What is a "Jewish atheist"?

[JackVk]

A few weeks ago, I was in an abortion debate here at CAF and someone brought up pro-life atheists. I looked one of them up (I can’t remember his name), but he claimed to be a “Jewish atheist”. My mom also went to grad school a couple years ago, and her ethics professor claimed to be the same thing.

How can you be a “Jewish atheist”? To me, that seems like the same thing as a Christian atheist or a Muslim atheist; an oxymoron. If someone knows, please enlighten me.

 

[nsper7]

A few weeks ago, I was in an abortion debate here at CAF and someone brought up pro-life atheists. I looked one of them up (I can’t remember his name), but he claimed to be a “Jewish atheist”. My mom also went to grad school a couple years ago, and her ethics professor claimed to be the same thing.

How can you be a “Jewish atheist”? To me, that seems like the same thing as a Christian atheist or a Muslim atheist; an oxymoron. If someone knows, please enlighten me.

I assume what they mean is that they have a fondness for Jewish culture and maybe certain rituals/holidays, but they do not actually believe in the tenets of Judaism (esp. One God revealed through the Hebrew Bible and Oral Torah). Still, the best way to find the answer to this question is to ask the individual who made this claim.

 

[smithm29]

If you’re culturally and ethnically Jewish but do not believe in God, you are a Jewish atheist.

“Being Jewish” is more than having a faith/religion/belief system.

 

[kimmielittle]

Maybe, they are referring themselves to Jewish ancestry, not the Jewish Religious.

 

[scottywolf777]

If you’re culturally and ethnically Jewish but do not believe in God, you are a Jewish atheist.

“Being Jewish” is more than having a faith/religion/belief system.

Actually I have a friend (who is not jewish but an atheist) who talks about the atheist “gene” that seems to be common in certain jewish circles. I had a psychology professor in college that seemed to become religious only around Jewish holidays which he would circle on the calender to get those days off. Ironically, you wouldn’t find him in temple but “Praying(?)” on the golf course. Oy vey!

 

[sojo]

Just as Catholics believe in Apostolic succession, Jews believe that there is a direct blood succession from Abraham. You are genetically in line with one of the original Hebrew tribes and thus Jewish. You might not believe in God, however, which makes you an atheist.

I am an adult convert. I was a non-practicing Jew before and now I’m a Jewish Catholic. You can’t take the “Jew” out of me - it runs through my veins. Jesus is/was a Jew, and I come from the same stock as He (how totally and completely cool is that? It is of no importance, really, in the great scheme of things, but its still cool).

Being Jewish is not just a “choice” religion like most others. It is definitely ethnically based as originally set forth by God.

 

[HauntedJame]

A few weeks ago, I was in an abortion debate here at CAF and someone brought up pro-life atheists. I looked one of them up (I can’t remember his name), but he claimed to be a “Jewish atheist”. My mom also went to grad school a couple years ago, and her ethics professor claimed to be the same thing.

How can you be a “Jewish atheist”? To me, that seems like the same thing as a Christian atheist or a Muslim atheist; an oxymoron. If someone knows, please enlighten me.

I had a lecturer who was a Jewish Atheist…basically means his family are Jewish, but he doesn’t believe in God. Because of the importance of ancestory in Jewish culture, it is far more than a religion, it is an entire race of people. So you can still be Jewish, in blood, without having the beliefs. As a result, your kids might not be Jewish if you are a male and marry a non-Jewish person, as they say it is passed down from women.

I read somewhere that the actor Jason Isaacs is a Jewish atheist. I might be very much mistaken though!

 

[sojo]

Here’s something interesting about Judaism and atheism. It has always been a “thing” for a few reasons:

1. In Judaism, there is a culture of tolerant religious education. The young boys, after bar mitzvah, are encouraged to join the older men in debating the Torah and the Law. Open dispute, debate, questioning and doubting are encouraged in this setting. Judaism is not a “faith alone” religion. So where open questioning and debate is encouraged, there are bound to be more folks eventually doubting the whole “God thing.” However, those whose faith “sticks” are more likely to be devout to an extreme that allows the faith to survive such awful events as pogroms and holocausts.
2. The history of the Jewish people is one of multiple instances of slavery, pogroms, holocausts, discrimination, and banishment. WWII is our most recent example where many devout Jews (not all, but the exact count is unknown) deciding there is no God because no merciful God would allow it to happen. My own father was a devout Catholic before I was born, but he returned from WWII a devout Atheist.
3. The Jewish faith has always, ALWAYS emphasized education, including secular education. It is a BIG part of their culture. Alas, the higher educational system in the USA is not very pro-God by any means. So millions of Jews plan for their kids’ education at birth, saving and scrimping and emphasizing scholastics, and camping out in teacher conferences to assure their kids are doing well, and then they send their kids to anti-religion Universities and Colleges to obvious results.

Hope this offers some insight!