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“Waiting for a Jew” Jonathan Boyarin’s essay “Waiting for a Jew” depicts the inner quest of finding one’s identity and purpose in a community. Boyarins longing for a group with which to identify leads him to reflect on his ideals of what a community truly encompasses. Searching to fulfill his needs made him realize that certain struggles endure, making it harder for him to see his goals. During his journey, Boyarin learns the benefits and costs of communities for members and for individuals on the outside. His experiences allow him to see these pros and cons from both angles, as an active member, and as a spectator from the outside of the community. Boyarin states clearly in the first line of his essay that his mission is to find his Jewish identity. “My story begins in a community, with an illusion of wholeness” (Boyarin, 146). His description of a community that is entirely connected explains his perceptions as a child. Growing up and moving out of his small Farmingdale community “shattered this illusion” as well as his perception of the ideal community. The benefit of such a community for Boyarin was the fact that it made him feel joined to a group of people, making him feel “whole”. “My