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Hakhel Spotlight: Living Tree Alliance, Vermont

By on August 16, 2018 in Hakhel Blog, Hakhel Blog, Jewish Intentional Communities

It’s August in Vermont’s Mad River Valley. Youth scatter themselves across the covered bridge of Waitsfield and fly into the river below. A family floats by in their tube and a band plays by the river’s edge. Our fields are growing high with corn, squash, and beans. The edges of the meadow and the perennial beds sprout color as they ripen with blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, and thimbleberries. We gather on the porch of the Oshkello’s net-zero house to plan for our regional Sukkot festival while the owls come out at dusk. On the table, there is basil to be made into pesto and broccoli to be frozen for the winter. The sheep and chickens raise their voice in blessing for this beautiful summer day. We recite the Shehecheyanu prayer as we eat the first cucumbers of the season. Welcome to life at Living Tree Alliance! Our land consists of 93 acres of farmland, meadows, forest, trails, a working maple sugarbush, and private swimming beaches along the Mad River. The property adjoins the running and skiing trails of the local high school which includes an amazing forest frisbee golf course. We steward this land with a vision of community and hope […]

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The Binary of One | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on August 9, 2018 in Education, Holidays, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Spirituality, Weekly Parsha

by Sofia Marbach, Wilderness Torah Parshat Re’eh I set before you today a blessing and a curse; The blessing, that you will heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today; and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn away from the way I command you this day, to follow other gods, which you did not know. — Deuteronomy 11:26-28 Yikes! The first lines of Re’eh present us with a terrifying binary: choose to follow closely each commandment or consider yourself cursed by God. If we opt out of the choosing, what does Judaism leave for us? The text goes on to list detailed instructions for violence against those who might persuade you to worship the gods of other peoples, and against the idols of those who tended your land before. This is the kind of violence that mirrors and reinforces patriarchal systems of dominance and oppression lived today and throughout history. So how do we grapple with guidelines for patriarchal violence in our holiest book — a violence that divides us into binary understandings of the world? How do we connect to tradition as “People of the […]

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Urban Kibbutz meeting

Urban Kibbutz – San Francisco

By on August 9, 2018 in Hakhel Blog, Hakhel Blog, Jewish Intentional Communities

By Sara Linden, Hakhel Fellow of Urban Kibbutz-San Francisco and Associate Director of Admissions at Jewish Community High School of the Bay June 26, 2018 DIY Kibbutz – Diaspora edition Is this what if felt like to emigrate to Israel in the 1940s? Ready to build community with like-minded strangers who speak different languages, arriving at a new destination, and probably a little discombobulated from a well-worn journey (trains, planes, automobile style). Fast forward, June 2018, we are a pluralistic bunch of Jewish community inspired zealots arriving from 10 different countries to our weekend sanctuary, Camp Pearlstone Retreat Center, for Hazon’s 5th Annual Jewish Intentional Community Conference all doing our best to communicate in one language “Hebr-ish” (English with a side of Hebrew-based fervor). About 150 participants in total are here. Of the group, half of us are representing two new cohorts: The Israeli Ministry of Diaspora Affairs in partnership with Hazon is sponsoring the Hakel JIC (Jewish Intentional Communities Incubator) program, an initiative convening leaders from newly forming intentional communities across the Diaspora, and Makom is the umbrella organization connecting the leaders of the Kibbutz 2.0 Movement, known as mission-driven intentional communities in Israel. Since I’m in the Hakhel […]

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Reflections on Kindness | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on August 3, 2018 in Activism, Education, Farming, Food, Food Justice, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Shmita, Teens, Tzedek/Justice, Weekly Parsha

by Brenden Jackson, Amir with Shalom Community Farm Houston Parshat Eikev In Parshat Eikev, Moses calls upon his people to reflect on their past in order to remember and obtain the future that was promised to them. As they prepare to enter the Promised Land, the lines blur between past transgressions, promises, sufferings and joys, made inseparable from the current joy at the edge of the holy land. As summer comes to a close here in Houston, so does summer camp programming, which means ending my mentor role with summer farmers and transitioning to fall programming. With the end of the summer chapter, I find myself guided by Moses’s reflections while I enter the reflection stage of this particular learning cycle. Here in Houston, we have several projects occurring and converging at one time: On the one hand, we have Shalom Community Farm – a Jewishly centered agriculture program aimed at connecting flora and Torah for community members. On the other hand, we are developing a Garden Kitchen program with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, where I grow, harvest, and prepare produce with different community members. While in many ways these projects are totally separate, Amir has […]

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FUNdraising Tip #5: Say Thank You

By on July 30, 2018 in FUNdraising Tips, New York Ride

After 5 weeks of FUNdraising tips, we hope you’ve been raking in the donations! Immediately after someone has donated to your Ride, send them a quick email or call them to thank them. Then, after the Ride, we recommend sending handwritten thank you cards. Going the extra mile will make your donors really feel appreciated and they’ll want to donate again next year!

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FUNdraising Tip #4: Show the Impact

By on July 24, 2018 in FUNdraising Tips, New York Ride

Feel free to copy and paste some of the language below on social media and in your fundraising emails. WHERE THE MONEY GOES: Hazon Seal of Sustainability: Option 1: Through the Hazon Seal of Sustainability, Hazon works with Jewish communities and institutions across the US to help them embrace sustainability efforts that reduce waste, improve energy efficiency, increase renewable energy, and improve health. Many of these initiatives can help save thousands of energy dollars per year, and most importantly, can help significantly reduce the collective carbon footprint of the Jewish community. Option 2: Through the Hazon Seal of Sustainability, Hazon is helping to green over 60 Jewish institutions across the US, including synagogues, schools, camps, and JCCs. Many have started or significantly expanded composting programs and other efforts to raise awareness around food waste, diverting hundreds of thousands of pounds from the landfill each year. Several have installed energy efficiency upgrades that are already saving thousands of dollars per institution per year, including most recently Isabella Freedman! Most significantly, thousands of people who visit these institutions are learning about their greening efforts, and Hazon’s educational resources are permeating into communities around the country. Adamah: Adamah is a residential farming fellowship providing a crucial bridge for […]

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FUNdraising Tip #3: Spread the word

By on July 20, 2018 in FUNdraising Tips, New York Ride

 Watch this short video from 2017 NY Ride honoree Ruth Messinger for some fundraising encouragement!   Although fundraising may seem intimidating at first, you probably know more people than you realize. To start your fundraising, you need to first make a list of who you will ask. And remember, people don’t give to support causes as much as they give to support people: your friends, family, and colleagues will donate to your ride because YOU are riding. Start by sending some emails and posting on social media and follow up in a couple of weeks.  

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FUNdraising Tip #2: Personalize it

By on July 20, 2018 in FUNdraising Tips, New York Ride

This is an easy one and only takes 5 minutes: personalize your fundraising page with a photo and text about why you’re riding. Putting in a little bit of effort shows your donors that you’re serious about what you’re fundraising for and they will be more likely to support you. Log into your participant center here to update your page and create a custom URL. We recommend bookmarking this page.

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FUNdraising Tip #1: Set a Goal

By on July 20, 2018 in FUNdraising Tips, New York Ride

Every Rider has a fundraising minimum, but we encourage you to aim higher. The higher your fundraising target, the more generous your supporters will be. When you are close to meeting your target, consider setting a higher one. Need some extra incentives? Take a look at what you can earn if you fundraise above your required minimum!

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Choosing our History | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on July 19, 2018 in Climate Change, Education, Farming, Food, Food Justice, Holidays, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Shavuot, Spirituality, Weekly Parsha

by Henry Schmidt, Shalom Institute Parshat Devarim The Torah may be our past, but Devarim, the shared name both for this week’s Torah portion and for the fifth book of the Torah, is our history. What is the difference between past and history? Our past is simply a chronology of events, one after another, that bring us to the present. It is what one may observe if they traveled back in time and watched things unfold. History, on the other hand, adds important layers; history is the past we choose to tell and how we tell it. The establishment of history is an inherently political process. Whoever has the most access to public discourse or public thought typically gets to shape the narrative of the people. In the case of Devarim, this power rests solely with Moses. Though he shall not see the promised land and must cede this honor to his successor, Joshua, he still possesses the most powerful role of this period for the Jewish people: he gets to tell them their own story. After all, Devarim translates to “the words,” and these are “the words” of the Jewish people. We already know that the Jews eventually receive […]

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Why Do We Wander? | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on July 13, 2018 in Adamah, Animals, Education, Holidays, Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Jewish Intentional Communities, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Shavuot, Spirituality, Weekly Parsha

by Eliezer Weinbach, Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Hazon  Parshat Maasei Earlier this year, Isabella Freedman hosted a Moishe House retreat called “Wandering Jews.” Led by New York Times contributor Eli Reiter, twelve people in their twenties and thirties got together to discuss their experiences and wisdom regarding travel as a Jewish person. They discussed things like kashruth and shabbat observance while abroad. The question is: Why bother? When the Torah lists all the stages of the journey through the desert, as per the text from Numbers above, it really does discuss each part. All forty-two stages, in fact! The question is: Why bother? God commands that when the Jews do finally enter the land, they are to travel three times a year to Jerusalem. Wasn’t the journey to the land long enough?! Why bother?! Travel is hard. Sitting at home is easy. Hiking is hard. Watching Netflix is easy. Adventures change you. Inaction keeps you the same. Wandering is change. On a very basic level, you are moving from one place to another. But it’s so much more than that. I could quote Emerson on “roads less traveled” or Kerouac on basically anything, or any of the myriad formulations regarding […]

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Fear and Donkeys | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on June 28, 2018 in Animals, Climate Change, Education, Farming, Food, Holidays, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Opportunities, Reflections, Resources, Shmita, Spirituality, Teens, Weekly Parsha

by Henry Schmidt, Shalom Institute Parshat Balak I thought Balak was a story about a donkey. That is to say, when I sat down to write this blog post, I expected to write about the talking donkey we’ll soon meet. Understandably, a talking donkey tends to get a lot of attention. However, this time I found the ending of the parsha (Torah portion), an ending I had always overlooked, to be what especially spoke to me. Let’s start with an overview. Balak, King of Moab, sees the growing people of Israel and how they have conquered all of Moab’s neighbors, leaving Moab directly next to the potential threat of this dynamite group of nomads who seem to be on a roll. Worried about the Israelite’s winning streak, he summons Balaam, a pagan sorcerer, to come and curse the Israelites. “‘There is a people come out of Egypt; it hides the Earth from view, and it is settled next to me. Come then, put a curse upon this people for me, since they are too numerous for me; perhaps I can thus defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that he whom you bless is blessed […]

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Mayim Chayim and Honoring our Mother | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on June 21, 2018 in Education, Food, Food Justice, Holidays, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Shavuot, Spirituality, Tzedek/Justice, Weekly Parsha

by Alex Voynow, Jewish Farm School  Parshat Chukat In Chukat, our mother dies. “Miriam died there [at Kadesh] and was buried there. The people were without water and they joined against Moses and Aaron.” ~Numbers 20.1-2 Miriam’s death gets one line, and then the narrative is quickly redirected back to the patriarchs. I was amazed at the amount of lines the Torah takes in Chukat to explicate the condemnation of Moses, the laws or ritual purification, and the military proceedings of the Israelites, while one verse is all we hear about the death of Miriam the Prophetess. Miriam provided the water. And just as in the central focus of the movement at Standing Rock, “Water is Life.” Mayim chayim. If you say mayim repeatedly, you also begin to say ima — mother. In the Torah, we lost our mother Miriam, our life source. She is barely mentioned again. So, the central question for me and for us that comes up is: whose story is this? Who wrote this book? There is an obvious reality that women were centrally important to the life and culture of the Israelites, yet they are seldom mentioned, celebrated, or mourned. I see this as the Torah’s infidelity […]

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Korach: Disruptive Visionary or Disgruntled Rabble-Rouser? | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on June 14, 2018 in Adamah, Animals, Education, Food, Food Justice, Holidays, Israel, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Resources, Shavuot, Shmita, Spirituality, Tzedek/Justice, Weekly Parsha

by Eliezer Weinbach, Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Hazon Parshat Korach וַיֵּרְדוּ הֵם וְכָל-אֲשֶׁר לָהֶם, חַיִּים–שְׁאֹלָה And they and all their belongings went down, alive, into Sheol Numbers 16:33 I was traveling once, and my tour guide, a wizened Arab, asked me if I wanted to see the pit that swallowed Korach’s followers. Intrigued, I followed my guide through the desert. After some time, through a haze of heat and mirage, we saw smoke billowing from a fissure in the ground. My guide doused a towel with some of his water, and tied it to the tip of his staff. He cautiously approached the fissure, and held his staff over the smoking vent. To my surprise, the wet cloth began to burn. As he was walking back to me, I could hear voices carried on the warm desert wind. Faint voices, singing, or perhaps chanting. Softly enough that I wasn’t sure if I was hearing anything at all. “What are those voices?” I asked my guide. “Those are the children of Korach,” he replied. “They are slowly lowered into the hellish heat of the Earth and then raised back out, rotated like a roast on a spit. When they finish […]

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The 12 Spies: What Went Wrong? | D’varim HaMakom: The JOFEE Fellows Blog

By on June 8, 2018 in Education, Jewish Texts, JOFEE, JOFEE Fellowship, Reflections, Resources, Spirituality, Weekly Parsha

by Mollie Sharfman, GatherDC Parashat Shlach We put the twelve spies on trial on my Chumash/Bible class in my Jewish Day School when I was thirteen.  My friend Leah Estreicher and I were appointed lawyers for the defense team. We studied the text, and took walks from my house to Leah’s house to sharpen our arguments. In the real story, the spies are found guilty. But our argument was so strong that our teacher, Mrs. Tuchman, had to declare the spies not-guilty.  It was an important early victory for me, and I was eager to review the story that had such an impact on me: this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Shlach. At this juncture of the people of Israel’s journey, we find them in the wilderness, about to make their move into the Promised Land. They have been working hard on becoming a people, they have received the Torah, and have eased into a comfortable status quo in the wilderness (with something shaking them up every so often) as they inch towards entering the land of Canaan. This journey has not been easy for them. Many times they regress into wishing they were back in Egypt. G-d decides to appoint a […]

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