Seekers of Meaning 7/19/2024: A Bridge-building educational and tourism effort between Israelis and Palestinians

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Rabbi Address, upper left, chats with (clockwise): Catherine Fischer; Kim Passy Yoseph, and Emili Ghraiyib.

On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi Address chats with Kim Passy Yoseph of the Interact Dual Narrative Education Center, and Emili Ghraiyib of MEDJI Tours, joint Palestinian-Israel tours of cultural highlights in the Middle East, along with Catherine Fischer, principal of the synagogue consultancy Sacred-Practice.com, who has been involved in bringing participants to the programs.

The InterAct Education Center uses story-telling, art and technology to help people connect across war-torn divides: whether those divides be political, cultural, ethnic, religious, geographic, or socio-economic.

Dedicated to providing customized itineraries for travel groups as diverse as its destinations, MEJDI Tours is full-service tour company-differentiating itself from the crowd through exclusive access, authentic experiences, extraordinary customer service, and much more – founded on the belief that tourism should be a vehicle for a more positive and interconnected world.

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About the Guests

Kim Passy Yoseph

On October 7th 2023, Kim’s childhood friend was captured and held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. While joining the family’s efforts to successfully bring Yarden home, Kim continued (until today) to believe that a peaceful resolution is the only way forward.

Since 2017, Kim Passy-Yoseph has been serving as the Director of Operations at MEJDITours as well as the non-profit branch, Interact International – both committed to creating a more interconnected and peaceful world —highlighting dialogue, empathy and understanding on a global scale.

Kim holds a master’s degree in Immigration and Social Integration, which laid the groundwork for her innovative approach to exploring the complexities of multiculturalism. She leads guide facilitation and dialogue training sessions inspiring cooperation and fostering a deeper appreciation for complex social dynamics. She is
vocal and often participates on webinars, podcasts and panel discussions on a variety of topics related to conflict resolution, social integration and women’s role in peace
making.

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Emili Ghraiyib

A dedicated peace activist hailing from the Biblical Shepherd’s Field town of Beit Sahour, Emili holds an MA in Public Policy and Political Action from the Universite de Franche-Comte and is fluent in Arabic, English, and French.

Emili is a licensed tour guide and has been contributing her expertise to MEDJI since before joining the operations team in 2023. Before her time with MEDJI, Emili honed her organizational development, project planning, and implementation skills through various administrative roles in local and international NGOs. Her work involved empowering social action groups in the West Bank, with a particular focus on women in the tourism industry.

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Catherine S. Fischer, M.Ed.

Catherine S. Fischer is the creator of Sacred Practice: Reimagining Synagogue Engagement. In founding Sacred Practice, she aspires to bring the transformational power of Judaism into all aspects of Jewish communal work, from the seemingly most mundane task to the most extraordinary, finding the sacred and lifting it up so that Jewish organizations radiate purpose and thus thrive.

She began her Jewish professional career in 2001 as the Pennsylvania Regional Director of Outreach and Synagogue Community for the Union for Reform Judaism. In 2004, through Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, Catherine became the Coordinator for the Center City Kehillah (community), working cross-denominationally to strengthen Jewish life in Philadelphia. She was the Director of Membership, Programming, and Philanthropy at Congregation Rodeph Shalom from 2008 to 2020.

Catherine continues to learn from and be inspired by opportunities offered through The Institute for Jewish Spirituality where she is now in training to become a spiritual director as well as Combatants for Peace, Mejdi Tours and InterAct International where she coordinated Israeli/Palestinian dual narrative learning and is planning a fall 2024 trip to Israel and Palestine. She is an active member of her synagogues, Congregation Rodeph Shalom in Philadelphia and Congregation Kol Ami in Cherry Hill.

Catherine graduated from Bard College (with honors) and received her M.Ed. from Lesley University and Shady Hill School. Catherine is currently in training to become a spiritual director through the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. Before she became a Jewish professional, Catherine spent two decades as an elementary, middle school, and college educator.

Catherine lives in Cherry Hill with my husband, Richard. They are extremely proud of their children – Sarah & Eddy and David & Rachel and cherish their two grandchildren, Oliver and Lily.

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