Rome, Italy, February 10, 2017 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) honored The Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Sion for its commitment to justice and deep valuing of interfaith affairs. A delegation of ADL leaders, in Rome for a meeting with Pope Francis, presented members of the order on February 9 with the ADL Cardinal Bea Interfaith Award, which recognizes those who contribute to Catholic-Jewish relations.
The Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Sion was…
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Vatican City, February 9, 2017 … A delegation of top leaders from the Anti-Defamation League met on Thursday with Pope Francis at the Vatican, where they voiced support for the pontiff’s ongoing efforts to denounce anti-Semitism and praised his advocacy on behalf of refugees, as well as his efforts to encourage greater understanding among Christians, Muslims and Jews.
“We know you understand and share our concern about the resurgence of anti-Semitism, especially in…
by: Jonathan A. Greenblatt | February 09, 2017 Your Holiness,
This week, in synagogues all over the world, Jews will read Shirat Ha-yam, the “Song of the Sea” from the book of Exodus that Miriam, Moses and the Israelites sang after they miraculously passed through the Sea of Reeds on dry land.
As a newly free people, they expressed their thanks to God for their redemption, saying:
Who is like you, o eternal, among the…
New York, NY, December 22, 2016...In a year where white nationalists and racists attempted to inject bigotry into the public square and when a divisive election season ended with unconscionable acts of hatred, there was plenty of reason for despair in 2016.
And yet, there were also glimmers of hope: A community brought together in the aftershock of a mass shooting at an LGBT nightclub in Florida; a Texas campus drowning out the hateful views of an unwanted visiting white supremacist; the…
December 21, 2016 Editor’s Note:A Muslim academic and a Jewish interfaith rabbi recently sat down together for a discussion about the spate of hate crimes that have taken place in the aftermath of the 2016 election campaign and what can happen with Jews and Muslims work together to combat hate speech.
The following conversation between Dr. Mehnaz Afridi, Director of the Holocaust and Genocide Institute at Manhattan College, and Rabbi David Sandmel, Director of Interreligious…
For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers Most people love a celebration! Adults flutter around busily preparing for the festivities. Children are abuzz with excitement. Special foods are eaten, special heirlooms brought down from the shelf. Traditions are passed down from generation to generation. While children should have an opportunity to learn about and share information about the important holidays and celebrations in their lives, celebrating specific holidays in a school or…
Early Childhood Question Corner For Educators | For Parents, Families, and Caregivers You can help children embrace differences by exposing them to diversity as early as possible. This can be a natural part of everyday living as children develop relationships outside their family. Answer children’s questions about differences openly and honestly as they come up, and if you don't know the answers, seek them out. Another way to ensure diversity in children’s lives is to…
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COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Language, Speaking and Listening Commemorating National Hispanic Heritage Month
In commemoration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, we present this resource to help teachers engage students in thinking broadly and critically about the Hispanic American experience in all of its complexity. In highlighting the significant events as well as people that have made a substantial contribution…
New York, NY, July 1, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today welcomed the Middle East Quartet’s call on the Palestinian Authority to “act decisively” to stop incitement to violence and strengthen efforts to combat terrorism following a series of deadly terrorist attacks in Israel over the last few days. “In the aftermath of two deadly days in Israel, when civilians have been targeted in their beds, on the street and in their cars, it is clear that…
New York, NY, June 27, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today welcomed the announcement of an agreement between Israel and Turkey that will restore full diplomatic relations and renew the economic, military and political cooperation the two countries have long enjoyed. “The restoration of Israeli-Turkish relations is a significant and welcome achievement, not just for these two long-time allies, but as a marker of regional cooperation and stability,” said Jonathan A…
Expresses Disappointment for Church’s Endorsement of Report Calling for Alternatives to Two State Solution New York, NY, June 27, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) expressed disappointment at a number of problematic Israel-focused motions endorsed last week by the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly, including a report calling on the church to explore alternatives to the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and an overture advocating the church study…
by: Rabbi David Sandmel | June 05, 2016 The Times of Israel The General Conference of United Methodist Church recently concluded its quadrennial gathering, which this year was held in Portland, Oregon. I and many others in the Jewish community, not to mention many Christians as well, were pleased with the outcome of a number of votes on resolutions concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Inter alia, the Church rejected resolutions calling for divestment or for investment screens…
by: Shaya Lerner Iran’s newest “Holocaust contest” exhibition opened on May 14 in a gallery in Tehran. According to Iranian news reports, the contest received over 864 submissions from participants around the world. Of those, 150 cartoons from 50 countries were accepted, with representation of cartoonists from Brazil, China, Colombia, France, Indonesia, Peru, Syria, Turkey and Yemen, among others. Contest organizer Masoud Shojai Tabatabaei insisted the event was not to…
By Jonathan Greenblatt CEO of the Anti-Defamation League As the still fairly new CEO of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), I’ve been on the job less than one year. I’m frequently asked about our current position on historical League decisions. One of those crucial questions is where ADL stands with regards to recognition of the Armenian Genocide. My family was directly impacted by the Holocaust. Given that profoundly personal experience, I appreciate the pain of those who…
Says Town’s Rejection of Mosque Construction “Troubling” and “Simply Unacceptable” New York, NY, May 11, 2016 … The Interfaith Coalition on Mosques (ICOM) today joined a friend-of-the court brief filed on behalf of a coalition of civil rights and interfaith organizations in support of The Islamic Society of Basking Ridge (ISBR). Filed with a federal court in New Jersey, the brief asserts that the Township of Bernards discriminatorily denied the congregation…
by: Shaya Lerner On May 14, 2016, the second international Holocaust Cartoon Contest exhibition will open in Iran, with the first place winner – reportedly to be announced in June – receiving a large cash prize. According to reports in the Iranian press, the May 14th date was chosen to coincide with Nakba Day (catastrophe day), the term used by Palestinian to refer to the events surrounding Israel’s independence in 1948. The contest reportedly received over 800…
Jerusalem, March 28, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today strongly condemned Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, for stating that “non-Jews shouldn’t live in the land of Israel.” In a recording of Yosef’s weekly Saturday night lecture, the rabbi can be heard saying, “If our hand were firm, if we had the power to rule, then non-Jews must not live in Israel. But, our hand is not firm.” He added that the only reason non…
by: Shaya Lerner Despite the international community’s reengagement with a more “open” and “moderate” Iran, some things in Iranian society haven’t changed, including the prevalence of Holocaust mockery and denial. While President Rouhani hasn’t touted the issue like his predecessor Ahmadinejad had, recent announcements indicate that the questioning of the Holocaust is very much alive and well within Iranian society. In December, the Tehran…
by: Jonathan A. Greenblatt | October 27, 2015 PBS - Religion & Ethics Newsweekly The promulgation, on October 28, 1965, of Nostra Aetate, the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration on the Church’s Relations with Non-Christian Religions, may be the most important moment is post-Holocaust Jewish-Christian relations and interfaith relations writ large.
In its fourth chapter, Nostra Aetate effectively overturned centuries of what the noted French Jewish historian…
Early Childhood Question Corner
Common themes appear in holidays and celebrations across many cultures. By connecting themes, as suggested in the Question Corner installment "How can I plan inclusive holiday celebrations?" you can show children that holidays and celebrations are an expression of cultural and religious pride, and help them understand the commonality of certain human feelings, celebrations and their meaning. For example, by trying the following activity, Looking…