@RobbyBevard:
Well there the entire joke was returning to the status quo and everything resolving in 30 seconds. If they had kept that particular change it would have radically changed the entire series (which we kind of all wanted, but oh well….)
Here? Well, Cartman being jewish opens up a lot of possibilities and different jokes and scenarios, without completely changing the group dynamic or splitting everyone apart. I have to imagine they'll milk this one for a while.
That was a bad example on my part. A better one would be Stan having a drinking problem at the end of Ass-burgers. I wish I could think of a better example than that since it is the same episode, but I wouldn't consider it part of the whole status quo joke.
What I meant was that I think this is just a one-off joke that won't be referenced again and won't even be confirmed as a joke until Cartman randomly says something anti-semitic. The joke I got from the end of Jewpacabra was that Cartman, despite his sincerity, would be the exact same person next episode. They could milk it and it could be interesting, but the vibe I got from the episode is that they won't.