Ever since the diplomatic crisis of 2018 between Poland and Israel, Forum has intensified its initiatives aimed at rebuilding the trust and dialogue between the two countries. Our answer was the launch of the Polish/Israeli Leadership Initiative, a platform for cooperation and ideas exchange for a community of public opinion leaders from Poland and Israel happening each year alternatively in Poland or Israel. After the success of last year’s program hosted by Polish Friends of the Forum, this year, we have brought a group to Israel, where they met their Israeli counterparts for a program designed to strengthen bonds made last year and foster further meaningful conversations about current issues in Polish/Jewish dialogue, as well as contemporary politics and social issues important in Poland and Israel. This was yet another intense week-long visit comprised of meetings with experts on political and social issues, kibbutzniks from Lohamei HaGetaot, members of Israeli NGOs, artists, and representatives of local authorities.

But first and foremost, it was an opportunity for incredible people united by shared values and their belief in the Forum mission, to once again confront the most difficult issues and have a dialogue about them.

One of the Polish participants summarized her experience: “The most important aspects of the visit were the sincere and open conversation, the stories and emotions expressed openly and received with a most empathetic manner, and the relationships formed. Connecting to the Israeli participants is a way to build bridges, work on the difficult past, and get back something we have lost in the midst of the 20th century.”

photos by H.Gospodarczyk

Contributors

Project co-financed by the Friends of the Forum and the Orange Polska S.A.

In June, Forum for Dialogue hosted a delegation from the American Jewish Committee (AJC) for another study trip to Poland organized as a part of the long-standing collaboration between Forum and one of the most important Jewish organizations in the United States. For AJC members participating in the trip, the week in Poland offered an opportunity to explore the modern face of the country and to broaden their understanding of Polish/Jewish relations.

The visit was supported by Polish Friends of the Forum and it’s intense program included meetings with members of the Jewish community in Warsaw and Krakow, as well as representatives of Polish authorities and public figures. The group had in-depth site visits to the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, the Grodzka Gate – NN Theater in Lublin, the Bełżec Museum and Memorial, and the Memorial and Museum Auschwitz-Birkenau, as well as guided tours of Warsaw and Krakow Jewish sites. The AJC delegates also met with Polish Friends of the Forum and participated in a Shabbat dinner organized by the Krakow JCC.

photo by H.Gospodarczyk

On June 26^th, Forum’s Executive Board Member Zuzanna Radzik was awarded The Irena Sendler Memorial Award at Tempel Synagogue, just prior to a concert of the 29th annual Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow. Taube Philanthropies recognized Zuza for her research, publishing, teaching, and advocacy in the fields of Polish/Jewish dialogue and the role of women in Catholicism.

When asked about her feelings about the award, Zuza said: “I’m flattered with the Irena Sendler Award, but her example and also my experience shows that you cannot do it alone. You need a gang. So I wouldn’t be receiving an award for activism, research, and publications, if not for my great coworkers at Forum for Dialogue, Tygodnik Powszechny, WAM publishing house, supportive friends and family, as well as readers who care.”

Join us in congratulating Zuza on this great success!

photo by Wolfgang Schmidt

In May, we had the pleasure of facilitating the visit of the representatives of the Gombin Jewish Historical & Genealogical Society to Gąbin, where they met the School of Dialogue students from the local Stanisław Staszic School Complex. This was not the first visit of the Gombin Society in the town of their ancestors. In 2012 they met students from a different School of Dialogue who took them on a walking tour of the town’s Jewish sites.

The Gombin Society was formed in 1996 and is committed to preserving the culture, history, and heritage of the Gąbin Jews. It also seeks to perpetuate the worldwide community of their descendants. Forum for Dialogue is honored to be part of this reconnection.

photos by M.Piekarska

As the semester is drawing to a close, School of Dialogue students from Pułtusk, Płońsk, and Siedlce had an amazing opportunity to meet and talk with George Elbaum, a Child Survivor of the Holocaust, born in Warsaw, who is also a great Friend of the Forum, special guest of last year’s School of Dialogue Gala. During each meeting George shared stories from his past and interacted with students interested in knowing more about his wartime and postwar life. As always, the students lined up to get an autograph on their copies of George’s “Neither Yesterdays, nor Tomorrows: Vignettes of a Holocaust Childhood,” published in Polish thanks to the Forum for Dialogue.

photos by H.Gospodarczyk, A.Mierzwa, M.Usiekniewicz

“What a wonderful visit to Israel and what wonderful people. The trip was truly ecumenical and interfaith … Despite my recent crisis regarding the church, I now feel thoroughly immersed in Christianity. A Christianity not based on dogma or clericalism, but one based on encountering and experiencing,” said one of the participants of Forum’s unique Shared Heritage program addressed to leaders of Polish Christian community. The intense study visit to Israel was a key element of a program launched in March 2019 and co-organized with the Yad Vashem. The purpose of the program is to ensure that the people who impact religious discourse in Poland are educated and sensitive to the history and heritage of Jews in Poland.

During their intense week-long stay, the participants met with Yad Vashem experts to discuss pre-war Jewish life in Poland, the history of antisemitism, and the Holocaust. These meetings led to meaningful discussions interweaving history, philosophy, and Christian theology. Importantly, these discussions took into account and exposed the different narratives about the past present in Poland and Israel.

The participants could listen to personal stories, such as the one told by professor Yoram Diamant, who talked about his Holocaust childhood, which inspired him to educate others about the atrocity. Taly Gazit, Tami Gutman, and Sara Minash reflected on what does it really mean to be part of the Second Generation. Finally, the highlight of the program occured during the Shabbat at the Kehillat Yedidya synagogue. After the service the community members invited the visit participants to share with them their evening meal. In an intimate and familial atmosphere a genuine connection could form, which paved the way for a discussion of the most painful, but also most important issues.

photos by M.Sokołowska