Лысенко Юлия Михайловна

The article examines the role of Judaism in the daily life of mountain Jews, shows the influence of the religious worldview on their attitudes. According to the results of a sociological study, the characteristic character of Mountain Jews is to identify their religion with the ethnic culture of their people. Judaism plays a significant role in the life of mountain Jews, as indicated by the vast majority of respondents. The significance of the confessional component for Mountain Jews is evidenced by their use of Jewish faith in the upbringing of their children, their preference for most religious holidays over secular ones, and their desire to live in a state that exists on the basis of religious principles. However, the study revealed a discrepancy in the behavior of Mountain Jews, on the one hand, preferring to live in a theocratic state, on the other, emphasizing the advantage of a society based on universal values that are recognized by everyone regardless of ethnicity and religion. Empirical evidence indicates the existence in the mass consciousness of Mountain Jews of a pronounced socio-cultural distance, which convexly manifests itself in the family and marriage sphere, moreover, the vast majority of respondents emphasize the inadmissibility of concluding a marriage with a representative of a different faith. The results of the study also show that the mountain Jews interviewed by the religious organizations are mainly associated with the religious activities and spiritual and moral education of the younger generation, although there is also a designation of the need to engage in charity and manifestation of mercy to others.

According to the results of the empirical study, it is established that positive auto-stereotypes dominate in the mass consciousness of Mountain Jews. There are significantly less negative qualities among Mountain Jews. The formation of positive autostereotypes of Mountain Jews was significantly influenced by the domination of ethnic identity in the mass consciousness by the «norm» type, which presupposes respectful and tolerant attitude towards the bearers of foreign ethnic culture and religion.