FREIING OUT: Why People Go Off the Derech & What We Can Do About It

Do you want to know why people abandon their Judaism?

Binyamin did, as he watched friends and siblings go "off the derech," certain he would soon follow. While the people around him cast blame on parents, teachers, rabbis, the system, hypocrisy in the community and so on, Binyamin wanted to know the real reason, or at least a solution -- and the solution was not blame. What he discovered shocked him. After years of fighting his way through multiple religious systems, much soul searching, and speaking with hundreds of parents, educators and youth around the world, he is sharing his discoveries.

Freiing Out examines the six types of people at risk, eleven key factors that may contribute to going off the derech and eight techniques that can be utilized to prevent people from leaving their Judaism. As Jewish education is crucial in keeping alignment with observance, this book aims to identify what good Jewish education is, how to find balance between Jewish and secular education, and how it all relates to home and school life.

This is not the kind of book to read and say, "interesting research." It is firsthand experience and a wealth of inside information that will move parents and educators to take action and prevent more Jewish children from losing their connection to Judaism.

About the author:

Binyamin Tanny grew up in a religious family, one of eleven children. He spent his educational years bouncing between Jewish schools in search of the ideal Jewish education. "I went from Jewish school number one, to Jewish school number two, and then number three, back to number one, back to number two and so on. It was a dangerous game. One day I was playing the part of the Chassid, the next day the anti-Chassid, the Zionist, the anti-Zionist, and then back to playing Chassid."

Binyamin grew up spending time with youth of frum-from-birth parents and baalei t’shuvah parents in school. In the scout troop and Jewish youth groups he attended, there were all kinds of Jews: Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist and Orthodox. This exposure brought with it an understanding of the many challenges that face the wide spectrum of Jewish communities. He received Smicha in Australia while also working as a synagogue youth director and Jewish studies teacher, as well as contributing his time and knowledge to various outreach and kiruv organizations. His blog, travelingrabbi.com, documents his experiences arising from his travel to hundreds of communities around the world where he has had the opportunity to interact with parents, educators, young adults and teenagers.