SAN DIEGO (Press Release)–Congregation Beth Israel, San Diego’s oldest and largest Jewish congregation, participated in a “Lanterns for Peace” project designed to join Religious School students with Israeli and Palestinian communities in an act of peace and solidarity.
Approximately 400 students in the Lee and Frank Goldberg Family Religious School created lanterns with messages of peace written on them. The families in the Israeli community of Sha’ar HaNegev also made lanterns, as did the Palestinians who reside across the border in Gaza. On December 21 – the darkest day of the year – the two communities floated the lanterns across the fence to each other.
The 400 Beth Israel lanterns were lit during the Dec. 11 Shabbat service and were placed on display at the synagogue. Beth Israel plans to send photos of its lanterns to Sha’ar HaNegev.
Rabbi Michael Berk, senior Rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel, said the lantern project was a way students can participate in acts of peace locally that translates globally. “We were proud to join Rabbi Yael Karrie of Sha’ar Hanegev in an effort to create understanding among Arabs, Muslims and Jews, and express the longing that all people have for peace. Making lanterns with Muslim teens was a small glimpse of the dream of people getting along. May this be the will of the God we all worship,” said Berk.
Ava Kurnow, Director of the Religious School, said the school has plans to participate in more collaborative projects like this in the future. Several of the school’s eleventh grade students, who are participating in the annual Shearn and Linda Platt trip to Israel, will be spending the night in Sha’ar HaNegev one night during the trip. “The Israeli teens will be joining our teens on part of their tour, and will also come to San Diego in the summer to work at our camps,” said Kurnow.
A Reform Jewish synagogue, Beth Israel is San Diego’s oldest and largest Jewish congregation. The synagogue recently celebrated its 150th anniversary and has a membership of about 1,200 families.
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Preceding provided by Congregation Beth Israel