I recently sat down with the interim executive director of the OU chapter of Hillel, Daniel Reches, to discuss the role of Hillel in the university community.

Hillel is part of an international organization with chapters located not only on many American college campuses but throughout the world.

The mission of Hillel is to enrich the lives of Jewish young adults so they can enrich the Jewish people and the world.

In my experience as a non-Jewish student at OU, I have been pleasantly surprised by Hillel and Reches’ success at contributing substantially to the general OU community regardless of race, religion or creed.

Whether it is due to Hillel’s desire to foster identity, not necessarily belief, or their focus on culture, Hillel has certainly been successful in creating an atmosphere of inclusiveness and interaction instead of the exclusive, Jewish-only group I fear some may suspect it to be. I assure you it is quite the opposite.

My first experience at Hillel came upon the invitation of some of my Turkish friends who happen to be Muslim. Having little knowledge of Hillel, I was a little surprised but curious nonetheless.

Intrigued by an apparent contradiction of my naïve notions of Hillel, I excitedly obliged my friends and was fortunate enough to take part in an enlightening interfaith dinner, comprised of students, professors and other members of the community, coming from an assortment of religious and cultural backgrounds but united by a desire to learn more about one another.

There was no Jewish agenda, no politically charged pro-Israeli rhetoric. In fact, an Imam, Rabbi and Christian pastor all spoke for equal amounts of time on the importance of interfaith engagement from the perspective of their religious tradition.

In addition to such a rare sense of openness and fellowship, the conversation with fellow participants delved most sincerely into some of the more difficult and sensitive issues among the cultures and traditions from which we hailed.

Indeed, I don’t believe I have found a more conducive environment to such discussions at OU, which are important and necessary endeavors in light of the times, than at Hillel.

I asked Reches to expound on just how and why Hillel is able to provide such a necessary environment to a thriving academic community, which is diverse in many ways. He said, “Hillel is the only Jewish center in Norman, as such it is important for us to interact with people of other faiths, cultures and identities.”

That is a powerful statement. The ease of its utterance is not reflective of its value. It is my experience that most cultural organizations do not place the engagement with peoples different from themselves as a high priority. They are more focused on improving the experience of the members of the organization from within and seeking to preserve what is perceived as a sacred identity.

The mission of Reches and Hillel seem to take quite the opposite position on the means of pursuing a special experience for its membership.

It has become apparent to me in my time at OU that Hillel is and will continue to be not only a safe-haven for Jewish students but also for any student seeking knowledge of people other than themselves. A visit to Hillel does not just entail exploration of Jewish culture and identity.

Hillel stands as a hub of interfaith and intercultural interaction; the benefits of which will continue to appeal to curious, open-minded individuals.

In short, no OU experience should be complete without a Hillel experience, regardless of who you are.

Jess Eddy is a religious studies senior.