Can intermarriage work? How does it affect the children involved? Does it put too much pressure on the children to choose a specific religion? These are questions addressed within Jewish children’s and adolescent literature. Author Judy Blume was one of the first writers to discuss intermarriage in her novel Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. While Blume was not from an intermarriage family herself, she knew that it was an important subject within the Jewish community. In an article written by Jonathan Krasner and Joellyn Wallen Zollen in 2010 they say of Blume,
“Clearly, Blume had her pen on the pulse of adolescent identity. She also had a keen understanding of trends in American Jewish life. For just as Margaret taught the mechanics of …show more content…
This is an issue that many children/adolescents have to deal with within the Jewish community. To some Jews it is a sensitive subject because they know marrying someone of a different faith can be very difficult. Some families are able to make it work but for some it can be very confusing, especially for the children, like Margaret. Judy Blume is addressing the topic head on to show readers that they are not alone. She somehow makes the situation seem a little more bearable. That is the beauty of children/adolescent literature; the readers can see themselves within the characters they are reading. They can be encouraged, inspired and comforted through the stories they are …show more content…
Perhaps it has something to do the fact that it can complicate relationships. Although, some might argue that it can strengthen an individual’s faith. In an article titled All in the Family? Jewish Intermarriage in America, Sarah Imhoff mentions Keren McGinity’s research on the history/ethnography of Jewish women who married Christian men in the United States. Imhoff says, “McGinity finds that some Jewish women during this period, unlike earlier periods, actually became ‘more Jewish’ after intermarrying, and defined on their own terms how they were Jewish and how they wanted to raise their children” (Imhoff). So as you can see, it could go either way. Something to keep in mind is that interfaith means different things to different sects within Judaism. According to Interfaithfamily.com, a website supporting interfaith couples exploring Jewish life and inclusive Jewish communities, the Orthodox and Conservative sects do not consider the children of Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers Jewish. However, the Reform sect considers children Jewish if they have one Jewish parent. In this instance, the only requirement would be that the child be raised with Jewish beliefs and practices. Secular Jews embrace more of the cultural aspects of Judaism and carry on a lot of the Jewish traditions within their
“Clearly, Blume had her pen on the pulse of adolescent identity. She also had a keen understanding of trends in American Jewish life. For just as Margaret taught the mechanics of …show more content…
This is an issue that many children/adolescents have to deal with within the Jewish community. To some Jews it is a sensitive subject because they know marrying someone of a different faith can be very difficult. Some families are able to make it work but for some it can be very confusing, especially for the children, like Margaret. Judy Blume is addressing the topic head on to show readers that they are not alone. She somehow makes the situation seem a little more bearable. That is the beauty of children/adolescent literature; the readers can see themselves within the characters they are reading. They can be encouraged, inspired and comforted through the stories they are …show more content…
Perhaps it has something to do the fact that it can complicate relationships. Although, some might argue that it can strengthen an individual’s faith. In an article titled All in the Family? Jewish Intermarriage in America, Sarah Imhoff mentions Keren McGinity’s research on the history/ethnography of Jewish women who married Christian men in the United States. Imhoff says, “McGinity finds that some Jewish women during this period, unlike earlier periods, actually became ‘more Jewish’ after intermarrying, and defined on their own terms how they were Jewish and how they wanted to raise their children” (Imhoff). So as you can see, it could go either way. Something to keep in mind is that interfaith means different things to different sects within Judaism. According to Interfaithfamily.com, a website supporting interfaith couples exploring Jewish life and inclusive Jewish communities, the Orthodox and Conservative sects do not consider the children of Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers Jewish. However, the Reform sect considers children Jewish if they have one Jewish parent. In this instance, the only requirement would be that the child be raised with Jewish beliefs and practices. Secular Jews embrace more of the cultural aspects of Judaism and carry on a lot of the Jewish traditions within their