Opinion
FROM SURVIVING TO THRIVING
Thinking beyond ‘Jewish continuity’

Anyone who has spent time in the world of Jewish fundraising or grant applications knows that it’s almost compulsory to use the buzzwords Jewish continuity in describing the goal and impact of your efforts. But the truth is, we’ve set the bar way too low by focusing almost exclusively on survival, preservation and conservation. It’s time to think more aspirationally about what it means to truly foster robust Jewish community in future generations.
As a rabbi immersed in and deeply committed to our traditions, of course I support Jewish continuity. I hold real concern for the passing on of Jewish identity and the preservation of our values and commitments. What I take issue with is the prevailing “battlefield strategy” — one that is hurting more than helping.
What do I mean by a battlefield strategy? I’m talking about the tenor of the conversation being, Sound the alarm! Jews are assimilating! Younger Jews are intermarrying, their identities are shifting and they are even being critical of Israeli government policies! We must go to war against these trends in the name of Jewish continuity! We so often slip into an attitude of defensive fear. I want to propose that we raise the bar and strive instead for joyful Jewish thriving.
Here are five ideas for cultivating a shift so we are thinking beyond Jewish survival:
1. You can’t save everyone.
In the world of Jewish philanthropy, the most common metric for success is the number of people impacted. But what does it matter how many tens of thousands of young Jews you reach, if the touch is so light that it has no real impact? Our focus on breadth over depth is hurting us when we fail to offer transformative experiences. We can’t reach everyone. It is okay if we lose some people. The goal is not to prevent every single Jew from assimilating. The goal is to meaningfully foster the flame of Jewish life in this lifetime. If we invest in those individuals who are deeply seeking, they will go in directions that we could have never imagined. In my own work, I have shifted away from prioritizing large communal programs that engage large crowds to focus more on cohort-based learning, trusting that 12 carefully chosen people can go a lot further than a program entertaining the masses.
2. Go deep.
In our desperation to draw in as many people as possible, we often emphasize what’s fun and attractive rather than appealing to authenticity. But ironically, it is authenticity and spiritual depth that people are truly seeking at this moment. A Harvard study found that over half of young adults (58%) reported experiencing “little or no purpose or meaning” in the previous month. We do not need flashy new social media marketing strategies; we do not need to try and compete with all of the ready-made entertainment being offered by Netflix, bar crawls and New York Times bestsellers. Instead, we need to offer something radically different: depth and meaning that cannot be found anywhere else. To be clear, I am not against lowering the barriers to entry for spiritual connection. For example, while I have a profound love for the Hebrew language and its unique depth, I see no issue with providing English translations of Jewish sources. The problem is when we offer vapid, simplistic versions of our most profound and sacred inheritance under the mistaken impression that it will save us by getting more people in the door.
3. Feed souls.
In a prior “corporate” Jewish nonprofit position I held, we were asked to closely track every concrete measurement around how Jewish identity “progressed” within individuals. This is a typical approach to Jewish continuity. It’s also incredibly ineffective. Rather than cultivating social identity markers, we should be thinking about embracing the full person and their depth. One movement out there emphasizes that every man should put on tefillin, every woman should light candles with the belief that this quick experience will have a transformative mystical impact on identity. These mitzvot are meaningful, no doubt. However, we need to be more creative and more robustly pluralistic in what we’re offering, because each Jewish soul is so distinct. As a diverse people, we need an expansive range of Jewish tools and gems of wisdom to flourish. Our goal as Jewish organizations should not be to make people more Jewish on our terms, but to help Jews flourish in the fullness of their lives.
4. Adapt from affiliation to intentionality.
While I am someone who loves to go to shul and regularly attends large institutional galas and banquets, this is not the reality for most American Jews. It’s not a winning strategy to solely emphasize affiliation with legacy organizations; rather, it’s time to invest in a more intentional, spiritual grassroots approach. A 2023 Pew Research report indicated that while 7 out of 10 Americans consider themselves spiritual, many people have begun to distance themselves from organized religion. It behooves us to ask how we can appeal to those Jews seeking spiritual connection. Do people really want another young professionals mixer, or are they searching for something with more substance?
5. Stop pathologizing Judaism.
There is a tendency to speak about the Jewish people as collectively sick, in need of major surgery to treat the ailments of disillusioned Jews. We need to shift our mindset from the pathological to the positive. Judaism has thrived for millennia. Within our tradition, we have a robust moral framework for engaging with one another in an ethical way. Judaism is not sick: It is the moral cure to an ailing world. We should trust the power of that goodness rather than reverting to a problem-centered mindset.
Judaism has never been static. When our sages reinvented Judaism in the first century CE following the destruction of the Temple, they evolved our religion from priestly to intellectual. That was a truly radical move! Change helped us survive. At other times, we have doubled down on preservation — resisting outside influences in order to survive. Both are important for Jewish continuity. When we trust what we have inherited and when we connect through creativity rather than fear, we not only survive but kindle a brighter light to offer our fellow Jews and the world at large. If we focus on thriving, surviving will follow.
Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz is the president and dean of the Valley Beit Midrash, a national Jewish pluralistic adult learning and leadership center. He has authored 27 books on Jewish ethics.