Engaging Jewish Leaders (2023)

In this tip sheet, you will discover foundational information to help you interact with Jewish leaders. It is part of a set of tools and training for FEMA to help disaster response professionals engage with faith communities. Much of the information also can help students, researchers, government agencies, non-profits and businesses learn about and develop relationships with communities. Click here for the PDF version of this tip sheet.

Religion Called: Judaism
Adherents Consider Themselves: Jewish and are called Jews
House of Worship: Synagogue (or Temple for many liberal congregations)
First Point of Contact: Temple or community center board of directors and/or Rabbi
Religious Leader: Rabbi
Spoken Direct Address:Use “Rabbi”
Physical Interaction: Avoid physical contact with Orthodox Jews of opposite gender

HOUSE OF WORSHIP

• Synagogue (Greek for “House of Assembly”), Shul (Yiddish), Beth Knesset (Hebrew), and Beth Midrash (Hebrew).
• Many Liberal Congregations use the term “Temple.” This term should not be used for Orthodox synagogues.

RELIGIOUS LEADERS

Ordained/Commissioned/Licensed Leaders

• Rabbi: Means “teacher.” Many Rabbis are employed by a synagogue’s congregation to lead worship and provide spiritualguidance. In Liberal Jewish Congregations, the Rabbi may be female.
• Rebbe: Spiritual leader of a Chasidic community who governs the entire community and junior Rabbis.
• Rosh Yeshiva: Title given to the dean of a Talmudic academy (Yeshiva or Mesivta).

Lay Leaders

• Synagogue Board of Directors: Hires Rabbis and governs/approves use of congregational resources.
• Rebbetzin: Wife of a rabbi, typically from the Orthodox or Chasidic congregations (Very influential in community).
• Jewish Day School Principal: Most senior teacher, leader and manager of a Jewish Day School.
• Jewish Community Center (JCC) Executive Director: Responsible for managing the general recreational, socialand fraternal needs of the local the Jewish community.

POINTS OF CONTACT

• Local: Synagogues via Rabbi and/or Executive Director/Board of Directors. Some Jews may not attendsynagogue but could be reached through a JCC. In Orthodox and Conservative Judaism, a Vaad is a council of localRabbis. In Chasidic Judaism, contact the Rebbe’s staff.
• Regional: The Jewish Federations of North America represents 153 Jewish Federations and 300+ networkcommunities. Jewish Community Relations Councils are the central coordinating/resource body for a region.
• National: Many synagogues are affiliated with one of the major movements which provide standards, vision,leadership, and programmatic support; while some are completely independent. Of the approximately 3,700 synagogues inthe U.S., 40 percent are Orthodox, 26 percent are Reform (largest movement in the U.S. by adherants) and 23 percentConservative. Chabad/Lubavitch-Chasidic congregations are the most widespread across the U.S. Synagogue Organizations: Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America (Modern Orthodox); Agudath Israel of America(Centrist); National Council of Young Israel (Orthodox); Chabad-Lubavitch (Chasidic); United Synagogue of ConservativeJudaism (Conservative); Union for Reform Judaism (Reform); Jewish Reconstructionist Communities (Reconstructionist).

NVOAD MEMBERSHIP AND CORE CAPABILITIES IN DISASTER

National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership based organization thatserves as the forum where organizations share knowledge and resources throughout the disaster cycle. FEMA DSA teammembers should check with their VAL to determine whether local or regional VOADs exist in their operational area.

• National VOAD members include: Jewish Disaster Response Corps, National Association of Jewish Chaplains (NAJC),NECHAMA – Jewish Response to Disaster
• The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) – umbrella organization which coordinates Jewish VoluntaryOrganizations Active in Disaster (JVOAD)

ETIQUETTE QUICK TIPS

Greeting
When introducing yourself to a religious leader, use formal religious titles unless instructed otherwise (e.g. Rabbi).

Physical Interaction
As a general rule, avoid initiating physical contact when meeting or greeting Orthodox religious leaders. Most Orthodox Jewsdo not exchange handshakes with or embrace people of the opposite gender, as a gesture of respect and modesty. Whengreeting a Jewish person of the opposite gender, one should wait until to see if they extend their hand to shake, rather thanfirst extending one’s own. In the Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist movements a handshake introduction would welcomed. When in doubt, ask before making assumptions or wait for the other person to initiate the greeting. Male disasterresponse personnel should also never be alone with an Orthodox woman (have other women present).

Other
Male visitors to a synagogue or religious home may be offered or choose to wear a skull cap (yarmulke or kippah), or whenvisiting religious homes, wear a hat or baseball cap. Ask before participating in worship services. Ushers can help withcustoms, dress, and etiquette. Jewish homes should not be visited on the Sabbath and the majorJewish Holidays. A Mezuzah on the right side of the front door is the simplest indicator that a Jewishfamily lives in the house.

GOVERNANCE / JUDICATORY

U.S. Judaism is non-hierarchical. There is no Chief Rabbi or in any city within the U.S.

MEETING LOGISTICS AND SCHEDULING

Scheduling and Holidays
Saturday is the Jewish Sabbath (Shabbat in Hebrew and Shabbos in Yiddish), the day of rest. Shabbat is observed from 18minutes before sunset on Friday evening until approximately 48 minutes after sundown on Saturday or after the last day of oneof the holidays listed below. Observance includes attending Services, visiting family and friends, refraining from a range of activities including: using electricity, driving, cooking, carrying objects outside of the home or community boundary ifestablished, showering, traveling, writing, working, and tearing objects. Disaster staff should avoid non-emergency meetingson Saturdays, but note that rabbinic law actually requires people to violate Shabbat to save human lives. Yom Kippur, RoshHashanah, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Passover, and Shavuot are holidays when business activities are prohibited and meetingsshould be avoided on these days.

Food
Orthodox and many Conservative Jews follow Kosher dietary rules in accordance with Halakha (Jewish law). Most Reform andReconstructionist Jews do not keep kosher but may choose to avoid eating pork products. Food that is acceptable meets thestandards of kashrut (kosher). In Kashrut, meat and dairy products are not served at the same meal. Kosher animals includecows, sheep, goats, chickens, turkeys, ducks and most fish. Reasons for food not being kosher include the presence ofingredients derived from non-kosher animals (pigs, horses, carnivores, shellfish, scavenger fish and birds, etc.) or of kosheranimals that were not slaughtered in the ritually proper manner. Other reasons include mixing meat and milk, producing wineor grape juice (or their derivatives) without rabbinic supervision, or cooking with non-Kosher cooking utensils/machinery. Orthodox Jews and many Conservative Jews will only eat food that has been certified by a Nationally recognized KosherCertification Organization. The four nationally recognized Hechsher (Kosher approval) symbols are:

Logistics
Respecting the Sabbath, major Jewish holidays, and keeping the congregation facilities kosher are the most important thingsto keep in mind when asking for congregation assistance. Bringing Kosher food into a Synagogue must be closely coordinatedwith the Congregation’s Rabbi. All Kosher food offered must be certified and have an approved Hechsher label on every item.

The capacity to provide disaster assistance (e.g. shelter and/or meals) to displaced people is directly dependent on theresources of each individual congregation; some may have the infrastructure and financial means and some do not. Somelarger congregations will also have dining halls or classrooms that can be used as shelters during a disaster; it is be wise toask for these spaces first instead of sanctuary space.

DRESS

In post-disaster settings, some Jews may or may not immediately choose to self-identify. Orthodox Males will wear a Kippah orYarmulke (skullcap) and may be wearing a black hat, baseball cap or some other form of headgear. Most Orthodox males willwear tzitzit (fringes) which may be hanging out of their shirts or they may be tucked into their shirts. Married Orthodox femalesmay be wearing a wig (Sheitel) or other head covering over their hair. Some may wear loose fitting clothing, long skirts andlong sleeves that go past the elbow. Orthodox men and women dress modestly as a sign of respect.

ABOUT JUDAISM

Judaism is the first and oldest monotheistic religion. Its origins date back approximately 3,500 years. There are anestimated 13 million Jews living in the world today. Approximately 42% of Jews live in the United States.There are two basic divisions within Judaism: Ashkehnazic (Descendants of Jews from France, Germany and EasternEurope) and Sephardic (Descendants of Jews from Spain, Portugal, North Africa and the Middle East). Ashkenazi Jewscan be further classified further into Orthodox Judaism and into Liberal Judaism. In North America, the four main branches of Judaism are Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist:

• Orthodox Judaism maintains that the Torah and Jewish law are divine in origin, eternal, unalterable, and be strictlyfollowed. The Orthodox movements are all very similar in belief but may differ in customs and prayer liturgy.
• Reform Judaism (largest of the four) subjects religious law and customs to human judgment, attempting to differentiatebetween the facets of the Torah that are divine mandate and those that are specific to the time in which they were written.
• Conservative Judaism developed mainly in the 20th century and sought to conserve tradition by applying new,historical methods of study within the boundaries of Jewish law to mainstream American society.
• Reconstructionist is the newest denomination within Judaism. It rejects the assertion that the Torah was given toMoses at Mount Sinai and views Judaism as a continual process of evolution, incorporating the inherited Jewishbeliefs and traditions with the needs of the modern world.

Click here for the PDF version of this tip sheet.

The Engaging Faith Communities tip sheets were created through a collaboration between the DHS Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture, USC CREATE and the National Disaster Interfaiths Network. For further training, please see EMI course IS-505, which was also developed by this partnership.