Film Debut in Riverdale tonight!

The Riverdale Jewish Community Council is sponsoring the debut screening of Faces of Israel: A Discussion About Marriage, State and Religion in the Jewish Homeland at the Riverdale Y on Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 7:30PM. The screening will be followed by a cross-denominational panel discussion including Rabbi Julia Andelman (Congregation Shaare Zedek), Rabbi Yosef Blau (Yeshiva University), and Rabbi Steven Burton (Congregation Shaarei Shalom), moderated by Rabbi Seth Farber (ITIM). The film poses a series of thought-provoking questions about hot topics in Israel: the meaning of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state the current and future role of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate the place of Conservative and Reform Judaism in Israel the status of civil and same-sex unions in the Jewish homeland It answers these questions through interviews with Israelis ranging from openly gay secular university students to leaders in the Conservative movement to Ultra-Orthodox Jews, including exclusive footage with Israel's Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi. Amy Oppenheimer, a Riverdale resident and the film's director, began shooting Faces of Israel in early 2007, with no formal training in film. Through perseverance and many sleepless nights, Faces of Israel was born, a feature-length documentary that has been called "powerful... mature... honest... sophisticated...," and "a must see." Faces of Israel has been endorsed by a wide spectrum of Jewish leaders such as Rabbi Basil Herring (RCA), Rabbi David Ellenson (HUC), Rabbi Gordon Tucker (Conservative movement), Rabbi Avi Weiss (HIR / YCT), Rabbi Judith Hauptman (JTS) and Blu Greenberg (JOFA). For more information, please visit www.facesthemovie.com.