Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Congregation

jewish learning

Beit Sefer Celebrates a Year of Resilient Nature Based Jewish Learning

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Beit Sefer wrapped up its 2021/2022 school year last weekend with a year end celebration and art show at the Farm on Jennings. The Beit Sefer program spent much of the 2021/2022 year outdoors, exploring Judaism’s relationship to nature. In addition to our traditional curriculum, the year focused on the changing of the seasons and what lessons the students can learn from nature. Some examples of this year’s lessons include blessings for harvest, Tikkun Olam and environmental stewardship, and the Jewish calendar’s relationship with agriculture. The impetus for the nature based curriculum was born out of COVID safety precautions, but served as a profound opportunity for families to explore Jewish learning in a new way.

It was a bittersweet celebration last weekend as our Beit Sefer director, Clare Kinberg, announced her retirement. Clare has brought so much to the Beit Sefer program, and she will be dearly missed. Thankfully, she remains a member of our congregation and community- so she will still be a presence in families’ lives in the future.

Please enjoy the photo collage below with some fun snapshots from the year. As you can see, it was a joyous year spent in community! If you would like to share any thoughts, memories, or gratitude for Clare, we will keep the comments open on this blog or you can email us at aarcgillian@gmail.com.

Beit Sefer: Sharing Love Not Virus

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How do I “recap” this year of Beit Sefer?

Ahava means Love

Thirty Sunday mornings filled with love says it for me. Our Beit Sefer teachers Marcy Epstein, Aaron Jackson, Shani Samuels and myself showed up every week filled with love for Judaism, for the students, and for each other.

We started off the year in the first week of Elul with love of animals and we ended on Shavuot with love of Torah and blintzes, and in between we learned about and celebrated every Jewish holiday.

Rabbi Ora met with the students every month to introduce some of our most precious Hebrew blessings and prayers. Our virtual Family Shabbat in April was a lovely culmination of our tefilah (prayer) learning for the year.

With Shani, we learned to write Hebrew alef-bet on the Zoom whiteboard. Marcy invited her students’ families into the Zoom room, and Aaron showed up every week with both his kids, Noah and Ava, brightening up every Zoom.

I thought to recap this year, I’d share images of the love we shared.

Jack and Brenna shared the love but not the virus by going apple picking for Rosh Hashanah in their family pod.
Shani Samuel shared her love of Hebrew and of animals.
Kitanim teacher Marcy Epstein found all sorts of ways to share the love but not the virus including leaving notes on her door!
Aziza shows us loving the natural environment is a Jewish kind of love, too.
The Ullmann McLanes came early and stayed late with some family love to our final day of Beit Sefer.
For our final Beit Sefer session we saw each other in person!
A new family to share the love! Lisa Wexler and her son Dylan Schnorr met Beit Sefer families for the first time on our last day.
Our teens obviously know how to hold a physically distanced conversation! Sharing the love but not the virus.

AARC To Host A Robust Month of Elul Programming

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Throughout history we as Jews have leaned on our traditions to lead us back to ourselves in times of trouble or uncertainty. The month of Elul is one of those traditions: a time of cheshbon hanefesh or an accounting of the soul.

Elul has come at a perfect time this year; many of us are carrying a heavy emotional load due to the current state of affairs. Elul encourages us to take time to look inward and prepare for what’s to come. In this spirit, we are offering a multi-modal Elul experience:

LEARN: Elul Psalms Series, or, What Does a Jew Do With All These Worries, Hopes, and Feelings?

Sunday August 23, 30, and September 6, 2-3:15 pm on Zoom

“All our days slip away.” “Help me stay safe.” “Shield me from the counsel of evil men.” “Look how good and pleasant it was to be together.”

All these phrases are from the Book of Psalms, but they could easily describe our feelings in this moment, too. As we enter into Elul and this unusual season of teshuvah, we’ll use the ancient psalms as an entry point to gentle awareness, creativity, and reflection. Each class will offer a mix of learning, discussion, and writing.

August 23: Introduction and Psalms of Noticing and Gratitude

We’ll talk briefly about what makes a psalm, explore some psalms of gratitude (from the Book of Psalms and contemporary poets), and talk about what it means to be a Jew talking to/about the Holy. Our first writing exercise will serve to ‘prime the pump’ and get words flowing; our second exercise will invite reflection on our values, our voices, and our relationship to the Source. Expect rich discussion and sharing.

August 30: Psalms of Fear and Loss

Today’s focus is psalms of anxiety, fear, and loss. We’ll explore some of these psalms (both classical and contemporary) and then shift into writing together. Our writing exercises will help us give name to our experiences of living through this time of disorientation and grief, and those who wish will be invited to share their reflections in small groups. This session requires particular care because these psalms can evoke or activate difficult emotions. We’ll close this session with a meditative, musical practice designed to help us release our emotions and return to a sense of spiritual safety.

September 6: Psalms of Comfort and Connection

In this session we’ll explore psalms of connection to the Holy and the holiness within ourselves and community. We’ll do a deep dive into a single psalm, exploring how different translations and nuances of language can impact a psalm’s message. We’ll explore psalms both classical and contemporary, and then engage with our final two writing exercises.

LISTEN: Songs of Return, A High Holiday Community Playlist

We’ve started a community playlist on Spotify that already includes some gorgeous niggunim, new melodies, and High Holiday favorites to get us in the teshuvah mood. We want you to listen and enjoy, of course, but also invite you to add your favorites tunes so we can all hear them. To listen, all you need is a free Spotify account. To add music, you’ll need to open the Spotify app on your phone, tablet, or desktop.

BREATHE: Elul Meditation Offerings

A series of pre-recorded meditations from Rabbi Ora and members are now available to stream, below. These themed meditations vary in length and style, and can be listened to on your schedule as many times as you like.

Blessing This Moment (16 min)

Hineini: A Meditation & Chant for Presence (18 min)

Sitting in Divine Light (10+ min)

A Mind-Body-Spirit Integration (6 min)

Gam Zeh Kadosh/This, Too, Is Holy (9+ min)

WRITE: Daily Reflection Prompt

Sign up to receive daily reflection and journalling prompts for the entire month of Elul (August 21-September 18). Created by Rabbi Jordan Braunig, these prompts are “meant to give us time to cozy up to ourselves, to spend a few moments a day with our souls and to maybe learn a thing or two about ourselves.”

SING: Selichot 5780: Creating Holy Space Within

Saturday September 12, 8 pm on Zoom

Our Selichot services will ease us into the High Holy Days with beautiful melodies led by members and Rabbi Ora. In addition to singing and havdalah, we’ll take time to imagine how to create holy space in our hearts and our homes in anticipation of online Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur services.

If you have any questions about any of these Elul offerings, please email Gillian.

Online Jewish Resources for Shelter-in-Place

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I cannot be the only person who spends way too much time online reading headline after headline about COVID-19. It is exhausting and mentally taxing to contemplate at length something as overwhelming as a global pandemic. In an effort to steer you away from the headlines and closer to an intellectually stimulating diversion, we have compiled a list of interesting Jewish programming available online in the coming weeks. Enjoy!

For Adults:

For Families with Children:

I hope you enjoy this list of resources! A big thanks to Rabbi Ora for her tireless work to gather these resources and be a source of both peace and levity for our community.

Please share any additional resources in the comments section!