Topic: Newsletters

Hazon sends out weekly newsletters to keep you in the loop on events, updates, great stories, and happenings from our friends! Not receiving our newsletters? Join our mailing list.

Giving Thanks, and a Very Different Kind of Recycling

By Nigel Savage on November 26, 2014 in Jewish Intentional Communities, Newsletters, Nigel

Tomorrow it’s Thanksgiving. On Friday night – hodu sheini – many of us will eat some of the leftovers. That kind of recycling is good, and so is recycling boxes or bottles or turning plastic into toothbrushes. We could all do more to lessen our footprints. But Hazon, this month, has been the recipient of a very different kind of recycling. I wanted publicly to give thanks for it; to make an observation deriving from it that is important and worth thinking about; and to issue a public request that I hope may hit a chord with someone, somewhere. The story begins in the summer of 1974, when Cherie Koller-Fox and some friends rented a ski lodge, and nearly forty people came out during Elul to spend time together. The following year, and coming out of this experience, a group of friends established what they called Beit Havurah – a house that they bought as a shared Jewish gathering place; a bayit in which to celebrate, to hang out, to fall in love, to express a new sense of Jewishness, and in general to explore and expand the nature of Jewish life in the 20th century. In all of this […]

Two Pockets

By Nigel Savage on November 24, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

The teaching that is speaking to me most deeply, these days, is the one about the two pockets – that we each should walk around with two pieces of paper in our pockets. In one pocket: “for me the world was created” And in the other: “I am dust, and will return to dust…” One of them is about power and impact; the other is about our deep insignificance. One of them reminds us of the goodness in the world; the other is about its darkness. They speak to me so deeply because it feels as if both are true, and are somehow becoming ever more true with each passing day. From one pocket: our great-grandparents could hardly dream of the peace, freedom, affluence, and choice that so many of us take for granted each day. They couldn’t have imagined the medicines that heal us or the technologies that enable us to learn or to stay connected. They didn’t expect to see three Jews on the US Supreme Court, or Ivy League schools that are a quarter Jewish, or a State of Israel that is prosperous, diverse, culturally vibrant, and militarily strong. Yet those of us who are able to […]

All Hallow’s Eve, Father Healy z”l, and Applied Jewish Wisdom

By Nigel Savage on October 31, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

Halloween wasn’t really a thing when I was a kid in England; we had Guy Fawkes Night, five days later. So my first Halloween was when I was a Junior Year Abroad student at Georgetown, where it was a big deal, both on campus and in the neighborhood. We began Halloween by going to Dahlgren Chapel for a Hallow’s Eve Mass, led by Father Healy, z”l, the President of the University. Dahlgren Chapel is small and dark, an atmospheric place, and famous as the location of a key scene in The Exorcist. For Halloween it was packed. Students were dressed up, had already started drinking, and were planning to go out and hit the bars in Georgetown afterwards. It was quite a scene. It was to this audience, and to considerable laughter, that Father Healy began: “I’m so glad that you are all so committed to the celebration of All Hallow’s Eve…” He went on: “Hallow’s Eve is about celebrating the holiness in each of us; the holiness in our friends, the holiness in our fellow students, the holiness in our teachers…” And already the atmosphere had shifted, and the congregation was settling into quiet, and one could feel people […]

Shana Tova

By Nigel Savage on September 23, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

This is a brief note to thank you for your support during this year that’s gone by, and to wish you and your family well in the coming year. It has been a hard and complicated year for the world and for the Jewish people, and yet Sunday’s Climate March here in New York summed up what our response to challenge can be and should be: bringing people together with determination, idealism, and a shared commitment to a better future for everyone. For Hazon this has been a remarkable year. We completed the merger between Hazon and Isabella Freedman. We delivered more than 26,000 person-days of immersive programs – and we published the JOFEE Report, substantiating the human impact of many of those programs. (Plus we added a vitally needed new acronym to the American Jewish lexicon: it stands for “Jewish Outdoor, Food & Environmental Education.”) Jewish Food Festivals are sprouting around the country. With the support of the Leichtag Foundation we hired our first staffer in southern California. We’ve hired a wonderful new director for Teva, and we continue to deepen and broaden our work in Boulder, Denver, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. We’ve had a further joyful crop of […]

“Realistic hope”: Scotland, climate change, shmita & the call of the shofar

By Nigel Savage on September 19, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

Yesterday Lord Sacks, in a teaching for the Wexner Foundation on teshuvah, described Jewish tradition as “a religion of realistic hope.” I was struck by this phrase and wondered if he had used it before. He seems not to have done; but Rabbi Levi Olan (rabbi-ing with a different theology in a rather different time and place) used it as the title of his commencement address at HUC-JIR in 1953. I doubt very much that Rabbi Sacks was quoting Rabbi Olan; rather they were each drawing on their own understanding of our shared tradition. It is a beautiful, accurate, and useful phrase, and never more relevant than at the remarkable time in which we now find ourselves. Yesterday Scotland voted to remain part of the United Kingdom. That signifies realistic hope on the part of the Scottish people – trusting that significant constitutional and thus existential change will be possible, without having to blow up a centuries-old union. I pray that in the coming year such peaceful evolution will be possible in other parts of the world where the boundaries of legal border and personal identity do not cleanly coincide – not only in Canada or Spain, for instance, but […]

A Summer to Write Home About

By David Weisberg on September 10, 2014 in Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Newsletters

In one of my favorite lines from the classic 1979 summer camp film “Meatballs,” head counselor Tripper, played by Bill Murray, tells new camper, Rudy Gerner, “You make one good friend a summer, and you’re doing pretty well.” Indeed, new friends can be one important way to measure a summer. And, as we’re all asked “How was your summer?” we may choose to answer it by where we traveled, how much we relaxed, the amount of time we spent with our family, how successful we were in keeping the gnats out of our mouths, and so on. At Hazon, where a core part of our mission revolves around providing transformative Jewish experiences, we look and measure our summer by the impact that we’ve had, the lives that we’ve changed, and – yes – the new friends we’ve made along the way. And, in that regard, what a beautiful summer it was, perhaps best embodied by transformative experiences ranging from Adamah Farm Vacations to Jewish spiritual leadership training institutes to our longest running program, Camp Isabella Freedman for Senior Adults, all occurring at our beautiful Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center in Connecticut. And just as my parents would save a summer’s worth […]

New Individual and Collective Dreams

By David Weisberg on September 3, 2014 in Jewish Intentional Communities, Newsletters

Imagine for a moment if Hazon staged a Bike Ride (as we do several times each year) but if the participants showed up with incredibly varied notions of what a bike even was. One person came with a unicycle. For another, a bike meant one of those antique bicycles with the huge front wheel. And others came with a tandem bike, a tricycle, a scooter, an outdoor elliptical bike, a recumbent, a motorcycle, a stationary exercise bike, and other bikes beyond your existing conceptions. (I just looked at Google images for “strange bikes,” and you might enjoy doing the same.) The event would then become more than just a bike ride; it would be an exercise in exploring our individual and collective imaginations, about exploring what was, what is, and what may be possible. Last November’s first ever Jewish Intentional Communities Conference – co-sponsored and planned by Hazon, Pearlstone Conference & Retreat Center, and the Jewish Agency for Israel – felt a bit like that bike ride might feel. Nearly 200 people gathered together at the Pearlstone Center in November 2013 to talk about Jewish intentional communities – many with completely different concepts of what a Jewish intentional community was… […]

Hazon Mini-Grants: Making Major Change

By Hazon on August 29, 2014 in Colorado, Newsletters

Every year I have the distinct privilege of waking up one morning, mid-summer, and the first thought that goes through my mind is, “Today we get to allocate $20,000 to help make my community healthy and more sustainable.” Rarely do I need coffee on such an exciting morning. Hazon Mini-Grants, funded by bike rides and other grantee sources, are small grants that help up-and coming JOFEE, Jewish Outdoor Food Environmental Education, programs and projects across the country. The initiatives funded by mini-grants are able to do a great deal of good with a relatively small amount of money. In Colorado, where I live, thanks to generous funding provided by the Rose Community Foundation, 18 Pomegranates, and the Oreg Foundation, the Hazon Colorado Advisory Board and local Hazon staff allocate 20k in mini-grants annually. Cumulatively, we have now funded $80k towards just over 40 projects and initiatives. Three weeks ago we went through this year’s allocations process. I was once again struck at the impact a small group of people inspired by philanthropy and a desire to make their community stronger can have. As a group we discussed areas where we collectively could try to transform the community. We gave funding for […]

The Old Made New and the New Made Holy

By David Weisberg on August 20, 2014 in Newsletters, Shmita

The digital countdown clock at Isabella Freedman now reads that we’re under 35 days until Shmita. It’s hard to imagine how quickly time has raced since the clock read nearly 400 days at the time we installed it. And yet it’s hard to be anxious when what we’re racing towards is a year of release and renewal. Over those days between 400 and 35, we’ve been spending time planning and preparing for the Shmita year, including a very special book project. We are proud to announce our newest publication, Rav Kook’s Introduction to Shabbat Ha’Aretz, the first-ever English translation of the introduction to a book on Shmita by Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of the Land of Israel in the 20th century. His essay, written in 1909, is lyrical and mystical, a meditation on the big themes that underlie religious environmentalism. It has been beautifully translated by Rabbi Julian Sinclair, scholar and Vice President of Energiya Global, a leading Israeli solar energy company that has just developed the first-ever large-scale solar project in Sub-Saharan East Africa. As part of the book, Rabbi Sinclair has also written a terrific background essay about the traditional conception of Shmita, Rav Kook […]

The People’s Climate March NYC

By Rachel Aronson on August 12, 2014 in Newsletters

We’re only 6 weeks away from making history at what is expected to be the biggest climate march ever – the People’s Climate March NYC, on Sunday, September 21. I’m excited to have the opportunity to tell the world leaders who will be convening at the UN that now is the time to stop climate change. What is even more exciting is that this will surely be the biggest Jewish climate march ever. I have spent the last month reaching out to Jews across the country as we lay plans to march together. I am confident that we will start the new year with a big bang: We’re going to be coming out in force, with our shofars blasting. The People’s Climate March is taking place just a few days before we celebrate Rosh Hashanah. To me, there could not be a better way to prepare for the new Jewish year. Rosh Hashanah is “hayom harat olam,” the day the earth was born. It is the most universal of Jewish holidays. Unlike Passover and Hanukkah (to name just two), Rosh Hashanah is not about our particular Jewish story. It calls on us to reflect on our relationship to the earth […]

Never Before Had I Felt So Accepted

By David Weisberg on August 5, 2014 in Newsletters

“Never before had I felt so accepted… Never before had I felt so understood, in a way that almost cannot be explained.” “Being at the Shabbaton felt like exhaling. I hadn’t realized how much I had to hold back and posture in my everyday life until I was there. I realized that without knowing it I had been holding my breath all year waiting for the Shabbaton.” “The Shabbaton showed me that I am not alone. There are lots of other people that are going through some of the same things I am.” Dear Friends, The three quotes above all came from young people who participated in our Jewish LGBTQ Teen Shabbaton this past April, the largest of three such gatherings that we’ve held at Isabella Freedman, all in partnership with our wonderful friends at Keshet, and with the tremendous support of UJA-Federation of New York. By definition, most of you reading this message will not have the opportunity to attend one of these Shabbatons, for the fact that the gatherings are exclusively comprised of and led by teens (with the support of a few adult staff and volunteers). But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have the opportunity to know […]

High Holidays: Organic and Delicious!

By David Weisberg on July 28, 2014 in Newsletters

If retailers begin displaying items for the winter holidays in September, then July isn’t too early to begin preparing for the high holidays. Believe it or not, Rosh Hashanah is just over 60 days away, followed quickly by Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Simchat Torah. And, for me, there’s no more powerful way to observe our holiest of days than through a 360°experience that incorporates both giving thanks for and immersing ourselves in the world that has been given to us. I recall a six-hour canoe trip that I took with a group through the rainforest of Belize many years ago. As we rowed through the most beautiful and lush setting, we heard howler monkeys screaming from the trees as alligators popped up their eyes from the water before swimming past us. Half way through the exhausting and exhilarating trip, we stopped along the banks and were given our pack-out lunches for the day. And while everyone else was given one thing to eat, I was given something different. I was kosher. And, while sometimes I had wondered why I was kosher, at this moment, thinking about what I was eating and why, while having the most amazing sensory experience in […]

How the NY Ride Changed My Life

By David Weisberg on July 16, 2014 in New York Ride, Newsletters

If you want to understand the impact of Hazon’s programs, how they can truly change people’s lives in profound and meaningful ways, you needn’t look further than me. I first attended the Hazon NY Bike Ride in 2008. At the time, I was serving as the Executive Director of Friends of the Arava Institute, Hazon’s partner in the annual Israel Ride, and I was invited to come to the NY Ride, bringing some Arava Institute alumni with me. I brought along my wife Jamie and our children, Mikayla and Grace, then ages 10 and 6, for the Labor Day weekend retreat, which that year was held at Camp Kinder Ring, having no idea what we were going to experience, but genuinely just hoping to have a good time. We had more than a good time; we had a life-changing transformation. What we found at the NY Ride & Retreat, almost immediately, was a community like we had never experienced before. A community that was pervasively Jewish and radically inclusive. A community that felt both open and safe for our children. A community that encouraged Jewish journeys, including our own family’s journey. A community with a ruach and a neshama that […]

Reb Zalman z”l and the Tree of Life

By Nigel Savage on July 9, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

Dear All, As the week goes on, and despite events in Israel and so many other things, I remain profoundly aware of the death of Reb Zalman, may his memory be for a blessing. A sense of him and the memory of him is never far away. He had such a beautiful voice, his beautiful accent, and those twinkly eyes. He was irrepressible, joyous, and a font of ideas and connections. It was a pleasure and a challenge to try to keep up with him and his richly associative mind. His presence continues to echo. I will miss him very much. He was intimately involved with Hazon and our programs over many years. The staff at Isabella Freedman loved him; he made it a habit always to meet with the behind-the-scenes staff, not just front-of-house folk. He taught at Shavuot, was a central figure at Elat Chayyim since its earliest days, was a very special presence at our benefit last year, and came to England with us for a climate change conference a few years back. He was deeply interested in, and supportive of, our work on shmita. And he and Eve have been incredibly kind and generous to me personally. […]

The Gifts of Irresponsibility and Unseriousness

By Nigel Savage on June 26, 2014 in Newsletters, Nigel

It is a cacophonous and intense time to be here in Israel. The three kidnapped boys. War in Iraq. My niece’s bat mitzvah. Syria. Netanyahu and Abbas. The World Cup. Seeing old friends. Waze. Shopping malls, Israeli hospitals, Mahane Yehuda, the (superb) Rabin Museum. The Presbyterian vote to divest. Masechet Ta’anit. Everything higgledy-piggledy, one experience jarring upon the next. Against this background, I have no great wisdom to offer – certainly succinctly ☺. But I note that many of us living in comfort and peace have afforded ourselves for a great while – without being fully aware of it – the gifts of irresponsibility and unseriousness. I include within this a whole raft of things: not reading serious newspapers (including, especially, those with which we disagree); allowing our attention spans to shorten; polluting our inboxes and thus indirectly our souls with nonsense and vapidity. Stepping back from civic engagement. Being in Israel is a good antidote to this. The multiple lessons of the Torah and of Jewish history are that subtle and fragile artifacts of human creation – culture, community, education, law – accrete over time, but fracture, relatively speaking, in moments. Aleppo, Baghdad, Damascus – these have been thriving […]

← Previous 1 … 11 12 13 … 19 Next →

Navigation