Spring Break
Jews and Muslims talk at JAM
by Destiny Aquino
Staff writer
News | 4/7/09
Posted online at 6:50 AM EST on 4/7/09
Four preselected panelists spoke about their experiences on campus either as Jews or as Muslims and what they thought the other panelists' daily lives were like in the Brandeis environment at an event titled Jews and Muslims Session: Homies in Harmony III last Thursday.
Brandeis Hillel, the Brandeis Muslim Student Association, The International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life and The Brandeis Pluralism Alliance co-sponsored the event.
In an interview with the Justice, event coordinators Neda Eid '11 and Jess Kent '09 hoped the event would "expand the relationships [between both religious groups] through a respectful but challenging conversation."
The event was based on a similar event, Homies in Harmony, that took place in the past two years. Homies in Harmony was meant to foster positive relationships between the Muslim and Jewish communities at Brandeis through music, food, and friendship and "take it to a deeper level" said Kent, who also helped coordinate Homies in Harmony.
Kent explained, "[JAM] was advertised through the event calendar, the Ethics Center and the Brandeis Pluralism Alliance, but certain students were invited to the discussion group who would be opinionated in their beliefs but open-minded enough to discuss them."
The panelists consisted of one observant and one liberal member of each religious group. The event began with a Torah reading by Elisha Fredman '10 and a Quran reading by Yunus Karahan (GRAD) to highlight the differences and similarities between the two religions.
A round-table-type discussion followed the exercise as the other 30 to 40 participants told stories of their religious experiences at Brandeis and followed up those stories with questions or opinions. The discussion was minimally mediated or guided by the coordinators and allowed for, as Eid said, "comfortable honesty."
"As a Muslim observer, I noticed that the Jewish-Jewish relations is an issue on campus as well. The same can be said about the Muslim-Muslim relations on campus. This is something that [Kent] and I knew would reveal itself during the Jewish-Muslim dialogue," Eid wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
Brandeis Hillel, the Brandeis Muslim Student Association, The International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life and The Brandeis Pluralism Alliance co-sponsored the event.
In an interview with the Justice, event coordinators Neda Eid '11 and Jess Kent '09 hoped the event would "expand the relationships [between both religious groups] through a respectful but challenging conversation."
The event was based on a similar event, Homies in Harmony, that took place in the past two years. Homies in Harmony was meant to foster positive relationships between the Muslim and Jewish communities at Brandeis through music, food, and friendship and "take it to a deeper level" said Kent, who also helped coordinate Homies in Harmony.
Kent explained, "[JAM] was advertised through the event calendar, the Ethics Center and the Brandeis Pluralism Alliance, but certain students were invited to the discussion group who would be opinionated in their beliefs but open-minded enough to discuss them."
The panelists consisted of one observant and one liberal member of each religious group. The event began with a Torah reading by Elisha Fredman '10 and a Quran reading by Yunus Karahan (GRAD) to highlight the differences and similarities between the two religions.
A round-table-type discussion followed the exercise as the other 30 to 40 participants told stories of their religious experiences at Brandeis and followed up those stories with questions or opinions. The discussion was minimally mediated or guided by the coordinators and allowed for, as Eid said, "comfortable honesty."
"As a Muslim observer, I noticed that the Jewish-Jewish relations is an issue on campus as well. The same can be said about the Muslim-Muslim relations on campus. This is something that [Kent] and I knew would reveal itself during the Jewish-Muslim dialogue," Eid wrote in an e-mail to the Justice.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 4
Frank
posted 4/07/09 @ 7:45 PM EST
As noble as the intentions of Neda and Jess might be, one gets the impression reading this article that they could not have missed the point more regarding interfaith dialogue. (Continued…)
Frank
posted 4/10/09 @ 10:46 PM EST
Dear A Reader,
I was not trying to insult or denigrate Neda or Jess's work; on the contrary, I have been aware of the spectacular initiatives they have taken with interfaith work. (Continued…)
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