MEET HUC-J IR’S STUDENTS
2009
ISSUE 72 | 31
Gaining a deeper understanding of Israel
is essential for anyone who seeks to be an ad-
vocate for the Jewish people,” says
Jenna
Fields,
SJCS, ’10,
one of the 18 students from
the School of Jewish Communal Service
(
SJCS) who participated in the biennial Israel
Seminar in December 2008. A requirement
for the Masters of Jewish Communal Service
degree program, the students spent the equiv-
alent of 100 class hours meeting with Israeli
nonprofit professionals, political leaders, jour-
nalists, cultural figures, intellectuals, and
academics to get an in-depth exposure to
issues in contemporary Israeli society. With
an emphasis on Jewish identity, Israel-Dias-
pora relations, and Progressive Judaism in
Israel, the seminar included visits to a variety
of social agencies, innovative enterprises, and
cultural institutions.
“
Our purpose was to examine not only
communal institutions in Israel, but also to
explore Progressive Judaism within the coun-
try,” explained
David Harris,
SJCS ’09.
“
We
met with members of the Progressive Jewish
community, from heads of liberal
yeshivot
and Reform congregations to the director of
the Israel Religious Action Center.”
Being in Israel was both professionally
and personally meaningful for the partici-
pants. Fields recalls a concert the group
attended that featured Miri Maseka, a pop-
ular Israeli singer/songwriter. “Set in an
intimate club setting, the stage was sur-
rounded by small tables packed with local
fans. At the beginning of the concert, Miri
asked a young girl to light candles for the
second night of
Hanukkah
,
and the whole
audience joined in as she said the blessings.
I felt so connected with Israel that night as I
observed communal and cultural life at its
most poetic.”
Most of the students
had been to Israel previously,
so the Israel Seminar was def-
initely not a “tour.” Instead,
the students had the chance
“
to see and experience Israel
at its most intimate and most
vulnerable,” adds Fields.
“
Whether it was meeting
with a local Arab scholar in
Jaffa to hear his perspectives
on Israeli-Arab relations or
visiting a Tel Aviv garbage
dump that is being turned
into an ecological park, we
had the privilege of seeing the achievements
and challenges of this incredible State.”
Richard Siegel, SJCS Director, noted
that “the Israel Seminar was consciously or-
ganized to provide students with perspectives
that they would not normally encounter and
to expand their appreciation for the creative
energies pulsing through the country. At the
Diaspora Museum we deconstructed the mes-
sages of the museum with the educational
staff to envision how it might be re-organized
to more appropriately reflect the meaning and
values of the Diaspora. Our visit to Mount
Herzl was an opportunity to understand how
Israel creates a civic religion with the calendar,
historical personalities, and national symbols.
A meeting with Rabbi Jakobovitz in Bnai
Brak explored how elements in the Haredi
community are working to integrate with the
values of the modern state. At the Tel Aviv
Municipality the students met with one of the
architects of Tel Aviv’s new strategic plan,
which projects the city as the creative, cultural,
and commercial center of the country. All of
these encounters allowed the students to apply
the skills and professional education they are
receiving at HUC-JIR and in their dual de-
gree programs at USC, whether in social
work, public administration, or communica-
tions management.”
The Seminar was perceived as vital to
the students’ preparation to be nonprofit
professional leaders in the Jewish and larger
community. At a time when studies indicate
that American Jews are growing increasingly
distanced from Israel, and there is a great di-
versity of viewpoints on Israel’s search for
peace and security, the Israel Seminar
strengthened the students’ knowledge and
understanding, as well as their emotional and
professional connections with the country.
Fields concludes, “My understanding of Is-
rael’s role within the Jewish nation is much
stronger. This experience gave me the tools I
needed to articulate Israel’s importance to
Jews here at home.”
EXPERIENCING ISRAEL AS
FUTURE PROFESSIONAL LEADERS
OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE
Jean Bloch Rosensaft
The School of Jewish
Communal Service Israel
Seminar, December 2008.
“
