Marketing ritual as family values

July 29, 2008 - 1:52 PM by Harry

Kiddush with the familyIn Israel, Fridays are similar to European and North American Sundays in many ways, a key one being the extra-thick newspaper. When Israel Israeli sits down to watch soccer on TV and spit sunflower seeds into his Turkish coffee regs, nothing makes for better reading material than a multi-kilo pile of not-quite-dry ink on super-thin paper containing hyper-local news tidbits, the following week’s TV highlights, in-depth feature articles illustrated with full-page photos, a circular outlining the latest cosmetics on sale at SuperPharm and fliers selling religious ritual to the presumably uninitiated.

Statistics have been said to indicate that the Passover Seder is Judaism’s most popular ritual (I know, it does seem odd that it would beat out henna parties, the Fast of Gedalia and upsheirin), so it makes sense that on the Friday preceding Passover, an advertising-laden Hagadah gets included in the pile. But this week, the Yediot tabloid included a Shabbat Kiddush flier insert that not only touted the sanctity of the Friday night family meal but also included the relevant liturgical text.

It’s not clear what kind of market research went into this initiative, nor what religiously coercive organizations were secretly involved (a comment on the flier here notes that Yediot publisher Nachi Dankner’s Supersol supermarkets are currently engaged in a stiff competition with Shefa Shuk, a chain which has made some enemies in the ultra-Orthodox world), but the sales pitch angle is an interesting one.

The flier doesn’t focus on man’s ritual obligations to his Maker, nor on the mystical attributes of the seventh day. Rather, what’s being sold here is happy, wholesome family time. In Israel, even for the secular, Shabbat (and the Friday night dinner that ushers it in) is a time when we surround ourselves with the people and tasks that really matter: taking it easy with the immediate clan. The smiling mother, children and wine goblet-wielding father sit at a table that’s in a “reserved” parking space, and the headline reads “Friday [night] is reserved for family.” It’s not easy for one’s heart to remain unwarmed.

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Comments

3 Comments on Marketing ritual as family values

  1. Jameel @ The Muqata on Wed, Jul 30th 2008 10:57 AM

    2. Harry –

    I’d rather live in a country where the newspapers issue kiddush-fliers in the newspapers, regardless of the motivation, than live somewhere else where Christmas fliers and culture are shoved down one’s throat.

    Assuming the worst case, cynical view you presented — big deal. Pushing Shabbat as family time and enclosing Kiddush for corporate sponsorship? That’s what irks you?

    Be Happy!

    –Jameel

  2. harry on Wed, Jul 30th 2008 11:10 AM

    3. Slow down there Jameel! Cynical a bit, but pro-family Friday night time YES. And I agree with you regarding X-mas fliers and culture. Don’t get me wrong, I am a proud Jew and I love living in the Jewish state. I just don’t need an advertisement telling me to be more Jewish.

    I just don’t think that including kiddush was necessary for this message. And by the way, I am a non-affiliated Jew but Friday night in my home is indeed family time and both the kiddush and Hamotzi are said. We all come in different shapes and sizes

    And I am a very happy person! Just ask my wife and daughter.

    Harry

  3. Jameel @ The Muqata on Wed, Jul 30th 2008 4:10 PM

    4. Glad you’re happy :-)

    The flier wasn’t kefiya datit, it wasn’t telling you to be more Jewish, in fact, it was about as mellow as possible. I didn’t view this as an in your face “say kiddush and be more Jewish” type of ad, and thought the inclusion of Kiddush was nice.

    Kiddish wasn’t necessary at all for the message, but it doesn’t hurt either.

    Do you think your average reader of Yediot found it annoying that Kiddush was added? I could even imagine that someone might see this and think, hey, saying kiddush on Friday night…why not?

    As part of a mixed secular/non-affiliated and religious community, I have found that messages like this don’t rub people the wrong way. I could be wrong, but that was my reading of this flier.

    It’s not like we put a picture of a dead person on a bus and called him the mashiach….

    Regards!

    Jameel

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