One young émigré from the FSU proudly described his family’s adjustment to life in Germany.  His parents were able to find jobs and he was making progress in his studies.  Yet, he added, “Too bad this isn’t our country.”

The young man was one of some 500 young adults from Germany – the overwhelming majority émigrés from the FSU – who participated in birthright Israel, as well as in other educational programs, this year under the auspices of the Jewish Agency.  Although not all his peers share his family’s success, they have in common the quest to gain insight into their Jewish identity. There are always many more applicants than available places for birthright and a full range of Jewish Agency programs draw enthusiastic participation. 
 
For FSU émigrés living in Germany, Israel is the spark of their Jewish identity. They (or their parents) made a willful decision to leave the FSU, where their Jewish identity was defined by the anti-Semitism that excluded them.  Yet synagogue life and religious ritual are alien to their secular sensibilities. And they are immigrants in a society that does not have the tradition of a “melting pot” culture.

For all these reasons, a lively interest in Israel is a natural focus for FSU émigrés seeking to form a cultural and national identity.  Jewish Agency programs are thoughtfully designed to respond to that need. Young adults are an important core for these programs, which emphasize deepening a cultural and intellectual awareness of Israel and Jewish heritage, and are conducted in Russian.  This year, the Jewish Agency also expanded its outreach with a summer camp, which included sessions for both youth and students.

FSU émigrés are now the vast majority of Germany’s Jewish population, with their numbers many times larger than the long-standing community.  The rapid growth poses myriad challenges to Jewish leaders accustomed to providing services to their familiar and much smaller constituencies. The Jewish Agency works in close and careful cooperation with the Central Council of Jews in Germany (ZWST) and other community organizations.  For all the differences between the long-time Jewish dwellers in Germany and the newcomers, they share the complexity of being Jews in a country that they do not claim as their own. A deeper knowledge of their identity and heritage will be the basis for the way to cultivating a Jewish future for the community at large.