Thank you for your interest in the first-ever Jewish - Muslim Dialogue Fellowship (JMF) at Syracuse University! This dialogue cohort is generously sponsored by a grant from Interfaith America, for which Rabbi Bair and Imam Duric applied together last spring. JMF, offered for the first time this February, will be co-led by Rabbi Bair and Imam Duric with a student intern from each community. During the 4-week dialogue fellowship, we will:
* explore what we love most about Jewishness and Muslim-ness while practicing intentional listening;
* hold space for fishbowl conversations on the importance of Shabbat (for Jews) and prayer (for Muslims);
* learn about antisemitism and Islamophobia, treated separately, with outside speakers; and finally
* create space for questions, topics and discussion that did not previously come up in the first three sessions.
The goals of the fellowship are:
* to get to know each other and create friendships and community across difference through open-minded relationship-building and respectful conversation;
* better understand the lived experience of the other as religious and cultural minorities on campus i.e. create empathy;
* uncover common ground between Muslim and Jewish communities, historically and presently;
* set the stage to build trust and have hard and honest conversations;
* Create inter-group community that ripples outward to each of our on-campus cultural & religious communities.
We will meet 5:15 - 6:30 p.m. every Tuesday in February over veg. restaurant dinner and students need to make a commitment to attending all four sessions. Neutral location TBD.
Students who complete this mini-fellowship will receive a $100 stipend!
