Friday roundup: Oct. 22

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Caren Leven
Caren Leven (Photo provided)

Here’s a roundup of some of this week’s news.

BZD collaborates with evangelical community on screening of new documentary

The Baltimore Zionist District is partnering with Central Christian Church to present an Oct. 28 screening of “Upheaval,” a new documentary on the life of the late Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, according to a press release.

The documentary chronicles the major events of Begin’s life, including his birth in a Polish shtetl, being imprisoned in a Soviet gulag, his term as Israel’s prime minister and his involvement in the Camp David Accords.

The free screening will take place at Central Christian Assembly in Baltimore.

Caren Leven, BZD’s executive director, said that she first connected with the evangelical Christian community during a rally against antisemitism in the spring, where she met Central Christian’s founding and senior pastor, Terry Kirk.

“I’m really thrilled to be part of bringing the two communities together,” Leven said. “It’s great to see the Christian community standing up for the Jewish community.”

Sunrise Movement says DC chapter statement was ‘antisemitic’

The national Sunrise Movement called a statement by its Washington, D.C., chapter “unacceptable and antisemitic,” after the chapter called for removing the National Council of Jewish Women, the Reform movement’s Religious Action Center and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs from a voting rights coalition, reported JTA. The D.C. chapter cited their Israel policies and stances as the reason, though several of the non-Jewish groups in the coalition shared those stances on Israel.

“To be clear, Sunrise DC’s statement and actions are not in line with our values,” the Sunrise Movement said on Twitter. “Singling out Jewish organizations for removal from a coalition, despite others holding similar views, is antisemitic and unacceptable.”

From left: Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg and Senator Ben Cardin
From left: Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg and Senator Ben Cardin (Screenshot by Jesse Berman)

Beth Tfiloh Congregation hosts Sen. Ben Cardin

Beth Tfiloh Congregation hosted Sen. Ben Cardin on Oct. 20 for a discussion on political issues facing the country.

The public discussion, titled “Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg & Senator Benjamin Cardin: The State of the Union,” was the first session in the shul’s program, The Centennial Fall Lecture Series: Conversations with Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg.

“We’re now picking our friends by their political beliefs,” said Cardin, while speaking on what he perceived as a growing lack of civility in the political realm. “We don’t listen to each other, … which puts our democracy at great risk.”

The discussion also touched on subjects such as Israel and antisemitism, a growing wealth gap in the U.S. and climate change.

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