Ask A (Born Again) Muslim
Are Jews leaving the Synagogues too?
The problem is not unique to Christians and Muslims. Jews are also facing the same issues. A Pew study conducted in 2013 had similar finds. [4]
American Jews overwhelmingly say they are proud to be Jewish and have a strong sense of belonging to the Jewish people, according to a major new survey by the Pew Research Center. But the survey also suggests that Jewish identity is changing in America, where one-in-five Jews (22%) now describe themselves as having no religion.
The information on the reason for the Jews for leaving the Synagogues is not as well studied and some have pointed to the financial model of the membership of the synagogues- ‘What’s driving Jews away from the Synagogues?’[5] Others have pointed to the orthodoxy and thus the rise in Reform Judaism movement. According to the Pew study quoted above, One-third (35%) of all U.S. Jews identify with the Reform movement, while 18% identify with Conservative Judaism and 10% with Orthodox Judaism.
From the these polls, it becomes clear that there is a big need for the way the “religious people” and especially the religious leaders/clergy conduct themselves.
So where do we go from here?
More importantly, my own experience and interactions with the youth confirms what these polls suggest: We need to make our places of worship are more welcoming, more inclusive and non-judgmental. We must focus on what’s good about our religion, rather than what’s bad about others’. We have got to make the religious beliefs relevant to today’s life, and not just treat religion as an abstract concept. We need to put the spiritual growth of the young people (and adults) over the financial growth of institution. Let’s bring spirituality and critical thinking back in our places of worship.
We cannot afford to have the divide between the intellectuals and those who are ‘religious’.
With great respect, I must emphasize that the education of the Imams is critical step in the right direction. They need to not only have religious education, but also be equipped with the ‘secular’ education. Even the religious education needs to include critical thinking, where questions are seen as a way to develop a profound understanding of the Creator and why are we here, and questions such as why bad things happen despite our belief in a Merciful God.
Rather than trying to find faults with each other, perhaps we should work on addressing the common challenges we face, and strive to promote our common values to build better communities.
Only then will we have some hope of stopping the mass exodus.
Is your mosque, church or synagogue ready to make the change?
[1] https://religionnews.com/2016/09/22/why-most-people-leave-religion-they-just-stop-believing/
[2] http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/10/26/5-facts-about-muslim-millennials-us/
[3] http://www.unmosquedfilm.com/about/
[4] http://www.pewforum.org/2013/10/01/jewish-american-beliefs-attitudes-culture-survey/
[5] https://www.haaretz.com/jewish/.premium-membership-is-stopping-jews-from-paying-synagogue-dues-1.5387705
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In