By Isabel Kardon
This is the second in a series of posts by participants in NFTY in Israel’s new Shlichut Noar NFTY program.
NFTY in Israel’s Shlichut Noar NFTY program (Young NFTY Ambassadors) is a unique fellowship that trains participants to be effective communicators and advocates for Israel programming upon returning to North America. During the summer, the shlichim participated in a four-day extension of their NFTY in Israel trip, where they met with Israelis who were shlichim themselves in North America, explored the notion of transformative moments, and took part in hands-on workshops on learning styles, group dynamics, leadership, and program writing skills. Following the summer trip, shlichim have monthly follow up sessions and ongoing learning opportunities to further increase their Jewish identity and connection to Israel. Teens who complete the program will earn certification as a peer Israel educator for NFTY and the URJ, and each teen will have multiple opportunities to share their programs and stories with their NFTY Region, Regional Camp and synagogue.
A woman walked into the classroom with a smiling face and we thought, “Oh how nice! An Orthodox woman has come to speak to us about her lifestyle!” Then she started talking. She introduced herself saying that she had twelve children, none of whom were to ever be sent to the Israeli army, a husband who studied torah instead of having an occupation, and a very religious and extreme outlook on life. She told us Reform Judaism wasn’t real Judaism, that homosexual people weren’t people and that the state of Israel didn’t exist because not everyone in the land was an orthodox Jew.
We were in shock. We sat there in silence amazed at the woman’s traditional and harsh beliefs. We had been to the gay pride parade in Jerusalem just two days before as Reform Jews and there she was, telling us all we believed was wrong with such a passion that it was terrifying to speak up. After her rant about us sitting in a room with the lights on during Shabbat, she paused for a moment to remove the tichel from her head. “Oh and guess what,” she said, “I’m an actress.”
Feeling punked, we all shared a moment of disbelieving smiles. She got our blood boiling so hard that it was difficult to tone down our emotions. She put on a new hat and portrayed another extreme opinion, that of a secular settler. Then a native Israeli with a two-state solution view point and finally, a Palestinian Muslim woman. Each character she portrayed had their own strong opinions that they would never even think about compromising.
Through this experience we gained knowledge of different viewpoints that complicate the issues facing the State of Israel today. The opinions that the characters presented us were extreme solutions to a variety of problems – which taught us that these issues really have no easy solution that will readily please everyone. This lesson is something I’ll never forget.
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