JIAC Talk
Explaining Israel – A Top Tour Guide Deals With Complex Reality
Julian Resnick
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Join Etz JIAC 11am 7/12: Explaining Israel – A Top Tour Guide Deals With Complex Reality
Etz Chayim’s Jewish and Israel Action Committee (JIAC) invites you to join us at 11am on Sunday July 12, 2020 online for an enlightening and stimulating discussion about Israel, Jews and the Diaspora.
Speaker: Julian Resnick, Israeli Tour Guide, Educator and Emissary
Israel is a complex and challenging country to understand if you want to confront the “Big Story”. This is the meta-narrative of the relationship between the Jewish People, Jewish Texts and the Land of Israel in context of a multi-ethnic, multi-faith space with long running territorial disputes. In spite of its many challenges and paradoxes, Israel is a bastion of democracy in the Middle East. How does this fit together and not fall apart? .Julian Resnick will tackle this head on as he takes us on a virtual tour to a couple of special places in Israel. He will use powerful stories to illustrate his basic tenet that the best way to support the Zionist Narrative is to accommodate other narratives and never run from them or hide them from view.
Julian Resnick is a well-noted tour guide and educator in Israel. His guiding career began when he joined the NFTY (North American Federation of Temple Youth) team in Israel. He has guided for many of the major tour companies in Israel. His groups have included groups of leading business people, fundraising missions, student leaders, family groups, friendship groups, bar/bat mitzvah groups, synagogue groups, and interfaith groups. He has dealt with a broad range of people - those committed to Israel, those ambivalent towards Israel, those angry with Israel; committed Jews, devout Christians and Muslims, secular folks, social progressives, and fiscal conservatives. He began guiding abroad in 2002 when he created Jewish Journeys focusing on the Jewish Story in Europe and beyond. His engagement with World Jewry was strengthened by three shlichuyot (missions as an emissary) to San Francisco, London and NYC. He has directed year abroad programs in Israel, teaching about Israel on many projects, working for Melitz as part of the senior team, running World Habonim Dror and as guide in residence for Israel Experts.
Participation is free. To join, please reserve your seat here.
Even if you’re not sure if you can make it, please sign up in advance since the Zoom credentials will be emailed in advance and not be posted online.