Challenging Young Minds
While many people are familiar with the organization “NCSY”, few are truly aware of the innovative programs we offer and how we challenge our NCSYers to think about their Judaism and their personal connection to their heritage. To provide you with a better understanding of what NCSY really stands for, I am posting Dr. Eliezer Jones’ fascinating recap of West Coast NCSY’s recent Winter Regional Convention.
“At Regional 300 Jewish teens were ushered into a fictional “Judaic Park” museum that commemorates the successful destruction of the Jewish people through assimilation through the “fourth” Reich. For an hour and a half, the NCSYers sat mesmerized, shocked, and inspired in a redesigned ballroom at the Costa Mesa Hilton that housed the Judaic Park auditorium.
Judaic Park is a multimedia production created by Dr. Eliezer Jones, NCSY’s new assistant regional director, and is part of a long history of innovative and exciting educational programs presented at NCSY Regionals. The focus of the multimedia was the uprising of anti-Semitism in the world. As Jews, we respond to hate and prejudice, not with weapons of destruction, but with weapons of prayer, acts of kindness, Jewish pride and activism, which was coined “Pro-Semitism” for the rest of the Shabbaton.
The impact of this presentation is vividly illustrated by a recent e-mail sent to Rabbi Fe Goldberg:
My name is D. I am from San Diego and attended the ’06 winter regional. When I saw the multimedia presentation, it was in a sense, a wake-up call. For the past few months I was looking into other religions. I looked into Rastafarianism, Buddhism, Christianity, etc. When I saw the Judaic Park presentation and saw the video of the KKK and the neo-Nazi groups doing their marches, I realized how they had dedicated their lives to destroying the Jews. And I told myself “If I leave Judaism, I will be giving them a victory. I will not stand to do that.” So I would like to thank you.
The message of “Pro-Semitism” did not end with the multimedia and was carried throughout the event. One of the most powerful speakers was an ex-neo Nazi religious Mormon named Tom Leyden. With his strong words and retelling of his experiences, the NCSYers were in awe. However, it was his final message that got him a thundering applause and standing ovation. After discussing the importance of fighting intolerance, he charged the room with a mission. He said to every teen in that auditorium that in order to truly fight hate in this world they should learn Torah for at least one half-hour a day. The thunderous applause to the idea of regular Torah learning was wondrous – especially given that more than 60 percent of the participants do not attend a Jewish school.”
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