Observing America's Jews

Collected essays by a preeminent authority on American Jewish history.

Publishers Weekly

Rejecting the conventional wisdom that American ethnic groups proceed in orderly fashion through the stages of self-segregation, acculturation and assimilation, Sklare argues, in one of these essays, that a majority of American Jews have not totally assimilated. Elsewhere, he challenges the view that Jews who intermarry do so because of self-hatred or social or psychological aberrations; the real causes, he contends, are the complacency of liberal Jewish parents and the ideal of romantic love. The late Sklare, a Brandeis sociologist, made influential contributions to the study of American Jewish life. This collection of book chapters and articles from journals such as Commentary and Mainstream investigates American Jewry's rituals, worship and attitudes toward Israel; perceives a loss of direction in Conservative Judaism; addresses questions of Christian-Jewish relations; and examines the condition of urban Jews who are unattached to their communities. (Aug.)

MARSHALL SKLARE was the Klutznick Family Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Jewish Studies and Sociology at Brandeis University. His publications include America's Jews (1971), Jewish Identity on the Suburban Frontier (1967), and Conservative Judaism: An American Religious Movement (1955). JONATHAN D. SARNA is the Joseph and Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University. CHARLES LIEBMAN is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Argov Center for the Study of Israel and the Jewish People at Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel.