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Community

Community!We talk about it, we complain about it, we are inspired by it, but today, in 21st century Jewish life,do we really understand it?Wikipedia tells us that there are two distinct definitions of community.The first is a biological term. A community being a group of interacting living organisms that share a populated environment. The second, is a group of interacting people, living in some proximity to one another usually through time, space or relationship. It usually refers to a social unit larger than a household that shares common values and has social cohesion. But community often runs deeper than these interactions. Community often fills a psychological need within human beings who have an innate desire to want to belong. This sense of belonging gives us comfort, and meaning through companionship and a sense of shared common purpose.

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Our world is changing

How it was then

To say somethingTo connect

How it is now

The world is changing in rapid ways.

And with it so too are notions of community.We live in a more diverse and more connected world than ever before.On one hand the world is flatter than ever with less distinctions and more globalization, and on the other hand we are paradoxically more tribal and often more parochial.In many ways we are more open, and in some ways we are more closedCommunities know no borders of time or space, and on the other hand people still love coming together.

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And so are our communitiesDiverse, yet more connected

Globalized, yet more tribalOpen, yet more closedBecause the way we communicate and connect is changing so fast, so is the way we belong.Communities know no borders of time or space, and on the other hand people still love coming together.

We live in a more diverse and more connected world than ever before.On one hand the world is flatter than ever with less distinctions and more globalization, and on the other hand we are paradoxically more tribal and often more parochial.In many ways we are more open, and in some ways we are more closed

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From membership to belonging

Community used to be: Physical space to conveneTransactionMembership

Community is now: Virtual and physical space to share ideas and valuesRelationshipsBelonging?

Community used to be about space, transaction, and affiliation Very bricks and mortar

There are different natures of belonging, affiliation, membership.People come together for particular purposes, and less so to come to a common space although many times they do both.They connect to communities through technology, but at its core technology is still often only a strategy or a tool and the essence of why people choose to belong and what they choose to belong to today might be the same as what they have always done, but also signify some major changes in the evolution of humankind.The Jewish community today reflects many of these changes.Whereas once we may have thought of Jewish community as a compilation of its Institutions, in Close geographical proximity, with Shared values, beliefs, practices, obvious Leadership/hierarchies, a Shared history and a common destiny the reality of 21st century Jewish life challenges many of these core assumptions. So, were left with the question, what do todays communities look like?

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So how are people belonging?

Are people not engaging and affiliating?They are, just differentlyOver the last few years I have begun to uncover one of the most startling paradoxes in Jewish communal life that many of the most committed and passionate young Jews appear as statistical zeros in Jewish communal surveys. How is it possible, I ask myself, that these dedicated individuals have come to be known as the unengaged or the unaffiliated?The answer is that they actually are unengaged and unaffiliated, but not from Jewish life. They are however not connecting to typical Jewish institutions and communities the ones that many of our surveys and demographic studies are most inclined to ask about.This should not be interpreted as young Jews not caring. As evidenced by the extraordinary number of young Jews involved in service projects, active in a variety of global causes, traveling to Israel etc these young Jews do care they just might not be showing it in traditional ways of connecting with the traditional Jewish community. Yet they are connecting with one another and forming very significant jewish communities in many different spheres.

There are now countless examples of young Jews around the world developing Skype relationships with one another, encouraged and often curricularized by their teachers. Jewish knowledge communities are forming through countless blogs, wikipsaces and list serves. Jewish ritual life is exponentially increasing in virtual worlds and live streamed services. Jewish popular culture is becoming increasingly pervasive as more and more young Jews participate not just in its consumption but in the production of thousands of viral videos and podcasts and their attached communities of commenters. And for a generation of young people often accused of being self-indulgent and narcissistic, their involvement in on-line causes through Facebook, Twitter and the like.

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Introducing the cloud

Its the virtual space, not bound by geography, where people and ideas can come together to create new connections, to make meaning and take action together to enrich their own lives and to better the world.The cloud is a term, popularized by Apple and others referring to this amorphous space where connections are made, new ideas are generated, and change is made. Its the virtual space, not bound by geography, where people and ideas can come together to create new connections, to make meaning and take action together to enrich their own lives and to better the world.The principles of action in the cloud include empowerment, collaboration, and transparency its an open environment in which people can cross boundaries to interact with others in ever-changing configurations

In numerical terms at least probably exceeds the number of Jews committed to the largest number of causes at any other time in history.In a Facebook age notions of community, belonging and affiliation mean something very different to when most Jewish communal institutions today were initially established. There now exists, alongside a community of bricks and mortar an emerging, yet robust community in the cloud.

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What happens when the bricks meet the cloud?

More often than not these values also appear in tandem with traditional institutions of bricks and mortar. So here we are today. This years Jewish Futures Conference will explore: what happens when the brick meets the cloud?

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Do you tweet?

#jewishfutures

9CloudySimon & GarfunkelSimon & GarfunkelParsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (Remastered)Singer/Songwriter1966-09-01T00:00:00Zbryfman@nyu.edu Originally Recorded 1966, Originally Released 1966, (P) 2001 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.2012-05-31 12:18:50SonyBMG:isrc:USSM166012592:256