Sunday, October 23, 2011

Jewish Identity

We have been talking about Ahavat Yisrael, and the commandment to demonstrate solidarity with Jews around the world.  We are also commanded to take pride in our Jewish identity, and embrace our heritage.  On the surface this seems like a simple task, but the students in our class have started to deconstruct the idea of Jewish identity, and what each of them stands for.  We have had some very interesting discussions, and we are beginning to recognize that each of us defines ourselves differently, but our common bonds connect us to each other, Jews in America, and around the world. 

On Tuesday afternoons we have been talking about building community and our connections to working together to make the world a better place.  We have been talking about the value of friendship, kindness and respect.  

We also had the opportunity to spend some time talking about Gilad Shalit, and the commendment to free a captive at all costs.  The discussion was quite interesting when we were confronted with the issue of the families that lost loved ones at the cost of the freed terrorists.  Our Tuesday afternoon discussions are quite enriching, and I encourage you to ask your children to share the discussions with you.  



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