Shana Tova

A sweet and fruitful new year to all our Jewish friends and neighbors, this night as Rosh Hashanah ushers in the high holidays at sundown. Tomorrow the shofar will be blown and the holiday continues until the holiest day of the Jewish year, Yom Kippur.

It is such a privilege to be here in Jerusalem for these holidays, among the staff and visitors at Tantur which plays a very special role in bringing together people of different faiths in ways that deepen our appreciation for the the incredible diversity of ways that we humans find to worship G-d. {for readers who may not know, the tradition in Judaism is that the name of the Holy One is so precious, so exalted, that to write it down is to debase it, so one writes “G-d” rather than risking offense).

If you don’t know much about the Jewish High Holidays — Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, now would be the time to get your Google rolling! Some of what you find will help clarify how Christianity emerged from its roots in Judaism.

Meanwhile, an ordinary day at Tantur. I’ve gotten a desk and am sharing an office via the graciousness of Issa Daboub, our House Manager who has handled logistics and the facility in all its complexity for the steams of visitors (and the staff who serve them) for more than 30 years. Issa is a Palestinian Christian who lives in Bethlehem and earned his Master’s at Boston College.

Yesterday I rode the Palestinian bus (yes, the public bus system includes Israeli and Palestinian busses, worth another blog post sometime). I caught the bus just outside the lower gates of Tantur and rode to the heart of Jerusalem, then walked to Notre Dame Center of Jerusalem near the Damascus Gate of the Old City. Notre Dame Center has nothing to do with Notre Dame University, rather it’s a papal facility that houses pilgrims to the area, but amid the giant tourist/pilgrim busses was the small 19-person passenger shuttle provided by Tantur so folks in central Jerusalem can more easily get to “Tuesdays at Tantur,” a lecture series. Along with those I greeted and accompanied on the shuttle ride, about 75 people attended the lecture on “Interreligious Dialogue as a Method of Peace Building” by Rabbi Ron Cornish, a speaker and author who is passionately committed to peace in this land that is beset with conflict.

This was the first of what will be a weekly adventure for a few months this fall. I say “adventure” because of course I got lost trying to find my way from the bus terminal near the Damascus Gate to the Notre Dame Center. Thank goodness I left early! Thank goodness for Google maps in my phone, which helped, in spite of my notoriously awful sense of direction! And thanks be also for small blessings like the charming residential neighborhood I saw as a result, with its soothing gardens and stone walls, and ordinary people including children playing with each other and their colorful outdoor toys.

This week also I’ve been working with a Swedish clergyman, here on World Council of Churches work; a Scottish Anglican  priest who is a Tantur Scholar in Residence; staff member Brooke, a Quaker, who works with Continuing Education programs such as the 3-month program for clergy; and assorted other consulters to create a prayer service in observance of the World Week of Prayer for Peace in Israel and Palestine. Later today, Brooke led us in a Quaker meeting (shortened somewhat) for Evening Prayer, and at dinner, Raanan sang the Hebrew prayers for the first night of Rosh Hashanah. He is a rabbinical student in his final year of seminary and Tantur staff member who organizes, among other things, Tuesdays at Tantur.

Where else in the world could I have such a diverse religious experience? It takes my breath away!

Author: kathleenschatzberg

I'm a writer, an educator -- 45 years in education, 35 of them in community colleges -- and a lifelong advocate for justice (community colleges are, in fact, instruments of social justice). I have always been passionate about learning, traveling, and understanding the world's religions and political systems. This "Crossroads" blog offers my reflections on living for 7 months as a volunteer at Tantur Ecumenical Institute. On a hill in Jerusalem, within sight of Bethlehem, Tantur hosts students, scholars, and seeker for interfaith engagement and theological and biblical study. View all posts by kathleenschatzberg