Just Ahavas Yisrael - Jewish Action

Two Conservative couples who had been married for many years had a marriage ceremony in accordance with Orthodox Jewish law on the rooftop of Aish HaTorah in the Old City of Jerusalem, thanks to Project Inspire. Photo: Daniel Rose

No judgment, just ahavas Yisrael. That’s the motto of Project Inspire, a national organization that aims to provide positive Jewish experiences for Jews of all backgrounds. While typical kiruv models depend on paid professionals, Project Inspire is one of the few that rely on volunteers to organize events, such as challah bakes, Friday night dinners and even a pre-Pesach trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to learn about Jewish life in ancient Egypt.

“We try to keep the events joyful and experiential,” says Julie Joseph, Ed.D., who volunteers as the educational director for the Long Island branch of Project Inspire. “We don’t expect change. We expect positive experiences.”

The program’s focus on Jewish moms is intentional, says Joseph who got involved with Long Island Project Inspire because one of her friends was among the founding leaders of the branch. “We know that these experiences will affect the entire home spiritually.” She tells of a Conservative Jewish woman who over time became increasingly Jewishly connected due to her involvement in the program. Her daughter recently got engaged to a young man with a strong Jewish identity. “There’s no question the daughter was impacted by her mother’s growing commitment to Judaism.”

Since October 7, the program has seen even greater engagement among the women. Consider the Long Island branch’s recent Friday night meal, which in the past had been attended by a few dozen people at most. “We had a hundred couples come,” says Joseph.

Some of the passion is no doubt rooted in solidarity with Orna Neutra, a member of the Long Island branch whose twenty-one-year-old son Omer was recently confirmed to have been murdered by Hamas on October 7. For over a year, it was believed that Omer, a “lone soldier” in the Israel Defense Forces, was being held hostage in Gaza. “Many of us have been showing up in Plainview every Sunday for a weekly walk for Omer and the other hostages,” says Joseph.

And changes do happen. Just this past summer, two Conservative couples who had been married for many years had a marriage ceremony according to Orthodox Jewish law. Their beautiful chuppahs were held on the roof of Aish HaTorah Yeshiva in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City.

Joseph feels the program has dramatically impacted her. She first got involved at a low point in her life. A former Jewish educator, she had left the classroom as she was recovering from cancer. She had not been teaching for years and felt adrift, when Project Inspire asked her to learn b’chavruta with a secular Jewish woman. “Are you a teacher?” her chavruta, impressed, asked after their first session. Getting such positive feedback from her chavruta gave Joseph the confidence to return to the classroom. Today she delivers weekly classes at a local synagogue.

A lot of women, religious and secular, genuinely enjoy the camaraderie and sense of belonging. “We just love each other,” says Joseph. “You get hooked. Who would think that in our forties and fifties we would be making so many new friends . . . it has totally changed my life.”