By Shirli Lempel, Youth Director, Eli Cohen Community Center

As part of the Jewish Identity project, supported by Orlando-Kiryat Motzkin Partnership 2000, a traditional Shabbat retreat was held in Jerusalem for 100 secular and religious teens from Kiryat Motzkin.  Today, social realities in Israel routinely separate between the religious and secular—we see this in educational institutions, youth movements, places of recreation, etc.  Therefore, it’s highly important to arrange encounters between religious and secular Israelis; they create practical opportunities for shared life experiences.

The Shabbat retreat took place on March 13-14, 2009 (Adar 17-18, 5769) at the Gesher Guest House in Jerusalem.  Workshops and activities were held throughout Shabbat, led by the Youth Council and professional instructors from the Gesher Organization, dedicated to promoting understanding between religious and secular Jews and deepening connections to Jewish identity.

The workshops focused on the ideological world of each individual—our personal ideologies, ‘what Shabbat is for me’, truth and belief, familiarity with biblical sources, modern-day conflicts in shaping the identity of Israeli society.  Other issues on the public agenda were also discussed, including attitudes to weaker members of society, violence, and others.  In addition, the Youth Council guided sessions on military/national service and the return of kidnapped soldier Gilad Schalit.  On Friday evening the teens attended a festive and song-filled prayer service at the Western Wall, which filled everyone with high spirits.

The teens reported how they learned tremendously, and in a way that was simply remarkable!