Building Jewish Bridges: Welcoming Interfaith Couples and Families
Have you and your partner asked yourselves:
- What holidays will we celebrate?
- How will we raise our children?
- Will our home express a religious identity?
- Will we have a spiritual community?
For interfaith couples, these are just a few of the questions that they consider as they build a life together. Building Jewish Bridges offers workshops, couples groups and other programs to help you find answers to questions about family life, religious identity, and religious practice. Couples come together in a warm, supportive environment to share their questions & concerns, hopes and ideas. Many couples continue to be friends long after their groups conclude.
We also work collaboratively with synagogues and Jewish agencies to create gateway programs for interfaith couples.
Although we focus on the interfaith population, these welcoming events often bring in Jews who have felt ambivalent about formal Jewish community. In addressing the myriad of issues that may arise in a multicultural home, programs are offered that address broader issues, like Jews of color, adoption, interfaith and GLBTQ Jews, adult children of interfaith families seeking their roots, and by necessity, the concerns of those who wish to convert to Judaism.
Building Jewish Bridges was born in 1998. As a Lehrhaus program, BJB is open to residents of the San Francisco Bay Area. We partner with the Interfaith Connection in San Francisco, as well as the synagogues from all movements, Jewish Community Centers and Jewish Family and Children’s Services. We are proud to share ideas, resources and programming with Jewish Gateways, Bechol Lashon and Jewish Mosaic.
For more information contact Dawn at dawn@buildingjewishbridges.org or call (510) 845-6420 x11.
Dawn Kepler, founding director of Building Jewish Bridges has worked in Interfaith Outreach since 1990.
She has run workshops and classes in synagogues, JCCs, Federations, & Jewish agencies.
“I love this work. It is about who people are and what they want to make of their lives, how they will shape their families, what they will teach their children. Is there anything more interesting or worthwhile? Plus, all my couples seem to be the nicest folks!”
