Jews and the American Religious Landscape

Uzi Rebhun is an associate professor of the demography of the Jewish people and holds the Shlomo Argov Chair in Israel-Diaspora Relations at the A. Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is also a senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute. His most recent works include American Israelis: Migration, Transnationalism, and Diasporic Identity (with L. Lev Ari, 2010), The Wandering Jew in America (2011), and edited volumes The Social Scientific Study of Jewry: Sources, Approaches, Debates (2014) and Research in Jewish Demography and Identity (with E. Lederhendler, 2015).

Rebhun has produced a pioneering study that provides an in-depth comparative analysis of the sociopolitical and religious patterns of America's Jews and is a major contribution to our understanding of the place of Jews in America's religious landscape. -- Chaim I. Waxman, Rutgers University and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, author of American Aliya: Portrait of an Innovative Migration Movement Jews and the American Religious Landscape is an ambitious study of American Judaism in relation to the other religious traditions currently developing within the United States. It identifies American Judaism in terms of social class composition, demographic dynamics, educational attainment, religious versus ethnic adherence, native-born versus immigrant composition, religious practices, and voter choice in U.S. presidential elections. Rebhun's effort is masterful, and readers will both enjoy the work and be enlightened by its unique ability to combine structural analysis with cultural analysis. This book will be regarded as a landmark study of religion and politics in the United States. -- Thomas A. Hirschl, Cornell University, coauthor or Chasing the American Dream: Understanding What Shapes Our Fortunes Uzi Rebhun's elegant comparative study of Jews and the American Religious Landscape deftly situates American Jews in multiple, overlapping contexts that yield fascinating results. Whether he is examining demography, religiosity, politics, or education, Rebhun's multivariate analysis disrupts accepted wisdom and points to the enormous value of comparison when trying to understand American Jews. -- Deborah Dash Moore, author of Urban Origins of American Jews Highly recommended. Choice

• Preface Introduction: Religion in America 1. Population Size and Dynamics 2. Spatial and Socioeconomic Stratification 3. Interfaith Marriage 4. Religious Identification 5. Political Orientation Epilogue: Jews and the American Religious Landscape Appendix A1. Religious Identificational Variables Used in Analysis Appendix A2. Loading of Questions on Religious Identification Factors: Principle Component Varimax Rotation Notes References Index