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A number of crucial turning points in recent history have necessitated new approaches in sociological thought. The relevance of unpredictable events has led to the blurring of antinomies and the need for the reconceptualization of basic sociological categories. The new theoretical developments are pointing clearly to the importance of ontological explanations and a broader scientific understanding of the changing postmodern social life.

Department of Sociology and Sociological Institute for Community Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Israel International Journal of Comparative Sociology Vol.34 (1993) pp.210-221 A number of crucial turning points in recent history have [...]

The article focuses on the concept of edah, the Jewish community in Israel. It is stressed that notwithstanding modernization and processes of nation building in Israel, inequalities between immigrants of different countries of origin remain. The division between Arabs and Jews is an ethnic division. The difficulty is about the exact meaning of the concept of edah. Edah is synonymous with ethnic group, the main justification being the existence of a dominant culture in Israel which is clearly linked with the dominant European section of the Jewish population, in contradistinction to the Oriental Jewish culture and the subordinate Jewish groups originating in North African and Middle Eastern countries. The more recent communal life and history, language and culture, emanating from the immediate countries of origin point to some primordial bonds superimposed on the deeper layers which are significant and operate to differentiate between the various Jewish groups. On this view, the edah is a sub-cultural entity with certain traditional community characteristics.

This is article presents a case study of Yeshiva High School graduates in Israel focusing on varsities of orthodox religious behavior. In traditional Jewish society, as in most other traditional societies, religious thought, action, and institutions were of supreme importance, both structurally and substantively. Generally, in any case of tension between sacred and secular elements, religious values and institutions were the dominant and decisive factors, since they were seen in traditional Jewish life as the sole source of social legitimation. The central position of religion gradually led to the crystallization of a more or less homogeneous set of behavioral norms in the area of religious observance and the establishment of a stable pattern of religious standards and strictures, at least within specific geographic regions. The development of modern society, and the strength of the processes of social change within it, brought about a radical decline in the status of religious values, and concomitantly shattered the consensus in the area of religious behavior.

A sociological assessment of the role of religion in maintaining Jewish identification in the contemporary period requires an awareness of the conceptual difficulties and analytical complexities involved in such an assessment. The adage that 'whilst the Jew has not kept his religion, his religion has preserved him' has a clear ring of inconsistency, yet it helps to focus on the role that the religion of the Jew has had in distinguishing him from his Gentile neighbours and leads directly to the question: in what way and to what extent does the Jewish religion continue to be a vehicle for the identification of the Jew in the modern world? It has been noted with regard to works on the sociology of religion that the author's definition is crucial to his intentions, for it decides what will be included and excluded and how the field is to be analysed. The veracity of this observation will become obvious to anyone considering the general problem of defining religion, and also when authors turn to consider what they mean by 'the Jewish religion'.

This article examines the role of secularization in the decline of religion as a major aspect of modern society in Great Britain. It seems that an underlying premise in most studies is that secular trends have been firmly established in the post Industrial Revolution era and that this is the context in which the role and strength of religion must be considered in contemporary Britain. Industrialization, and in particular the attendant phenomena of urbanization and mobility have been regarded as the chief factors causing religious attrition. Where residual elements of religion still persist as in the case of church marriages and baptisms, the explanation for their persistence is given in terms of the useful function that religion performs as in the case of the marriage ceremony, or in terms of prevailing superstitious beliefs as in the case of baptism. But it is argued that on the whole the influence of religion has declined, for it is unable to compete successfully with other institutions of modern society.

Data presented here from the Edgware survey concern the occupational and industrial distribution and the stratification and social mobility of Jews in the district. They are systematically analysed and compared with relevant information concerning the general population and other Jewish communities. Another important point to be considered is the extent to which Jews in Edgware work on their own account. Several categories are here embraced, namely, employers with large or small numbers of employees, professional men with possibly a few employees, and workers who work alone on their own account. Many Jews strive to work on their own account either because they think they have been discriminated against by employers, or because they fear that such discrimination might occur when applying for a job or when seeking promotion.

This article presents information on Jewish identity. This article reports a social survey of Jews carried out in the London suburb of Edgware. The analysis of religious behavior according to place of birth indicated that those born in western Europe are much less observant than Jews who were born in eastern Europe. However, respondents born in the East End of London displayed a higher degree of religious observance in some spheres than even the eastern European-born respondents. From this point of view the old East End must be regarded as some kind of extension of the Jewish eastern European way of life. The results of the Edgware survey, some of which have been presented in this article, indicate on the whole that Jewish identification through Judaism is undergoing a weakening process. Since the synagogue is the central religious institution, it plays a crucial role in the religious identification of the individual. Evidence on American Jewish communities and also on Jews in Great Britain generally indicates that identification with the Jewish minority persists despite the decline in religious traditions.

The article reports on the demographic results of a survey carried out in 1963 amongst Jews in Edgware. In order to gain a clearer idea of demographic trends among Edgware Jews, the results are compared with data about the general population of Great Britain and of Edgware in particular, as well as with such information as were available in this field for Jews in Britain, the United States and other parts of the world. The main determinants of the size of a population and variations in it are birth rates, death rates and migration. Birth rates depend on a number of factors, namely, the age and sex composition, marital status, age at first marriage and fertility trends, including the use of birth control. Death rates depend on the age composition of the population as well as on other factors, such as the standard of living and medical care. Migrations affect the size of the population through the net loss or gain resulting from the inflow and outflow of population. The sample survey shows that 38 per cent of the households are Jewish.

This article focuses on the occupation and social advancement in Anglo-Jewry. The large percentage of Jews who work on their own account is a phenomenon which at least partly is a product of circumstances, such as the obstacles the Jewish immigrant often encountered in his efforts to obtain employment, or his religious requirements. These factors have, however, largely disappeared, for today's standard of religiosity of the majority of Jews in this country is not such as to prevent them from entering any occupation. Turning to the Jewish role in the business and manufacturing world, one find that concentration in certain spheres still exists. Concentration must not be regarded, however, as being synonymous with domination. If one take finance, for example, while Jewish participation in merchant banking is still important, Jews can hardly be found in commercial banking. Again, Jewish take over financiers are active mainly in the fields of the manufacture and distribution of consumer goods, and in the field of property. It is generally recognized that Jewish participation in heavy industry is rather insignificant. Moreover, even in the manufacture of consumer goods, only certain lines, such as clothing, are to a large extent in Jewish hands, while in such other fields as electrical goods, confectionery, not to mention for example the motor-car industry, Jews are of little importance.

The article presents a discussion on Leeds Jewish community. The Leeds Jewish community is typically the product of the persecution of Russian Jewry in the latter half of the nineteenth century. By the beginning of the present century some 10,000 Jews had settled in Leeds, and these immigrants gave rise to the third largest Jewish community in Britain, which at present numbers about 20,000 people. The organizational field into the following sectors: religious, cultural, zionist, political, economic, and charitable. In 1959 the number of affiliated organizations was 113 with some 320 delegates. Comparative figures for 1949 were 80 organizations with some 240 delegates. Jewish public representatives, e.g. Members of Parliament representing Leeds constituencies, Aldermen and Councilors, Magistrates, Members of the Board of Deputies and heads of major institutions, are all ex officio members of the Council. The Council has been constantly trying to convince organizations and their leaders of the importance of its work. In fact it considers the duty of all to support and extend its activities. There is no doubt that during the last few years the Council has gained in status, and that the interest shown towards it has increased.