Jews in the Deaf Community to be Discussed at Holy Cross

WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross will host an interactive dialogue workshop, titled "Finding a Spiritual Home: Where Do Jewish Deaf Go?" on Sunday, Feb. 24, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Room 403 of the Hogan Campus Center. It will be followed by a dairy lunch at 12:15 p.m.

Facilitated by Marla Berkowitz, the workshop is intended for a range of participants, including rabbis and hearing individuals in the Jewish community, Jewish Deaf individuals and interpreters.

The goal of the dialogue is to identify strategies for finding a spiritual home for Jewish Deaf. Questions such as the following will be addressed: Where do Jewish Deaf go to identify pathways to carry on the Jewish traditions in this secular society? Why are there large numbers of Jewish Deaf remaining unaffiliated from becoming members of synagogues and local Jewish Deaf organizations? Who will continue to carry the torch on behalf of the Jewish Deaf community?

Berkowitz, who is Deaf and fluent in American Sign Language (ASL), has presented extensively throughout the U.S. and in Israel about Judaism and the Jewish Deaf. She is co-founder of The Jewish Deaf Resource Center, Inc., based in New York City.

The registration fee is $10; the event is co-sponsored by the Deaf Studies Program and a Lilly Endowment Grant to the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture at Holy Cross; Holyoke Community College; and the Northeastern University Interpreter Education Project, U.S. Department of Education Rehabilitation Services Administration, Interpreter Training Program Grant #H160A50000-20.

ASL/English interpreters provided for the workshop only.