Hazon Educational Library: Jewish Ritual

Shmita with Acorns

by Rachel Aronson
Hazon
This program can be incorporated into holiday programs for a harvest holiday (Sukkot, Passover, or Shavuot) especially during a Shmita year. It provides an interactive introduction to Shmita, including the basis of Shmita in Jewish text and the connection between Shmita and sustainable agriculture.
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Purim Party: An Eden Village All-Camp Program

by Maya Havusha
Eden Village Camp
The idea behind this program was to bring Purim to life in the middle of summer- a completely unexpected and ridiculously silly idea.The main goal for camp programming is always have fun, but just beneath that is our responsibility to educate our campers and create connections between Judaism, social justice, environmentalism and help them discover who they are (and who they want to be) in this big wild world. This program offers space for all of this! Campers will be split into small groups and have to overcome challenges placed before them, just like Esther did many years ago and begin to think about how they honor themselves, how they care for those around them, and how they stand up for what they believe in.

Shmita Wild Edibles Cards

by Bailey Lininger
Tamarack Camps
This program is a unique, interactive activity for a festival-style event that combines knowledge of local wild edible plants and the Jewish tradition of Shmita. For this program, the educator creates four unique "trading cards" to pass out at the event, and two examples of local, foraged food. The trading cards serve as a way to get participants interested in the connections between wild edible plants and Shmita, and the food samples demonstrate the ease and accessibility of foraging.

Lag b’Omer Fire and Forest Festival

by Maya Havusha
Eden Village Camp
Invite the magic of the forest into your life! Celebrate Lag B'Omer, an ancient Jewish festival about survival and spirituality, by rejoicing with our Eden Village community. Explore new forest skills, learn about kabbalah, and of course eat yummy snacks around the fire. With new eyes learn these time tested wilderness survival skills, such as shelter and fire building, making bows and arrows, wild edible walks among others.

Saving Creation One Hoshanah at a Time: An alternative Hoshanah Rabbah Ritual

by Shani Mink
Pearlstone Center
This program is an interactive and connective approach to the ritual of Hoshanah Rabbah. Each day of Sukkot we say Hoshanah! meaning 'Please Save Us!?' and so, after learning the basics of Hoshanah Rabbah and exploring the boundaries what we mean when we say 'us', participants will have the opportunity to write their own 'Hoshanot' for the sake of different aspects of creation.

Farm to Friday Nosh:pitality Shabbat

by Amanda Herring
OneTable
Shabbat is a time to sit and enjoy good food and good company, sourcing your food intentionally can bring a new level of mindful gratitude to your dinner table. It can also be delicious and filling! Shabbat rituals can be adapted to be relevant to your life, and the season. Local urban farms are doing amazing work in the D.C. area and our Jewish values teach us to support their work in any way we can. You can replicate this celebration at your Shabbats by thinking sustainably and seasonally, and reaching out to local farms.
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Tu B’Shvat Youth Seders

by Daniella Aboody
Wilderness Torah
In the tradition of the Kabbalists (16th century mystics of Tsfat, Israel), we gather in the forest to create an experiential Tu B'Shvat seder (ceremony) that connects us to the trees and the elements, and we are taken on a journey from the physical world to the spiritual world. This oral tradition within Judaism encourages us to open ourselves to the mystery, wonder and creativity that this time of renewal and rebirth brings. During the seder, we delight in experiencing and tasting of p'ri ha-etz (the fruit of the trees) and celebrate the season together through the five senses, movement, mindfulness, ritual, and Tu B'Shvat teachings.

What is Jewish About Cheese? Cheese and butter making workshop

by Emily Glick
Hazon - Teva
This workshop explores the history of dairy in the context of Judaism and Jewish tradition. It teaches participants how to easily make their own cheese and butter (they will leave the session being able to try both), while touching upon the modern-day dairy industry and its relation to Kashrut.
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Natural Sofer: Torah Art Explorah

by Emily Blustein
Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta
This program is an exploration into the Jewish tradition of Torah making. Through learning the traditional process of a sofer, the participants will get a hands-on painting/calligraphy activity.

Bring the Light In: Make your own Chanukah Candles

by Hannah Slipakoff
Jewish Farm School
This program is a hands-on workshop focused on cultivating joyful connections between participants while upholding sentiments of empowerment and spiritual reflection. Emphasizing sustainability, self-care, and political resistance, participants will have the opportunity to share holiday memories, learn about chanukah and other earth-based Jewish winter rituals, and create their very own set of hanukkah candles.

Clearing Out the Old to Make Room for the New: A Passover Tradition

by Elizabeth Kaplan
JCC of Greater Boston Discovery Club
This program has been implemented as part of a 9-week series called Fantastic Farmers that meets for one hour per week at Newton Community Farm. The farm is a non-profit community farm located next door to the JCC that strives to benefit the community by providing locally grown produce through a CSA, educating the public about sustainable agriculture, and preserving Newton?s last working farm as a historic site and valuable open space.
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