"I've learned so much at these sessions, even about my own religion .....
I never had a Muslim friend, but I do now."
The diverse and changing nature of the American population demands an incredible amount of understanding and tolerance. Misunderstandings and stereotypes can breed within this confused atmosphere. Our children suffer the most from this confusion, bombarded on a daily basis by images that can create unfounded bigotry. Combating these images, and the subsequent hate that arises from them, is a large task, a task that requires practical knowledge and patience. It also requires a unique, grassroots, local community-based 'space' where young people - and their parents - can come together and learn free from fear. Such a space is created by the new JCS-sponsored Walking Together Program.
The Walking Together Program is designed for Jewish, Christian, and Muslim 4th-6th grade school children and their parents. This unique, inter-generational program teaches religious diversity through a variety of innovative educational sessions. Using an interdenominational team teaching- approach, Walking Together participants discuss, explore, and question their religious traditions, exposing misunderstandings, and finding commonalties. MRJ-trained lay facilitators, everyday members of the local Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities, lead each segment of the program with the professional assistance of local community clergy.
Supported by various national religious and community-building organizations, the JCS sponsored Walking Together Program will be entering into its pilot phase this spring. Four to six Reform Jewish communities around the United States will host Walking Together centers, participate in the training of facilitators, and begins its educational mission. Already successfully run in Elmira and Croton, New York, Los Angeles, California and Houston, Texas, Walking Together is the future of religious diversity education in America.
For more information on the Walking Together Program, contact the JCS offices.
