JCCV’s dinner dates
IT was a busy week of interfaith dinners for the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV), as the peak body hosted two events with local leaders of other religions.
IT was a busy week of interfaith dinners for the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV), as the peak body hosted two events with local leaders of other religions.
Last Wednesday, JCCV president John Searle invited local and visiting Belgian Christians into his home. The guests, who are all involved with Jewish-Christian relations, included Frans and Renee van den Brande visiting from Antwerp, and Patricia Watson and Mary Lotten from the Sisters of Sion in Kew.
Discussions inlcuded the relationship between Jews and the wider Belgian community, the lives of Jews and Christians in both Australia and Europe, and issues of anti-Semitism.
“It is heartening to hear people of other faiths espousing the rights of Israel to exist, the misrepresentation of Israel in the worldwide media and the ignorance that causes much anti-Semitism that could, and should, be ameliorated from the pulpit,” Searle said. “The outcomes of such relationships can only be positive, enabling active discourse between communities to resolve issues in order to live and work together harmoniously.”
The following night, the JCCV again hosted an interfaith dinner, but in a less intimate setting.
Almost 100 people came together for the third annual Jewish-Anglican dinner at Beth Weizmann.
“There is something very special about sharing a meal together, and the evening represented a further step forward in strengthening the bonds of friendship that exist between our communities,” Searle said of the evening.
The JCCV president and Archdeacon Philip Newman both welcomed guests, before a performance by the St Kilda Hebrew Congregation Choir. Archbishop Philip Freier recited grace before meals, saying that he was glad there is no clash between the two communities in respect to thanking God for food.
Eli Yerushalmi, from the Israeli embassy in Canberra, and Right Reverend John Bayton were guest speakers on the night.
AJN STAFF
comments