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Kugel, Campfires, and the Key to Jewish Continuity
Children at summer camp. Photo: Foundation for Jewish Camp.
This summer, my young son went off to Jewish camp. No helicopter-parent texts. No screens. No antisemitic signs calling for harm, which have become ubiquitous in New York. Just a safe wooded campus, a pack of new friends, and — unexpectedly — pure joy.
He’s not thriving because of intense religious study or ideological indoctrination. He’s thriving because camp is fun, immersive, and unapologetically Jewish. An American flag waves beside an Israeli flag. Israeli counselors teach their culture and songs. Hebrew slips naturally into daily chatter. Shabbat and challah are not “programs,” but part of the week’s rhythm.
In an era when we wring our hands over Jewish continuity — declining synagogue membership, falling Hebrew school enrollment, soaring intermarriage — my son and nearly 190,000 other young people are living the solution.
The data is striking. The Foundation for Jewish Camp reports that attendance has not only rebounded from pandemic lows, but surpassed pre-2020 levels. Among overnight camp families, 96 percent say their child feels proud to be Jewish because of camp.
Ninety-two percent report camp had a “deep and positive impact” on their child’s Jewish identity. These are not marginal gains; they are the kinds of outcomes most Jewish institutions can only dream of.
Our mistake is treating Jewish continuity as a crisis to be solved through worry and guilt. We lecture eight-year-olds about antisemitism. We guilt teenagers over intermarriage rates. We turn heritage into homework. These issues matter, but they are the wrong entry point. Love of Judaism is not built in fear — it’s built in joy and through communal connectivity.
Watch a cabin full of kids debate whether their team name should be the “Maccabee Warriors” or the “Sabra Squad,” and you’ll understand what actually works. Identity doesn’t grow from lectures. It grows from belonging.
Jewish camps succeed because they create what sociologists call a thick culture: identity woven through daily practice, not reserved for holidays. Where else can a kid drop a Hebrew phrase into conversation and be instantly understood? Where else is keeping kosher a communal adventure rather than a burden?
And camp is not some ahistorical novelty — it is the modern heir to centuries of joy-centered Jewish environments. In the shtetl, the marketplace was as much a social hub as an economic one, filled with song, food, and ritual woven into daily life. On the kibbutz, Shabbat began not in a sanctuary but with communal meals, music, and dancing under the stars. Early American Jewish settlement houses mixed Hebrew songs with sewing classes, Yiddish theater with English lessons — places where Jewish life was lived, not lectured. And only a generation ago, Jewish camps were the norm and many visited historical Jewish social spaces like the Catskills.
This model doesn’t end when camp does. Across the country, Jewish cultural festivals are drawing crowds — many of them non-Jews. In Los Angeles, Siverlake’s Chabad’s Jewish Culture Festival draws thousands. In Buffalo, interfaith food festivals use shared meals to build bridges. In Poland, of all places, the TISH Jewish Food Festival drew 2,100 people in a single weekend.
At one street fair in New York, I saw a Korean-American family learning to braid challah while an older Jewish woman showed them photos of her grandmother’s recipe book. This wasn’t dialogue for dialogue’s sake — it was Jewish life made tangible, accessible, joyful.
Like camp, these public celebrations make Jewish visibility feel safe and celebrated at a time when many Jews hide their Star of David necklaces. A Hanukkah lighting in the town square or a kosher food truck rally quietly proclaims: We’re here, we’re proud, and we’re worth knowing.
The formula is simple. Developmental psychologists tell us that between ages 7 and 12, children form deep attachments to identity and tradition. They’re old enough to ask “why” but still young enough to feel wonder. Camps and festivals turn that window into a lifelong anchor, embedding Jewishness in their most formative memories.
Consider this: more than 3,000 Israeli counselors worked at American Jewish camps this past summer — an 11 percent increase over last year — building living bridges between Israeli and American Jewry. After a bruising year for Jewish life on campus, camps also saw a 25 percent surge in young adult staff. As one counselor told me, “Camp let me be a proud Jewish adult in a safe place where I didn’t feel alone.”
As Rabbi Nachman of Breslov taught, “It is a great mitzvah to be happy always.” Camps and festivals are not just feel-good activities — they are living embodiments of that mitzvah, proving that joy is not an indulgence but a sustaining force for Jewish life.
I’m not naïve. Summer camp can’t solve every challenge facing American Jewry. It won’t bridge every political divide over Israel or settle every tension between tradition and modernity.
But when my son comes home singing “Oseh Shalom” in three-part harmony, when he insists on challah French toast on Sundays, when he asks if we can build a Sukkah big enough for his friends — I see something more powerful than any policy memo.
I see a child who links Jewishness with friendship, not fear; with music, not misery; with community, not conflict.
At a moment when young Jews often feel alienated from traditional institutions, when campus discourse turns toxic, when even the definition of Jewishness feels contested — camps and cultural celebrations offer something radical: joy as resistance, fun as foundation, belonging as birthright.
We keep searching for the secret to Jewish continuity as if it’s locked in some ancient text or cutting-edge program. But maybe it’s been here all along — in the smoky sweetness of a campfire, in the off-key chorus of kids singing Havdalah, in the simple magic of finding your people and feeling, finally, at home.
That’s not just nostalgia. That’s strategy. And it might just be our future.
Samuel J. Abrams is a professor of politics at Sarah Lawrence College, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and a scholar with the Sutherland Institute.
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South Africa Distances Itself From Army Chief’s Pledges of Military, Political Support to Iran
Iranian Major General Amir Hatami and South African General Rudzani Maphwanya meet in Tehran to discuss strengthening military cooperation and strategic ties. Photo: Screenshot
South Africa’s army chief has faced domestic backlash after pledging military and political support to Iran during a recent visit, prompting government officials to distance themselves from his remarks over concerns they could harm Pretoria’s efforts to strengthen ties with the United States.
Members of South Africa’s governing coalition have denounced Gen. Rudzani Maphwanya, chief of the South African National Defense Force (SANDF), for his trip to Tehran earlier this week, describing his remarks as “reckless grandstanding.”
The Democratic Alliance (DA), South Africa’s second-largest party in the governing coalition, has called for Maphwanya to be court-martialed for breaking neutrality and violating military law, saying his comments had gone “beyond military-to-military discussions and entered the realm of foreign policy.”
“This reckless grandstanding comes at a time when South Africa’s relations with key democratic partners, especially the United States, are already under severe strain,” DA defense spokesperson Chris Hattingh said in a statement.
“The SANDF’s job is to lead and manage the defense forces, not to act as an unsanctioned political envoy. Allowing our most senior military officer to make partisan foreign policy pronouncements is strategically reckless, diplomatically irresponsible, and economically self-defeating,” he continued.
“South Africa cannot afford to have its international standing further sabotaged by political adventurism from the military’s top brass,” Hattingh said.
Iran and South Africa held high-level military talks earlier this week as both nations seek to deepen cooperation and strengthen their partnership against what officials called “global arrogance and aggressive colonial approaches.”
During a joint press conference with Iranian Maj. Gen. Amir Hatami, Maphwanya called for deeper ties between the two nations, especially in defense cooperation, affirming that “the Republic of South Africa and the Islamic Republic of Iran have common goals.”
“We always stand alongside the oppressed and defenseless people of the world,” the South African general said.
He also criticized Israel over the ongoing war in Gaza, expressed support for the Palestinian people, and told Iranian officials that his visit “conveys a political message” on behalf of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration.
However, shortly after Maphwanya’s remarks drew media attention, the South African government moved to distance itself from his comments, with the Foreign Affairs Ministry stating that his comments “do not represent the government’s official foreign policy stance.”
The Defense Department, which described Maphwanya’s comments as “unfortunate,” confirmed that he is now expected to meet with the Minister of Defense and Military Veterans, Angie Motshekga, upon his return to provide explanations.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, clarified that the president was neither aware of the trip nor had he sanctioned it.
“The visit was ill-advised and more so, the expectation is that the general should have been a lot more circumspect with the comments he makes,” Magwenya told reporters during a press conference on Thursday.
“It is crucial to clarify that the implementation of South Africa’s foreign policy is a function of the presidency,” he continued. “Any statements made by an individual, or a department other than those responsible for foreign policy, should not be misinterpreted as the official position of the South African government.”
Maphwanya’s trip to Iran came after the Middle East Africa Research Institute (MEARI) released a recent report detailing how South Africa’s deepening ties with Tehran have led the country to compromise its democratic foundations and constitutional principles by aligning itself with a regime internationally condemned for terrorism, repression, and human rights abuses.
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Democrat Pete Buttigieg Toughens Stance on Israel, Says He Backs Arms Embargo Following Left-Wing Pressure
Former US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaks during an appearance on the “Pod Save America” podcast on Aug. 10, 2025. Photo: Screenshot
Former US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, a Democrat considered by many observers to be a potential 2028 presidential candidate, has recalibrated his stance on Israel, moving from cautious language to a far more critical position after facing backlash over recent comments on the popular “Pod Save America” podcast.
In his podcast interview on Sunday, Buttigieg called Israel “a friend” and said the United States should “put your arm around” the country during difficult times. He also sidestepped a direct answer on whether the US should recognize a Palestinian state, describing the question as “profound” but offering little elaboration beyond calls for peace.
That measured approach drew sharp criticism from progressives and foreign policy voices who argued that his words were too vague amid the ongoing war in Gaza and a shifting sentiment within the Democratic party base regarding Israel. Evolving fault lines within the Democratic Party over US policy toward its staunch Middle Eastern ally signal that the issue could loom large in the 2028 presidential primary.
Following Sunday’s interview, US Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) urged Buttigieg to show “moral clarity,” while Ben Rhodes, former White House aide to President Barack Obama, said he was left uncertain where the Cabinet official stood. Social media critics accused Buttigieg of offering platitudes that dodged hard policy commitments.
In a follow-up interview with Politico published on Thursday, Buttigieg took a decidedly tougher line. He said he supports recognizing a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution and ending the decades-long practice of providing military aid to the Jewish state through sweeping, multi-year packages. Instead, he called for a case-by-case review of assistance, while emphasizing the need to stop civilian deaths, release hostages, and ensure unimpeded humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Perhaps most significantly, Buttigieg indicated support for a US arms embargo on Israel, saying he would have signed on to Sen. Bernie Sanders’s recently proposed resolution to prohibit arms sales to the Jewish state.
The shift places Buttigieg closer to the party’s progressive flank on foreign policy, a notable change for a figure often viewed as a bridge between the Democratic establishment and younger, more liberal voters. For a likely 2028 contender, the move reflects both the political risks of appearing out of step with an increasingly skeptical base and the growing influence of voices calling for sharper limits on US support for Israel.
Recent polling shows a generational divide on the issue, with younger Democrats far more likely to back conditioning aid to Israel and recognizing Palestinian statehood.
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Former Algemeiner Correspondent Gidon Ben-Zvi Dies at 51
Gidon Ben-Zvi. Photo: Screenshot
Gidon Ben-Zvi, former Jerusalem Correspondent for The Algemeiner, has died at the age of 51 after a fight with cancer.
Ben-Zvi continued to write op-eds for The Algemeiner even after he left as a correspondent, including in the aftermath of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel.
An accomplished writer, Ben-Zvi left Hollywood for Jerusalem in 2009, moving back to Israel after spending 12 years in the United States. From 1994-1997, Gidon served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in an infantry unit.
In addition to writing for The Algemeiner, Ben-Zvi contributed to the Times of Israel, Jerusalem Post, CiF Watch, and blogged at Jerusalem State of Mind.
Ben-Zvi joined HonestReporting as a senior editor in June 2020, becoming an integral part of the editorial department and writing dozens of articles and media critiques for the watchdog group exposing anti-Israel bias. He moved with his family to Haifa at the end of 2022.
Ben-Zvi’s final article for HonestReporting was published in January 2025, before he took a leave of absence for health reasons. HonestReporting said in a newly published obituary that staff believed he would eventually return, noting the positivity and perseverance he exuded. The advocacy group said it learned of Ben-Zvi’s passing late last month.
Ben-Zvi leaves behind his wife, Debbie, and four young children.
All Ben-Zvi’s articles for The Algemeiner can be found here.
May his memory be a blessing.