Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/821883
8 May 11 • 2017 jn 8 May 11 • 2017 jn views guest column Woodward And Gladstone Justin Wedes I am sitting under the giant white columns of Temple Beth El at Woodward and Gladstone in Detroit. It's no longer a temple in the Reform Jewish sense — there are no more Jews living in the area. They've moved northwest to Oak Park, Huntington Woods or West Bloomfield or further to Ann Arbor. Or they've moved out of the state entirely, a diaspora within the Diaspora. There are a few, mostly young, Jews now living i n the city — they are bold and progressive, but they are few in number ( for now). I am one of those Jews. I live each day with the deep contradic- tions of my past and present. I live among blacks and whites, immi- grants and refugees. There is a palpable tension still in the air, but I believe in the power of honest, intentional community to heal old wounds. The prophetic Jewish tradition that nourished me instilled in me the power of vision. That line from Joel 2:28 that Debbie Friedman sculpted into sweet song: And the old shall dream dreams, and the youth shall see visions; And our hopes shall rise up to the sky. I share a vision of a beautiful Detroit to come, alongside my brothers and sisters of the Bethel Community Transformation Center — two rabbis, three black pastors and a small but growing "peaceful army" of compassion- ate individuals. Our vision is one of restoration and revitalization, not just of the physical spaces left behind by Jews and inherited by Christians, but of the very relation- ships that will one day flourish in those spaces. Our vision sees black and white, Jew and Gentile, young and old, living together in community — caring for the needs of those who suffer today and building toward the future of all together, tomorrow. We need each other, more than ever in these times of political uncertainty. I feel a deep sadness that our first campaign — to kickstart this beautiful vision — did not come to fruition. It is a setback for all of us who believe in this work. Yet it only strengthens my resolve to rebuild this dream, white and black, hand- in-hand. I know that the historic Temple Beth El on Woodward and Gladstone will be restored as a house of prayer "for all people," under the faithful stewardship of Pastor Aramis D. Hinds, and with the steadfast support of many visionary and compassionate Jews and Gentiles. I close my eyes. I breathe deeply. It is 1967 again. The rebellion is sweeping the streets around Temple Beth El, and Rabbi Hertz joins with synagogue president Aubrey H. Ettenheimer in pro- claiming a statement to the city: Their congregants will be "ambas- sadors of reconciliation" and their high-columned home on Woodward a "source of strength and stability … to our city." It is not too late to be those ambassadors of reconciliation in a Detroit still deeply wounded. A Detroit that is not giving up but rising from the ashes. • Justin Wedes is a community activist and communications director of the Bethel Community Transformation Center, an inter- faith coalition aiming to restore the historic Temple Beth El in Detroit and transform it into a performing arts, multi-faith worship and community center. BCTCDetroit.org. M SU Jewish Studies Director Yael Aronoff proudly announces that 37 Michigan State undergrad- uate and graduate students will be traveling to Israel this summer on three differ- ent professor-led programs. Fourteen undergraduate students will be led by Dr. Aronoff, the Serling and Friends Israel Studies Professor, for study abroad at Hebrew University in Jerusalem on the campus at Mt. Scopus, where they will receive eight MSU course credits. The students will be taking courses in "Israel Politics, Cultures and Society" taught by Professor Aronoff and "The History of the Emergence of Modern Israel" with Hebrew University Professor David Mendelsson. The students will also have the opportunity for travel throughout Israel with their profes- sors. MSU Professor Eric Aronoff of the Residential College in Arts and Humanities will lead 15 undergraduate students on the "Green Israel Study Abroad Program" on an environmental/ ecological study curricu- lum, earning four to six MSU credits. The course is known as "Nature, Culture and Environmental Sustainability in a Green Israel." The students will travel from the far reaches of the upper Galilee at Tel Hai Environmental College to the southern end of the country all the way to Kibbutz Lotan and the Coral Beach Nature Preserve in Eliat along with many places in between. Four students will be doing both the Hebrew University and Green Israel courses. A third group of approximately 12 Ph.D. graduate students in MSU's CREATE for STEM Institute will attend the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, located just south of Tel Aviv. CREATE for STEM is a collabo- ration between the Colleges of Education, Natural Science, Engineering and Lymon-Briggs. MSU post-doctoral student Tom Bielik, an Israeli who graduated from the Weizmann Institute, has organized and will lead the group. Courses will be taught by research- ers from MSU, the Weizmann Institute and the Technion. The Weizmann Institute of Science is one of the world's top research institutes. Interestingly, Bielik came to MSU within the past couple of years for his post-doctoral course work with CREATE for STEM without any knowledge of the MSU Jewish Studies Program. When he arrived, he discovered MSU's very advanced Jewish Studies Program and decided to become involved as an affiliated graduate student. During the year, he worked closely with Director Aronoff, and the outcome was a very welcome collaboration with the Weizmann Institute in Israel. The undergraduate study abroad programs are funded in large part by Levy scholarships donated by Detroit philanthropist Ed Levy Jr. The graduate program at the Weizmann Institute is funded in part by the MSU Jewish Studies Program. These programs are helping to build bridges between MSU stu- dents and the State of Israel.• Michael B. Serling is chair of the MSU Jewish Studies Advisory Board. guest column Michigan State & Israel: A Strong Connection Michael Serling Yael Aronoff and Tom Bielik Eric Aronoff