Antisemitism is a bigger issue than ever in the Jewish community. But where did antisemitism come from, and how did it grow to be such a pervasive problem even today?
These were some of the questions tackled during Chizuk Amuno Congregation’s scholar-in-residence weekend. The synagogue hosted antisemitism expert and professor at Brandeis University’s Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies Dr. Rachel Fish, who spent the weekend speaking at educational programs centered on the American Jewish community’s relationship with Israel and how to confront antisemitism directly.
Fish is the founder of the nonprofit think tank organization Boundless, which focuses its efforts on encouraging Israel-related education and fighting antisemitism. She’s also the special advisor to The Brandeis University Presidential Initiative to Counter Antisemitism in Higher Education and the former executive director of the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism. Even her dissertation was about Israel, focusing on how the relationship between Israel and Palestine has grown and evolved since the beginning of the 20th century.
In addition to giving a sermon on “Cultivating Resilience and Courage” during the Shabbat service on Sept. 14, Fish hosted three events: a Shabbat dinner for an adult audience on Sept. 13 about narratives around the Jewish people and the challenges they face, a Q&A following the sermon and a program directed at teenagers about dealing with antisemitism.
This weekend was supported by community leaders and philanthropists Ruth and Jay Lenrow, who have emphasized their commitment to fighting antisemitism through funding educational programming.
“Over the course of a few meetings and many discussions about the world today, Ruth and Jay made the important decision to provide funding for antisemitism education,” explained Chizuk Amuno’s Rabbi Joshua Gruenberg. “Given the events of the past year, the timing is perfect to be discussing these important ideas.”
The congregation has hosted other scholars-in-residence in the past through a different scholar-in-residence fund, including Jewish Theological Seminary professor Eliezer B. Diamond and rabbi and Judaica artist Matthew L. Berkowitz.
In December, they will also be hosting the Paul J. Fineman Fund for Ethics Education Lecture, with Rabbi Jonah Pesner discussing the ethics of the election year.
“There have been certain voices throughout the community that all of us who have been trying to navigate this difficult time have relied on, as voices that articulate some of the things we have been thinking so deeply, but maybe haven’t been able to find the words for,” Gruenberg said at the service. “[Fish] has been one of those voices not just in America, but across the Jewish world.”
Gruenberg actually suggested Fish to the Lenrows as a potential scholar-in-residence, and they agreed to sponsor a weekend of learning with her.
Because her Friday and Sunday events focused on antisemitism, Fish elected to not discuss the subject in her Shabbat sermon, instead speaking of the Jewish people’s resilience across 3,000 years of history.
“Every Jew here today, and every Jew you encounter, is a Jew by choice. We live in a modern society, and we choose who we want to be, with whom we want to build community, the values we choose to hold dear and anchor us and with whom we throw our lot in and declare, ‘This is my team. This is my people,’” Fish said in her sermon. “No one is forcing you to choose your Jewishness, and yet this is what you choose, and that is a
beautiful thing.”
Fish also touched on intracommunity conflict — particularly between pluralistic approaches that respect the differences between denominations, and universalist approaches that try to accommodate all Jewish people regardless of their religious and cultural differences. The answer? There really isn’t one, as both have their merits, and one shouldn’t be prioritized at the expense of the other.
“When particularism is prioritized at the expense of universalism, there can be manifestations of chauvinism, jingoism and parochialism. And when we see universalism elevated without regard for particularism, we encounter a society that often doesn’t value difference, that shuns pluralism and suggests that the other must conform to the dominant majority position,” she explained, likening this conflict to a balancing act.
Gruenberg noted that Fish is an especially important guest right now, and her presence in the teen-focused program was especially warranted as high schoolers prepare for college and college students return to campus.
But her research and teachings apply to all congregants, young and old, because all Jewish people have a responsibility to confront antisemitism and to educate people who may be ignorant about it.
“I do believe that all of Israel and the Jewish people have the grit and determination to recognize that in these hard and dark moments, we strive with the same focus and vision as the tightrope walker to focus on moving forward, rebuilding what has been destroyed, both in terms of the thousands of personal tragedies and the enormous national tragedy.”
