fascinates and vexes me is the diverse levels of observance its members practice. It's true that it's difficult to find a practicing Conservative Jew who upholds each and every one of the laws outlined by Conservative Judaism, and it's a certainly a wonder when a whole number of those who uphold most of them gather together in one place. At the risk of sounding like a plug, the annual KOACH Kallah is a terrific place where that happens. Conservative Jews gather together from their campuses all around the country to share in their religion. Services are a particularly fantastic time, because so many people know all the words and tunes, and unlike some Orthodox services I've been to, the words are sung slowly and melodically, and every service from the weekend is a delight.

This semester, I'm studying abroad in Florence, Italy. I'm saddened by the fact that I will be missing the KOACH Kallah this year. I so miss the amazing spirit of Conservative Jewish college students coming together and singing. Services in Italy are Sephardic and entirely Orthodox. I never find Sephardic services to be terribly engaging, and as one of only two semi-observant Jewish male students, I'd certainly appreciate not having a mehitzah (divider which separates men and women in an Orthodox prayer service) in order to share in the experience with any one of the ten observant Jewish girls on the trip with me. Then again, almost all of the girls consider themselves Orthodox and probably wouldn't davven next to me anyway. I really do feel like a minority within a minority here. If there's one thing I'll miss quite a bit while I'm here, it's the feeling that, at least back home, Conservative Judaism doesn't seem like such a minority.

[Posted 2/23/09]