From Hannah Goldman, Chair RP Committee

Today, Tuesday, March 15th, we met with organizations whose vision and leadership offer the potential for altering the character of the classic (yet elusive) Israeli Jewish identity. At Hamidrasha, the passion that drive the efforts to reclaim the Israeli Jewish identity from the ultra orthodox establishment was articulated with an eloquence that cannot be conveyed here. Being an Israeli is hard, hard work, and it is even harder to do without knowing or understanding the depths of one’s connections to a land where survival can be such a challenge. The toxic relationship between religion and politics in the government has defined the parameters of “authentic” Judaism for so long, that the average secular Israeli regards the vast treasure of sacred Jewish writings and tradition as the sole and exclusive province of “them.” Years - indeed decades of State sponsored school curriculums that have been “sanitized” so that they are free of the identity-building connections between Israeli citizenship and Jewish peoplehood have taken their toll –most secular Israelis no longer even know or understand that they have ceded over to “them” such a precious part of their lives. Those among the 30,000 or so people who are involved with Hamidrasha programs do know, and it is our obligation to support them. --Hannah