Sheri Schiff, Victor Begg, Brenda Rosenberg, Rabbi Ron Kronish, Qadi lyad Zahalka and Dr. Shari Rogers at the Birmingham Community House

Is Peace Still Possible?

Israelis — one Jewish, one Arab show that open dialogue can dispel stereotypes.

T

his past June, my husband,
Howard, and I went to Israel and
the Palestinian territories to get a
look at whether peace is still possible.
In Haifa, we spent a morning at the Beit
Hagefen Cultural Center and saw how
they use art, music and drama to bring
Christians, Muslims and Jews of all ages
together. We spent three days at Haifa
University meeting professors, administra-
tors and students. We learned about their
educational programs on coexistence and
saw firsthand how Arab and Jewish stu-
dents learn together and work together on
community projects.
In Tel Aviv, we spent the morning with
One Voice, an organization that works
with young leaders, both Palestinian and
Israeli, who support a two-state solu-
tion. In the afternoon, we met with Robi
Demelin, founder of Parents Circle-Family
Forum, a group of more than 500 Israeli
and Palestinian families that have lost
family members to violence.
Robi shared with us her new film, One
Day After Peace. The documentary shares
her compelling journey of living through
two conflicts, first in South Africa and
then in Israel, where she lost her son
to Palestinian gunfire. Robi's thought-
provoking journey goes from a place of
deep personal pain to a belief that a better
future is possible.
In our five days in Jerusalem and in the
West Bank we spent two days with the
group called Wounded Crossing Borders
— Palestinians and Israelis wounded in
past wars who want to build a new future
for both people. We met with Sharon
Rosen, a longtime friend, and Suheir
Rasul, co-directors of Search for Common
Ground Israel. Two extraordinary women,
a Jew and a Palestinian, who lead multiple

34

November 1 • 2012

projects that promote coexistence and
peace between Israel and the Palestinian
territories.
We had dinner with Dr. Rabbi Ron
Kronish, another longtime friend,
who is the director of the
Interreligious Coordinating
Council of Israel (ICCI),
Israel's best-known and
most-respected interreligious
organization. It is made up
of more than 60 Christian,
Muslim and Jewish institu-
tions and organizations. ICCI's
mission is to harness the
teachings and values of the
three monotheistic religions
into sources of reconciliation
and peaceful coexistence,
based on the understand-
ing that religions should not
be part of the problem, but
rather can be part of the solution.
Over dessert, Rabbi Ron said he was
coming to the U.S. in October. I immedi-
ately invited him to Detroit and told him
it would be wonderful if he could bring an
Arab Muslim associate with him.
Rabbi Ron said yes, and thought of his
friend Iyad Zahalka, the qadi (judge) of
the Sharia Court of Jerusalem.

Hearing Hopeful News

I knew it would be a challenge to bring
Christians, Jews and Muslims together,
especially to hear about Israel, but I
wanted our community to hear hopeful
news, not just news about rockets, bomb-
ings, killings and hate. I wanted them to
hear firsthand the amazing and diversified
work that Rabbi Ron has accomplished in
Israel between Christians, Muslims and
Jews, and to have our community know

Israel has a Sharia court and for the qadi
to explain Sharia.
We started planning in July for their
trip, which took place Oct. 24-25. Sheri
Schiff from the Jewish community, Victor
Begg from the Muslim com-
munity and Al Timms from the
Presbytery worked tirelessly to
find venues and sponsors. They
included the American Jewish
Committee (AJC-Detroit), Center
for Peace and Conflict Studies at
Wayne State University, Church
and Society Committee of First
United Methodist Church of
Birmingham, First Presbyterian
Church of Birmingham,
InterFaith Leadership Council
of Metropolitan Detroit (IFLC),
Jewish Community Relations
Council (JCRC), Michigan
Muslim Community Council
(MMCC), Northminister Presbyterian
Church of Troy, Pathways To Peace
Foundation, Race Relations & Diversity
Task Force of the Community House, the
Social Justice and Peacemaking Ministry
Team of the Presbytery of Detroit and
WISDOM ( Women's Interfaith Solutions
for Dialogue and Outreach in Metro
Detroit).
The rabbi and qadi presented at the
Birmingham Community House, Wayne
State University and at First Presbyterian
Church of Birmingham. They had an open
dialogue with the audiences, a total of 250
people. They shared their identities and
personal stories.
The rabbi was born in New York City,
raised in Miami, educated at Brandeis
University, Hebrew Union College and
Harvard, and then followed his heart and
moved to Jerusalem to fully live his Jewish

identity.
I saw eyes open wide when the qadi
shared his identity as a Palestinian, Arab,
Muslim and citizen of Israel. Challenging
questions were asked and were thought-
fully answered. A young Muslim women
asked the rabbi to share his definition of
Zionism because when she heard him say
he is a Zionist, she felt threatened. To her,
Zionists are brutal occupiers. A Jewish
women asked the qadi why his definition
of Sharia law is not what she has heard,
and why doesn't she hear Muslims speak
out against acts of terror committed in the
name of Islam? As concerns and issues
were addressed, you could feel the tension
leave the room. In less than two hours of
open conversations on issues seldom talk-
ed about, minds and hearts were opened
to new possibilities.
Participants saw peace builders, a qadi
and a rabbi, as genuine friends rejecting
both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, and
they saw they could be part of the process.
The audiences saw the power in meet-
ing the other, learning one another's sto-
ries, all in a safe space to ask the questions
on their minds. The two days were a great
step forward on the journey to engage
more people in the process.
Yes, I truly believe peace is still pos-
sible.

Brenda Naomi Rosenberg of Bloomfield

Hills is a local activist combatting anti-

Semitism, Islamophobia and racism through

her documentary, Reuniting the Children

of Abraham, the book she co-authored

with women from seven faith groups titled

Friendship & Faith, and the ground-breaking

Tectonic Leadership workshop she co-created

with Sarnia Bahsoun.

