about lgbtq jews

Being Jewish can mean many things. From those who maintain strong cultural Jewish identities but rarely step foot in a synagogue to those who incorporate Jewish prayer and ritual into their daily lives. Contemporary Judaism encompasses a diverse spectrum of practices, politics, levels of observance, and organizational affiliations. This also seems to be the case for those that dual-identify as LGBT and Jewish.

Views and practices when it comes to pluralism, interfaith relationships, and Jewish identity are as diverse as those reflected in the larger Jewish community. However, among LGBT Jews, many of these issues can be amplified and can lead to marginalization from the Jewish community due to multiple barriers [i]. To help prove this theory a 2005 San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Community Federation Study[ii] stated that LGBT Jews were not only recognized as a significant portion of the Jewish community, but they were also noted as the least affluent, the most impacted by poverty, and in general, the most underserved by the organized Jewish community[iii].

For over four-years Lisa Finkelstein worked as a LGBTQ Jewish Community Organizer with the San Francisco Bay Area Jewish Community Federation’s seeking to promote the full integration of LGBT Jews into the Jewish community in ways that celebrated distinctions, rather than promote assimilation. Rather than seeking to narrowly define LGBT Jews on this blog the following pages provide information aimed at raising awareness of the particular needs, issues, and concerns of LGBT Jews.