Muslims and Jews sitting down together and talking? Even becoming friends?
Sound like a fantasy? Well, it’s not.
The University’s Muslim Jewish Dialogue Group, formed in spring 2003, is one of only a few such organizations in the nation.
Composed of Muslim and Jewish students, the group provides a means for biweekly formal dialogue sessions and educational programs. It allows Jewish and Muslim students to learn about each other’s religion and to become friends in the process.
“I joined the group because I was interested in breaking through stereotypes of tense relations between Muslims and Jews,” said junior Evan Weiner, a member since the group’s inception. “I was interested in learning more about both Islam and my own Jewish tradition.
“I was interested in creating a shared safe space where college students could discuss issues that are close to their hearts and their minds.”
The group was founded by Pamela Barmash, Ph.D., assistant professor of Hebrew bible and biblical literature in Arts & Sciences, along with several students. The group has grown to include 15 members who meet often to discuss issues, have dinner and listen to speakers.
“We are completely apolitical and intentionally include students of a wide array of political beliefs and theological ideas,” Barmash said. “Other campuses may have a group of politically left-wing students who pursue a political left-wing Middle Eastern agenda, but we do not deal with politics.
“Rather, we deal with issues of common concern, the issues that young adults growing up in America face, both as Americans and as Muslims or Jews. The members of the group are genuinely eager to listen to each other and to learn together in an honest and sympathetic way.”
The group has fostered positive relations between Muslim and Jewish students, a very rare situation on American university campuses.
Members of the group hold leadership positions in the Jewish Student Union, the Muslim Student Association, WU Solidarity for Israel, and Sakina, the pro-Palestine student association.
The Muslim Jewish Dialogue Group was awarded the University’s 2003-04 Rabbi Ferdinand M. Isserman Prize, which recognizes a student or student group making a significant contribution in leadership and service to ecumenical or interfaith activities on campus.
“Although this group is not political, it allows us to create constructive relationships between two communities that could otherwise develop tension based on political reasons,” junior Yael Maizel said. “We form these bonds through discussions about our cultures, religions, traditions and histories.
“I personally have learned a lot about the Muslim religion and culture, and the dialogue group has helped me to eliminate some of the stereotypes I had about Islam and Muslims. The group has also allowed me to meet and become friends with interesting people that I might not have encountered otherwise.”
The group holds an organizational meeting at the beginning of each semester to decide what issues will be discussed at the formal dialogue meetings and to discuss other group activities.
A professor of Jewish studies or Islamic studies is invited to give a short presentation at the formal dialogue sessions, and then students discuss the ramifications.
The informal sessions are devoted to other discussions, such as a welcome dinner held by the Muslim Student Association and a Sukkot dinner.
This year, the group hopes to create several community outreach programs that would teach Muslim and Jewish youths in the St. Louis area about breaking down stereotypes and creating friendships between the two cultures.
“I get a tremendous satisfaction from the group,” Weiner said.
“By discussing and learning about other faiths, I am able to learn more about my own and my relationship to my own tradition.
“Being a member of the group benefited me personally, intellectually, and most of all spiritually. It has been that safe space that I had wanted.”