From Evrei to Iudei: Turning or Returning to Faith?

Abstract

Since the collapse of state socialism, Ukraine has been exposed to dramatic transformations in its religious landscape. This article analyses the effects of religious revival among the Jewish population of Odessa. It considers different trajectories and motivations of turning to faith and various ways to come to terms with religious observance, as well as controversies that these practices imply. The article also deals with how the new religiosity affects family relations. The author argues that for the most part newly observing Jews look at Judaism as a new way of being Jewish rather than a return to their familial legacy. In general, the author characterizes post-Soviet religiosity in Odessa as “religious adherence” in the sense of a state of mind as well as a space for the formation of spiritual life. This “religious adherence” leads to a new direction in perception of Jewish identity without entailing “full” observance ” Religious adherence” thus may include full, partial, short or long-term dedication to Judaism, which is seen as either a complementary to the old worldview or a replacement of it.