Anyone who has lived in Deal, New Jersey that does not practice the Jewish religion has likely been in awe at one point or another at the local and summer communities. This is a large Jewish community that is – by and large – very devoted to their faith and to the strengthening of their community as a whole. Many of us non-Jewish folks who live in town have become friendly with the locals (to some degree), but we all know that they treat us a little bit differently than they treat those who are members of their own faith – and we’re all pretty cool with that.
A few years ago, one of us non-Jewish folks found a book called Postville that shed a LOT of light on many of the business and religious traditions that we see everyday in Deal. Actually, the retired woman who found this book used to be one of my co-workers in an office that was owned by another Jewish guy who just fascinated by the locals. And, believe it or not, she directed me to a recent New York Times Magazine article about the community!
The folks over at the New York Times Magazine put together a GREAT article on the larger Syrian Jewish community that owns a good portion of town and operates between here and Brooklyn, NY. The article is a great look at some of the big players in the community and how the community views themselves in comparison to the rest of the Jewish religion.
This is really a great, educational article and I encourage everyone to take a read of it when you get a chance.
Leave a Reply