Coming Soon: The Jewish Dialogue Group’s
Guidebook for Deliberation about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
In 2010, the Jewish Dialogue Group plans to release our next publication: a guidebook for deliberation about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This new guidebook will enable Jews around the United States to systematically explore the choices they face as they consider how to respond to the conflict.
We need your help to make this happen!
What is the guide?
The guidebook will describe four alternative responses to the question, "How can Jews in the U.S. respond to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in ways that are ethical and effective?" Each response will include a detailed set of actions that Jews in the U.S. can take, along with an explanation of the hopes for the future, interpretations of history, analysis of current events, and religious and ethical commitments that motivate that approach. The four responses will reflect a full range of ideas and concerns within Jewish communities.
In addition to publishing a printed guidebook, we will create a companion website. The website will allow users to deepen their learning by following hypertext links that lead them to articles, blogs, maps, and a variety of websites that provide more information about the topics that the guidebook addresses.
How will the
guide be used?
Jewish individuals and groups around the United States will use the guide to conduct deliberation workshops — structured conversations that offer people a systematic way to explore the choices they face when considering how to respond to a controversial problem.
Participants in deliberation programs will examine each of the four approaches described in the guidebook, explore their reactions, discuss the questions that each approach raises for them, and begin to figure out for themselves what actions to take and/or how they can study the issue in a way that helps them to reach clarity. Some deliberation programs will be one-time events, while others will involve two, three, or more meetings over a period of weeks or months. Many participants will engage in multiple-session programs that involve both structured dialogue sessions as well as deliberation workshops.
In addition, thousands of Jews around the U.S. will study the guide on their own and discuss it informally, without participating in structured programs.
How can you help?
We are seeking volunteer researchers and editors to help create the materials. We are also seeking endorsements, suggestions, and guidance from organizations that are interested in using or publicizing the guide. Read more about how you can get involved.
For more information, contact us at 215-266-1218 or info@jewishdialogue.org.
