Jerusalem Post, 26. April 2005

German, E. European Jews 'work' towards understanding

by IRINA BESSARAB

"So I was a Jew! I was different! I was not like everyone else! An outsider here, an outsider there, an outsider beyond description! The feeling of being foreign defined my life." This quote introduces the outline of BJSD's (Federal Union of Jewish Students in Germany) work and study program in Eastern Europe, "BJSD Goes Back to the Roots."

The project, which is to take place in August, will bring about 40 Jewish students in Germany to an Eastern European city, which has yet to be determined, for a 10-day seminar. The participants will accomplish different tasks: renovating a Jewish kindergarten, reconstructing a neglected cemetery or refurbishing a synagogue. Additionally, they will take part in workshops on Jewish history and identity.

"First of all, it is important for us to make our contribution to one of the essential tasks of Judaism: Tikkun Olam – doing good in the world. We want to help Jewish communities who live under more difficult conditions than we do in the West," BJSD president Elena Eyngorn said.

A second, less obvious, layer appears on inspection of the composition of the Jewish student population in Germany. Seventy percent of BJSD's members are immigrants from the former Soviet Union. These Russian-speaking Jews are even more affected by the question of belonging in a foreign country than German Jews and contribute to a rich introspection of the role of Jews in Germany. Moreover, the German Jews' knowledge of their Russian counterparts is limited.

"Our second aim is to promote a common and strong Jewish identity by giving the two groups basic knowledge about each other, and about themselves. We want our students to realize that what they have to share – their Jewish background – is more valuable than what separates them."

"Working together towards a common aim – to rebuild what was damaged, to recreate what was forgotten – is a key to the construction of a common identity," Eyngorn said.

Moreover, she continued, seminars and workshops are good and necessary, but people appreciate things more after putting their physical strength into it. "I want our students to take a look at the rebuilt cemetery after they have been working on it for five hours daily for 10 days. No seminar could evoke a comparable feeling of pride and belonging, aroused by seeing the fruits of one's physical labor."