Commmunity Receptivity
1996-1997 Survey of Jewish Communal Professionals
A second question sharpened the focus of perceived resistance
to outreach. We asked: "How much resistance
is there/has there been towards the development or expansion/extension
of programs of outreach for interfaith families among...
(A) The local Jewish community, (B)Jewish Communal Professionals,
(C) Lay Leadership of Jewish Agencies, (D)the Rabbinate
and (E)The Intermarried." Table 2 graphically demonstrates
the minimal/moderate resistance that respondents believed
existed in their communities. For example, even among
the Rabbinate, only 9% of the survey respondents thought
that a strong resistance existed to outreach programs,
although 32% thought that Rabbis had been moderately resistant.
Little or no resistance
to outreach program expansion and development was judged
by over 70% of the survey respondents to have existed
in their local Jewish community, among Jewish communal
professionals, among the lay leadership of Jewish agencies,
and among the Intermarried themselves; even among Rabbis,
over 60% of survey respondents thought that little or
no resistance was the norm 3.
In sum, the Jewish Communal Professionals who responded
to the JOI survey indicated that the Jewish communities
in which they worked and lived had been receptive to
outreach programs, had been minimally resistant to these
interfaith outreach programs, and that the programs
were moderately controversial - at worst.
TABLE 1
JEWISH COMMUNITY RECEPTIVITY
TO OUTREACH PROGRAMS
| . |
All
Respondents |
Jewish
Outreach Institute List |
Jewish
Communal Professionals List |
|
Question: "How receptive had your community
been to outreach programs?"
Not
At All Receptive
|
2% |
1% |
2% |
| Not Very
Receptive |
14 |
12 |
14 |
| Moderately
Receptive |
63 |
53 |
66 |
| Very Receptive |
22 |
33 |
17 |
| Total |
100%
* [N=325] |
100%
[N=88] |
100%
[N=237] |
| Question:"Has
the development of outreach programs to interfaith
couples and childrem been a controversial issue
in your community?
Very Controversial
|
8% |
10% |
6% |
| Moderately
Controversial |
40 |
31 |
43 |
| Not Very
Controversial |
39 |
40 |
38 |
| Not At
All Controversial |
14 |
19 |
12 |
| Total |
100%
[N=345] |
100%
[N=94] |
100%
[N=251] |
|
* Totals in table may not
add to 100% due to rounding |
TABLE 2
Perceived Resistance to Development or Expansion
of
Outreach Programs By Sub-Community: |
| Local
Jewish Community |
4%
71% |
| Communal
Professionals |
6%
77% |
| Lay
Leadership |
5%
75% |
| Rabbinate |
9%
60% |
| Among
Intermarried |
8%
79% |
|
Strong Resistance |
Little/No Resistance |
|
____________________
3Among
the rabbis on the JOI list, 16% thought that the Rabbinate
was strongly resistant, another 16% thought that there
was moderate resistance, and 68% thought that there
was little or no resistance to outreach programs among
rabbis.
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