One of the hallmarks of modern American college students is our use of technology. We text, IM, facebook, myspace, and use our cell phone to be in constant digital communication with each other. I'll be talking more soon about effective strategies to connect with today's Jews online, to bring Judaism to them. One way is through videos, as sites like YouTube are tremendously popular, especially among college students.
As an example of what you can do, here is a short video showing how to make an origami shofar out of paper.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Who is Julia?
Julia was born in San Diego, California and is the second of three children. She grew up going to a Reform temple, attending hebrew school once or twice a week. After her Bat Mitzvah and Confirmation, she was pretty much done with organized Judaism for awhile.
At the beginning of her freshman year at the University of California, Berkeley (GO BEARS!), Julia attended a FYSH (First Year Students at Hillel) event. She became friendly with a girl named annie, and started going to other FYSH events with her. The two of them became close friends and, second semester, began helping the JCSC fellow plan FYSH events. Julia applied for a Hillel internship for her sophomore year. She started working 10 hours/week at Hillel, planning programs and doing marketing, alongside the JCSC. This internship continued for the rest of college, at which point she applied to be a JCSC Fellow herself! She is currently a second year Fellow at the University of Texas, Austin (GO HORNS!).
Julia enjoys spending time with Jewish students and helping them make Judaism a part of their lives. Although she does not consider herself a spiritual person, she loves the cultural rituals of Judaism, like breaking the fast on Yom Kippur or eating a good dinner on Shabbat with her family.
At the beginning of her freshman year at the University of California, Berkeley (GO BEARS!), Julia attended a FYSH (First Year Students at Hillel) event. She became friendly with a girl named annie, and started going to other FYSH events with her. The two of them became close friends and, second semester, began helping the JCSC fellow plan FYSH events. Julia applied for a Hillel internship for her sophomore year. She started working 10 hours/week at Hillel, planning programs and doing marketing, alongside the JCSC. This internship continued for the rest of college, at which point she applied to be a JCSC Fellow herself! She is currently a second year Fellow at the University of Texas, Austin (GO HORNS!).
Julia enjoys spending time with Jewish students and helping them make Judaism a part of their lives. Although she does not consider herself a spiritual person, she loves the cultural rituals of Judaism, like breaking the fast on Yom Kippur or eating a good dinner on Shabbat with her family.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
hillel, chabad, aish...
do our students have too many options for judaism on campus? do they know the difference between all of their choices? are they getting all of these jewish organizations confused?
Monday, September 11, 2006
Jews for Jesus on Campus
While googling for something else I ran across this article written by a Jews for Jesus worker who spends her time on campus doing outreach to Jewish students. The interesting thing about the article is that if you switch out the references to Jesus to instead be references to being Jewish, it's almost exactly what many of us are doing on campus. Here is a description:
Does anyone have any stories about seeing these groups on campus or have any good ways to react if these groups are targeting local students?
Since graduating from college, I have become a follower of the Messiah. Now I find myself back on campuses, from Texas to California, handing out Jews for Jesus tracts, postering, staging debates and generally creating a stir as I lift up the name of Jesus. Finally I have found a cause truly worth defending, proclaiming the Good News of salvation in Y'shua to my Jewish brothers and sisters. Though anti-war and anti-establishment protests are a thing of the past, there is still one issue to which my people respond, and that is Jews believing in Jesus.It is certainly useful for those of us who work on college campuses doing outreach with Jews, to know what some of the other competing organizations are. This rundown on Jews for Judaism lists many of the prominent missionary groups that are targeting Jews for conversion and what they are doing.
Does anyone have any stories about seeing these groups on campus or have any good ways to react if these groups are targeting local students?
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Recent Speech About Millenial Jews
The New Jersey Jewish News has an article about a recent speech about Millenial Jews, by Jonathan Woocher, a Maplewood resident and CEO of the Jewish Education Service of North America. According to the article, Woocher said:
Read the whole thing to get a good idea of how Judaism is changing, and just as importantly, how it's staying the same.
We are going to have to accept, really accept, that the Jewish community of the 21st century is not going to look like the one created in the 20th century. We are going to have to separate Jewish community from its forms. That includes the institutions, infrastructures, and functions we are all involved in.The rest of the article has a bunch more information about what Woocher said in his speech, as well as some of the organizations that are focusing on Millennial Jews and how best to interact with them.
Read the whole thing to get a good idea of how Judaism is changing, and just as importantly, how it's staying the same.
Wisdom of Shimon Peres (via my Rabbi)
Given the chance to ask questions about Judaism (such as during the recent "Ask the Rabbi" session we did on a freshman retreat) today's Millenial Jews almost invariably ask "Who is Jewish, and who isn't?"
We come from a generation of increasing intermarriage. Many of us grew up without a bar/bat mitzvah. Our parents may have converted into (or out of) Judaism, or never practiced themselves. In a later post, I'll examine why these questions often revolve around an Orthodox interpretation of Judaism, and why I think it's peculiar that it's often reform or secular Jews who are wanting to know if an Orthodox authority would consider them Jewish.
In answering, the Rabbi at my Hillel paraphrased something that Shimon Peres said back in 1993. His answer was the best one I've ever heard to the question, so I looked up the Peres quote. Here is the speech, and here is the part the Rabbi was alluding to in his answer:
While most of the people at Hillel don't have children yet, the metaphorical meaning to this quotation is something that can apply to all of us. Instead of focusing on what happened in our family's past, or what old interpretations say about who is Jewish, it is much better to look to the future and say that, of course, anyone who works to strengthen the future of Judaism is Jewish.
And if Shimon's answer is something we can look to for guidance, does it mean that there is an obligation to work to strengthen the Jewish community in order to be considered Jewish?
We come from a generation of increasing intermarriage. Many of us grew up without a bar/bat mitzvah. Our parents may have converted into (or out of) Judaism, or never practiced themselves. In a later post, I'll examine why these questions often revolve around an Orthodox interpretation of Judaism, and why I think it's peculiar that it's often reform or secular Jews who are wanting to know if an Orthodox authority would consider them Jewish.
In answering, the Rabbi at my Hillel paraphrased something that Shimon Peres said back in 1993. His answer was the best one I've ever heard to the question, so I looked up the Peres quote. Here is the speech, and here is the part the Rabbi was alluding to in his answer:
The second issue on the agenda is how in a free and tolerant world to remain Jewish, to keep our tradition. You know, we Jewish people can hardly agree on many issues, but there is one issue that I'm sure we shall never agree forever and that is who is a Jew. That's a question that we are incapable to answer. But I know there are two answers to this question. One says that a Jew is a person that his parents were Jewish, that is, the mother was Jewish; and the other is a Jew is a person that his children are Jewish. Keep your children Jewish. Let's keep our children Jewish. Let each of them and all of them visit Jerusalem. Let each and all of them learn to speak the language of our prophets. They will understand much more by doing so.
While most of the people at Hillel don't have children yet, the metaphorical meaning to this quotation is something that can apply to all of us. Instead of focusing on what happened in our family's past, or what old interpretations say about who is Jewish, it is much better to look to the future and say that, of course, anyone who works to strengthen the future of Judaism is Jewish.
And if Shimon's answer is something we can look to for guidance, does it mean that there is an obligation to work to strengthen the Jewish community in order to be considered Jewish?
How Many Denominations Are There?
Growing up, I only ever heard of Judiasm as being made up of three denominations. There were Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform Jews. I had always felt a little out of the loop, not identifying with any of those traditions. In college I realized that my own form of being Jewish is generally spoken of as cultural or secular Judaism, and it is accepted as equally valid by most people. I also learned about Reconstructionist Judiaism. [And by learned about, I mean I knew that it existed, I don't actually know much about the beliefs or practices of Reconstructionists.]
Recently, at a campus bbq put on by one of the groups I'm advising this year, I heard a student say something that got me thinking about this question. He said something along the lines of,
1) Does it serve any purpose for that person to do their own personal/private prayer in the Hillel building with other Jews instead of in their room?
2) What type of programming or services can we hold that would make that person feel welcome and that they have something to gain by going to Hillel and being Jewish with other Jews?
At the work training I went to in Pittsburgh, we did a seminar on Jewish spirituality. We discussed what exactly spirituality is, and a number of people who did not identify with any of the other denominations volunteered that they do have some type of spiritual identitity. There are many one-time programs that could attract those people for a speaker or a worskshop, but is there (or should there) by something that occurs every Friday that would attract people who engage in spiritual Judiasm?
Recently, at a campus bbq put on by one of the groups I'm advising this year, I heard a student say something that got me thinking about this question. He said something along the lines of,
I've never liked public prayer. Individual prayer I'm ok with, but a bunch of people in a room saying the same thing, I've never liked. God must be thinking, 'I just heard the last guy say the same thing, how unoriginal.'I have no idea what to call someone who has that type of philosophy. They don't seem to fit into any of the other denominational molds. The more important questions are:
1) Does it serve any purpose for that person to do their own personal/private prayer in the Hillel building with other Jews instead of in their room?
2) What type of programming or services can we hold that would make that person feel welcome and that they have something to gain by going to Hillel and being Jewish with other Jews?
At the work training I went to in Pittsburgh, we did a seminar on Jewish spirituality. We discussed what exactly spirituality is, and a number of people who did not identify with any of the other denominations volunteered that they do have some type of spiritual identitity. There are many one-time programs that could attract those people for a speaker or a worskshop, but is there (or should there) by something that occurs every Friday that would attract people who engage in spiritual Judiasm?
"You Can't Register Now"
At the JCSC training seminar in Pittsburgh, the highlight for me was a speech by the outgoing Hillel President, Avraham Infeld. In response to a question about the most important lessons he learned while working at Hillel, he said that the number one problem in America is how we think about Judaism. According to him, "Judaism is not a religion."
I agree with Avraham that Judaism is not a religion, and I think Hillel sometimes errs in the way it handles the diversity within the Jewish community. It has been my observation that Hillels often operate under the most restrictive applicable Jewish law. By that, I mean that in many circumstances, a Hillel will use Orthodox rules when holding an event or entertaining people at Hillel.
In St. Louis, when we have an event at Hillel, we do it so that it doesn't conflict with any Orthodox laws. So, after the candles are lit for Shabbat, we do our best to adhere to rules of Shomer Shabbas. At the first dinner, we were trying to get freshmen to sign up to go on the freshmen retreat that we were having. We had left sign up forms and pencils on the tables so that people could fill out applications early in the day before services began and then we would remove the pencils before Shabbat officially began.
Some of the more observant people who were in attendance were uncomfortable to see people writing (even before Shabbat officialy started), so we picked up the pencils soon after we had placed them on the tables. Another staff member was talking with an interested freshman about the retreat, and he said he wanted to sign up. She told him, "You can't register now." He seemed surprised, and asked, "Oh, is it full already?" The staffer replied that "we don't allow people to write on Shabbat" and told the student he would have to come back and fill out the form next week.
Just as our goal should be to make observant people feel comfortable and welcome, we should have the same concern for secular and cultural Jews. I question whether we make people who are less observant feel welcome at Hillel by forcing them to abide by Orthodox rules. Thinking back, I'm almost certain that if on my first visit, I was put in a situation where I felt pressure to immediately conform to Orthodox standards, I would have felt alienated.
This creates a tension between accommodating everyone's personal beliefs without coercing anyone or making anyone feel uncomfortable. I think Hillel could do more to give students some individual leeway in the way they behave in Hillel. All food served at Hillel should be kosher, so everyone can participate. There should never be a movie screening on a Friday night or Saturday morning, because not all students could participate.
But just as those steps should be taken to accommodate more observant students, we should work on making sure that Hillel is a place where less observant students also feel comfortable.
I agree with Avraham that Judaism is not a religion, and I think Hillel sometimes errs in the way it handles the diversity within the Jewish community. It has been my observation that Hillels often operate under the most restrictive applicable Jewish law. By that, I mean that in many circumstances, a Hillel will use Orthodox rules when holding an event or entertaining people at Hillel.
In St. Louis, when we have an event at Hillel, we do it so that it doesn't conflict with any Orthodox laws. So, after the candles are lit for Shabbat, we do our best to adhere to rules of Shomer Shabbas. At the first dinner, we were trying to get freshmen to sign up to go on the freshmen retreat that we were having. We had left sign up forms and pencils on the tables so that people could fill out applications early in the day before services began and then we would remove the pencils before Shabbat officially began.
Some of the more observant people who were in attendance were uncomfortable to see people writing (even before Shabbat officialy started), so we picked up the pencils soon after we had placed them on the tables. Another staff member was talking with an interested freshman about the retreat, and he said he wanted to sign up. She told him, "You can't register now." He seemed surprised, and asked, "Oh, is it full already?" The staffer replied that "we don't allow people to write on Shabbat" and told the student he would have to come back and fill out the form next week.
Just as our goal should be to make observant people feel comfortable and welcome, we should have the same concern for secular and cultural Jews. I question whether we make people who are less observant feel welcome at Hillel by forcing them to abide by Orthodox rules. Thinking back, I'm almost certain that if on my first visit, I was put in a situation where I felt pressure to immediately conform to Orthodox standards, I would have felt alienated.
This creates a tension between accommodating everyone's personal beliefs without coercing anyone or making anyone feel uncomfortable. I think Hillel could do more to give students some individual leeway in the way they behave in Hillel. All food served at Hillel should be kosher, so everyone can participate. There should never be a movie screening on a Friday night or Saturday morning, because not all students could participate.
But just as those steps should be taken to accommodate more observant students, we should work on making sure that Hillel is a place where less observant students also feel comfortable.
Information About Andy Ratto
Andy grew up as a secular Jew, and his connection to Judiasm was limited to celebrating Hannukah and attending a single Bat Mitzvah. He never attended services, had a Shabbat dinner, celebrated any other holidays or engaged in anything but cultural Judiasm until he got to college.
At UC Berkeley, Andy joined Alpha Epsilon Pi, the Jewish fraternity and began visiting the campus Hillel. He started with the free Wednesday bbq's, and then began attending Shabbat dinners. Although Andy never connected with religious Judaism, he attended services for Yom Kippur, and then became the Jewish Chairman of the fraternity.
By his senior year, Andy had decided that he wanted to work at a campus Hillel after he graduated, and he ended the year by having a bar mitzvah at Hillel with four of his fraternity brothers. Andy went on birthright israel this summer, something he plans on writing about in great detail in the coming months.
At UC Berkeley, Andy joined Alpha Epsilon Pi, the Jewish fraternity and began visiting the campus Hillel. He started with the free Wednesday bbq's, and then began attending Shabbat dinners. Although Andy never connected with religious Judaism, he attended services for Yom Kippur, and then became the Jewish Chairman of the fraternity.
By his senior year, Andy had decided that he wanted to work at a campus Hillel after he graduated, and he ended the year by having a bar mitzvah at Hillel with four of his fraternity brothers. Andy went on birthright israel this summer, something he plans on writing about in great detail in the coming months.
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