Why Are Jews Successful? - Color Illustrations Edition

Author: Yutaro Teshima
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-10-01
Features: Let God question, and question oneself—Jewish proverb
Jews have endured at least two thousand years of suffering in history. Though scattered across the world, they remain united as a nation and strive to maintain this sense of identity. So, what kind of people are Jews? In fact, even among Jews, it is a difficult question to answer what defines a Jewish group. A simple definition is: if both parents are Jewish, their descendants are Jews. In Hebrew, Jews are called Yebudi, and in English, they are called Jews, but you cannot determine from this whether there is any religious connotation. This definition gives the impression of saying "the child of a Japanese is Japanese." However, if Japanese people live abroad for three or four generations, will they still maintain the consciousness of identifying as Japanese? I have serious doubts about this. Japanese Americans in the second or third generation may still be aware of their Japanese heritage, but in their cultural and social lives, they often tend to identify as Americans. Additionally, even if a third-generation Japanese American consciously identifies as Japanese, they may not necessarily be accepted as true Japanese by most Japanese people, because their cultural and lifestyle habits, formed in the United States, may not be recognized by most Japanese. This situation exists. Jews, however, are different—they transcend environmental differences. First, the consciousness of being a Jew becomes a bond that connects them. With this consciousness, even a Jew who identifies as Japanese can be seamlessly accepted into Jewish society. Take the late Dr. Kiyonori Kojima and the active Rabbi family in Florida to this day—they are excellent examples. However, to be a Jew, one must support the Jewish people as a whole. There is no denying that this is a fundamental requirement that must be upheld. In other words, it is necessary to confirm whether someone regards the four thousand years of Jewish tradition as the guiding principle of their life. In this sense, a Jew is a Jew. There are other groups scattered overseas who maintain their ethnic characteristics and possess this consciousness, such as the Chinese overseas Chinese. They do not integrate into local customs and culture but instead adhere to their traditions and original way of life. Overseas Chinese avoid intermarriage with locals and choose spouses only within their own community to preserve the purity of their bloodline. In their daily social lives and business dealings, they follow local customs and use the local language. Once they return home, they speak Chinese, eat Chinese food, and obey the authority of their elders, living completely within Chinese traditions and values. The lives of Jews in exile are very similar to this. The only difference is that Jews do not necessarily speak their mother tongue at home. For example, Spanish Jews speak Ladino (a mix of medieval Spanish and Hebrew) at home. However, most still speak local languages, such as Arabic, Italian, English, and French.