“Strengthen them, Oh Lord, And keep them from the strangers’ ways.”

My research into the Jewish immigration movement to the United States, focusing on the post 1881 period was enlightening. The most interesting facet of the Jews who moved to New York was the immense diversity of the immigrants. From the rich banker German Jacob Schiff to the Russian extremist communist Emma Goldman, the Jews population managed to be diverse yet held together by a rich cultural and religious traditions. Part of the Sabbath prayer is “Strengthen them, Oh Lord, And keep them from the strangers’ ways.” This is telling of the protective nature of the Jewish culture. No matter their differences in society or religious beliefs, the Jews were united in their feelings of alienation from society. The “strangers’ ways”  they feared, would have destroyed their identities.