Still, with ongoing anti-Semitism at heights unseen in ages, victimization and crisis are deeply ingrained within our national narrative. Too many seem to focus on reactively extinguishing fires rather than proactively sowing seeds and planting trees.

Having grown up in Sydney, Australia, where so many in the community are descendants of "survivors," the Holocaust has always been a core component of the community's Jewish identity. The Gen17 Australian Jewish Community Survey found that 95% of participants saw remembering the Holocaust as important to their personal Jewish identity, marking it as the highest factor. Similarly, the 2013 Pew Report revealed that a staggering 73% of U.S. Jews see remembering the Holocaust as essential to their sense of Jewishness, and there are many other studies that reflect the same global trend.

Threats to one's Jewish identity often provoke an instinctive reaction of protectiveness but just as the current generation feels less relevance to the destruction of the Temples or the Spanish Inquisition, this approach is becoming less effective as the distance from events such as the Holocaust widens as time marches on.

The establishment of the State of Israel has been coupled with significant general improvements for global Jewry, and many Jews have not been directly exposed to anti-Semitism and the powerfully emotional tribalism it can induce. Instead, as Jewish millennials are welcomed with open arms into Western societies, they have become increasingly disengaged from a heritage with which they struggle to relate.

Desperately attempting to re-establish these stirrings of Jewish pride, I have seen many Jewish educators double down on Jewish victimhood, limiting their educational impact by focusing on instilling a responsibility to lead Jewish lives purely because the victims of prior generations could not. To me, this underscores a lack of confidence in our ability to inspire positivity and pride.

When teaching Jewish history, the Holocaust must, of course, be given due attention, but it should not become an emotional crutch alone. The most effective Jewish teachers also focus on the incredible array of Jewish cultures and traditions that emerged over the last 2,000 years, helping young Jews realize that traditions have continued relevance and can be built upon in modern Jewish practice.

While this narrative continues to inspire a sense of Jewishness, it has generally not been strong enough to translate emotion into action in a consistent and pervasive way. As such, this negative narrative is becoming increasingly ineffective and yet crisis remains the dominant narrative for Israel as well.

The Israeli timeline, as taught and discussed, is often dotted with wars. The years 1948, 1967, and 1973 are, in the Jewish psyche, some of the most powerful dates in modern Jewish history and often synonymous with Israel, despite its many other achievements.

As we stand between Holocaust Remembrance Day, Memorial Day and Independence Day, three days that embody the complex duality of tragedy and triumph, we must consider how to shift this balance towards the positive. We must stand tall and say that we are proud to be Jews, not because of terrorism, violence in places like Pittsburgh of Poway, or Israel's enemies, but in spite of them.

One of my favorite scientific studies shows why this positive approach, in which Judaism's life-affirming, beneficial value becomes the standard, is more crucial now than ever before.

In the late 1960s, Stanford psychology professor Walter Mischel conducted a series of experiments on delayed gratification known as the Marshmallow Test. Mischel was trying to understand how age and cognitive development affect one's ability to delay gratification in order to receive a greater reward. Particularly fascinating for psychologists today are the follow-up studies, decades later, which found that childhood ability to delay gratification correlated with higher Scholastic Aptitude Test scores, professional success and better physical health.

Writing for Forbes, Justin Daab, president of Magnani Continuum Marketing, an experience, design and strategy firm in Chicago, challenges the notion that delayed gratification results in increased success in life, stating that "millennials are rationally maximizing their long-term value by sampling a bit of marshmallow today." As millennials grow up, they are witnessing the collapse of the long-term security once offered by traditional institutions, older generations losing their entire accumulated wealth, debts rising and job prospects and job security declining. As a result (whether consciously or not), they assign greater social value to experiences – memories that are guaranteed to last.

Hence, when sharing Judaism with young Jewish women and men, positive, transformative experiences are vital and, therefore, serve as a guiding principle of Mosaic United. As Daab explains, "for millennials, past performance is no guarantee of future performance."

Judaism, when lived fully, includes enriching, positive substance that can make a far more enduring impact on the individual than the declining sense of obligation to marry Jewish and the uninspired schlep to a synagogue on the High Holidays. On the other hand, exposure to the Shabbat experience, for example, can lead to an appreciation that supposedly disruptive restrictions can grant the freedom and headspace to value the truly important things in life.

Jewish teachings about charity and hospitality allow one to appreciate how an ancient moral compass can enhance quality of life for the most vulnerable members of modern society. And a deeper understanding of the vibrant, nuanced, multi-faceted reality of Israel can allow one to acknowledge its issues while seeing past its falsified reputation and appreciate the truth of its inclusivity and flourishing democracy.

A healthy Jewish communal body cannot thrive on a diet of tragedy alone. It cannot devolve into a skeleton devoid of bone marrow based on external threats, and instead must celebrate the inner beauty of Jewish life. To move from oy to joy, we need a paradigm shift in our pedagogy. The impetus for Jewish living must come from inside the Jewish world, being proactive rather than reactive. We must begin by truly believing that the Jewish story is worth telling and then reconsider how we tell that story.

After all, our children no longer want to hear how not to leave. They need to experience why they must stay.

The post From oy to joy: A Call for positivity in Jewish engagement appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

A Belgian parade float caused outrage for displaying giant caricatures of Jews sitting on bags of money. A wave of violent attacks against Jews in Brooklyn, New York raised a state-wide debate on punishment for hate crimes. Jews around the world gasped in disbelief when a mass grave of Holocaust victims in Ukraine was desecrated twice by gravediggers looking for gold amid the remains of the 2,500 Jews killed there. And the list goes on.

Anti-Semitism is a constant industrious specter with which Jews have grappled for generations. Though we've thrown our fair share of defensive punches, we have copped many more and never been able to neutralize this consistent threat to the Jewish way of life, as our predators recoup and sport a new veneer.

Throughout its dark past, anti-Semitism has worn numerous masks, ranging from religion to science, from business to politics. We have been victimized for being rich and poor, communist and capitalist, isolationists and assimilated. We were persecuted as a religion and as a race, for being a minority in the lands of others and now for being a majority in our homeland. These masquerades have usually concealed malicious intent, leading the world to believe that any violent incidents against the Jews were the work of an intolerant minority and that the Jewish nation as a whole were the recipients of justifiable condemnation.

Today, the 'new anti-Semitism,' an insidious incarnation of this age-old hatred, parades itself across college campuses in the form of anti-Zionism.  I write this from the United States, where Israel Apartheid Week gatherings dispute the right to Israel's very existence. As a child of those who left South Africa because of their disgust at real apartheid, I appreciate why those who were genuinely persecuted for the color of their skin feel such deep offense. Under the guise of benevolence and concern, the resurgence of this disease demonizes Jews of all colors and cultures.

In response, the more connected passionately defend this blatant injustice, with crisis breeding creativity. In contract, the majority that find themselves on the fence about Jewish engagement are overcome by fear, confusion and disillusionment. For many of them, this phenomenon represents another major threat to Jewish continuity, as it has pushed a significant segment of the next generation from apathy to disconnection.

One approach is to contest the efforts to delegitimize Israel's existence and defame any Jew who identifies with the right to self-determination. Another is to strengthen, deepen and broaden the base, providing the under-engaged with a reason to see themselves as an important part in standing for the truth and celebrating their heritage.  Both are essential.

Sharing the reality with people of influence is important but never enough. Strengthening Jewish identity and connections to Israel, though a long and complicated road, is absolutely critical in forging our future.

History, especially Jewish history, is known to repeat itself, so it comes as no surprise that the theme of the Purim story, which we read this week, is the demonizing and delegitimization of the Jews of ancient Persia. However, what makes this specific episode of Jewish history exceptional is its resolution: a total reversal of fortune orchestrated entirely by Esther and Mordechai, with seemingly little interference from Divine intervention.

Some commentators explain that God's name is purposely absent from the Book of Esther to highlight the importance of human participation in our own salvation. By harnessing the power of faith and the Jewish collective, Esther and Mordechai were able to lift the mask of an unseen enemy and bring about the most improbable of victories. This defeat against ostensibly insurmountable odds has occurred and will occur in every generation.

Empowered with the confidence and strength that comes from true Jewish rootedness, Jewish young women and men on the college campuses dotting the globe can stem the tides. When facing the 'new anti-Semitism' head on, victory lies in our ability to assuage doubt, fear, and disenchantment, and connect Jews of every age to the Jewish story.

And as Mordechai tells Esther, "If you remain silent at this time, relief and salvation will arise for the Jews from elsewhere." Anti-Semitism does not distinguish between the active and the assimilated, and the fanatical hatred we are witnessing today from the far Right and far Left is inescapable. But salvation always arises, and the question is who will be part of this process. When Esther realizes this, she sheds her passive attitude and transforms into one of the greatest heroines in Jewish history. She adopts a two-pronged approach of both arguing the case for truth and heeding the call to gather the Jews toward a unity of purpose and positive engagement.

This is our cue to double down on a mosaic of impactful Jewish initiatives and provide meaningful opportunities for the next generation to connect. We must unmask the potential threats and engage young people so that they remain rooted, resolute and proud. In this way, they will not only value our illustrious past but excitedly help us build a brighter future.

The post Esther's way: Unmasking 'new anti-Semitism' appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.