Orthodox Jews asked to consider Jacksonville

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville is known for its beaches, military installations and the slogan hailing it as "the bold new city of the South."

But it isn't known as a major center for Judaism, with the local Jewish community estimated at 13,000, compared to about 2 million in New York and about 550,000 in South Florida.

So Rabbi Yoseph Kahanov said he was puzzled to learn the Orthodox Union listed Jacksonville among 22 "emerging communities" Orthodox Jews should consider if seeking to leave Jewish mega-centers such as New York City.

"Jacksonville really lacks, at this point, the basic necessities for Orthodox Jewry," said Kahanov, spiritual leader of Chabad of Northeast Florida.

The city has no kosher restaurants or grocery stores, so meats and other supplies have to be shipped in from Atlanta, Miami and other cities. The educational system — two day schools, one of them Orthodox, and no high school — for Orthodox youths "is still in its infant stages," he said.

"To be put on a list like this, to me, is surprising."

So how did northeast Florida make the list?

The answer is partly to be found in the nation's ongoing economic slump, but also in decades of Jewish migration from large urban centers in the Northeast, especially the greater New York City area, denominational leaders and scholars said. Others active in the city's Jewish community say its location, climate and welcoming reputation overcome difficulties in obtaining the foods, religious education and other services plentiful in major Jewish centers along the Eastern Seaboard.

Amy Lipper concedes northeast Florida presents a "challenge" to those adhering to the strictest dietary and religious standards in Judaism.

But Lipper said she and her husband, Jay, enthusiastically represented her city and Orthodox synagogue in New York at the Orthodox Union's "Emerging Communities Fair" featuring 21 other communities touted on the list.

Lipper was an ideal delegate for the task: Born and raised in New Jersey, her family moved to Jacksonville in 2004 after her husband lost his job earlier in the decade.

Her family struggled at first without those amenities, but has since thrived with the food co-ops, lower tuition costs and the Jewish community's friendly, welcoming nature. Area grocery chains also are adding a growing number of kosher products.

"You just gotta think out of the box," said Lipper, a member and staffer at Etz Chaim Synagogue in Mandarin.

The Orthodox Union began its list of emerging communities last year, partly as a response to the economic downturn that hit the New York-area economy especially hard, organization President Stephen Savitsky said.

Cities on the list are selected in part based on their "Jewish infrastructure" — a combination of availability of kosher food and religious and educational institutions.

But cost of living, housing prices and the availability of jobs also are considered, Savitsky said.

Jacksonville was added to the list this year because it has an Orthodox Union synagogue, hosts the Torah Academy school and has a ceremonial bath known as a mikvah. The city's diverse economy, lower home prices and a Jewish community known for its social service network and outreach were other reasons, he said.

"It's an atmosphere in which you can raise an Orthodox family," he said.

According to the National Realtors Association, the median sales price of single-family homes in the greater Jacksonville area was running about $154,000 during the first quarter of 2009. Single-family homes were selling from $321,000 to $430,000 in various New York-area markets.

Jobs are another story.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the region's unemployment rate at 9.2 percent, compared to 7.8 percent in and around New York City.

But job seekers from larger metropolitan areas such as New York City "may have a leg up" in experience and reputation when competing for jobs as they start becoming available in Jacksonville, said Candace Moody, vice president of communications for WorkSource, a nonprofit that promotes employment in Northeast Florida.

The Orthodox Union effort comes at a time when some Jewish communities are competing for members.

The Jewish community in Dothan is offering $50,000 to households that relocate to the Alabama city. The community in Tulsa, Okla., is touting its city's job market and lifestyle at JewishTulsa.org, on Twitter and Facebook.

Jacksonville's Jewish population has remained steady around 13,000 since it was last counted in 2002, suggesting that new members are born or move to the city near the same rate they leave, said Joanne Cohen, assistant executive director of the Jacksonville Jewish Federation.

"As opposed to other communities, which are losing members, this is a thriving community where lots of things are possible," she said.

Kahanov said he would be cautious touting Jacksonville as a place for the Orthodox, but added the city has much to offer those "with a pioneering spirit."

But Lipper noted that many Orthodox and other Jews may be willing to overlook their concerns if they are facing economic hardship.

"Up there when you have no job, you have high mortgages and high (Jewish school) tuitions, you really have to go elsewhere," Lipper said. And it might as well be Jacksonville, "where you stand a chance to get back on your feet."

The Jewish outreach absurdity

Instead of competing against each other, Jewish outreach groups should join forces to battle assimilation

Rabbi Levi Brackman

There has been a real transformation of the Orthodox Jewish landscape recently, but until now I have been only vaguely aware of it. Of course I knew that there are many different outreach organizations, all trying to reach and inspire the ever-elusive assimilated Jew. However, the extent of this movement within the Orthodox world—outside of Chabad—was not known to me.


Last week, for the first time, I went to a Jewish outreach convention in Baltimore, Maryland, which was hosted by The Association for Jewish Outreach Programs (AJOP). This convention was attended by over 550 Orthodox outreach professionals with representation from over 20 orthodox outreach organizations including Aish, Ner L’Elef, The Orthodox Union, NCSY, Torah Umesorah and Ohr Samayach. This was an opportunity for me to get a broad view of Jewish outreach and what makes it tick.


Clearly the sometimes insular Orthodox world has woken up and they have begun to organize in a serious way to combat assimilation. In fact it was inspiring to meet at the convention Yeshiva students from the local Ner Yisroel Yeshiva in Baltimore who had already decided to dedicate their lives to Jewish outreach. The ideal within the mainstream Orthodox Yeshiva world to leave the enclave and do outreach is still in its infancy there is no doubt however that the movement will grow both in strength and in numbers in the years to come. With the stunning statistics of assimilation and intermarriage throughout the Western world the awakening to do Jewish outreach has not come a minute too soon.



It seems, however, that there is still a rift between what is now known as the “kiruv world,” or the world of Orthodox outreach professionals, and the community of Chabad emissaries which do similar work. When, for example, one of the convention organizers presented statistics on outreach across the world the Chabad contribution to Jewish outreach was not included.



Considering the impact Chabad emissaries and Chabad organizations have had and continue to have on the Jewish world, the omission was absurd.


Same ultimate aim
Nonetheless, in conversation with some of the pioneers of the kiruv world, I found a dichotomy. When these pioneers got involved with outreach in the 1960s and 1970s, they told me that they took their inspiration from the work of the Lubavitcher Rebbe of Blessed Memory and from Chabad. One such pioneer actually explained to me that the only way they were able to get the rest of Orthodoxy involved in doing outreach was by making as if Chabad did not exist and then doing it independently of Chabad. “Chabad has to be ignored if we are to get the the ultra-Orthodox Yeshiva world to do outreach,” this individual explained.


From my experience Chabad also seems to ignore the good work done by other outreach programs, so this problem goes both ways. But my intention here is to encourage rather than to criticize. Clearly, all groups involved in Jewish outreach are doing important work and have the same ultimate aim, which is to stem the tide of assimilation and to encourage Jews to get more deeply involved with their Judaism. The methods and strategies used may vary slightly, but the resources displayed at both the AJOP and the Chabad conventions show that they are essentially the same. The question then demands to be posed: Why are they ignoring each other?



The notion that the outreach organizations are in competition with one another is ridiculous. With the high rate of assimilation and intermarriage in the West, I cannot imagine that there could be too many outreach workers in the field. The day that happens will be a blessed one. The battle against assimilation is far too important for its warriors to get embroiled in politics of this sort. Undoubtedly, all the outreach organizations, Chabad included, should put their differences aside and pool together all their resources and ideas to create an even brighter Jewish tomorrow.



Rabbi Levi Brackman (www.levibrackman.com) is executive director of Judaism in the Foothills (www.jitf.org). His upcoming book, about Jewish Business Success, is set to be published in late 2008.