Sichot Beyn Achayot – Conversations Between Sisters – Session 2

Sunday, November 2, 2025

12:00 pm EST - 1:30 pm EST

שיחןת בין אחיות, Sichot beyn Achayot, means “conversations between sisters.” This program is designed to foster a deeper mutual understanding between the Masorti women in Israel and those in other countries around the globe. It is designed to address the question, “How are we the same, and how are we different?” The theme of this year’s program is:

עושה שלום

Maker of Peace

The three sessions will each concentrate on one specific aspect of the contemporary quest for peace both personal and universal and will include presentations from speakers in both North America and Israel.

Sunday, November 2 — 19:00 Israel Time | 12:00 PM ET | 11:00 AM CT | 10:00 AM MT | 9:00 AM PT

Making Peace With Others

עושה שלום, עזור לנו להשכין שלום בינינו לבין אחרים

Oseh shalom, azor lanu lehashkin shalom beyneynu l’veyn acherim
Maker of Peace, help us to make peace between ourselves and others.

God commands us to love the stranger as ourselves. How do we learn to acknowledge and accommodate the needs of others without ignoring our own? How can we support those whose lives have been shattered by war? And what would our world look like if we could strive for the peace of others as much as our own?

Speakers:

Rabbi Amy Eilberg is the first woman ordained as a Conservative rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. She serves as a spiritual director, peace and justice educator, and teacher of Mussar (a classical Jewish system of spiritual development). She currently serves as Co-Chair of the Racial Justice Subcommittee of the Conservative Movement’s Social Justice Commission. Her book, From Enemy to Friend: Jewish Wisdom and the Pursuit of Peace, was published by Orbis Books in March 2014. She received her Doctor of Ministry degree from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities in 2016 and was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from JTS in 2025, in celebration of the 40th anniversary of her rabbinic ordination. She is a loving wife, mother of three wonderful adult children (and their partners) and exuberant grandmother of four delicious grandchildren.

Linda Avitan is a Women of the Wall Board member. Linda lives in Rehovot, has a BA in Psychology from Rutgers University in NJ, and an MSW from Columbia University, NY. She was raised in the Conservative movement and has been active in the Masorti movement since making aliyah to Israel in 1982. Today, she is a board member of Adath Shalom-Emanuel Community in Rehovot. Avitan works with children and families, both in the public, Welfare Ministry framework as well as privately. She joined Women of the Wall in 2010 when police began to arrest women at the Kotel.

Tamar Heimowitz-Richter is the Co-founder and Chair, GFIDF – The Partners of Unmarried Fallen Soldiers of the IDF. Tamar Heimowitz-Richter, 52, is a passionate Zionist, a mother of five, and a senior Israeli attorney. She is married to Raffi, a Swiss-born oleh who immigrated to Israel for Zionist ideals. Two of their children are currently serving in the IDF, and a third recently completed his service. Tamar was born to American parents who made Aliyah after the Six-Day War. In 1998, following the falling of Lt. Avi Book, G-d should avenge his death, in Lebanon—her sister Michal’s soon to be fiancé—Tamar co-founded GFIDF with her mother, Phyllis, to support the bereaved partners of unmarried fallen IDF soldiers. Alongside her volunteer role as Chair of GFIDF, Tamar is a senior partner at a prominent Israeli law firm, where she leads the Nonprofit Practice. Her sister’s loss shaped her life’s mission: blending legal acumen with profound social impact.

Rabbi Dorothy Richman serves as Rabbi of Makor Or: Jewish Meditation Center and Rabbi Emerita of Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco. She teaches on the faculty of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality’s Clergy Leadership Program and for Or HaLev. Dorothy’s work centers on the spiritual practices of Torah study, meditation, prayer, and justice. She is a soulful leader of traditional and creative ritual, and released an album of original music called Something of Mine, available on Bandcamp.

In this session:

Rabbi Eilberg will discuss on the topic of Conflict Mediation Through a Jewish Lens
Linda will discuss about the history and development of the Women of the Wall
Tamar will discuss GFIDF, and how it supports the women (and men) whose partners were lost in battle
Rabbi Richman will lead with a Blessing Practice

REGISTER

Registration is only open to WL members, you must log in (https://www.wlcjmembers.org/member_login.php) to register. If you need assistance, please contact the office (405) 870-1260.

Registration is open to International Sister Friends (outside of the USA and Canada), through here: wizevents.com/register/9392

This registration link is ONLY for International friends of Women’s League outside the USA and Canada.

Our last session from this series coming up:

Sunday, December 7, 2025 at 12:00 PM ET
Session Three: Making Peace in Our World
עושה שלום, עזור לנו להביא שלום לעולם
Oseh shalom, azor lanu le’havi shalom l’olam
Maker of Peace, help us to bring peace to the world.