Note from the Teacher: Acharei HaChagim: After the Holidays

Shalom! My name is Dr. Avi Rose and I am a long-time faculty member for Year Course. Lately, I’ve been asked to add to my duties the task of overseeing and coordinating the educational efforts of our entire program in a newly created directorship. This is an exciting and daunting task in almost equal measure since there is SO MUCH learning that takes place in each of our program locations, classrooms, volunteer sites and informal spaces. It is thrilling to see with each passing day the new and innovative ways in which our multi-talented staff creates opportunities for growth and education for students. I look forward to consulting and creating with our team new and even more creative means for students to experience themselves and the unique Jewish/Israeli environment we provide for them.

Like many educators in Israel and elsewhere in the Jewish world, it feels as though this time of year is when the action really begins. Known as “Acharei HaChagim”, this post-holiday period sees us in a relatively uninterrupted period of time devoted to the learning, exploring and service aspects of our program. I relish this time of year since it means that I can really dig into the work I love the most, helping students see this land, its culture and people while learning about themselves and their connection to their heritage and homeland. I am joined in this feeling by many Israelis as for university students, members of Knesset, entrepreneurs, social-activists and many others “Achrei HaChagim” is when the month long break for Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot come to an end and we begin getting down to the earnest business of building a strong and better Israel.

For those of us on Year Course, this is the time of year when we spread out into our various campuses and service locations. At this moment, some Year Coursers are learning the work of saving lives with Magen David Adom and beginning to go out on emergency calls.  Others are involved in an intensive basic training as part of the IDF’s Marva program. In the Yemin Orde Youth Village and all over the city of Bat Yam, our young people are making a difference in the lives of many Israelis while gleaning for themselves many challenging and valuable life lessons.

On our Jerusalem campus students have already begun the intensive college-level studies that will occupy their time this fall and winter. Most days begin with our unique Hebrew language curriculum, designed to teach the fundaments and prepare students for real-life communication. Some of our time is devoted to learning the history and societal structure of Zionism and Israel, while other efforts focus on Judaic studies, the city of Jerusalem in all its complexity and the cultural diversity that makes it such a rich and unique space.

No matter where students are in our program, their learning continues in less formal but no less important ways. Our Rashei Kevutaza (Section Heads), Madrichim (counselors), service coordinators, partnership educators (the British FZY and Israeli Scouts) and even our program administrators and leaders are continually devising new experiential learning for students that will augment and diversify the education that occurs in all facets of our program. Thus, for example, students will have weekly opportunities to see different parts of Israel and connect them to social and political studies. They will meet in their apartments with staff and receive supervision and advice on everything from how to enliven their meal plans to how they can deepen their sense of community. They will be offered informal Jewish studies or life experiences by our own Rabbi Yossela Ote. Israeli Scouts offer regular helpings of their informal education and our staff will update them on the latest news and current events in Israel.

I am fond of saying that almost everything we do on Year Course is educational. Students learn to care for themselves and each-other; they give to others and to themselves; they see, experience and reflect upon a myriad of new and exciting things.  Thus, even the most seemingly mundane or routine act becomes an opportunity for growth; the most common of tasks a new chance for learning. The daily ordinariness becomes extraordinary.

Over the coming months, I have been charged with the responsibility to see, review and assess all of this learning and to advise staff on how to make the good even greater. I follow in the footsteps of our esteemed panel of graduates and professionals who began this task last year as part of a comprehensive review of Year Course. They have asked me to continue the work they began as volunteers in a professional capacity. They do so not because they saw more bad than good (quite the opposite, in fact) but because they believe that there exists an opportunity to supplement our existing work and grow from strength to strength. I am deeply honored to have been asked to lead this process and look forward to growing along with the program into its challenges and rewards.

I invite you to join me in the journey I am undertaking as I report to you over the coming months from our various field sites and campuses. I hope to introduce you to the array of talented people who form our family of dedicated staff. I plan to highlight the locations and partner organizations that offer students so much. I hope to share with you the themes, subjects and ideas that students encounter in their journey with Year Course. I also hope to be in touch with graduates of our program in order to showcase their talents and discuss with them the impact that learning on Year Course had in their lives.

The late, incredibly talented Israeli singer Ofra Haza gave us a song that has become ubiquitous in Israel about this period in our calendar. “After the Holidays” she told us “everything is renewed, the days of routine will return and be improved…you too will be refreshed”. It is with this sense of joy and possibility that I encourage you to see through my eyes the Year Course experience that I am both passionate about and incredibly proud of.  It is a program brimming with opportunity for learning, growth and challenge. It was lovingly created over several decades, yet never fails to renew and reinvigorate itself to meet the needs of new generations. It is the work that I and many other dedicated professionals have chosen to devote ourselves to, since we believe it to be an invaluable opportunity to help empower new generations of Jews. Most importantly, it has been the starting point for thousands of women and men who have benefitted from its strength and have passed that strength along to their families, communities and places of work in a multitude of ways.

B’ydidut—In Friendship

Avi Rose

By Ari Chesterman, Year Course 2014-2015

Feelings of excitement and nervousness mixed in my chest as I set out on my first ever siyur of Young Judaea’s Year Course program.  The more this hot day passed by, the more I began to realize just how much fun this year was going to be.

We traveled as a group to the City of David. I had been there twice before, but this time was different. In the past I had not gone with a tour guide specifically from City of David. I was also surrounded by my peers this time. Over this trip I learned a lesson I hadn’t discovered with my previous visits.  Different is not always bad.  This visit to City of David certainly was different than my previous visits, but was a good thing. Avreimy, our tour guide, made the experience a cross between educational and interesting. Not to mention, ice cream was amazing.

We started off on a bus that took us to a spot a little bit outside City of David and continued on to the main plaza outside of the archeological site. I thought we were meeting was just another tour guide. It became abundantly clear I was wrong. Before we even started the tour he gave us some background about himself, including a story about the importance of names. In fact, Avreimy, born Avraham, was soon given his nickname of Avreimy, which he tried to ditch as a teenager. He came close to going by Max, but it didn’t stick due to a friend’s meddling. As we walked around a little bit I was pleasantly surprised to see how energetic and knowledgeable Avreimy was. His overall demeanor made the tour fun, and his thorough explanations made the tour informative.

 

After his introduction, he took us up a staircase and onto a roof of an old building and from there we could see the most beautiful panoramic view of Jerusalem.  Avreimy used us to represent different locations, like the Temple and other surrounding important historical buildings. Then we continued down to the tunnels. This was my third time going through the tunnels and it was also the best experience I have had walking through the tunnels. We spent the entire walk through knee deep in water, belting out songs, and I truly believe that my class connected as a group. Something about walking in the dark belting out Disney songs helps you bond.

Each location we stopped at held new and valuable information. [just put one thing you learned at each stop and why it proves the Bible happened or didn’t] [conclude with something among the lines that it provides convincing proof of small aspects of the Bible, but doesn’t come close to proving David was the the location]

I learned so many new and exciting facts on this trip, i definitely this that it was a winner. What an amazing start to what is clearly going to be an amazing year

In late September, Rabbi Rob Kahn led his Zionist History class to Mt. Herzl in Jerusalem for a siyur, or trip, into the origins of Modern Zionism.  Below are two reflections from the trip written by two of Rob’s students.

 Is Israel living up to Herzl’s dream?

by Naomi Solkowitz

As a Judaean I have spent a lot of time learning about Theodore Herzl by reading the Zionist idea, visiting Har Herzl on Machon (Young Judaea’s Summer Program in Israel), but today, after visiting Har Herzl I started to wonder whether Israel is truly living up to Herzl’s dream.

Herzl’s plan was to give the Jews sovereignty and create a state for the Jews. This is where the first issue comes up. Is Israel a “State for the Jews” or a “Jewish State”? Israel is a Jewish State. Israeli law is based on Jewish law and Jewish values and Jewish holidays are national holidays. Restaurants are kosher, buses do not run on Shabbat and Ben Gurion airport closes on Yom Kippur. Of course these are all generalizations, but they are all little things that make Israel a Jewish State.

In Herzl’s writing when approached with the question about language he says “We cannot converse with one another in Hebrew.” Herzl wanted a common language to be spoken. Herzl wanted “those miserable stunted jargons” to be lost. Herzl’s idea of Political Zionism included Israel being a great, exemplary nation that would be able to work with other countries, but he did not think Israel could be that nation if they spoke a dead language. Furthermore, Hebrew is another example of how Israel is a Jewish State, and not a State for the Jews. The Jewish People in Israel brought back Hebrew to revive their religion and culture.

Getting to the big question, Herzl’s goal in his Zionist idea was to get rid of Anti-Semitism, “if we only begin to carry out the plans, Anti-Semitism would stop at once and for ever. For it is the conclusion of peace.” Look at what is happening in Europe, more specifically in England and France. Of course Israel is always a safe haven for people to escape Anti-Semitism, but the creation of the State of Israel absolutely did not stop Anti-Semitism. In that sense Israel was a failure to the Jewish Question.

Although there are many things that Israel does not fulfill according to Herzl’s dream, Jews have their sovereignty and have a place to go to escape Anti-Semintism. Israel, while it has many flaws, is still an exemplary country with many Start Ups and achievements in the world.

Herzl and Ahad Ha’am: Contrasting Visions

By Dana Little

The second siyur that Rob Kahn’s Zionism class went on was to Mount Herzl. This was convenient being that Herzl was the founding father of Zionism. An outline of the day was: visited Herzl’s grave, read inserts of Herzl’s plan to establish the state of Israel, toured the Herzl museum, answered questions about Herzl, read about Asher Ginsberg (Ahad Ha’am), compared and contrasted his plan of establishing Israel to that of Herzl’s and said our closing words around the grave of Herzl.

I learned a lot on this trip both about Herzl and the establishment of the state of Israel. Herzl was not the first person to call for the creation of a Jewish state, however he created a movement that marked out a path exactly how to do so. He led the Zionist movement from 1897 until his death in 1904. He wrote down specifically what he envisioned the state of Israel, the Jewish homeland, in Der Judenstaat. He believed that with the establishment of the Jewish state, people could come together in an environment free of racial Anti-Semitism. He was the founder of political Zionism.

I found the Herzl museum very interesting, informative and effective. It was a very unique museum for it was a motion picture telling the story of an actor rehearsing for his role as Herzl. After the museum, we read an insert of Ahad Ha’am. We learned that Ahad Ha’am did not agree with much of what Herzl recommended, rather he criticized most of it and thought differently. He believed that with the creation of small Jewish settlements, that would lead to a state. Also, with the state of Israel, it would help reinforce Jewish life in the Diaspora.

Ahad Ha’am was the founder of cultural Zionism. Together as a class, we charted the differences between Herzl and Ahad Ha’am. They contrasted in certain ways such as Herzl said the language of the Jewish state would be the majority of what the people were speaking, however Ahad Ha’am said Hebrew. Herzl said the location of the Jewish state was less important than the fact of its existence, while Ahad Ha’am insisted that it be in Israel. By contrasting the two leaders, we were able to make some conclusions about which parts of Israel were influenced by which leader. The last moments of the siyur, we watched as groups of soldiers paid homage to Herzl’s grave. As a class, we then surrounded his grave and said some last words. This siyur helped me connect to Israel in a way that I was proud. I was proud for what Israel, as a state, had accomplished. Even though Herzl was not alive to witness the establishment of Israel in 1948, his dreams for a Jewish state ultimately came true. This gives me a good feeling

By Rabbi Yossela Ote
Director of Jewish Content for Shalem track of Year Course

Every so often we invite good friends for Shabbat meal. One time, a few years ago, after eating delicious food, having wonderful conversations, talking Torah, and singing songs, it was time for our guests to leave. When the meal was over, I accompanied them to their car and they drove back home. As I walked back inside I noticed my neighbor’s glare, as if to say, “Why bother? They are desecrating the holy Shabbat!” Before bed, my son turned to me and asked, “How can they drive back home if we aren’t allowed to drive on Shabbat?” I responded with a story. When I was his age in America I used to sit on the steps of my building and wish my non-Jewish neighbors “Shabbat Shalom” because most important is our respect and acceptance of others and not whether we practice in the same way.

 

Differences are everywhere; it is easy to forget that we were all created in the Divine image. Ultra-Orthodox schools see only one way to practice the faith.  Too often Modern Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform Jews emphasize doctrinal disputes with each other, ignoring their shared ideological core. The secular crowd finds it difficult to relate to religious Jews of all stripes and their passion for seemingly nonsensical rituals. In the end these divisions distract us from a central tenet of Judaism, “כל ישראל ערבים זה לזה” All Jews are responsible for one another.  It is up to each and every one of us to remember that pluralism is an essential part of Torah. As parents and educators we have the obligation to teach our children Ahavat Chinam – אהבת חינם, unconditional love. “V’ahavta l’reiacha kamocha,” we should be confident enough in our level of religious observance to embrace others in the way we would want to be loved.

 

The holidays, strategically positioned throughout the year, truly demonstrate our ability to connect and come together to celebrate our religion, our culture, and our customs. Every so often, Jews of all types, ages, and styles unite to rejoice and pray together as part of the Jewish nation. It is at those times that our feeling of camaraderie is tangible, our sense of national and religious pride heightened. Israel is a magical place. Israel, during the time of the chagim, even more.

Take Yom Kippur for example. Some might think I’m crazy, but Yom Kippur is my favorite holiday. There is something utterly raw, genuinely spiritual, and amazingly pure about this time. It is the one day a year when we are solely focused on connecting to God. No material distractions, no physical interruptions. We channel our entire selves, bodies and souls, towards the purpose of conversing with a higher power. The unique divine aura surrounding this day is enhanced by the fact that all Jews, religious and secular, put their differences aside and gather in synagogue together to pray before the gates of Heaven.

Soon after, the four species of Sukkot represent a similar message. Each of the four species has distinct features and special qualities. The etrog has taste and scent. The hadas has scent but no taste. The lulav has taste but no scent. The arava has neither taste nor scent. On this holiday they are assembled and used as one component, for each of these is fine separately, but when united, they form a greater entity, a synthesis of senses, a fusion of assorted attributes. They serve as a reminder that we can be gifted and skilled as individuals , but that together we form a stronger, superior unit.

 

On Chanuka and Purim we recreate times when Jewish people fought for their lives, sacrificed everything to allow our Jewish values to shine through, and on Pesach we once again invite strangers into our home, recognizing Jews of all colors, shapes, and sizes, to celebrate God’s miracles together. On the ninth of Av, the temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred (sinat chinam – שינת חינם). But in Elul we are given a chance to delve deep inside ourselves, repent, and on Rosh Hashana, start anew with the opposite of baseless hatred: unconditional love.

 

The period of sefirat ha’omer represents a turning point in our identity as a nation. We emerged from slavery in Egypt as a free people but had not yet received the Torah. Standing collectively at Sinai symbolized our unity. Despite our differences, we bonded as a family. When we mourn innocent lives lost in the Holocaust, memorialize soldiers who have fallen in our wars, and honor loved ones brutally murdered in terrorist attacks, we know that we are all brothers and sisters. We have all lost and we can all recover. We rejoice on Independence Day and celebrate Yom Yerushalayim as one.

 

We have the same shared history. We are people of the same nation. In an era so infatuated with hatred of the other, the least we can do is show active tolerance towards each other as members of one faith, one family. We value God by acknowledging diversity, by gladly and openly accepting all streams of Judaism into our homes and into our hearts. We can be models of unity and accord, inspiring others with our enthusiasm and welcoming embrace.

 

So, yes, I happily say “Shabbat Shalom” and “chag sameach” to my non-religious neighbors. I feel privileged to learn with religious and secular students who come here, to the core of Jewish existence, to grow spiritually, showing mutual admiration for Jews from all walks of life. I associate with people who don’t necessarily have the same customs or practice as I. We are friendly, loving, and good to each other. For, especially around the holidays, when we all commemorate the past and honor our Jewish heritage, we try our hardest to see in each other the divine spark and remember that although we differ, we are family.

by Yael Sahar, Bat Yam Coordinator
Young Judaea Year Course in Israel

Today we are finishing our first week of  Marva and MADA prep week.  First, let me translate and explain.  Marva is an eight week simulation of IDF basic training held in Southern Israel and MADA, short for Magen David Adom, is the Israeli counterpart of the Red Cross.  Year Coursers in Bat Yam have the option of signing up for one of these options instead of traditional volunteering in Bat Yam or Yemin Orde.  Because of the High Holidays, both MADA and Marva participants have a week in their schedule in which their friends are already volunteering, but their programs have yet to start.  To some this may seem like a challenge, but we see it as an opportunity to impart our shared values on the participants and to give back to Bat Yam.

These chanichim have been doing social action projects throughout the week focusing on four different areas of need in the local community.  Several participants have been volunteering in a soup kitchen and a second group has been teaching about Sukkot in both English and Hebrew in local schools.  Still another team has been working in a soap factory run by and for people with psychological needs, while our “Extreme Home Makeover” group has been painting and fixing houses renovating gardens, and painting benches.  In addition to all of this, we had a fundraiser activity in which the chanichim made chocolate graham cracker desserts and sold them, raising over 200 Shekels for a local charity.

While this past week’s work would be justified on its own, there was a second reason that we asked our MADA and Marva volunteers to engage in these projects.  A number of times this week we have sat in our groups and used our activities as a trigger to discuss issues of social action, volunteerism, and community work in Israel, in the Jewish tradition, and in the broader world.  While Marva is a valuable and truly Israeli experience and our soon-to-be-medics will give back to the community daily by literally saving lives, we don’t want them to miss out on the service learning experience that has been central to Young Judaea’s core mission since the movement’s inception.  It is not only the act of helping, contributing, and giving, but the lessons behind it that are important.  As the director of Bat Yam programs I get to see hundreds of examples of true giving from our Year Course and Amirim participants, but I must say that I am particularly proud of the work of our MADA and Marva participants this week.

by Noah Berman, Marketing and Communications Associate
Young Judaea in Israel

On Sunday, September 14^th, I was fortunate enough to get to interview author, historian, and Young Judaea alumnus Professor Gil Troy of McGill University.  Prof. Troy was speaking at the Yad Ben Tzvi Auditorium in Jerusalem for the inaugural Young Judaea Israel Alumni Lecture Series about the role of “aspirational Zionism” as compared to survival Zionism.  It was the fulfillment of one of my Young Judork dreams to sit next to Gil and help moderate what he insisted be a conversation and not a lecture.  I remember reading his book “Why I am a Zionist” as an impressionable teenager, on the suggestion of a friend from Young Judaea, and feeling invigorated to create a utopian Jewish State as a result.  The thought of discussing his interpretation of the utopianism, or aspirational Zionism as he termed it, got me excited, even if it had to be in front of over 200 participants, staff, and alumni.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover after Gil’s impressive introductory remarks that davka having an auditorium wide conversation, including an “unmoderated caucus,” left me more invigorated than my first introduction to Prof. Troy’s work ten years ago.  Seeing so many Judaeans – some only a week into their first Young Judaea program – listening, speaking, and arguing over the future of Zionism was inspiring.  Working in marketing, I sometimes get bogged down in statistics and don’t get to see the impact of YJ’s programs.  This conversation was certainly an exception.

There was a certain electricity on the bus back to Tel Aviv with WUJS.   Many of the 33 twenty-somethings on the program were eager to talk more about the topics from the lecture.  Questions were being thrown out and debated.  What do we do regarding the Green Line?  How do we address the religious-secular divide?  How do we (and can we) pursue nationalism in a post-nationalist global arena?  I had an interesting discussion with Liba, the WUJS madricha in which she argued that these conversations should revolve around how we perfect Israel and how we use the State as a tool to improve the world.  Disembarking in Florentin, I walked home buzzing with excitement.  I stopped for a bite at the pizzeria and couldn’t help but smile at the cashier and his friend sitting across from me.  Instead of giving me the “why would you smile at a stranger” look so common where I’m from, they tried talking to me and even asked if it was ok with me if they smoked cigarettes – I have to note that this is the first time an Israeli has EVER asked me that.

It got me thinking how our personal actions can be a microcosm of how we bring “aspirational Zionism” to life and how important it is that our programs continue to strive to build dedicated Zionists, social activists, but most importantly mensches – upright decent people who are considerate, listen, and ask, just like the audience did when listening to Gil.