Generation Gap

I just read a fascinating post describing our (yeah, I'm including myself in the Millennials for this one) generation and what we want out of our Judaism. To sum it up it says that we don't fit the old mold of a Jewish community - that we can be Jewish and have varying beliefs - in the words of my old boss, Sara Fischer - multiple communities under one umbrella.

I went to shul for the first day of Rosh Hashanna up in New York at Congregation Habonim and listened to a fascinating sermon. The rabbi spoke of the idea that act of giving tzedakah is a mitzvah. Now, most of us understand the vernacular of these terms to be about "doing good deeds." In other words, something we are suppossed to do, but don't have to. The rabbi spoke about the fact that the literal translation of a mitzvah is a commandment - something that we must do (explained very well here).

I hope I haven't lost you, because these two points are related. Maybe our generation needs that sense of commitment - we need those strings attached. We need to know that we are commanded of us to give back to the community. If we do not understand this as an explicit obligation then how will things ever change? Your community is calling - how will you answer?

the year of hinneni

As I looked through various Rosh Hashanna videos over this past week I was astounded at some of the cool things that are being done. I was struck, in particular by this one that Jewish Federation os Greater Philadelphia commissioned that talks about how you can get involved in your community.

For those of you reading this and know me well, I often talk about community and the power of it (as I did in a Buzzing for Change blog post last week). This time of year it’s on my mind even more as we are still welcoming new faces on to campus and into Hillel. While I hope that Jewish freshmen find their community here, it is more important to me that they find a Jewish community wherever they are comfortable; and even more important to me than that is that they help to create change in that community.

I am going to call the year of 5770 (the new Jewish year that starts on Friday night) the year of hinneni. Literally translated as “here I am” – but it has taken to mean a responsibility for your community. I want to challenge each of you to take responsibility for your community. How you define community and how you define responsibility are up to you. Use this time of reflection to realize that you have infinite potential – think about how you are going to use that to do Tikun Olam (repair the world).

The rest is in your hands.

Shana Tova,
-Judah

my cop out post

Been a crazy week, but wanted to post something, so check out what I wrote for the Hillel D'var Torah this week here.  Enjoy and come back to leave comments.

More thoughts later in the week.

shabbat comes to north philly

The title of this may sound odd, but with the nice weather today (yay sun!) and the usual way Temple empties out before the weekend I couldn't help but thinking that this was a nice way to welcome in shabbat. I got to thinking about all of the ways and place I have had shabbat and how I get ready for them. While I love shabbat, right now is my favorite time of the week - the time when all of the prep work is done (well, almost), and the smell of the food that we have labored over all day permiates the building, and I get to take a few minutes to myself to reflect on the past week.

With such a hectic schedule that I hold as a campus Jewish professional, I rarely get time to stop and reflect. Its important to take that time when you can get it and I choose the time right before shabbat to do it.

Shabbat Shalom!

is social media causing people to give more?

I have been watching an interesting trend over the past few months - different social media events (especially on Twitter) that are asking people to make a difference in the world. Just this morning I saw (on Facebook) this new promotion that Starbucks is doing where if you pledge to volunteer for 5 hours you receive a free cup of coffee. I also have recently become involved with twestival, which while it may be a gathering of geeks (yes, I am a self professed one) it is also raising money for a good cause. I also heard (while at bloblive last night) that a group of Philadelphia Twitterers called geekswhogive raised over 1200 pounds of food in a winter food drive!

So, does social media cause us to give more? Does it make us feel that we are part of something bigger and therefore we give because we want to be part of that larger community? Or is it straight up altruism?

On the flip side, are local charities (that depend on volunteers) suffering because of these new efforts? How can they adapt in this new age of social media?

Leave comments on how you connect to giving and volunteering opportunities through social media.

What to write about when re-starting your blog...

I knew I hadn't posted in a while, but I never would have imagined that it had been a year and a half. I have been talking about re-starting this blog for almost 2 months now and been keeping a running list of ideas for posts (including one about how being Jewish helps you understand systems theory - more on that soon) but I realize that I can't start without spending a post talking about whats going on in Israel and Gaza right now.

I think I am like many people out there; we feel conflicted about whats going on. I don't feel conflicted about Israel going in and I don't feel conflicted when I say that Hamas' presence in Gaza is not helping the Palestinians. I do feel conflicted when I see loss of innocent life. I am fully aware that many, if not all, of the areas Israel has targeted are or were launching sites for Hamas rockets, but that does not mean that every accentual death isn't tragic. The Palestinians have been used as props for the Arab/Muslim world for centuries (don't even get me started on them not saying anything when thousands are slaughtered in Darfur, but what happens in gaza is a tragedy of biblical proportions).

Maybe I'm just ranting, but I hope that Israel can make life so difficult for Hamas while providing for the Palestinian people (note that the media hardly ever covers the fuel and water that Israel provides to Gaza) and that Hamas will leave Gaza. The only hope for peace in the region is self rule for the Palestinians (with a stable economy that includes trade relations with Israel). I think back to Thomas Friedman's concept about the fact that 2 countries that both have McDonald's have never gone to war with each other - meaning that if your economy is advanced enough you are focusing on more important things. If Israel can route out Hamas, allowing the Palestinians to be able to build their economy on their own (without the radical influence of Hamas, Hezbeloah and Iran) maybe there is hope for peace. Isreael deserves the right to defend herself and getting rid of Hamas is good for Israel and the Palestinians.

More updates about whats going on in Israel/Gaza.

conflicted

While I ended my post 2 weeks ago on a uplifting note, it has been bugging me ever since. While I am not doing everything I can to make the world a better place, I am doing things bit by bit. I came to the realization last night when I was grocery shopping with my roommate and I told her that I want to start eating less meat (not really for ethical concerns, but more for environmental). I am in no way becoming a vegetarian, but I am going to start to do my part.

Think about that - if everyone does a small part, we can have an impact. The problem is, contrary to what I said before, is that people see the world as a all or nothing proposition. People think that they need to do it 100% or they fail. Remember that whatever you do to improve the world around you, the better place it will become.

Pick one thing in your life that as an adverse affect on the world around you, it could even be as simple as the way you interact with co-workers or that you don't currently recycle, and do something about it!

If you do one thing, you WILL make a difference!