On Tuesday, February 13th at 7 pm, we will be welcoming authors and community leaders Sabeeha Rehman and Walter Ruby, co-authors of the book We Refuse to be Enemies: How Muslims and Jews Can Make Peace, One Friendship at a Time. We Refuse to be Enemies is a manifesto by two American citizens concerned with the rise of intolerance and bigotry in our country. Sabeeha, a Muslim, and Walter, a Jew, have learned that, through face -to-face encounters, people of all backgrounds can come to know the Other as a fellow human being and turn them into a trusted friend.

Growing up in Pakistan before she immigrated to the United States, Sabeeha never met a Jew, and her view was colored by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In his youth, Walter never met a Muslim, and his opinion was shaped by Leon Uris’s Exodus. Yet together they have formed a friendship and collaboration. Tapping their own life stories and entering into dialogue within the book, they explain how they have found commonalities between their respective faiths and discuss shared principles and lessons, how their perceptions of the Other have evolved, and the pushback they faced. They wrestle with the two elephants in the room: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and polarizing material in the histories and holy texts of Judaism and Islam. And they share their vision for reconciliation, offering concrete principles for building an alliance in support of religious freedom and human rights.

While this program will be based on their book, it will recontextualize some of the discussions from the book within the current context, notably the upcoming 2024 election and the rise of right-wing extremism, and the current war in Israel and Gaza. This program will create a safe space for Jews and Muslims to discuss the kind of allyship they need from each other in 2024, especially here in Indianapolis.

This program is free and open to the public, though registration is required. We Refuse to be Enemies will be available for sale and Watler and Sabeeha will be happy to sign the book after the program.

A JEDI program made possible by the generous donors to the JCC Social Justice Fund.