Steve Conover: Thank you for joining us for The Friends of Israel Today. I'm Steve Conover and Chris Katulka, our teacher and host is with me. I want to encourage you to take note of our website. That's FOIradio.org. You can listen to over nine years worth of content on the site. It features Chris Katulka teaching and insightful interviews with a host of great guests. Another interview today that you'll enjoy. Again, that's foiradio.org.

Chris Katulka: Hey, Steve. Today, we have a fantastic interview. It's a global interview actually. We're going to have Ty Perry from Michigan, Alyssa Ruddell from Houston, Texas, and then also Timothy Rabinek from Poland, all calling in to talk about an amazing experience they led as a group of young adults, Christian young adults, went to Poland to engage with the Jewish community in Poland, to learn about the Holocaust, to serve the Jewish people and to do something very, very important, that's to walk with the March of the Living. And so we're going to highlight, where did this passion come from and how they developed this amazing program that ran just last May.

Steve Conover: I know this team will be an encouragement to your heart, but first in the news, after the failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump earlier this month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu went to social media posting that “he and his wife Sara, were shocked by the apparent attack on President Trump,” adding, "We pray for his safety and speedy recovery."

Chris Katulka: Steve, here's my take. Netanyahu spoke even further in a video from the Knesset saying this wasn't just an attack on Donald Trump. This was an attack on a candidate for the presidency of the United States. This was an attack on America. It was an attack on democracy. It was an attack on all democracies. I really want to encourage our listeners right now, I want to encourage you to pray for the soul of our country, that we would turn as a nation to our heavenly Father for guidance and wisdom in these very difficult times.

Chris Katulka: Well, I'm so glad to have Timothy Rabinek, Ty Perry and Alyssa Ruddell on the program today to talk about a unique experience they had leading young adults from the United States and Canada, Christian young adults to Poland to learn about Holocaust education, to learn about the ministry that the Friends of Israel has in Poland, the vital ministry that we have there, and also to partner with the Jewish communities from all around the world in the March of the Living. It was a great experience. And so today they're here to talk about Encounter Poland. Hello, everybody. Great to hear from you.

Timothy Rabinek: Hi, Chris.

Ty Perry: Hey, Chris.

Chris Katulka: Okay. So let's go ahead and get started. Ty, can you tell us about Encounter Poland, your recent trip to Eastern Europe with Christian young adults from the United States and Canada? What was the purpose of this trip as you were organizing it and putting it together?

Ty Perry: So the heartbeat behind this ministry trip was to give young evangelical believers an opportunity to first of all see our ministry in Poland, which is very different in that Eastern European context than it is in the US and Canada. But primarily it was for us to give these young adults exposure to the Holocaust and to be educated on the Holocaust and the modern manifestations of antisemitism and to do so from the land where so much of that Holocaust history took place.

And so we wanted them to witness the history up close and personal by visiting various Holocaust related sites, including the Majdanek concentration camp, Auschwitz, Birkenau and then to get to see what the Jewish community is like there in Poland today. And so that was the real purpose behind taking these young adults to Poland for Encounter Poland.

Chris Katulka: Alyssa, you and I had chatted on the side before this trip and you just had a burden, a call from the Lord to make sure that these young adults, young Christians were going to Poland. At the same time, Ty was contacting me saying, "I think we should be doing something like going to Poland." Alyssa, what was that burden that you felt from the Lord, that calling? Why was it important for you to see this event, Encounter Poland, take place?

Alyssa Ruddell: It was really neat to see just how God put together, like you said, Chris, it was definitely something of the Lord. For me, it was something like Ty was saying, for the young adults, my generation specifically. And this was even before October 7th, and I think God was already paving the way for that. But with this rise of antisemitism, it was really important for me to engage with other young adults my age to have a better understanding and appreciation of the Jewish history and to just really expand their love for the people and really see how they fit into God's overarching plan. So that was what God put on my heart.

Chris Katulka: That's amazing. Timothy, tell me really quick before we continue on, I just would like to know, being in Poland, is this something that you've wanted to see, to see Americans and Canadians from North America come to Poland and to be able to experience the ministry that you have? Is this something that you had on your mind as God was working in the lives of Alyssa and Ty as well?

Timothy Rabinek: Well, Chris, it was a privilege for us really to share our ministry and the history of Jewish people in Poland. So definitely when the American and Canadian group came, it was just so nice to be able to, together as a team, experience those different aspects of an essential history of the Jewish people. So yeah, it was great.

Chris Katulka: That's fantastic. Timothy, hang with me for a moment because you live and minister in Poland and I heard one of the young adults say that the Holocaust became very real to them after visiting places like Auschwitz and Majdanek and Warsaw and Kraków. Why is it important that these places become real to young adults?

Timothy Rabinek: Well, I think it is because the story of the Jewish people in Poland is really an essential part to the history of the modern state of Israel, and there are two aspects of that. First is the thousand years of Jewish history that happened in Poland. The biggest Jewish community lived for a thousand years in Poland, so you had culture, literature, religion even developed here. And much of what you see today in Israel originated in Poland.

So that's number one. And the second one is of course the Holocaust. You can't underestimate the traumatic experience that happened in Poland in the 20th century to the Jewish people. And if you really want to understand the Jewish soul, you want to know and be effective in ministering to Jewish people, I truly believe you need to go to places like Auschwitz, to places like the ghetto in Warsaw, especially now when we see the scar of the Holocaust opened again after October 7th when Israel was attacked by Hamas.

Chris Katulka: Timothy, can you share really quick, you're talking about the students experiencing Poland and really where the Holocaust took place, can you talk about also how important this is because we're living in an age now where Holocaust survivors will not be with us much longer. We will not have a firsthand account of the events that took place. And as Holocaust survivors begin to fade off the scene, Holocaust deniers continue to ramp up. Is it important for people to come to these places to see them firsthand because of that very reason?

Timothy Rabinek: I think this is very important because when people come and see it with their own eyes, they see the scale of it, they see the evidence that is just here, it's very difficult to become a denier then. I am so grateful to God that he has moved Alyssa and Ty to begin this program, and I really believe it can become a really important program for the future for young people to, even though the Holocaust survivors are passing away today, the evidence is here. If you see it, you can't unsee it. It's an impact for the rest of your life.

Chris Katulka: A hundred percent. Hey, Ty, I know that you deal a lot with students. You also are aware of what's going on on college campuses and we're seeing over and over again, not just the denial of what happened in the Holocaust, but also coupled with that after October 7th, the rise of antisemitism. How do you think a trip like Encounter Poland helps to, I don't want to say solve the problem, but kind of speak into the issues that we're seeing on college campuses these days?

Ty Perry: Sure. I think first of all, the people that we're taking on this trip, they're not Holocaust deniers, they don't traffic in any of those views, but they may come into contact with those people, whether it's on college campuses like you say, or just in the mainstream. And so this, I think, gives them some tools to use to combat that. It's one thing to watch a documentary about the Holocaust and to have some facts.

It's another thing to say, "I have walked Auschwitz, I've walked Auschwitz, and I've seen the ruins of gas chambers. I've been in a gas chamber. I've seen the ovens. I've seen the mound of ash at Majdanek." It, I think, gives a burden to the people who visit those places to push back against false narratives and outright lies about the Jewish people and about the Holocaust, and helps them to be more educated about some of the claims that are being made in those settings.

Chris Katulka: Alyssa, we titled this trip Encounter Poland because we have other Encounter opportunities and our goal is for Christians to encounter the Jewish community, to realize that they are not a monolithic group, to realize how they can best minister to their Jewish friends. It's a great opportunity to engage with the Jewish community.

This one happened to be in Poland. And I know that you played a major role in developing this itinerary of this amazing trip. I know it was a priority for the three of you as you're developing the trip to include volunteerism, to be able to serve the Jewish community in Poland, to really be the hands and feet of Jesus. Can you share about some of the work that our team did and maybe share some of the responses from the Jewish community?

Alyssa Ruddell: Absolutely. And you're a hundred percent right. We wanted it to have things set up for the team. They're getting all this education, they're deepening their love for the community, and we want them to do something about it and have things lined up. And so we so appreciated Timothy and the team to get all these things set up. Some of the things that we did is we helped pack bags for Jewish refugees from Ukraine that the Polish staff are going to be handing out, and that's a way that we can comfort and be a blessing to them.

Another thing that we got to do was help prep for the children camps that the Polish team have over there, camps for the Bible. And we helped them build a swing set, we helped them paint benches, just different things to help set up the summer for success and have these things in place for the kids. A third way we got to do was we volunteered at a Jewish cemetery in Matzevah and this was really crucial for the team.

It came towards the end of the trip and I had numerous participants tell me that it was a really important time for them, a really sweet way to volunteer. It was overgrown. No one really looks after it to that extent, so I kind of wish we had a before and after picture. But we went in there, people were raking with a smile. We were lugging logs and just different ways to show respect for the Jewish community to get involved and invested.

And I know the team spoke to me that it was really valuable to them to get to do that in such a backdrop where humanity and value of life was treated so disrespectfully during the Holocaust. To get to serve back in that way and just do it with a smile was a big blessing. And we did. We had several really sweet responses. The guy who looked over it was saying, "Are you sure you can't stay longer? Please come back."

Like, "We would love to. Please let us come back." And just, we heard so many things like, "It's so nice to see Christians who genuinely care about us. We need more people like you. I can tell you really care. None of you are Jewish and you still love us. Wow, thank you for being here." And these were just some of the responses we heard, and we just give God all the glory and we're so thankful for the opportunity.

Chris Katulka: It is really vital as we encounter the Jewish community, that we're not just looking at them as a museum piece. We're not just staring at them and learning information. We want to get to work, to volunteer, to help, to provide an opportunity so that they can see not just our words or hear our words, but also see our deeds as we serve in the Jewish community.

And so when we come back, we're going to continue our conversation about this amazing trip that happened just last April and May in the Spring, a great opportunity for the Friends of Israel to send a team of young adults, Christian young adults to serve Israel and the Jewish people in Poland to learn about the Holocaust and to engage with our amazing ministry in Poland. You're going to want to stick around and hear more, so be sure to stick around.

Steve Conover: Friends, we have some exciting news to share with you today, something that we think you'll appreciate and use all the time.

Chris Katulka: That's right. We're excited to announce the launch of the Friends of Israel's new digital media app, designed to provide you with immediate access to a growing library of biblical content, in depth articles, encouraging reads and listens.

Steve Conover: Whether you're looking to deepen your understanding of the scriptures, learn how to love the Jewish people, explore God's plan for the ages, or receive daily weekday news, our app has something for you.

Chris Katulka: The Friends of Israel's digital media app features Israel My Glory articles, Eye On The Middle East and other online biblical teaching, relevant blog posts, upcoming volunteer trips and tours to Israel, scripture and my personal favorite, all of the Friends of Israel Today radio programs. Steve, how can our listeners get this new amazing app?

Steve Conover: Simply search the Friends of Israel in your favorite app store and download the Friends of Israel digital media app today. You can also find out more at FOIradio.org.

Chris Katulka: Awesome. Now, listeners, don't miss out. Now more than ever, Christians need to know about God's great plan for Israel and why it matters to us today. You can find the app on Google Play, Apple App Store, Google TV, Roku, Fire TV, or Apple TV.

Steve Conover: Again, simply visit your favorite app store and download the Friends of Israel digital media app when you search the Friends of Israel or learn more at FOIradio.org.

Chris Katulka: Welcome back, everybody. We are talking with Ty, Timothy, and Alyssa. This is a global conversation that we're having because Alyssa's in Texas, Ty's in Michigan, and Timothy is in Poland right now. And we're all together reminiscing about the Encounter Poland trip that wrapped up last May, May 2024, as they took a group of Christian young adults to Poland to learn about the Holocaust, to engage with the Jewish community in Poland, and to also serve alongside the Friends of Israel's Polish team.

Ty, one of the unique things that you did as a group was the March of the Living. The March of the Living is a profound event. So first of all, can you talk to our listeners, share with our listeners about what the March of the Living is and what it was like to walk from Auschwitz to Birkenau in solidarity with thousands of Jewish people? How did this affect the group?

Ty Perry: Yeah. The March of the Living is an international Holocaust education trip, and it's made up of thousands of people, most of them young Jewish people, young Jewish students from around the world. They come to Poland to learn about the Holocaust by visiting concentration camps, mass graves, unfortunately, where Jewish people were massacred and then buried to learn about the Holocaust.

And often they also have a Holocaust survivor who comes with them and shares their story. So the March of the Living graciously allowed our team to participate in the actual march from Auschwitz I to Auschwitz II, Birkenau, which is about a mile and a half. And this is kind of the culmination of the trip where all of the delegates from around the world physically walk from Auschwitz II to Birkenau.

And it made a profound impact on us as a team because we are standing with many of the descendants of Holocaust survivors. We were walking with some Holocaust survivors themselves were present that day. And this year was particularly poignant because outside of Auschwitz, kind of along the route walking there were protestors protesting Israel and protesting in favor of the Palestinian government, which is Hamas.

And so it just, it really sent home the fact that even since the  30s and 40s, it hasn't gone away, and it's always underneath the surface. And I think that that was particularly impactful for our team as we saw both the, we remembered the past, but we also saw how important the lessons of the past are to apply to future and present events.

Chris Katulka: I just love seeing pictures and video of your team as they're interacting with the Jewish community as they walk in solidarity between Auschwitz and Birkenau. And there's that unique connection that takes place, especially when they find out that you're Christians who are walking alongside them, showing them love and concern and support.

And Timothy, this leads to a question that I have because you're over in Poland all the time, and you are with the Polish team. You have a remarkable team of Friends of Israel representatives that are serving in Eastern Europe. What does it mean to have 16 Christian young adults from the US and Canada partnering in ministry? Can you share some of the memorable moments or interactions that might've stood out during this time?

Timothy Rabinek: Sure, Chris. Well, I think I can share two things. First of all, for us, it was a great help when the young believers came from North America, and it even opened some doors for us to the Jewish community. We wanted to create gift bags for the Jewish refugees from Ukraine. And originally we were thinking that we will send those gift bags to Ukraine. But then we kind of started thinking together and we thought that maybe there is a Jewish community of Jewish refugees now living in Warsaw.

And we actually approached them, and that was a new contact that this trip opened for us. And we are in contact now with a totally new Jewish community that we haven't reached before. So that's one. And the second thing is it was really, really wonderful to hear when young people were coming to us and saying to us, "Thank you. Thank you for showing us the Jewish history, the Holocaust, because now I can go back home and I can talk to my Jewish friends and tell them I was there. I saw that. I understand some of your pain."

Chris Katulka: Yeah. This really does not only open doors for the Polish ministry, what you all are doing, but also to think about the lasting impact it has as these young adults are coming home and engaging in their local Jewish community to tell them where they've been, where they've gone, what they've seen, and how they can never unsee what they have seen.

And now they have to act and to live up to the responsibility of making sure that people understand the truth about the Holocaust and to be able to minister to their Jewish friends. Alyssa, I just want to hear from you as we close here, some lasting impressions and lessons. What did the team learn? What did they bring back home, and how has that experience inspired them to deepen their support for their Jewish friends and the Jewish community around them?

Alyssa Ruddell: That's a great question, Chris. I loved hearing from the team all the things that they got, and I wish I could share all of them with you. I'll just read a couple of the things that they mentioned that they wrote down was, "I know this trip has taught me a lot to bring to the Christian community, to continue to bring churches to a better viewpoint of the Jewish people in Israel, to have a bigger heart for them and to stand with them."

Another participant wrote, "It also impressed on me just how important it is that we stand with the Jewish people, especially now more than ever. They need friends, and I want to be a friend to them and tell them they are not alone and that God loves them with a special enduring love." And what's really neat, Chris, is when they came back, that trip didn't just sit on the shelf, and that was a great experience and whatnot.

That experience was activated and it transformed how they're doing life back home. After talking with them, after getting back home, they were talking with their churches, they were signing up for internships to deepen their knowledge of the Jewish people and know how to share the love with them. And so that was just really encouraging. I kind of thought of it like this.

When you go to Israel, which I think everyone should do, when you go to Israel, the Bible comes to life. What Encounter Poland did, I think, was bring the Jewish people to life in that history and helped shape their perspective so they can love and minister and come from the Jewish people from a better place of understanding, which is so important today.

Chris Katulka: Alyssa, thank you so much. Hey, Timothy, Ty, Alyssa, thank you for being on the program with us today. We're going to be sharing information on how people can get involved with the Encounter program, how they can keep up with Friends of Israel, and how maybe one day they themselves can go on an Encounter Poland. So thank you so much for being with us, and I'm so proud of you, this amazing team for leading this group of young adults to Poland for this amazing experience. Thank you very much.

Ty Perry: Thanks, Chris.

Alyssa Ruddell: Thanks, Chris.

Timothy Rabinek: Thank you, bye.

Steve Conover: Thank you so much for joining us for today's episode of The Friends of Israel Today, and a special thanks to our Encounter Poland team for joining us.

Chris Katulka: Yeah, first of all, for our listeners, don't forget to go to foiradio.org and there you can gain access to download our brand new Friends of Israel app for your phone. Also, if you're interested in joining the Friends of Israel on an Encounter program, it's really easy to do.

Just go to foiradio.org, and there you can find out how you can participate in an Encounter right here in the United States, where you'll get a chance to encounter the Jewish community of New York City, Philadelphia, and South Jersey. I hope that you join us again. That's FOIradio.org. 

During these challenging times in Israel, it's crucial to deepen our understanding of biblical teaching about Israel and the Jewish people. I really hope that you believe FOI Radio provides the essential teaching of timeless truths and support for our Jewish friends. Would you please consider making a donation to help us continue this vital work and to reach more lives with the biblical message of God's heart for Israel and the Jewish people? To give, just go to foiradio.org and you can click on the donate button. Again, that's foiradio.org.

Steve Conover: Our host and teacher is Chris Katulka. Today's program was produced by Tom Gallione, edited by Jeremy Strong, who also composed and performs our theme music. I'm Steve Conover, executive producer. The Friends of Israel Today is a production of The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry. Passion for God's Word, compassion for God's Chosen People.