So important to put faces and images to labels we read about. So important to humanize those often pitted as our enemies. So important to do so with Jews in a context of Ahavat Yisrael.
Rabbi David Wolkenfeld
Senior Rabbi, Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel
It's a powerful and necessary experience.
Lindsey B. Mintz
Executive Director, Indianapolis JCRC
I thought I had a solid command on so many facts and figures and data points and narratives. This trip gave me more facts, data points and anecdotes and voices that offer different narratives… Being present for that testimony was a gift.
Rabbi David Seth Kirshner
Rabbi, Temple Emanu-El, Closter, New Jersey
I feel more engaged [after the Encounter program]. When I read news stories or hear personal narratives about the conflict, I feel like I have the tools to respond. I'm more sensitive to the challenges that Palestinians face, though I retain skepticism for any simplistic solutions to the conflict.
Rabbi Joshua Heller
Senior Rabbi, B'nai Torah, Sandy Springs, Georgia
Encounter is an opportunity to engage more deeply and seriously in the most pressing issues facing the Jewish people today. You need this. Not because you will emerge with solutions or talking points, but because you will break through and dive beneath the facile talk about solutions and talking points…
Jon A. Levisohn
Director, Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education, Brandeis University
