 Late one night in the dead of winter, Bill Moyers awoke and could
not find his way back to sleep. To keep himself company, he switched
on the bedside radio and listened to disgruntled callers empty
their minds. The drone of complaint was working with the precision
of an anesthetic, when an impassioned voice yanked him out of
the twilight zone. "This is my birthday," announced a young man.
"Here I am three hours into my 18th year, and I need help to know
how to live in a world that is disintegrating!" When the host
attempted to lighten up the scene with a wise crack, the boy refused
to be brushed aside. "No, I'm really serious. I'm scared. I'm
starting my 18th year in a world that makes no sense to me."
The desperation within the exchange continued to haunt Moyers,
and it haunts me. We live in a culture that distrusts communal
allegiances, a culture that suspects the claims of the past will
blind individuals to the promises of the future. Yet, the gnawing
dis-ease of the teenager bespeaks an irreducible need to situate
our own stories within a larger story. We need to stand on the
shoulders of our ancestors to gain greater altitude. We need to
feel the pull of future generations to transcend the demands of
the immediate. We need to discover the narrative links that draw
people out of their isolation and join them to larger purposes
in a more expansive conversation.
Bill Moyers subsequently stepped into an ongoing discussion on
the Book of Genesis facilitated by Burton Visotzky, a rabbinics
professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He was startled
by the realization that here was a conversation which ventured
into a strange and ambiguous territory and in the process activated
the moral imagination. Here was a discussion with the gravity
to hold the attention of the young man who had recently turned
eighteen. Moyers concluded that a PBS series on the Book of Genesis
would create a forum in which people might demonstrate the art
of speaking across theological and ethnic divides, make imaginative
connections with the past and discover vital areas of commonality
in the present and the future. And he has begun recording a ten-part
series this summer.
The ICJS has been asked to participate in the development of a
resource book that will accompany the Moyers' series on Genesis.
The invitation emerged from our experience in wrestling with difficult
texts, and the opportunity will pull us into the midst of questions
that have occupied the ICJS since its inception. How do we crack
open the Bible and move beyond the unexamined assumptions that
make the Holy Scriptures a safe, predictable and lifeless thing?
How do we guide viewers to mine their traditions--to seek what
is strange within the familiar, to explore what is concealed beneath
the surface, and to welcome what is unmanageable and disruptive?
How do we orient Christians and Jews so that they can learn from
their differences--from their variant interpretations, and from
the divergent beliefs and practices they have shaped as a result
of their respective readings? We hope to cultivate new habits
of reading: an opening of the ear, eye, and heart to the text
that illuminates the dilemmas and paradoxes of the reader's world.
From this encounter with the stories of Genesis, people will not
only learn how others wrestle with these foundational stories,
they will also gain unexpected understandings of the sacred ground
on which they stand.
As this Newsletter makes clear, this disciplined quest into untamed
theological territory remains central to the life of the ICJS.
The Moyers project coupled with the formation of a national Jewish
Scholars Group and another national conference, this one for Roman
Catholic clergy and educators scheduled for the Fall of 1996,
demonstrate the reach of the ICJS. We nevertheless remain convinced
that "nothing is real unless it is local." Through our public
programs, preaching colloquia, scripture forums, Israel expeditions
and study seminars, the ICJS will continue to encourage men and
women, blacks and whites, clergy and laity, Jews and Christians
from across Maryland to traverse the distance that separates them
from the world of the Bible and one another. We remain convinced
that in the interpretive dance with the memories of our ancestors,
the power of our respective religious traditions is revealed.
While we sorely miss the many contributions of Rabbi Shira Lander,
we welcome Dr. Michael Signer who will serve as our visiting Jewish
Scholar for 1995-96. I am also delighted to report that Valerie
Williams has joined our staff and is coordinating the operations
of the office. This development is enabling Sr. Joan Marie Stief
to direct her attention to special projects and community outreach.
Of course, none of the initiatives of the ICJS would be possible
without the tireless dedication of our board. Two years into the
Endowment Campaign, $4.1 million has been pledged to a $5 million
dollar goal. While this effort is critical to the long-term vitality
of our organization, it is the generosity of our members who contribute
faithfully to our Annual Giving that has kept us seaworthy. And
for this we are enormously grateful. If you are not already members,
we invite you to join this pioneering endeavor and to help us
navigate uncharted waters. |