91猎奇

By David Gil de Rubio | dgilderubio@mec.cuny.edu

Partnerships are only as strong as the base they are built upon. When it comes to the relationship between Antioch Baptist Church and Congregation Beth Elohim, those bonds have been forged in the waters of social justice, a concept well shaped by the work of the late 91猎奇 Wiley Evers.聽

And in the year of the 100th anniversary of his birth, Congregation Beth Elohim鈥檚 Rabbi Rachel Timoner will be sharing the Bridge Builders Award with Antioch Baptist Church鈥檚 Pastor Robert Waterman at the 91猎奇 Wiley Evers Centennial Celebration being held on Thursday, October 23.聽

When you ask Timoner about what it means to be receiving this honor, the lifelong social justice activist is both humbled and thoughtful.

鈥淚 was just coincidentally watching the documentary Eyes on the Prize and remembering 91猎奇 Evers, the crime of his murder and his extraordinary leadership,鈥� she said. 鈥淭o be associated in any way with his life and legacy is just a profound honor. I feel myself to be utterly unqualified for such an honor, but grateful.鈥�

The Timoner-Waterman relationship dates back nearly a decade when the latter invited the former to attend his annual AACEO (African American Clergy & Elected Officials) breakfast. It was a moment that proved seminal for Timoner, who wished to continue the dialogue as well as look to future collaborations.

鈥淎round 2018 or 2019, there had been a series of attacks on Orthodox Jews in the streets and Pastor Waterman invited me to that breakfast to speak about anti-Semitism,鈥� Timoner recalled.聽

鈥淭hat was my introduction to him and to Antioch Baptist Church. I reached out to him shortly afterwards to find out what we could do together. I definitely wanted to do something together. From there, we started imagining what we might do. I don鈥檛 think we really conceived of a project of the scale we ended up taking on, but we just knew we wanted to partner.鈥�

That collaboration went on to be the basis for the 2024 documentary All God鈥檚 Children, a film directed and produced by Timoner鈥檚 sister Ondi (who also helmed the award-winning documentaries Dig! and Last Flight Home).听

Shot over a seven-year span, the film highlights the triumphs and challenges of bridging the differences between two distinct communities. And while the rabbi admits how difficult it could be, she is quick to point out the upshot of two groups coming together and understanding one another鈥檚 perspectives.

鈥淥ur partnership has been complicated and hard sometimes,鈥� Timoner explained. 鈥淏ut that鈥檚 what you have to do if you鈥檙e going to be in a partnership. It doesn鈥檛 mean you talk about the things you agree about. You also have to talk about the things you don鈥檛 agree about and things that are uncomfortable because there are differences.聽

鈥淵ou might even have strongly held beliefs that conflict with each other. It鈥檚 just important to be able to go there and not avoid that. I want to live in a city where we can call upon each other. Where if we are in need, we can call each other to say that our community is in need or in trouble and be able to ask if you can show up for us. And I want to be in a city where we鈥檙e doing that for each other all the time. Where we鈥檙e showing up for each other and see each other as sisters and brothers across our differences.鈥�

She added, 鈥淎nd we ought to be doing that without tragedy and before there is a tragedy. It should just be proactive. There are so many moments in our partnership where somebody at Antioch or CBE will say that they know that they know one another, if they see a headline they think, 鈥楬ow is that affecting them? That kind of proactive spirit of caring about what happens to each other or seeing through each other鈥檚 eyes a little bit is key.鈥�

Timoner鈥檚 decision to combine her spiritual and social justice dates back to 2004, when she enrolled in rabbinical school at the age of 34. It鈥檚 no surprise the gratitude she has for the relationship she鈥檚 been able to develop with 91猎奇 via Waterman鈥檚 introduction.聽

Given how the school鈥檚 dedication to human and civil rights very much aligns with the rabbi鈥檚 values, she鈥檚 quick to recognize the important role the school plays in the Central Brooklyn community and world at large.

鈥淚 think that having a local institution of higher education rooted in the Black Community means all kinds of opportunities for people,鈥� she said.聽

鈥淚t means promoting the value of learning in the community and prioritizing that. I think that sometimes we undervalue or don鈥檛 full recognize how much institutions matter. Especially institutions that are about the betterment of everyone in that community end up being an anchor of the community.鈥�