Education Israel Project #1521

Community Building for 1000 Jews & Muslims 2023-25

by Interfaith Encounter Association (IEA)

Community Building for 1000 Jews & Muslims 2023-25

Project Report | Oct 28, 2020
Interfaith Encounter group of Religious Leaders

By Dr. Yehdua Stolov | Executive Director

Interfaith Encounter Group of Religious Leaders in Gush Etzion met to discuss the issue: the ability to change interpretation of religious texts and laws in light of today's reality.

Khaled explained the essence of interpretation in the Qur'an. He said there is a debate as to whether the words in the Qur'an are part of God. If the words are not part of it, it is still impossible to change but more likely to give different interpretations. According to him, a claim of traditionalism of "this is what our ancestors did" - this is exactly what previous polytheists said, the Koran is a reaction to this logic. He also claims that the younger generation supports renewing the interpretation, not sanctifying the previous interpretation. Hajj added that there are laws that there is nothing to think about changing, but in cases where reality have changed one has to take reality into account.

Regarding the question of the connection between God and the text in Judaism, Rabbi Yaakov gave some examples of approaches in Judaism that offer different opinions - "The Torah has 70 faces (interpretations)" or "(both) these and these are the words of the living God." Reuben added that according to tradition, Torah preceded the world, and its meaning goes beyond words and interpretations.

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Jul 7, 2020
Online Passover Celebration

By Dr. Yehuda Stolov | Executive Director

During the intermediate days of Passover, ,the Interfaith Encounter Association held an Interfaith Passover Celebration on Zoom, which consisted of a demonstration of a Jewish traditional Passover Seder with interfaith guests and insights.

After brief introductions, our host, Ms. Hanna Yaffe, led us through the order of the Passover Seder, and explained the meaning behind its different elements. She started with the blessing over the wine or grape juice (which was toasted with a vivid l’chaim-to life!), and mentioned that the Passover Seder is generally celebrated with one’s extended family, something that would not be possible this year due to the coronavirus lockdown. Because of the current crisis, many Jews were able to identify deeper with the meaning of the Matzah, the flat bread of affliction, and the Maror, the bitter herb . She also briefly explained about other elements of the Seder Plate- the zeroa (meat bone), salted water, charoset (apple or dates paste) and a boiled egg.

Two interfaith guests - Father Russell McDougall and Ms. Fatima Amer gave inspiring insights on the connections between Passover motifs and their own traditions.

Father Russell spoke about the Christian significance of elements of the Seder- such as (flat) bread, wine and egg.. Despite a common idea that Jesus’s last meal was held on the Passover Seder, that is not a consensus among scholars. In any case, what is most important is that he makes use of the elements associated with the allegories of Passover: the affliction and subsequent redemption. In addition, the egg is generally associated the renewal of life and resurrection in Christianity.

Fatima talked about the parallels between the upcoming month of Ramadan and Passover. Just like Passover, in Ramadan Muslims thank God for His grace and salvation. It is also celebrated with gatherings (the breaking of the fast) around food, and with many guests and extended families. It is also customary to do an additional prayer during this month- just like the week of Passover for Jews. In sum, Fatima mentioned that all of these holidays- Ramadan, Passover and Easter- are expressions of our desire to connect to God and become better persons.

At the end, Hanna finalized the celebration by singing some traditional Passover songs. It was a very meaningful exchange and uplifting experience of connection in a time of social distancing.

The whole evening was recorded and you are most welcometo watch it too.

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Event recording

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Mar 10, 2020
Listeners of Life Stories Interfaith Group

By Dr. Yehuda Stolov | Executive Director

October 2nd, 2019

The Interfaith/Intercultural Listening Group met in the village of Hilf-Zubidat near Tivon.

Our guest speaker this time was a Bedouin man and a Sculptor of Wood, and we gathered at his family house. He has created a gallery of work showing the Bedouin tradition through his sculptures. He also includes other themes and inspirations for his work, such as the life and work of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. We heard the story of his life and a bit about his parents' origins as well. We sat in an open Bedouin tent in his backyard with the family's herd of sheep just a few meters away.

After the break the group gave him feedback about how his story resonated with them.

We had a large group of people including many that came to the group for the first time.

October 30th, 2019

The Listeners of Life Stories Interfaith Group met in the village of Harduf to listen to Meera, from a neighboring Arab village. Meera, a 25 year old musician and peacemaker, told about her life as a child and coming to understand how she was very different from the rest of the kids. She spoke about her relationships with both Arab people and Jewish people, each group with a different way of thinking, and about many people who were influential in helping her understand herself and her place in society. She talked about her work in music and in peacemaking and how this influenced who she is today and her future direction.

After the break the group gave her feedback about how her story resonated with them and how her frankness and personal courage touched them deeply.

November 20th, 2019

The Listeners of Life Stories Interfaith Group met to hear the story of N., a man who came from Ethiopia. He kept us spellbound for two hours telling the story of his escape from Ethiopia through Sudan as a 13 year old boy. He left his family, with a group of 10 very brave young people between the ages of 13-18 and it took them six months. Most of the trip happened under very difficult conditions.

He spoke about his difficulties arriving in Israel and the discrimination he encountered against him and other people of color and the lack of basic respect that he encountered often. After studying and receiving several university degrees, he has spent his adult life in Israel supporting important projects for the local Ethiopian community.

During the question and feedback part of the evening it was especially touching to hear the interaction between one of our Arab participants and N. It was especially interesting for both of them to have the opportunity to see the discrimination that each of them perceives in this country through the eyes of the other.

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