Jewish in British Columbia. Stats paint a picture of the present. Maybe they help us imagine the future. At least, they show us opportunities and challenges.

And they help us lean into this week’s Torah reading. It begins, “See, I set before you a blessing and a curse.” How might British Columbia’s younger Jews weave blessing for our community?

Religion in British Columbia

In British Columbia, 52% of the population identifies with no religious tradition at all. Ask them about it, and they’ll tell you. They are atheist, agnostic, humanist, or spiritual but not religious. But ask sociologists and they might tell you something different. British Columbians, like all Canadians, look for life’s deeper meanings. And many find it in their love of the land. Nature. Environment. Coastal, mountain, river, desert ecosystems. The spirit of the land, they feel, calls us all.

British Columbia is home to about 38,000 Jews. Only 37% of them participate in synagogues or prayer groups. Only 12% think religion is key to Jewish self-identification. 88% identify as Jewish by culture, ancestry, or a combination of factors. Compared to other Canadian Jews, BC Jews are more likely to part of multifaith families. They believe that LGBTQ+ people experience more discrimination than straight cisgender Jews do. And, over the last two decades, their interest in Jewish environmental programming has boomed. (Or should I say bloomed?)

How, then, might young millennial Jews approach leadership in BC? Especially in our increasingly stressed and fragile Jewish community? I’ll imagine one idealistic character named Ariel.

Ariel’s Jewish Values

Ariel is comfortable with gender fluidity, self-definition, LGBTQ+ relationships. Ariel refers to God as “she” and “he” and “they,” without skipping a beat. When Ariel speaks Hebrew, they find ways around the gendered language. The summer camp Ariel directs doesn’t call boy campers “chanichim” and girl campers “chanichot.” Instead, every camper is among the “chanichimot.” Ariel’s synagogue redefines Jewish identity in a gender-inclusive way. No more talk of patrilineal or matrilineal descent. Instead, they say: people are Jewish if they convert or have at least one Jewish parent.

Ariel’s synagogue welcomes multi-faith families. Synagogue programs, policies, and life-cycle events all make space for multi-faith families to celebrate, grieve, and learn together. Ariel recognizes that people of all faiths share life’s existential challenges. So Ariel is interested in learning how other spiritual traditions address those challenges. Ariel’s synagogue has an ongoing relationship with other spiritual communities. They invite each other to join Seder and Eid and Christmas and Durga Puja celebrations.

Ariel knows how to speak with Jews who are spiritual but not religious. Ariel uses the psycho-spiritual language of Kabbalah to speak of divine energy moving through us. They also speak about a respect for nature, expressed in the agricultural holidays of Tu BeShevat, Shavuot, and Sukkot. Ariel practices eco-kashrut, keeping kosher by eating a vegetarian diet. They are attuned to heartbreaking social issues, like the opioid epidemic. So they work with members of other faith communities to provide addiction support services and lobby for policy changes.

All this seems natural to Ariel. But Ariel knows their Orthodox Israeli cousins don’t agree. To these cousins, gender egalitarianism, eco-kashrut, tikkun olam, and interfaith marriage fall outside of Judaism. But their negative judgment doesn’t faze Ariel at all.

Ariel After October 7

Before October 7, Ariel was ready to leap into action and lead us to these goals. But now Ariel is in shock. For years, Ariel has supported collaborative peace movements, where Jews and Palestinians work together. But now public conversations are too polarized to speak of collaboration.

Ariel also has read the New Israeli historians whose works draw on declassified military and government documents. So Ariel knows that the founding of the state of Israel was more brutal than Ariel’s elders knew. And Ariel understands why some of their peers are anti-Zionist or pro-diaspora.

But Ariel wishes local relationships were not so severely strained. There are not enough spaces, Ariel thinks, where Jews with different views can learn from each other. Opportunities for dialogue—instead of debate—are rare.

Ariel has never experienced antisemitism before. For example, no one ever told Ariel, “Jews are not welcome here.” But now Ariel does hear this. Suddenly, old stereotypes are part of modern discourse. Ariel hoped Christians and Muslims had repudiated these teachings. But now, some of the interfaith bridges Ariel built are cracking.

Which Jewish Future?

How will future leader Ariel help hold Jewish community together? So that Jewish communities can reach in and reach out? Should Ariel encourage new, uneasily co-existing, synagogues and chavurot? Each based on its own philosophy of Judaism? Focus only on the tikkun olam projects everyone can agree on? Initiate dialogue sessions within Jewish community? Support an intergenerational Truth and Reconciliation project around Israel and Palestine?

Ariel embodies principles of Jewish Renewal. But Ariel is a composite. They aren’t real. However, you are. So, how do you think our communities can move forward?

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Credits: This post is a mashup of three recent talks for Ner Tamid Synagogue, CIJA, United Church community connectors. Sources of data and ideas include Stats Canada 2021 Census Data, Environics Institute 2018 Survey of Jews in Canada, Canadian Jewish News, Ross Lockhart, Reginald Bibby, Ross Lockhart. Or Shalom Synagogue has the policy on Jewish identity mentioned; Camp Miriam uses gender-inclusive language for campers. PHOTO: Or Shalom retreat at Camp Hope…many years ago.