If Jewish singles want to find partners who have compatible cultural views and values, then sometimes they need to find a way to locate each other. It can be especially difficult in this society of the quick pace, the flurry of careers and the great divergence of views. In times past, one might have resorted to a matchmaker, but that’s not generally done these days. Instead, young people might look into utilizing Jewish dating websites and services, face-to-face Jewish singles events, or business get-togethers.

The internet has opened a whole new avenue of opportunity in the last decade or so. Jewish dating sites allow you to place your information online and scrutinize the personal info of others on the same sites, with the hope of connecting with someone who sounds interesting and appears to have a similar cultural world view. Jewish chat sites provide a safe place to converse and get to know each other to some extent, before a face-to-face meeting ever takes place. Using online sites such as these, people can begin to get in touch with those they might otherwise have never met.

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It can often be hard for young Jewish singles to find a life partner in this fast-paced, busy world, so one avenue open to them is a Jewish dating site. There’s no shame about placing an ad on such a site. After all, if one has wearied of visiting clubs, special events or other activities and not meeting anyone, then why not take advantage of a little extra help? These sites allow the young people to place free personal ads, and encounter people who are more likely to be compatible with them than some random person they encounter at a club.

Many sites that specialize in Jewish online dating don’t just offer profiles and introductions; there’s a range of available services. The site www.jdate.com, for example, caters mostly to people of faith, offering videos, a Jewish holiday calendar, a Synagogue directory, and a magazine and blog. The site www.sawyouatsinai.com, on the other hand, doesn’t allow members to view each other’s profiles, but assigns one or two matchmakers to work personally with them. Other sites offer Jewish chat rooms and discussion forums, and even Jewish singles travel opportunities.

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There has been a lot of mutual influence among religious dating services. With Catholic dating sites influenced by Jewish ones, and Jewish sites formed by Christian groups, the cross-pollination has been huge. When speed dating was instigated by a Rabbi in Berkeley, California a few years ago, to help conservative Jewish young people meet each other, it was soon adopted by almost everyone. Now you can visit a speed dating site and are just as likely to find a link to “Buddhist Singles” as to “Jewish Singles.” Jewish dating internet sites have had their influence, and other services have influenced them right back.

But this may be seen as a problem by some, when uncomfortable business pragmatism creeps into the equation. If Jewish dating sites sit on the same directory as every other religious dating site, does that mean all these religious sites are regarded as virtually interchangeable? That viewpoint might not sit very well with any devout person who regards their religion as the “true way.” To find that a Catholic dating site is owned and operated by the same company that promotes a Muslim or Mormon site, might be considered insulting to some who don’t think all religions have the same status.

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It’s been a dilemma for some in the Jewish singles dating world. How to meet and date people, form relationships, and eventually marry, while making sure they are dating Jewish people with whom cultural approaches and lifestyles are compatible. Most people in society are now used to the concept of speed dating, but not everyone realizes that the idea was originally created by Rabbi Yaacov Deyo as a way to help young Jewish people meet and marry. This type of event has augmented other relationship help methods for Jewish young people, such as online dating services.

When you remember that the original purpose of speed dating was so that Orthodox Jewish singles could meet, it’s surprising to realize that this method was considered so modern and even revolutionary. With personal ads being thought of as questionable not too long ago, even for people with a more open lifestyle, speed dating might seem to go several steps farther and be too unusual a method for very conservative young people who are interested in dating Jewish partners. Yet in modern society, people’s cultural values aren’t automatically indicated by the circles they travel in, and time is often a constraint, so perhaps new methods of meeting possible mates are required.

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Jewish singles can use many online methods for finding dates, everything from joining websites that require a paid membership to placing their names on free Jewish sites offering dating services. This may be a modern form of the traditional matchmaking service. Some sites use the word in their url, like www.jewishmatchmaking.com; yet even those that don’t still offer Jewish matchmaker services, as does www.jqs.com.

But does this mean that people who place their information on these sites will genuinely find a perfect Jewish match, akin to those found by women in the old days who went from family to family in the town or village, finding mates for local bachelors or widowers or the daughter of the house? Not quite. It’s not certain that modern Jewish young people would really want that, unless they are very traditional indeed. And yet if this sort of service is offered even on these free websites for dating, it’s clear that the young Jewish singles feel the need for some kind of help.

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The American Singles dating site (www.americansingles.com) is owned by Spark Networks, stands alongside a long list of religious, ethnic and social dating websites belonging to the same company. The dating services cater to religious groups like the Mormons, Catholics and Seventh Day Adventists, along with well-known Jewish online dating sites, such as www.jdate.com and www.jewishmingle.com. But Spark also owns more ethnically-oriented dating websites for Black and Italian singles, namely www.blacksingles.com and www.italiansinglesconnection.com, as well as many others.

Even though Spark Networks obviously aspires to helping people all over the world make romantic connections, it’s experiencing some rough times just now. With profits down by about 25%, the Jewish dating services appear to be affected the most. With the slow economy hitting people hard, it’s not surprising that one of the luxuries people might sacrifice would be a membership to a site that helps them find dates. The downturn doesn’t just rest on the shoulders of American singles either, despite how hard the slump has hit the United States. The Jewish websites serve the UK, France and Israel also, so the loss of income has happened everywhere.

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Many reasons exist for using a Jewish dating service, and some will be the same as those for general dating services. One reason is that it’s hard to find the chance to meet new people. You can only join so many book or hobby clubs, or visit so many nightclubs. Even if you spend long hours at work, coworker dating is generally frowned on, so that’s likely not a possibility either. In the same way that the populace in general has a hard time finding potential partners, opportunities for Jewish singles dating can be equally difficult.

Another prime reason for using a Jewish dating service is to make cultural connections. This isn’t always a crucial factor, as many people of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds date and intermarry these days. Yet sometimes you simply must find a partner who shares a similar background and upbringing. This may be a concern more for Jewish singles than for those from other ethnic groups. As well, Orthodox Jewish singles sometimes look into dating services to find a partner of a similar outlook.

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JDate com has long been regarded as the premier site for Jewish singles to place personal ads and meet others with similar backgrounds and values. Yet even with that reputation, the site experienced a loss of subscribers in the first two quarters of 2009. Spark Networks, the parent company, owns many other dating sites too, such as www.americansingles.com, www.christianmingle.com, and others that focus on specific ethnic or social groups. But it’s the Jewish dating sites like www.jewishmingle.com and www.jdate.com, with sites in the U.S., the UK, France and Israel, which are the most lucrative for the company.

The reason for the reduction of profits from www.jdate.com and the other Jewish personals dating sites might stem partly from the economic downturn that has affected much of the world in recent months. Yet that can’t be the whole story, since all of the other networks, including www.americansingles.com, www.catholicmingle.com, and so on, turned a slight profit. So perhaps there was a flaw inherent in the Jewish dating internet sites themselves that contributed to their losing subscribers and, therefore, income for the company.

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Many Jewish singles want to ensure that they are able to connect with others who share a similar heritage and culture. This isn’t always easy in today’s fast-paced world and the immersion in careers, nor is it easy to sort through the great diversity of world views in the surrounding culture. It’s no longer savvy to consult a traditional matchmaker, as was done in former times, so instead, a young person might consult a Jewish dating service, in-person events, or even Jewish singles travel opportunities.

The internet has opened a whole new avenue of opportunity in the last decade or so. Jewish dating sites allow you to place your information online and scrutinize the personal info of others on the same sites, with the hope of connecting with someone who sounds interesting and appears to have a similar cultural world view. Jewish chat sites provide a safe place to converse and get to know each other to some extent, before a face-to-face meeting ever takes place. Using online sites such as these, people can begin to get in touch with those they might otherwise have never met.

[Read more →]

It can often be hard for young Jewish singles to find a life partner in this fast-paced, busy world, so one avenue open to them is a Jewish dating site. There’s no shame about placing an ad on such a site. After all, if one has wearied of visiting clubs, special events or other activities and not meeting anyone, then why not take advantage of a little extra help? These sites allow the young people to place free personal ads, and encounter people who are more likely to be compatible with them than some random person they encounter at a club.

Many sites that specialize in Jewish online dating don’t just offer profiles and introductions; there’s a range of available services. The site www.jdate.com, for example, caters mostly to people of faith, offering videos, a Jewish holiday calendar, a Synagogue directory, and a magazine and blog. The site www.sawyouatsinai.com, on the other hand, doesn’t allow members to view each other’s profiles, but assigns one or two matchmakers to work personally with them. Other sites offer Jewish chat rooms and discussion forums, and even Jewish singles travel opportunities.

[Read more →]