Testimonial by Elisheva Goldberg (Class of
2011)
Participant in Dialogue for Jewish Student Leaders at the University of Pennsylvania
Participant in Dialogue for Jewish Student Leaders at the University of Pennsylvania
The most satisfying, enriching and
valuable aspect of my experience with this dialogue was my own ability to come
to terms with the disparity of opinions in my personal Jewish community. I
learned something that I never tire of learning. I learned, once again, that if
I sit down with people, I can
come to understand them. This is no trivial or unimportant realization, and it
comforts me deeply.
The most frustrating part of the dialogue was facing that “truth” of the “other side.” It is difficult for me -- who sees my “side” as the more thoughtful, rational, and true one, to come to terms with the fact that others see theirs in precisely the same way. Yes, I found the sit-down, discuss-‘til-you're-blue experience to be very challenging. But a discussion that tires us out at the same time gives us strength for stronger relationships, further talk, and perhaps the possibility of resolution. The challenge of facing my ideological opposites was also personally strengthening because it meant that I COULD face them. It reminded me that I am not only strong enough, but personally steadfast, articulate, and expressive enough to make myself understood in conversation with anyone.
In the end, I took away a sense of hope (which, I think, was the point). It made me hesitatingly positive about the communal situation in which I find myself. I think that I found, if not common ground, then common language with people whose beliefs and actions seem so destructive to me. Consequently, I think that I can say that I took away cautious optimism, an optimism that reminds me that I can both speak and understand.
The most frustrating part of the dialogue was facing that “truth” of the “other side.” It is difficult for me -- who sees my “side” as the more thoughtful, rational, and true one, to come to terms with the fact that others see theirs in precisely the same way. Yes, I found the sit-down, discuss-‘til-you're-blue experience to be very challenging. But a discussion that tires us out at the same time gives us strength for stronger relationships, further talk, and perhaps the possibility of resolution. The challenge of facing my ideological opposites was also personally strengthening because it meant that I COULD face them. It reminded me that I am not only strong enough, but personally steadfast, articulate, and expressive enough to make myself understood in conversation with anyone.
In the end, I took away a sense of hope (which, I think, was the point). It made me hesitatingly positive about the communal situation in which I find myself. I think that I found, if not common ground, then common language with people whose beliefs and actions seem so destructive to me. Consequently, I think that I can say that I took away cautious optimism, an optimism that reminds me that I can both speak and understand.
