June 29, 2009

Paideia Congratulates the 2009 Graduates of the One-year Jewish Studies Program: the Krister Stendahl Fellows

Paideia’s eighth group of students has graduated from the One-year Jewish Studies Program in Stockholm. Considering that the program offers over 800 teacher-lead hours in total – not including individual project work - theirs is no little feat. Paideia is proud to have hosted this outstanding group of fellows and deeply impressed by their caliber and their commitment.

The graduation ceremony was held on May 27th, in the presence of Ms Nyamko Sabuni, Minister for Integration and Gender Equality, with Responsibility for the National Minorities. Joining the graduates on their day were also ambassadors and consuls for ten different countries, the international Paideia board and a select number of honored guests and friends from academia and community life from around of the world.

The 2008/2009 fellowship year was named in honor of the late bishop Stendahl, who was a dear friend of Paideia, and keynote speaker at the ceremony was Professor Jesper Svartvik, who holds the first Krister Stendahl Chair of Theology of Religions at Lund University and the Swedish Theological Institute in Jerusalem. Professor Svartvik is since many years a visiting scholar at Paideia, and during his speech elaborated on Bishop Stendahl’s concept of Holy Envy: the willingness to discern and to recognize and to celebrate what is good, what is beautiful and what is attractive in other religions, and to let it remain what it is, i.e. something that is holy, and also wholly belonging to the other. Professor Svartvik also used a quote from the scriptures to outline a guide for interreligious dialogue: “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold to Egypt”, emphasizing the importance of letting the other define himself (“I am Joseph”), of affinity between religions that goes beyond opinions (“your brother”) and the obligation to discuss difficult topics (“whom you sold to Egypt”).

Minister Sabuni, wishing the fellows well on their respective journeys, talked articulately about the many different backgrounds present in the room, sharing curiosity and appreciation for diversity.
This is a central element at Paideia, and as Ms Sabuni so well put it, the multinational and pluralistic experience at Paideia not only gives the key to Jewish culture and history, but also to understand the growth of diversity, and democratic Europe.

Paideia fellow Tatyana Zaytseva continued in the same vein, describing Paideia a microcosm, where a shared text can be understood in 16 different languages without there ever being a time when they didn’t find shared understanding. At Paideia, the fellows draw from their differences in order to enrich the studies.

Nikki Halpern, also representing the fellows, emphasized the extraordinary generosity of the group, but also that the privilege of studying according to your dedication brings with it the responsibility of passing along the learning that has been given. We must now integrate what we have learned into our lives, and find a place for what we have gained - not just in ourselves, but for investing in others.

The graduates were entertained throughout the night by music from Paideia fellow Piotr Mirski and his band “Klezmaholics” who integrated the event into their May 2009 tour calendar of the Stockholm and Uppsala areas.

The 2008-2009 fellows are now officially part of the Paideia alumni network, incorporating 175 graduates from some 32 different countries. We are sad to see them depart, but confident that they will each make a difference – as they have proven on so many occasions throughout the year.