James Crowl Cultural Reporter Project: Judaism and Religious Identity

Identities of every kind shape not only who we are as individuals, but who we are as a society. Especially in America, where we are a melting pot of different socio/cultural identities, it is very easy to come into contact with people who ascribe to a different identity than yours. One such identity is religious identity, which, as Martin and Nakayama explain it, is "a sense of belonging to a religious group," (Martin & Nakayama). The religious groups we belong to often dictate the manners in which we act and the role we play within a given society, and indeed a large part of our individual identity is comprised of our religious beliefs.

The culture I have chosen to study is that of Judaism. Belonging to the same family of religions as Christianity and Islam, Judaism studies the group of stories featured within the old testament, commonly referred to as the Torah. Those practicing Judaism can be found in many different countries around the world, therefore a great many different cultures have interacted with Judaism. By looking through the lens of religious identity, focusing on the language that is common used within this group. This not only includes the speaking of Hebrew, but also to common phrases of speech, slang or other patterns that are used specifically within this religious identity.

In order to collect such data, I will both attend service at a local synagogue as well as interview specific individuals within the Jewish faith. The synagogue I plan to attend is the South Street Temple, also known as B'nai Jeshurun Temple, located at 2061 South 20th Street, Lincoln Nebraska, led by Rabbi Craig Lewis. I have emailed Rabbi Lewis, who has agreed to allow me to interview him as well as arrange for me to interview other members of the Synagogue, in addition to attending Friday night service. While I do not yet have a specific list of questions to ask, I have a good idea of the topics I would like to cover during the interviews. For example, I will inquire about what their faith means to them personally, including the traditions of the faith that they carry on today, and also how their religious identity interacts with their other identities such as geographic, ethnic, socio/economic, etc.

References

Martin, J.N., & Nakayama, T.K. (2013). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (6th ed.) New York, NY: McGraw Hill.