Israel Resources

Dear Congregants,

I’m sure you have been keeping up with the latest news regarding the Israel/Hamas conflict and may be wondering how you can help and what BCC is doing in support. At this time, Israel needs money. We are including names of agencies that will take your donations. As this conflict continues we will provide other avenues for your support.

Sincerely,

Carol Saragossi, Social Action Committee Chair

	HIAS Emergency Israel Fund
American Friends of Magen David Adom
	The Jewish Federations and URJ Fund
How You Can Support Israel During This Time of Great Tragedy and Mourning
	How to Teach and Help our Kids Cope with War in Israel

Rabbi Jillian Cameron was able to make a brief solidarity trip to Israel in January, 2024. Below you will find her writings from this trip.

Thursday, January 25th

I am sitting on the plane waiting for take off as I write this, heading home after this whirlwind of a trip. I am so grateful for this experience, my fellow travelers and A Wider Bridge. We packed a week of conversations and sacred moments into 3 days.

Today we made our way through familiar hills and valleys to Jerusalem. We started at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and chatted with one of the diplomats and also happened upon the Italian consulate delegation.

We then ate at one of my favorite restaurants for lunch and made our way to Jerusalem Open House, where we chatted with them about the important work they are doing for the LGBTQ community in Jerusalem, a wildly different city than Tel Aviv or Beersheva. (Fun fact: I volunteered at JOH when I lived in Jerusalem 15 years ago!)

And then we made our way to the airport and here I am!

I can’t wait to see you tomorrow evening for Shabbat Shira!

Rabbi Jillian

Wednesday, January 24th

Today was another packed day – we are really filling every moment of our very short trip and I am amazed and remain grateful at how much we are able to accomplish.

Today was about community and conversation. We stayed in Tel Aviv and met with a wide variety of people who represent the diverse and incredible work that is being done in Israel, both in response to October 7th and on a broader scale: human rights work, LGBTQ work, caring for the families of hostages and working hard for their safe and quick return. Righteous work, justice work, human work.

We heard from a son whose parents were murdered and a mother working tirelessly for the return of her son.

We visited Kikar HaChatufim, Hostage Square, which has become a moving and raw artistic space dedicated to the hostages and their safe return.

We met with inspirational LGBTQ leaders at the Trans Center who are trying to support their community, our community, when so many have turned their backs.

And we visited the headquarters of the Bring Them Home Now organization and heard about the tireless work they are doing for the hostages and their families.

Finally we heard from the leading advocate for victims of sexual violence in Israel who has changed the way this country cares and supports victims and who has been especially focused on the egregious sexual violence that occurred on October 7th.

We ended our evening breaking injera together at a delicious Ethiopian restaurant and celebrating Jews of color with our gracious hosts.

Tomorrow we head to Jerusalem – our final day together.

I have been so inspired not only by those we have met who are doing the real work of change here but also by my fellow travelers who are each doing important work in so many spaces to make the world a better place. I can’t wait to share them with you as well as more tales of this mission.

Happy Tu B’shvat from the holy land,

Rabbi Jillian

Tuesday, January 23rd

Today we traveled 2 hours south and began our day at Kibbutz Kfar Aza just a few miles from Gaza and one of the sites targeted by Hamas on October 7th. It is a beautiful place and one can easily imagine the close knit community who made their homes there. Today it is eerily quiet, evacuated – homes destroyed, remnants of lives destroyed, desperate longing for the return of those taken, a community without its people. Sounds of helicopters overhead and ground shaking booms from nearby Gaza fill the quiet. I will perhaps share more details upon my return, but for now, one word is ringing loudly in my head, Eicha, the first word of the book of Lamentations – our outcry of pain and disbelief, of utter lament and sorrow.

From Kfar Aza we made our way down the road to the site of the Nova musical festival. Now stark stakes litter the field topped with the faces of those massacred, a make-shift memorial.

We then traveled an hour to Beersheva to visit and connect with the Pride House of Beersheva, an incredibly warm and passionate LGBTQ community of incredible activists. We heard about their experiences, the struggles and triumphs and I was buoyed by their welcome and their community.

As I sit here listening to the waves of the sea before I head to sleep, I am grateful to be able to witness, to see and share in the ache knowing it is a heavy burden to bear.

Laila tov, goodnight my beloved community.

Rabbi Jillian

January 22nd: I have arrived in this complex and holy land brimming with hope as I watch the sun set over the Mediterranean. I haven’t met the whole group yet but dinner will be soon and there, our solidarity mission will officially begin.
I am immensely grateful to A Wider Bridge for inviting me to be a part of this important trip and I look forward to bringing you all along with me.First dinner, then sleep, then the work begins.

With a heart full of prayers for peace,

Rabbi Jillian

January 10, 2024

Dear Friends,

Two weeks ago, I was invited to participate in a Solidarity Mission trip to Israel organized by A Wider Bridge, chaired by our friend, Nate Looney. It will be a trip dedicated to “deepen understanding of the current challenges facing Israel and its LGBTQ community with the hopes that we will return to North America primed to convey personal experiences and survivor narratives to foster support, empathy, and understanding and make us better advocates for Israel and its LGBTQ communities in this time of great challenge.” I am grateful to have been asked and to be able to participate in such an important trip, to represent BCC and to join an incredible cadre of LGBTQIA+ leaders from around the country.

It is a woefully short trip – I will be leaving on January 21st and returning early in the morning on Friday, January 26th. I will be at Shabbat that evening and look forward to seeing many of you as Cantor Rebekah and our choir help us celebrate Shabbat Shira – our special Shabbat of song. What a great way to return! Rabbi Lisa has graciously offered to be “on call” while I am away, so if any pastoral needs arise during those days, please reach out to her.

I know that I will be able to bring back so much to our beloved community – the feel and mood of the diverse population, real accounts of the experiences of the last three months, thoughtful and important conversations from within the group as well as from those we meet, lasting connections and relationships with my fellow travelers.

I look forward to sharing my experiences during the trip through BCC’s social media accounts, as well as offering learning opportunities upon my return to continue to share and engage in meaningful conversations with all of you.

If you have any questions or want to chat about this or anything else, please don’t hesitate to be in touch: jillian@bcc-la.org.

Let us continue to pray for deep and lasting peace across this land,

Rabbi Jillian Cameron