“Just Follow the Magic”: Lived Religion and Ritual Holy Time among Israeli Jews in UK

"In this lecture, I examine how Israeli Jews living in Britain experience holy time, focusing on Shabbat, Jewish holidays, and local celebrations such as Halloween and Christmas. Drawing on ethnographic research based on interviews and observations in Cambridge and London, the findings show that cultural distance and a sense of temporariness enable the selective adoption of Jewish mitzvot alongside openness to local ritual practices. Participants with flexible religious identities, particularly those identifying as secular or traditional, actively choose rituals they find meaningful and enjoyable, ranging from Hanukkah and Purim to trick or treating, Christmas decorations, and carol singing. At the same time, some halakhic practices common in Israel, such as regular Kiddush or aspects of Yom Kippur and Passover observance, are less consistently maintained. Based on these findings, I propose a framework emphasizing the production, adaptation, and importation of religious practices among minority communities in the diaspora. This framework challenges ethnically bounded theories of celebration and sacred time and expands our understanding of lived religion. The analysis highlights how pleasure, curiosity, and a sense of wonder, alongside child and family centered logics, shape ritual participation and contribute to the reconfiguration of ethnic and religious boundaries in everyday life."

Stav Shufan-Biton is a sociologist and currently a Postdoctoral Fellow and Visiting Research Fellow in the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Cambridge. Her research interests focus on the sociology of religion, the sociology of time, and Israeli society. Her doctoral dissertation examined understandings of the weekend among Jews in Israel and resulted in several peer reviewed publications, which are available online. She currently research experiences of sacred time among religious minorities, including Jews and other groups, across the UK, with the support of Bar Ilan University and the Argov Center for the Study of Israel and the Jewish People.