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Jonathan Boyd

ByJonathan Boyd, Jonathan Boyd

Opinion

Are we really more selfish?

June 12, 2014 11:44
2 min read

Are British Jews becoming more materialistic and selfish? When Steven Lewis, Chairman of Jewish Care, suggested last week that they may be, it should have raised a red flag across the community. He works tirelessly to raise charitable funds and has clearly experienced dissonance between the wealth he sees and the willingness that exists to invest it in Jewish communal causes.

But is he right?

Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR) survey evidence indicates that British Jews are no less charitable today than they were a decade ago. Our recent National Jewish Community Survey (NJCS) found that approximately nine in ten Jews make at least one donation a year (to a Jewish or non-Jewish charity), a very similar proportion to that found in research JPR conducted in 2001-02.

However, whilst the overall proportion of Jews who give has remained largely steady, the actual number of givers - particularly those in their 30s, 40s and 50s - has declined. Why?