In the wake of its decision to extend its activities in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, KKL-JNF held a special seminar that focused on the Tu BiShvat holiday and activities for 2018. Representatives of communities from six countries in the region took part, making their way to the Montenegrin capital Podgorica for two days of memorable experiences and productive debate.
In November 2017, KKL-JNF participated in the fifth annual Mahar (‘tomorrow’) conference in Budva, Montenegro in order to strengthen the Jewish communities in the Balkans and Eastern Europe and promote mutual cooperation. After meetings with representatives from the different communities during the conference, KKL-JNF Director General Mr. Amnon Ben Ami decided to kick-start KKL-JNF activities in the region with a Tu BiShvat seminar that would be the first event of its kind.
On the first day of the conference eight representatives from seven countries assembled in Podgorica: President of KKL-JNF Montenegro and President of the Montenegro Jewish Community Mr. Jasha Alfandari; Ms Karolina Szykier-Koszucka, an educator at the Lauder-Morasha School who deputized for Mr. Leslaw Piszewski, President of the united communities of Poland; Ms Žoli Abravanel, a member of the legal community and of the Jewish community of Belgrade in Serbia; Ms Svetlana Đurić, President of the cultural committee in Serbia; Mr. Mihai Lucian Grunberg, representing the community of Romania; Mr. Andras Gyertyanos, Advisor to the President of the Hungarian Municipalities Union, who deputized for the union’s president Mr. Peter Torday; Ms Ana Lebl, President of the Jewish community of Split in Croatia; and Dr. Rahela Mizrahi, a representative of the Macedonian community.
The seminar was hosted by Mr. Jasha Alfandari, who is President of both the local Jewish Community and KKL-JNF Montenegro.
The conference opened with an official dinner at which Mr. Alfandari told his guests: “We have gathered here for two days of study and discussion of Tu BiShvat that you will be able to take back home with you to your communities as you engage in meaningful activities to celebrate the holiday. But even more importantly, I have invited you here because I believe that together we can create a group that will lead KKL-JNF activities in the region.”
The conference was led by Ms. Lin Dror of KKL-JNF’s Department of International Relations and Conferences, who is in charge of coordinating the organization’s activities in the Balkans. At the opening event she welcomed the participants on behalf of KKL-JNF’s Board of Directors and added, “In the past we needed donations and help from the Jewish People to establish, develop and strengthen the Jewish state. About two years ago a new KKL-JNF Board elected under the leadership of Daniel Atar examined the organization’s goals and objectives and decided to adjust them to suit the current needs and issues facing the State of Israel and the Jewish People. As a result, our approach to Jewish communities throughout the world has developed and become more proactive. This being the case, we decided to come to you, the Jewish communities of the Balkans and Eastern Europe, and, together with you, examine your needs, the problems you face and how we can work together with you and make you stronger, because the strength of the State of Israel has always been dependent upon the strength of the Jewish People in Israel and the Diaspora.”
In the course of the opening event, the representatives of the different countries introduced themselves, described the structure of their communities, and discussed the different problems they face and how each community deals with the various challenges. It became clear that, although the problems were similar, the solutions are not necessarily identical, because of the special character of each individual country and community.
Among the main topics discussed were the following: tensions with the non-Jewish population and anti-Semitic attitudes; the personal safety of members of the communities and security at community institutions; and the young people’s tendency to distance themselves from the Jewish community and maintain an ambivalent attitude towards the State of Israel, especially in view of hostile reports in the media that have caused many Jews to deny or conceal their Jewishness. Educational issues also arose, and the lack of general knowledge of Jewish and Israeli topics was discussed.
On the second day of the conference (January 18th) a day-long seminar was held. It began with an introduction to the history of KKL-JNF and how it has met the changing needs of the Jewish People and the State over the years. Later KKL-JNF activities were presented in the light of the organization’s renewed vision. The participants expressed great interest in KKL-JNF’s expertise in water management and afforestation and remarked that until then they had believed the organization’s activities to be confined solely to tree-planting and had been unaware of its vital and extensive work.
A festive Tu BiShvat seder was held at the conclusion of the debate. The participants learned about the meaning and origins of the holiday, ate fruit from the Land of Israel, recited the blessing over the four cups of wine and sang Tu BiShvat songs together. Apart from providing a memorable experience, the seder also equipped the participants with the tools necessary to hold a seder of their own in their home communities.
During the Tu BiShvat seder Rabbi Ari Edelkopf, the rabbi of the Montenegro Jewish community, came to pay a visit and talk to the participants about the significance of the holiday and its origins in Jewish tradition. He explained the meaning of the expression “for Man is like the tree of the field” (Deuteronomy 20:19):
“Trees are often compared to Man. But is Man a tree? There are a number of interpretations, one of which is that if a man is a good teacher, we should eat of his fruit and learn from him. Others consider his fruit to be the mitzvot he observes. I believe that on Tu BiShvat we should examine our growth as human beings, as one checks the growth of a tree.”
After the ceremony, discussion focused on if and how the representatives intended to implement these Tu BiShvat activities in their own communities over the holiday, which falls this year on January 31st. The participants welcomed the suggestions for activities and declared that they would make use of the KKL-JNF materials distributed and conference events experienced in ways appropriate to the character of their own community. Thus, for example, Ms Szykier-Koszucka of Poland explained that her community’s educational institutions provide a Tu BiShvat program every year, and added that the seminar had given her new tools and ideas that she could pass on to the children and young people in order to enrich the program and render it more meaningful.
The next discussion, which was initiated by the participants themselves, focused on the meaning of modern Zionism and its place in the broader context of the Jewish People in Israel and – mainly – in the Diaspora. Mr. Alfandari said that in his opinion, “Zionism today does not necessarily mean immigrating to Israel or donating money to build the state, as it already exists and no longer needs the help of Diaspora Jewry as it did in the past. My feeling is that the Zionist Movement in the Jewish world today means perpetuating the existence of the Jewish communities and keeping them strong and active.”
Ms. Szykier-Koszucka explained: “For many years we couldn’t visit Israel, and now the Jewish community in Poland is trying to rediscover Judaism and our connection to Israel. This is why the relationship with KKL-JNF and the answers the organization can give us are very important to us.”
Ms. Ana Lebl said that in her community, “There is a Jewish connection, but attachment to Israel is weak. The problem is that the connection to Israel is most often accompanied by politics, and also a lot of programs and organizations are not designed for small communities or communities in the Balkans, and this distances the community from these activities. And so a vacuum is created, and it’s because of this that we shall be very glad if KKL-JNF can help us to develop the Israeli context: it seems that it can provide us with a suitable answer to the deficiency we feel. But it’s important to create programs that are tailored to our size and designed to suit us – something it appears that KKL-JNF intends to do, together with us.”
The representatives offered a variety of proposals for activities and collaboration with KKL-JNF. Among other things, they suggested that the organization send them material on the Jewish holidays for use within their communities. They also wanted to investigate the possibility of hosting young leadership delegations from different communities in Israel, and expressed an interest in holding a joint event with KKL-JNF to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the State in each community.
Participants suggested promoting professional cooperation with their own countries under the leadership of the Jewish community: this, they explained, would help the countries in which they live, strengthen the positive image of the State of Israel and enhance the standing of the local Jewish community. In addition, they proposed holding lectures and activities for non-Jewish citizens of their home countries to show them what Judaism is and raise their awareness of the contribution made to the world by KKL-JNF and the State of Israel. This, they said, would go a long way in combating anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli sentiment.
Ms Lin Dror summed up the event as follows: “I was very glad to get to know each and every one of you, and I feel that I’ve managed to create fertile ground for a flourishing partnership here. The program for 2018 that we shall draw up together with you over the next month will form the basis of all our activities in the Balkans, and your input will serve as a model and an inspiration for future activities in other countries in this part of the world.”