Rabbi Sid’s essay analyzing the state of the American Jewish community was thoughtful and on the mark. I appreciated his perspective, agreed with most of his ideas and adored others. His assessment that the 21st century cries out for a spiritual response is spot on and applies to the Jewish community as well as other faith communities. Here […]
The School for Creative Judaism was born in an apartment in the Upper East Side on a cold Friday evening in January around a decade ago. Around 60 people aged 4 to 80, most with very little Jewish knowledge beyond what I had been teaching them, were gathered in a living room for a Shabbat […]
What Jewish spiritual practices will help bring my life meaning? What in our Jewish tradition can help me get over life’s hurdles? What can I do to increase engagement with holiness in my community? These questions often prompt a journey that may lead to the discovery of Mussar[1]. The purpose of Mussar is to help […]
A quarter-century has now passed since I was first introduced to the vital Jewish principles known as “ways of peace” (darkhei shalom) during a five-year sojourn in Israel. Having emerged from the 1991 Gulf War during that sojourn, I found the practical orientation of “ways of peace” both compelling and timeless. Here were 1800 years of spiritual […]
“I see the American Jewish community of five million as being like an enterprise with two, roughly equal divisions: one healthy and engaged in all aspects of Jewish life—religious, cultural, political; the other division is near bankruptcy and challenges the health of the overall American Jewish venture.” Rabbi Sid Schwarz in Jewish Megatrends When I […]
Wisdom/Chochma: We are a new community that has built a presence in the context of Vermont over the 1.5 years we’ve been operating. Most of our families are intermarried and the great outdoors takes precedence over a family’s time (along with music lessons and so much else). I struggle with a foundational question: How am […]
They were older than me, by at least five years, and I was afraid. Though my Satmar Hasidic neighbors were my friends, their cousins usually approached me with disdain whenever I’d go over for a playdate. On one occasion, they bullied me and lifted my shirt up. He asked “where are your tzizis?” Feeling uncomfortable, […]
Wisdom is a word that makes me uncomfortable. I think it’s because it sounds proprietary. Wisdom is something that can be acquired and dispensed. It’s an asset. I feel more comfortable with the words ‘context’ and ‘perspective’ instead. If the aim of the first proposition in Rabbi Sid’s essay is to give people access to […]
Among the propositions Rabbi Sid outlines in the opening chapter of his book, Jewish Megatrends, two of them speak most directly to the objectives and outcomes of the Parenting Through a Jewish Lens program at Hebrew College: chochma, and kehillah. As parents are given the opportunity to view their world through the lens of chochma, […]
My work at OneTable advances Jewish life by providing a sense of community for Jewish millennials. At a time where most young Jews are turning away from traditional temple memberships, we know that they wish to connect and build Jewish identity and a sense of community. The weekly moment of unplugging and connecting with intention, […]