WATCH: Alternative Jewish interpretations seek to counter settler takeover of Hebron

By Mairav Zonszein November 17, 2011 | Edit

Within the litmus test that is the “pro-Israel” paradigm, even young devout Jews dedicating their lives to religious study and community are often attacked for being hostile to Israel, as became clear when an American Rabbi living in Israel wrote an essay last summer accusing young rabbis of being “anti-Israel.” A group of Jewish students, professionals, rabbis and activists who have lived in Israel and seen the reality in the West Bank are challenging common (mis)conceptions of Jewish connection to the land.

This Saturday, the week of Parshat Hayei Sarah (weekly Torah portion), thousands of Jews will travel to Hebron to affirm Jewish ownership of the ancient city. Citing the portion’s description of Abraham buying what is considered to be current-day Hebron, the settler movement will use the Torah portion as a proof text for their heavily-armed presence in the middle of a Palestinian city. This week, members of a group called Project Hayei Sarah will stand up in communities around the US and Israel to offer different interpretations of Parshat Hayei Sarah, of Jewish values and of the situation in Hebron.

Project Hayei Sarah is a grassroots initiative, started in 2009 by students studying in Jerusalem who visited Hebron with Breaking the Silence or Encounter. Its nearly 50 members are young Jewish leaders who are struggling to reconcile the Jewish values they have learned through Torah and the grisly reality on the ground in Hebron, in which Palestinian residents are subjected to separation, humiliation and military occupation. As part of their efforts to reclaim the parsha and challenge the political situation, Project Hayei Sarah members and friends have shared thoughts on the Torah portion and the situation in Hebron in a series of video blogs. Here are a just a few. More will be posted in the coming days:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cu9H0Qh6Kc&feature=related[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00zq3BlLPgU&feature=related[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IBsuVOH7Ck&feature=related[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdrLxLGsMNE&feature=related[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io45-fDU3MQ[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rRYOfnF4d8&feature=related[/youtube]

To learn more about Project Hayei Sarah

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TEST TEST GAL Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war. The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza, inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians, as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence. We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Emboldened settlers in the West Bank, backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians. The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent, using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies. This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism, entrenched occupation and apartheid, and a normalized siege on Gaza. We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it. This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land. Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives. Can we count on your support? +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement, a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists, activists, and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening, guided by humanism, equality, and justice. Join us.

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