So what does it really matter if there are 6.7 million Jews in America or 5.2 million?
Certainly we’d all like to believe that our numbers are growing and not shrinking, but that’s not all we should focus on.
What really matters is how many of those Jews are living a Jewish life — raising a Jewish family, affiliating with synagogues or other Jewish organizations, providing b’nai mitzvah for their children, observing Jewish holidays or giving tzedakah to the needy.
The demographic surveys undoubtedly will spark new initiatives to reach out to more Jews.
Those who support the broad National Jewish Population Survey will worry about the Jewish birth and intermarriage rates and how they may have resulted in our population declining by 300,000 since 1990.
Those who support San Francisco demographer Gary Tobin’s count of 6.7 million Jews will urge the community to reach out to Jews of varying ethnic backgrounds and Jews in the Western states, groups Tobin said are being undercounted and ignored by Jewish community leaders.
With limited resources, Jewish leaders must decide whom to target. Should they invest more heavily in the core group of affiliated Jews or should they target those who are least involved?
Those who are already Jewishly involved have long asked for financial aid in sending their children to Jewish schools, camps and other Jewish institutions. Those core Jews say the cost of living a Jewish life is prohibitive.
As expensive as it might be to subsidize those families, it still might be cheaper than trying to bring Jews on the outskirts of Jewish life into the fold. That effort could cost a fortune and reap minimal results.
But that is the decision our Jewish leadership needs to make. We’d like to hear your views. Please send us a letter to the editor of 200 words or fewer telling us what you think needs to be done in light of the demographic surveys.