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ABSTRACT. Judaism can be understood as a "hidden diversity." This article introduces practitioners to the numerous ways through which Jews relate to, express, and find meaning in their Jewish identity. It informs therapists about the many differences that lie beneath Jewish clients' white or not-so-white skins, and provides guidelines for therapists interested in engaging those differences in treatment. It also discuses some of the ways in which Jews connect to their Judaism: through spiritual and religious practice; through traditions, holidays, and the observance of Jewish law; and through connections to their families, local communities, and to Jews throughout the world. doi: 10.1300/J497v77n02_06 [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: «[email protected]> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]
KEYWORDS. Judaism, Jewish identity, diversity
INTRODUCTION
Although many of Freud's ideas have been questioned and modified in recent decades, the effects of his psychodynamic teachings on clinical social work practice are powerful and long-standing. For many generations, Freud's beliefs that "religion is comparable to a childhood neurosis" (quoted in Gribetz, 1997, p. 24) and that "scientific work is the only road which can lead us to a reality outside ourselves" (Freud, 1989, p. 705) provided social workers with a "scientific" method for addressing psychological factors in human behavior. Often, however, psychoanalytically-oriented treatment excluded religious and spiritual principles. The faith and religious practices of clients were frequently understood as nothing more than representations of their internal object worlds (Northcut, 2000). As a result, many psychodynamic theories have been ambivalent, at best, about addressing spirituality in treatment, and some have been openly hostile when dealing with issues of religion and religious observance. Recently, a good deal of literature has begun to address the split between psychodynamic theory and religious beliefs (Bullis, 1996; Canda & Furman, 1999; Loewenberg, 1988; Nichols & Schwartz, 2001). Much ofthat literature emphasizes that clients' religious and spiritual beliefs should be viewed as a strength and a resource, to be utilized over the course of therapeutic work.
As Judaism is at once a religion, an ethnicity, and a culture, it presents unique challenges and possibilities in therapy. With the exception of overtly religious individuals, clinicians often think about their Jewish clients as...