Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre (pictured) is part of the itinerary for an ADL-run trip to Israel for Catholic school educators. Photo: Jlascar via Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Catholic school educators from across the U.S. are in Israel to learn more about the Jewish state, antisemitism, and Catholic-Jewish relations as part of the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) Bearing Witness Advanced program.

According to the ADL, the program offers Catholic school educators “the opportunity to gain a better understanding of the relationship of the Holy Land to Jews, Christians and Muslims.” Participants are experiencing Israel “from the modern, high-tech city of Tel Aviv to the bustling seaport of Haifa to the Old City of Jerusalem to the biblical town of Nazareth and the Golan Heights,” the ADL said.

From June 30-July 9, the educators are visiting the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum, and other prominent sites, in addition to meeting with a variety of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim leaders and professionals.

“This is a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience for Catholic educators to directly experience the breadth and diversity of today’s Israel,” said David S. Waren, ADL’s director of education.

Since 1996, ADL’s Bearing Witness Advanced program has trained more than 1,900 Catholic school educators on Jewish-Catholic relations.