Beyond the ‘big tent’: Harnessing pluralism to forge Jewish identity

The sun-filled “Son Room” at an evangelical mission center in rural Kentucky became my unlikely Shabbat refuge during a formative college summer. As the only identifiable Jew for dozens of miles, my own mission was to set up programs that would bring together mostly liberal groups of diverse college students with local evangelical ministries. Navigating this generally conservative community forced me to articulate my Jewish beliefs with newfound clarity, while my tefillah-filled mornings deepened my connection to Judaism. The roughly 100 students I later brought to the region shared this experience: meaningful encounters across profound differences forge stronger identity.