ABSTRACT
It is argued here that contrary to the debates in the postmodern literature where ethnic belonging is seen as entirely constructed, relatively independent of the nation state, but as a 'diasporic community' a mere miniature of the home country and moreover highly fluctuating, the Jewish community in Germany which has seen a reflourishing in the past two decades is by no means such an ephemeral phenomenon. While its cultural content receives impetus from both Israel and North America, German Jewry is a community sui generis and also not subject to constantly changing boundaries and beliefs. Instead, like other ethno-national groups, and with its independent institutional foundations, it stands very much on its own. Similarly therefore, the Europeanization of national European Jewries is a slow process at best and lags behind the processes of integration of a gamut of other European institutions.
