As a Jew and a political scientist, what intrigued me about the ill-fated presidential run of Senator Joseph Lieberman was not the question of whether he would make it to the White House, but rather how his candidacy forced American Jews to face their spiritual selves.
Based on a steady media focus, Jews and political junkies of all persuasions were reminded about a couple of the more colorful aspects of this otherwise dull Democratic presidential campaign — Joe Lieberman’s Sabbath observance and kosher eating.
The anomaly of this Orthodox Jew’s presidential quest was no less striking than the conflicted social landscape of American Jewry which spawned him. Given this country’s openness and meritocracy, Jews have risen to heights and felt a sense of cultural belonging unprecedented in their history. But precisely because of such comfort levels, Jews who sensed no need to hold on to Joe Lieberman’s Judaism were intermarrying and assimilating at record rates. As a result, the American Jewish population was no longer growing and probably in a state of decline.
In what spirit did America’s Jews relate to Mr. Lieberman’s devotion to Orthodoxy – a devotion, according to various studies, shared by no more than ten percent of his co-religionists? (To make his religious observance seem less forbidding, the Connecticut senator labeled himself “observant” rather than Orthodox.)
Much inner searching about values is underway in our nation, as highlighted by the moral dimension in the debate over going to war with Saddam and the subsequent military occupation. Thoughtful but disillusioned Jews were looking for refreshing alternatives to an admittedly cynical and materialistic culture. In that context, does it take much imagination to guess that Senator Lieberman’s piety confronted other Jews, at least on some level, with challenges, curiosity and, perhaps, doubts about their basic life choices?
The Jew most removed from Senator Lieberman’s devoutness was the secular, acculturated type, proudly non-observant and most likely intermarried, who perceived a disconnect between his pursuit of the American Dream and a commitment to the traditions and suffering of the Chosen People. Joe Lieberman’s refusal to turn on a light on Saturday? A clear throwback to the superstitions of this man’s black-hatted European grandfather.
Yet given the media play about Mr. Lieberman’s Orthodoxy, is it far-fetched to imagine this non-practicing Jew’s Christian wife admiringly making mention over dinner one night of the senator’s independence of mind and courageous sense of spirituality? Or his teenage child asking innocently about kosher food laws? After all, someone as cultivated and as respected as Joe Lieberman cannot be dismissed as some sort of fanatic or relic of antiquity.
The Jew committed to moderate religious observance was the one most likely to have been impacted by the senator’s candidacy. Though this Democratic politician did not double as a religious outreach professional, his example was certain to have motivated the middling Jew to more serious commitment. This type of Jew, already believing in his faith’s main tenets, will study more, observe more and affiliate with his people more based on Joe Lieberman’s positive role model.
Ironically, the constituency on which Mr. Lieberman held the least sway was his fellow Orthodox Jews. While at first proud of the senator’s vice presidential nomination in 2000, many held him to high religious standards as that campaign wore on – so much so that a spokesman for Agudath Israel reminded Jews that Joe Lieberman was running for vice president, nor chief rabbi.
Whether or not Joe Lieberman’s Orthodoxy would have translated into Jewish votes this year is another topic. Some Jews worried about the dangers of a Jew in the White House. Others agree with Ariel Sharon that no American president has been a greater friend of Israel than George W. Bush.
For me, the main story about Joe Lieberman’s historic candidacy had nothing to do with whether he got nominated or elected. By forcing Jews of all persuasions (true bipartisanship) to come to terms with their spirituality, he fulfilled his assignment in this world. In the race of life, Joe Lieberman won the vote of the true Commander in Chief.
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