From mass baptisms to packed pews, a new Fox Nation documentary chronicles a profound spiritual awakening it suggests is sweeping America. The five-part series, “Revival with Lawrence Jones,” includes a spotlight on the renewed embrace of religious identity among Jews following the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in Israel.  

Episode 3 of the new series, “Jewish Identity,” highlights the record-breaking “Big Shabbat” held in New York City last November. It also features a conversation between “Fox and Friends” co-host Lawrence Jones, the series’ host, and Israeli activist Noa Tishby about her own Jewish identity; and an interview with Rabbi Joshua Davidson, who leads Temple Emanu-El, the oldest Reform congregation in New York City, which organized the “Big Shabbat.”   

“In this moment, we wanted to make two statements: One, that we are not afraid to come together proudly as Jews, and two, that the best way to defeat those who would seek to do us harm is to embrace with full heart and energy the joy and beauty of Jewish life,” Davidson said at the start of the episode, which first aired on April 2. 

“There’s no question that since Oct. 7 there has been a resurgence of interest in Jewish life and commitment to the organized Jewish community,” continued Davidson. “It’s said that younger Jews are disaffiliating, moving away from Jewish life. I actually find the reverse to be true. The people that come through our doors are deeply committed to Israel, are deeply committed to Jewish engagement. Our tradition has the power to sustain our people.”

Jones told Jewish Insider he included the surge of Jewish engagement as a part of the series because “America was founded on Judeo-Christian values, and it is essential to highlight not only the growing number of young people flocking to churches, but also those returning to synagogues and the significance of Big Shabbat in that revival.”   

Previously, the Guiness World Record for the largest Shabbat dinner in history occurred in Berlin with 2,322 guests during the European Maccabi Games in 2015.  

Temple Emanu-El broke the record when it hosted 2,761 attendees at the Javits Center in Manhattan. The evening included 402 challahs, 811 pounds of potatoes and 59 guests named David and 27 named Rachel, Washington Jewish Week reported.

“All of this in spite of antisemitism,” notes Jones over footage of the Shabbat dinner. In the months following Oct. 7, Anti-Defamation League data showed antisemitic incidents surged by 361%, with over half of American Jews changing their routines due to fear.

“I look around and I don’t see a dying religion, I see a revival,” says Jones as the episode closes. “Sometimes it can be scary to embrace your identity. For Jews, that takes on a different importance. What I’m seeing is this ancient peoplehood will continue to survive and thrive. It takes an embrace of tradition while still looking towards the future. A celebration of joy when times are dark. And a reminder that there is more that unites us than divides us.” 

“I think in the most beautiful ways, it’s inescapable,” Tishby told Jones of Judaism. “I’ve seen people who don’t live it and then at some point in their lives they’ll have a feeling in their gut that they need to understand what this thing is. I encourage anyone who is curious about the culture, religion and tradition — or was born Jewish and is not connected — to really go deep.” 

Other episodes in the series take an inside look at the next generation of evangelical Christians, the connection between faith and sports, the largest one-day baptism in American history and Christian music breaking into the mainstream.