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ShanaTova
May your year be filled with joy, love and Peace beyond words…
Good News
The Beyond Words Newsletter
September 2003
New Picture from Womenspeak an event sponsored in 2007 by the Red Bird Foundation
Beyond Words is a non profit organization coordinating programs for over 12 years to inspire, empower and train Jewish and Arab women, teachers, and community leaders to advance tolerance, women’s and children’s human rights, pluralism, social justice and Peace in Israel.
A Hasidic Tale
A disciple asked Rabbi Shmelke: "We are commanded to love our neighbor as ourself. How can I do this, if my neighbor has wronged me?"
The Rabbi answered: "You must understand these words aright. Love your neighbor like something which you yourself are. For all souls are one. Each is a spark from the original soul, and this soul is wholly inherent in all souls, just as your soul is in all the members of your body. It may come to pass that your hand makes a mistake and strikes you. But would you then take a stick and chastise your hand, because it lacked understanding, and so increase your pain? It is the same if your neighbor, who is of one soul with you, wrongs you for lack of understanding. If you punish him, you only hurt yourself."
From Tales of Hasidim, Early Masters by Martin Buber
…Would that our leaders today have studied with or consulted this Hasidic master. In punishing and seeking revenge we have only added to the suffering and brought more of this never ending violence upon ourselves.
Many times I have wondered why it is that with the world situation being so terrible on so many levels - violence, environmental destruction, child abuse and sexual trafficking, oppression of women, homelessness, disease, to name just a few. Why is it that so many people (myself included) would rather shut their eyes to this part of reality and continue with their everyday lives and struggles as though all these forms of oppression do not exist? Why have we learned to turn blind? What makes looking at this part of reality so difficult that so few of us are able to do it on a daily basis and even fewer struggle to bring about change?
In a recent poll Israelis were asked how they felt about their lives. Most of them replied that they are satisfied. A psychologist commenting on this finding said the Israelis are like a person falling from the tenth floor of a building being asked in mid air how he or she felt and replying "fine". As long as we, ourselves, and those closest to us have not hit bottom we try to maintain a sense of well being. Why?
Because Israelis, Palestinians and people in other trouble spots of the world have been living in a situation for many years that can be compared to the Emergency Room in a hospital. The first few wounded or killed we deal with make a very deep impression and touch our hearts. But as the number of wounded and killed grows and as the days pass without any real change we feel a need to protect ourselves from so much horror. We can no longer take it in and process it. We feel helpless – unable to do anything about it. We become numb to the pain around us. Only some new horror that we have not heard of before can touch us. As a result, unless we know them personally, the people killed and wounded today soon become yesterday’s news.
The more we protect ourselves in order to continue with our routines, the less accessible our feelings become and the easier it is to turn our eyes the other way. The less we care about what happens the more horrible the situation becomes. The cycle feeds on itself in an ever-descending spiral.
It is like when our body tries to tell us something and we don’t listen. We feel a pain in our neck or lower back but rather then taking it seriously and doing something about it we try to ignore it and just soldier on. Before we know it, we are in traction facing surgery that would never have been needed if we had just listened to our body in the first place.
Most people know this somewhere inside, know that their actions are hurting themselves and others and yet resist all efforts of those who tell them this is so and ask them to begin the necessary change. Why do we continue to embrace this miserable situation? Why is it so hard for us to hear the truth when it is brought to us in all its terrible and tragic seriousness?
For many reasons, one mentioned before is that we have become numb in order to protect ourselves. In addition, many of us are so busy trying to survive and keep afloat within the deteriorating economical situation that we have no room to consider the “situation” and what we can do about it. Some feel hopeless, that nothing they can do will ever make a dent. Others are trying desperately to cling to a sense of routine and normalcy in their daily lives. As long as most of us are still able to lead near normal lives we would rather continue with our regular busy routine, hoping someone else would bring about the change. The work that needs to be done in order to transform the situation seems so serious, so hard and so unattractive to us, that unless we really have to, unless we are moved by an inner fire or an absolute need we would rather not do it.
How can we break this trend? How can we reach the silent majority who can make a difference if only they stop being silent? How can we stop our self-destructive descent?
This reminds me of a story about the Baal Shem Tov, the greatest Hasidic master, who inspite of all his power and serious intent, was unable to move the clouds so he could say the Blessing of the New Moon "which at this very hour, an hour when Israel is threatened with grave danger, was to have a particularly salutary effect."
Despite the straining of his soul he cannot alter the state of the sky. It is only when his Hasidim in their ferverous joyful dance break into his room, dance around him and draw him into the dance, that the moon breaks through the clouds.
Perhaps sometimes the way to reach others, help them reconnect with their feelings, get them to join the process of change that is so crucial if this world is to survive, is not by hitting them on the head with the harsh truth but by inviting them to join the dance... Surely, this is what we have been doing at Beyond Words for the past seven years.
Nitzan
Good News
* In June Beyond Words became an independent non profit organization. Hurray!!!
*In July we began the facilitator's course for the 2003-2004 school year. We have our advanced facilitators who already lead groups and the beginning facilitators who will join groups as assistants. A part of the training is done in separate groups and a part together. The meetings are held for three days every month in the beautiful home of Anael Harpaz in the town of Rosh Pina where there is enough room for all the participants to sleep and eat. Anael has been offering her house for Peace activities for the past three years and many of those working for Peace in Israel and abroad have passed under her roof. In addition the members of the facilitator's group meet in the middle of the month for half a day.
* We are planning on opening five Beyond Words groups in the Galilee this year in late November after the Ramadan. One group for both men and women in the city of Acco. One group in the Me'ilya, Tarshicha, Maalot and Kfar Vradim area. Two groups in the Rosh Pina, Tuba Zangria, Kfar Hanassi and Hatzor Haglilit area. And one group in the Scheich Danun, Abu Snan, Beit Haemeq, and Nahariyah area. Each group will be facilitated by an Arab and a Jewish facilitator.
* We have been supporting a group of 11 Jewish and Arab teenagers who attended the Creativity for Peace summer camp sponsored by the Deva Foundation at Santa Fe this summer. They returned to Israel with great motivation to make a contribution towards Peace. Presently they are looking at the possibility of starting an Arab - Jewish youth movement.
*We have begun working on the establishment of an Institute for the Study and Practice of Peace and Justice as part of a local college or university.
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