I have seen some folks struggling with the idea that Robby wears a Star of David and considers himself Jewish, but doesn't believe in God, has tattoos, and doesn't seem to have had any significant dating relationships with Jewish women.
For starters, there is Judaism, which is a religion, and there is Jewish culture. Jewishness is an ethno-religious identity. You can be Jewish in terms of your ethnic background, upbringing, and religious background, without ever going to synagogue or engaging in other Jewish religious practices.
The other thing to understand is that Jewish culture is thousands of years old, and there is a wide diversity in the ways religious Jews practice their religion. In the United States, there is a spectrum of religious adherence, represented by Hasidic (ultra-orthodox) Jews on the one hand (who strictly follow rabbinic laws and as a result live in tightly-knit communities somewhat separate from mainstream US society) and Reform and Humanist Jews on the other hand, who practice a progressive form of Judaism that prioritizes Jewish principles of culture and ethical practice over strict adherence to rabbinical law.
In my opinion, as someone roughly Robby's age who grew up Jewish but didn’t go to shul (synagogue) for years, Robby is what we would call a non-practicing Jew.
His Jewish culture, background and history are central to his identity (as it is to mine), but he struggles with his belief in God. I imagine that Robby went to Hebrew school and had a bar mitzvah (in my headcanon I can tell you what I think his Torah portion was), but he drifted from religious practice when he went off to college.
Sure, he has tattoos. Sure, he's had romantic relationships with women (and men, depending on your own headcanon) but few if any of them have been with fellow Jews. He doesn't keep a kosher home. He doesn't go to synagogue. But that Star of David means something to him, just like the chai pendant I wear means something to me.
Jewish people and Jewish culture are complicated. We aren't all one thing.
In my opinion, The Pitt does an amazing job of bringing that complexity to life.
gracieabrams
2087
romaincrisis
origamiaround
izzy806
tangentwithtanner
jimmyeatworldofficial
germansingergirl
