Israeli Chronicles — Connecting Israel & Cincinnati
Bringing “All Sorts of Israel” to Cincinnati
What does it mean to be an Israeli?
This past week I had the pleasure of hosting Vadim Blumin, our first Israelity speaker for 2016, in Cincinnati.
Vadim, a talented young man and a unique educator with a creative personality, touched the hearts of many in our community and inspired them to think differently about Israeli society in general, and, in particular, Russian immigration to Israel.
While he was here, he taught at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, giving a lecture about 100 years of Israeli art, and how it reflects the changes in Israeli society and narratives.
He also led a “Makom” workshop about Israel education for Jewish educators in town, and he talked to the Jewish Family Service “Friendship Club,” in Russian! The group of Russian-speaking seniors really enjoyed his guest appearance.
The culmination of Vadim’s visit was his Israelity talk at the Mayerson JCC, where he spoke about the “1.5 Generation” of Russian immigrants to Israel.
While planning his visit, Vadim shared a thought with me. “You know,” he said, “It’s quite amazing the changes we went through as a society—the fact that you are bringing me, the Russian immigrant, to represent Israel! Who would have thought?!”
New generation, new culture
Israel is a young country, going through so many cultural changes. New generations are being raised in Israel, and are making major changes to the fabric of Israeli society.
Just this Monday, an amazing speaker, Lesley Sachs, the director of Women of the Wall, gave a powerful talk about the very recent events surrounding the Women of the Wall— an issue of pluralism that hopefully marks a larger change in the way Judaism is practiced and understood in Israel. This video provides a good snapshot of the important work this organization does.
So after these fascinating weeks with Vadim and Lesley, I’m excited to welcome our next speaker for this year’s Israelity series, Ophir Toubul, a young lawyer, DJ, and Mizrachi Jew, who will talk about how his generation is driving cultural change in Israel. Ophir will focus on his choice to create change through music. Here’s a look at how he’s doing it.
I hope you’ll enjoy exploring the colorful fabric of Israeli society with me. Be sure to reserve your spot to see this exciting speaker by clicking here.
