Jewish atheism refers to the atheism of people who are ethnically and (at least to some extent) culturally Jewish. Contrary to popular belief, the term "Jewish atheism" is not a contradiction because Jewish identity encompasses not only religious components, but also ethnic and cultural ones. Jewish law's emphasis on descent through the mother means that even religiously conservative Orthodox Jewish authorities would accept an atheist born to a Jewish mother as fully Jewish.[1]
Jewish secularism, which describes Jews who do not explicitly reject the existence of God but also do not believe it is an important part of their Jewishness, has a long tradition in the United States.[2] A 2013 study conducted by the Pew Research Center found that 62% of self-described American Jews say being Jewish is mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while just 15% say it is mainly a matter of religion. Even among Jews by religion, 55% say being Jewish is mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while 66% say it is not necessary to believe in God to be Jewish.[3]
^"What Makes a Jew "Jewish"?". Chabad.org. Retrieved December 22, 2018.
^Not in the Heavens: The Tradition of Jewish Secular Thought. David Biale. Princeton University Press, 2015, p. xii.
^"A Portrait of Jewish Americans". Pew Research Center. October 1, 2013.
Jewishatheism refers to the atheism of people who are ethnically and (at least to some extent) culturally Jewish. Contrary to popular belief, the term...
category in Israel Humanistic Judaism Peretz Centre for Secular Jewish Culture Jewish schisms Jewishatheism Labour Zionism Hashomer Hatzair Reconstructionist Judaism...
Jewish Christians were the followers of a Jewish religious sect that emerged in Judea during the late Second Temple period (first century AD). These Jews...
the argument that atheism is a religion has been described as a contradiction in terms. Jewishatheism usually refers to the atheism of people who are...
Christian atheism embraces the teachings, narratives, symbols, practices, or communities associated with Christianity without accepting the literal existence...
the "connected" Jewish population, including those who say they are partly Jewish or that have Jewish backgrounds from at least one Jewish parent, and rises...
The Jewish question, also referred to as the Jewish problem, was a wide-ranging debate in 19th- and 20th-century Europe that pertained to the appropriate...
Heresy in Judaism JewishatheismJewish Buddhists Lists of Jews Lists of atheists Jewish culture What Makes a Jew "Jewish"? – Jewish Identity Winston,...
"Prophets", literally "spokespersons") The last Jewish prophet is believed to have been Malachi. In Jewish tradition it is believed that the period of prophecy...
Jewish history is the history of the Jews, their nation, religion, and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions, and cultures...
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities...
(Hebrew: יְהוּדִים, ISO 259-2: Yehudim, Israeli pronunciation: [jehuˈdim]) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation[excessive citations] originating...
Gentile (/ˈdʒɛntaɪl/) is a word that today usually means someone who is not Jewish. Other groups that claim Israelite heritage, notably Mormons, have historically...
The Jewish diaspora (Hebrew: תְּפוּצָה, romanized: təfūṣā) or exile (Hebrew: גָּלוּת gālūṯ; Yiddish: golus) is the dispersion of Israelites or Jews out...
etc. Jewishatheism List of Jewish atheists and agnostics Hiloni, "secular", a social category in Israel designating nonobservant Jews Jewish secularism...
A homeland for the Jewish people is an idea rooted in Jewish history, religion, and culture. The Jewish aspiration to return to Zion, generally associated...
Jewish languages are the various languages and dialects that developed in Jewish communities in the diaspora. The original Jewish language is Hebrew,...
with a Jewish identity and their descendants, including ethnic Jews and religious Jews alike. Approximately 99% of the global Israeli Jewish population...
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Jewish emancipation was the process in various nations in Europe of eliminating Jewish disabilities, e.g. Jewish quotas, to which European Jews were then...
Jewish culture is the culture of the Jewish people, from its formation in ancient times until the current age. Judaism itself is not simply a faith-based...
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Jewish ethnic divisions refer to many distinctive communities within the world's Jewish population. Although considered a self-identifying ethnicity,...
ever since. Orthodox Judaism, therefore, advocates a strict observance of Jewish law, or halakha, which is supposed to be exclusively interpreted and determined...
the existence of God. Accurate demographics of atheism are difficult to obtain since conceptions of atheism and self-identification are context dependent...
Islam History of Jewish conversion to Christianity Heresy in Judaism Humanistic Judaism JewishatheismJewish Buddhist Jewish schisms Jewish secularism List...
Judah triggered a mass Jewish exodus from Judea in the Land of Israel. Over time and through successive exiles, the local Jewish tribes, who were concentrated...
American Jews or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted...
Empire by the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great (538 BCE), many of the Jewish exiles returned to Jerusalem, building the Second Temple. In 332 BCE the...