“Ben Zoma said: Who is wise? He who learns from every person, as it is said: “From all who taught me have I gained understanding”. Who is mighty? He who subdues his [evil] inclination, as it is said: “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that rules his spirit than he that takes a city” (Pirkei Avot 4:1)
“You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 23:9)
The Palestinian Engagement Team provides TBA congregants with a space to consider Palestinian perspectives, in a way that serves TBA’s mission to deepen our relationships to Judaism.
It has been several years since the devastating attack in Israel perpetrated by Hamas. We in the Jewish community have struggled with grief, rage, and sorrow. Many have also struggled with deep hurt at the Israeli response’s effect on the Palestinian people in Gaza and the ongoing violence and displacement in the West Bank.
Since 2025, the Palestinian Engagement Team has hosted an in-person congregational forum, a historical overview of Israel/Palestine with a UW professor, and community book readings involving Palestinian authors. We seek to normalize these conversations, address stigma of speaking in favor of Palestinian’s rights to safety and self-determination, and identify practical contributions that we can make (Tikkun Olam).
This is not a forum to question the Israeli people’s political legitimacy or right to exist, dismiss any person’s suffering, or take positions that support, justify, or legitimize violence against Israelis. Our discussions will be consistent with the Union for Reform Judaism’s stance of supporting Israel as a democratic, pluralistic Jewish state:
“The URJ has long expressed overwhelming support for a Palestinian state alongside the Jewish state of Israel, reached through a negotiated agreement between the two parties. We are on record over many decades opposing the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip that began in 1967. We have also opposed — and continue to oppose — expansion of settlements in the West Bank and the oppressive treatment of the Palestinian population.”
Once Upon a Country, Sari Nusseibeh (2007)
What Does Israel Fear from Palestine, Raja Shehadeh (2024)
The Future is Peace, Aziz Abu Sarah & Maoz Inon (2026)
No Other Land (Documentary, 2024)
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