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Noah Zucker } jewish@edu writer

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44

May 2 • 2013

JN

ome people have told me they

believe that Hillel and the Muslim
Student Association (MSA) are
natural-born enemies. While this may be
true on some college campuses, at Grand
Valley State University, that statement could
not be further from the truth. This semester,
our student groups joined together for an
interfaith Avi Shabbat dinner and proved
that members of our organizations could
become true friends and allies.
As president of Hillel at GVSU, one of my
goals this year was to bring together Jewish
and Muslim students for a shared program
that celebrated our cultures, similarities and
differences. As I struggled to think of the
perfect event, an email arrived in my inbox
encouraging our Hillel to apply for an Avi
Shabbat grant generously sponsored by the
Avi Schaefer Fund. The minute I received
the email, I realized it was the perfect
opportunity for both Hillel and MSA.
Avi Schaefer, a student at Brown
University, played a tremendous role in
bringing together Jewish and Muslim
students on his campus. On Feb. 12, 2010,
he was tragically struck by a drunk driver
when walking home to his dormitory. The
Avi Schaefer Foundation was established to
honor both his mission and memory. Each
year near his yahrzeit, the foundation pro-
vides grants to Hillels around the country
to host Shabbat dinners with their Muslim
counterparts in honor of Avi's memory.
When I presented the program to the
MSA, they were immediately on board. The
Muslim students were truly excited that we
had reached across the aisle to facilitate
this dinner. I will openly admit that I had
no idea what to expect when hosting the
event. Would everyone get along and talk?
How long would the students stay? Would
anyone even show up? All of my fears,
however, were immediately put to rest
when more than 45 students representing
both Hillel and MSA showed up for our Avi
Shabbat.
The dinner experience was electrify-
ing. Everyone was sitting around tables,
barely touching their chicken shwarma and
baklava, talking about everything from
what their major was and where they were
from, to the differences between kosher
and hallal. Students often got up to switch
tables and start all over again with a new
group of friends. At one point, I introduced
myself to a Muslim student, and I had to
ask her to repeat her name, not because it
was so unusual, as she thought, but simply
because I could not hear her over the talk-

ing in the room. By the end of the night, all
of the tables had been pushed aside and
everyone was sitting in one large circle con-
versing with their newfound friends.
As the night progressed, everyone in
attendance realized how much we all had
in common with each other. We joked about
how we all had so many career options
(lawyer or doctor), how we run on Jewish
Standard Time, while they run on Muslim
Standard Time (I think they are the same
— by the way), and how it is a sin to not
have enough food at any gathering. We
discussed how women from both cultures
show modesty and how we all find deep
meaning in visiting our homelands. It was a
surprise to us all when we realized we had
been talking for more than three and a half
hours!
The night was summed up perfectly by
one of the Muslim students in attendance
who wrote on our Facebook page at the
end of the program. She wrote, "I had one
of the most rewarding social experiences
of my life because of the Avi Shabbat
event we all attended today. For the first
time in my life, I witnessed our alienated
backgrounds coming together through
the simplicity of the pure-hearted, honest
effort of simply getting to know each other.
I saw first-time friendships take place and
didn't see an ounce of hate in anybody.
The excitement in that room this evening
was proof alone of a long-lost relationship
between two very alike religions, finding
its way back into the hearts of people who
will grow up to influence the way the world
thinks."
While I know peace between these
groups around the world might be far away,
it is events like this that can start to bring
us closer together. By learning about each
other's cultures and stories, we can share
those stories with our friends and family,
spreading the understanding of how similar
we truly are.
As our guest said, it is especially impor-
tant that the younger generation grows up
with this understanding, as we will be the
ones to decide how the world will look in
the future. I truly believe this event was
one of those small steps that lead to great
change, and I sincerely look forward to
working closely with the MSA at GVSU to
expand our newfound friendship. @

Noah Zucker of West Bloomfield is a

junior at Grand Valley State University in

Allendale.

