Section (2) of Ch. 3. (The Power of a Parent’s Blessing)

Why Do Jewish People Prosper ?

 

 Recently I came across a book called The Jewish Phenomenon by Steven Silbiger. 1 This book confirmed what I had suspected. Silbiger begins by saying his book “takes a positive position, that the Jewish people have been successful because of a combination of factors related to the Jewish religion and culture and a collective historical experience.” He then says there are things “everyone and any group can examine and learn from.” 2

Silbiger, who is Jewish, said his parents expected him to achieve economically and educationally, and he had numerous role models in his family, his community, the media, and cities around the world to reinforce that idea. Economic success was the norm in the Jewish community he grew up in. He writes:

 

Did I buy into a stereotype perpetuated out of ethnic pride, or was there a truth to it? Being critical by nature, I quickly uncovered some compelling facts that prove Jewish success is indeed a fact in America:

 

 The percentage of Jewish households with income greater than $ 50,000 is double that of non-Jews.

 On the other hand, the percentage of Jewish households with income less than $ 20,000 is half that of non-Jews.

 “The Jewish advantage in economic status persists to the present day; it remains higher than that of white Protestants 

     and Catholics, even among households of similar age, composition and location.

 Forty percent of the top of the Forbes 400 richest Americans are Jewish.

 One-third of American multimillionaires are tallied as Jewish.

 Twenty percent of professors at leading universities are Jewish.

 Forty percent of partners in the leading law firms in N.Y and Washington are Jewish.

 Thirty percent of American Nobel Prize winners in

science and 25 % of all American Nobel winners are Jewish. 3

 

footnotes

1. Steven Silbiger, The Jewish Phenomenon (Lanham, MD: M. Evans, 2009).

2. Idid., 2. 3. Ibid., 4.

 

 How could such a small percentage of the American population – only 2 % - account for such a large percentage of the educated, wealthy, and influential people in our society? Why would Christians, whom the Bible tells us in Romans 11 are grafted into covenant with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by the blood of Jesus Christ, not manifest at least the same or even better statistics than the Jewish people? This was baffling to me until the Lord gave me a deeper understanding of 3 John 2: “Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.”

 

 As I read this verse, I saw the key reason Jewish people prosper in their natural lives in ways many Christians do not. They follow customs and traditions (ancient paths) established by God that have caused the souls of their children to prosper. Many Christians are alive in their spirit and have spiritual traditions that cause the spirits of their children to prosper. However, according to the verse in 3 John, prosperity in life and health is dependent upon prosperity in the soul (mind, will, and emotions)

 

 While Christian families may create a culture that causes the spirits of their children to prosper, Jewish families tend to create a culture that causes the souls of their children to prosper. So as new covenant believers, why don’t we learn how to create family culture that prospers both the spirit and the soul of our children?

You may ask, “So what types of customs and traditions do Jewish people practice that tend to cause their souls to prosper?” I believe the answer lies in the custom we discussed in the previous chapter: the parent’s blessing. As we have already seen, all parents are prophets to their children, but not all prophecies are from God. I believe the souls of Jewish children tend to prosper not only because of the weekly Sabbath blessing of their parents but also because their culture naturally facilitates the blessing of children at several of the seven critical stages of life.

 

 Although the concept of blessing is clearly expressed in biblical Hebrew culture and we see remnants of it in modern Jewish culture, I don’t believe God intended for Jewish people to have a monopoly on blessing. I believe God intended for the lifestyle of blessing and the impartation of blessing at the seven critical times of life to function naturally in every family and culture on earth. These traditions of blessing did not originate with Jewish people but are ancient paths originating from God and intended for everyone everywhere.