Bete Israel UJA Program Participants Prepare 2nd Year Interventions

In the most recent session of the UJA sponsored program to reduce intra-communal conflicts among Bete Israel, participants began by discussing their Passover experiences which included: conducting a model seder for 80 Ethiopian Israeli immigrants in Jerusalem assisting them in understanding the Rabbinic Jewish traditions found in the Hagada and forming a group of 13 members of the Beta Israel community to slaughter calves, as a means of recreating the original Passover sacrifice. The experience highlighted the community’s commitment to keeping traditional Beta Israel practices while being sensitive to the Rabbinic Jewish halacha which they adopted upon moving to Israel.

The participants then reviewed the March 4, 2025 summary conference on the subject of Unity an Uniformity in the Ethiopian Israel community.  There was across the board appreciate for the conference’s success as well as acknowledgement that important figures in the Israeli establishment (e.g. the President, Deputy Speaker of Knesset, senior officials at the Jewish Agency) are firmly behind our project. The participants shared constructive ideas on how to do things even better next year.

The second half of the meeting focused on planning the participants’ second year interventions. Work being done so far includes: aiding Jerusalem’s Beta Israel with community resources, supporting participation in preschool camps, and exploring youth engagement Rabbi-Keis cooperation, and strengthening Jewish identity.  

 

11the meeting of UJA Program for reducing intracommunal conflict