As the Jewish Community Goes Gray, Synagogues Adapt To Serve Older Congregants

Baby boomers and seniors are a growing segment of the community, with specific needs for programming, rituals, and accessibility

By Adam Chandler for Tablet Magazine

The Jewish community in America is going gray—even more quickly than the rest of the country.

As baby boomers hit their 50s and 60s, the United States as a whole has gotten older, but Jews have seen an especially notable demographic shift. By the turn of the millennium, the median age of American Jews was 42—far older than the overall American median age of 35. In 2007, 18 percent of American Jews were 65 or older, compared to just 12 percent of all Americans. And thanks to factors like delayed parenting, a record-low birth rate, and the aging of baby boomers, Americans in general—and American Jews in particular—will see these trends continue for years to come.

As Jewish America gets older, synagogues have begun to adapt to serve their older members and attract new ones. The creation of age-specific social groups, senior-themed educational initiatives, and innovations to make both Jewish ritual and synagogues themselves more accessible for an older set constitute just some of the widening efforts to retain and attract an older demographic. Given the complexity and diversity of Jewish populations across the country, the changes are manifesting themselves differently in different places: Some focus on older congregants centers on boomers in their 50s or 60s, for instance, while others shuls are catering to seniors who are 65 and older. How specific communities across the country address their changing memberships may differ, but the broad contours of the shifts under way can be gleaned from looking at shuls that are reprioritizing their outreach efforts.

“Not only do our Jewish values ostensibly instill in us the importance of and responsibility for taking care of the aging in our midst,” said Rabbi Marion Lev-Cohen of Central Synagogue, a Reform congregation in New York, “it’s also an opportunity to enrich the life of the synagogue.”

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