“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” Genesis 1:27
“Rabbi Akiva commented that anyone who spills blood is considered to have lessened the image [of God], because it is written: ‘He who spills human blood, his blood shall be spilt.’ Why is this so? Because God created man in his own image.” Bereshit Rabba, 34:14
RHR is involved in diverse educational activities in both formal and informal frameworks. The activities are run by rabbis from all the Jewish streams. Our educational goal is to present a religious Jewish voice that promotes human rights for all in Israel. The activities are intended for educators, students, and other groups of people interested in these issues. Human rights in general are ignored by all the education systems in Israel, and all the more so when these rights are perceived as rooted in Jewish tradition.
The educational approach embodied in the educational activities of RHR is Kleinberger’s approach to values education. This approach addresses the intellect and the capacity for criticism, emphasizing ideological and principled aspects, and presenting the student with alternatives. Kleinberger argues that students must be enabled to develop a critical worldview based on consideration of diverse alternatives, and that through developing intellectual and critical skills, their moral values can be consolidated. At the same time, he presents two opposing paradigms. One argues that “we have no right to educate to binding values,” while the second posits the opposite. Accordingly, the balance depends on the behavior of teachers and of the education system—on their intellectual honesty in approaching this dilemma.
In RHR, our staring point is that Jewish tradition offers various answers and interpretations relating to human rights issues. As an organization, we have chosen to focus on the humanistic voice, but we do so while presenting diverse voices, and while developing critical thought around the founding texts of the Jewish people, including a presentation of the prices inherent in each of the choices people make as they develop their perspective on human rights. Kleinberger’s approach is based on an ideological and intellectual experience. He sees values education as education to values “whose content and substance are clear and defined.”
The study texts relate to human rights as reflected in the founding works of the Jewish People: the Bible, Talmud, texts of Jewish and Zionist thinkers, and so on. The texts are taught in an experiential manner. Instead of frontal teaching, we use Hevruta (learning in pairs), teaching tools for coping with the texts. The learning process is accompanied by practical action, in order to create a dialogue between study and action. For example, when we study the subject of our attitude to the “Other,” the participants must first distinguish between different types of “Others:” the poor other, the foreign other, the convert other, the exceptional other, the other with special needs, the enemy other, and so on. Secondly, they are asked to examine how each of these groups of “Others” is reflected in the texts and to discuss the issue with members of other generations. Only then, in the third stage, do they go out to examine the “Other” in light of the texts and in light of reality – a process that includes practical activities in the field of human rights.
The members of RHR accept responsibility for presenting all possible alternatives, including ones that we do not agree with, in order to encourage the participants to develop critical thinking as a foundation for developing a perspective on human rights. We do not confine ourselves to study, however intellectual or critical it may be, but reinforce study with action and experience. In so doing, we integrate the approach of Dewey, which assumes that the learning process should be based on personal experience and practice in a practical context, in order to create the continuum between the human society of the past and the student in the present.
Rabbi Nava Hefetz is RHR’s education director.
Join our Human Rights Tour For Jewish Leadership October 2nd- 9th
If you are organizing a group tour to Israel/Palestine or traveling on your own, Rabbis for Human Rights would be happy to meet with you!
very good stuff.http://www.decolarpassagens.net
B”H
Shalom,
As one of many concerned citizens of Israel we feel that the American Jewish Community can, help in being the decisive weight, needed, to end Jonathan Pollard’s outdated, prison sentence, in the hope that we all,will give our unconditional strength in ending one man’s punishment and prison sentence, for a crime that we believe, the price, has been paid for, already. Leaving him one more day in Jail, is a slow cruel, death beyond the realm of justice.
In the working of the American Justice system all other prison sentences handed out to people who perpetrated similar or worse breaches of national security, have ended with all the offenders out of jail in considerably less time than Pollard’s never ending, ongoing prison sentence. The Present American Government cannot justify keeping , Pollard incarcerated forever, like a living crucifix.
The vast majority of the Obama’s predecessors and key figures from the American establishment, that spear headed Pollard’s arrest in 1986,have advocated to free Pollard, stating that Pollard has done and paid his time. Jonathan Pollard is a human being and being Jewish we are obligated to stand for equal justice for all human beings especially when their prison sentence is not equal to other offenders of the same, or even worse offences, under the same law.
The whole issue of Pollard is so far past its expiry date it is from another day, another century and era, it is irrelevant and outdated and becoming no more than an unnecessary injustice, and a continual insult, to the very justice system it represents.
Jonathan has paid the price.The injustice now is in this never ending prison sentence,before it takes his life,lets remember that,Jonathan
can be freed by the Jewish Community using their full political potential,and their voting power,before the elections,to demand his release.
Then,we may say,
“And the people redeemed Jonathan and he did not die.”(1 Samuel 14:45)
Philippe Gideon
Israel
All E-mails recieving this letter were found under The Jewish Federation of North America.Thanks and All the Best.
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Shalom,
Respected honourable seceretary
Sub-: Regarding conversion
Respected sir ,
I want to say first of all I am very thankful to show concern regarding my conversion back into jew religion . sir, whatever you have given me e-mail address of rabbi JOSHUA KOLET . I have done so many email to him regarding my conversion into jew religion . but I cannot get any answer yet now . so please do some thing for me . please help me . please save us then we can return back to our religion. Please it is depend on you .
Please give me reply as soon as possible .
Yours sincerely
In the name of yehauva
Mr. Abraham vikas singh
128/117 A-K BLOCK RATAN KUTI APPARTMENT
FLAT NO. 6 KIDWAI NAGAR KANPUR U.P INDIA
MOB.NO. 09839426337, 9307948330