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Rising Frum Divorce Rates Lead Organizations to Act

A significant increase in Jewish family divorces has led to a call of action by agencies like Ohel for the sake of the children. The program offers mediation and mentoring workshops that offer help and guidance toward a healthy divorce and ultimately help break down the stigma that comes with divorce.

Jewish families often experience stigma when they go through divorce. There is comparatively more stigma toward divorce in observant communities than in larger ones. In a community where ‘marriage and family’ is understood as the beacon of life and fulfillment, many divorced singles can find themselves more isolated with a community lacking receptivity.

Ohel Children’s Home & Family Services, a well-known social service agency within Jewish networks is providing a number of new services to specifically address the increase of ‘Children of Divorce.’ They’re hosting various community-wide public speaking engagements to both raise awareness and break down stigma. Ohel is also developing an adolescent leadership training program. Older divorce ‘survivors’ will be trained to become mentors to younger kids of divorce, while also receiving some form of supportive environment in non-stigmatizing manner in the guise of leadership training.

The alarming increase in divorce is more frequent in families under 40 years of age. Of the total number of occurring divorces, 11% of them are from Orthodox families. Certain factors like women becoming more independent and less tolerant of emotional abuse play a large in role in today’s divorces. According to the UJA Federation of New York annual report, women have now taken a lead in educational attainment. 30% of men attained a postgraduate degree, 37% of women passed that mark. Another factor in increased divorces is that younger couples generally struggle with having the same vision and level of commitment.

If a family is going to separate why not go about it in a healthy manner at least for the kids?

Ohel offers support groups that specialize in assisting families that are trying to get through a divorce while educating them on what a healthy divorce or a bad one can do to the children. Ohel is funding workshops and webinars in which partner children of divorce up with teenagers who have dealt with the same ordeals. Ohel regional family centers are offering these workshops and are taking place in various locations including Brooklyn, New Jersey and Long Island. Call 1-800-603-OHEL for more information.

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6 Comments

  • Chaim Tovim

    Why show a picture with the child with the mother and the father alone?! Isn’t that itself part of the problem?!

    Children need equal access to both parents and should never be a pawn in parents’ divorce

  • THE TRAGIC TRUTH

    The article makes a very rational point : “If a family is going to separate why not go about it in a healthy manner at least for the kids.” Unfortunately, the neccessity for a Get often occurs because one of the parties is not capable of EVER behaving in the marriage in a “HEALTHY manner” – and then the same emotional illness that made that person incapable of being a normal husband / wife doesn’t suddenly disappear, and those problems that caused the divorce continue during and past the divorce. Of course, if two basically heathy caring people cannot build a life together, it is a tragedy for all involved, but the Torah then makes it an actual mitzvah to give a Get and that family would be an ideal candidate for such a propgrm, G-d forbid. People who are blessed with healthy marriages simply cannot believe what can go on behind closed doors, especially when the sick person can hide their illness in public. May HaShem bless all Yidden with happy, healthy homes & families !!

  • Binyan Adei Ad

    Not knocking Ohel’s efforts but more has to be done to prevent divorce in the first place.

  • Empirical evidence

    We’ll respond with an article later, but based on the recent scientific data on divorce and its effect on preschool age children this article is completely inaccurate. Firstly, none of the reasons given above have led to an increase in divorce. Secondly, the scientific data on divorce is pretty crystal clear that divorce has many negative effects on children. Given this, a person should do their best to prevent it from taking place at all cost. However, the author of this article instead suggests that we should become desensitized from the stigma of divorce.

    When I get a chance I will respond with an OP-ED