Photos from the 5774 RAC L'Taken Seminar in DC!

Enjoys some memories from an amazing trip! This group certainly made its mark on what was the largest L'Taken seminar to date, attended by 420 teens from across the country!

RAC L'Taken Social Justice Seminar 5774

Photos from the 5774 Shavuot Confirmation Ceremony

Enjoy this slideshow of photos from the 5774 Shavuot Confirmation Ceremony!

The TIKKUN D'var

This d'var Torah was delivered by Aaron Sege, Gabe Hodgkin, and Mariel Ehrlich, in representation of the group of RYFTI juniors and seniors who participated in the 5774 TIKKUN Intensive and Lobby Day, January 12 and 13, 2014.

TIKKUN D'Var Torah

QS 1/31/14

Shabbat shalom! My name is Mike Fishbein, and I am the Director of Teen Education here at TI.  This week's parashah, Terumah, is one that is familiar to our Teen Ed community.  Every fall, the 10th grade Confirmation students study this text during their Confirmation Kallah, as part of their exploration of the concept of Covenant.  In the first few lines, we learn that the materials for the construction of the tabernacle will be gifts from anyone in the community whose heart is moved to contribute, and we learn that God's purpose for having the tabernacle built is so that God may dwell among the people.  Further, we read that the actual place where God will sit is just above the tablets of the law.  Now, in this narrative, we know that the people in general cannot enter the holy of holies, but nevertheless, our tradition is giving us a powerful image, one in which the ultimate seat of power is a place where the people and the law come together, in a structure built by the people's investment, and to which the people therefore feel some connection, perhaps even some ownership.  The Reform Movement works to ensure that our youth feel ownership over America's houses of law through the Religious Action Center's L'Taken Social Justice Seminar in Washington, D.C.  One week from today, 18 of our teens will travel down to Washington to participate in L'Taken, as groups of TI teens have done for many years. 

The L’Taken seminar provides teens with opportunities to learn about major public policy issues, to get familiar with the lobbying process, and to explore the Jewish values that underlie the Reform Movement's positions on social issues. L'Taken groups study together, tour major sites in the nation's capital, and most importantly, they spend a Monday morning on Capitol Hill, lobbying their own senators and representatives.  L'Taken is wonderfully effective at inspiring interest in political advocacy, anchored in Jewish identity.  This year, here at TI, we created a new learning opportunity, inspired by L'Taken, designed to offer a more in-depth experience than can be achieved in one weekend.  We named this opportunity, "TIKKUN: To Take on the World."  TIKKUN had two components. The first was a semester-long elective class in our Monday Night School program, developed and taught by Rabbi Matt Soffer and 2003-2004 RYFTI Co-President Celia Segel. The class ran this fall, and had 14 students. TIKKUN's second component was an intensive experience, comprising a day of research and preparation, and a day spent on Beacon Hill during which eight students, all Juniors and Seniors, lobbied their own Massachusetts State legislators. Three of our TIKKUN participants are here to share their experiences with you.

My name is Mariel Ehrlich. I'm a Junior, and I'm also the RYFTI Vice President of Social Programming.  The TIKKUN Class at Monday Night School was 11 sessions long.  The course began with a sharing of the students' own social justice stories - the roots of our interests in politics, organizing, advocacy, service, or in the class itself.  Over our 11 sessions, we learned about the legislative process, about politics and political power, and about advocacy.  Our class had three guest speakers.  In order, they were Rabbi Jonah Pesner, Senior Vice President of the URJ, Fran Godine, former Vice President of GBIO and a leader of Ohel Tzedek here at TI, and State Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz, who happens to be my own Senator.  From each speaker, we heard about his or her own social justice story, and by listening to all three, we were able to compare a variety of ways in which people can participate in civic engagement at a high level.  As the course went on, we had a series of discussions in which we shared the public issues that concern each of us individually, and as it concluded, we identified those issues that were most strongly shared among the group, the issues of gun control and of the minimum wage. 

My name is Gabe Hodgkin.  I'm a Senior, and I'm RYFTI's Vice President of Social Justice.  As Social Justice

VP, I worked with Mike, with Rabbi Soffer, and with Aaron in the visioning of TIKKUN, and especially in the planning of the TIKKUN Prep Day, which we held on Sunday, January 12th.  On that day, we spend over five hours here at TI.  We began by sharing, over bagels, our personal goals for the following day's lobbying trip to Beacon Hill.  We talked about wanting to have a greater sense of what happens in the offices of our state legislators, and about wanting to feel engaged in the political process.  We wanted to be prepared and to be taken seriously.  We moved into a study of Moses's negotiation with God over the destruction of Sodom as an exploration of lobby strategy and of political power, and to anchor our work in our tradition.  We then reviewed the legislative process and split into issue teams.  Our respective teams researched the debates over gun control and over the minimum wage, using resources from Massachusetts, from around the country, and from Jewish advocacy organizations.  We then prepared for our respective lobby visits, and practiced in simulated meetings.  Based on advice from Senator Chang-Diaz, we focused on being ready to engage in genuine discussion on these issues, rather than reading prepared statements. We left Sunday feeling ready to do just that, and feeling excited for the day ahead.  On Monday, we met at TI and travelled together to Beacon Hill.  We began with a State House tour, which got us familiar with the building, and felt like a great way to start the day.  Our group of eight RYFTI Juniors and Seniors then moved through a total of five legislative meetings. 

I'm Aaron Sege, one of RYFTI's two Senior Co-Presidents.  In our meetings, we asked our legislators to support bills that would raise the minimum wage and improve gun safety. We are happy to report that our legislators generally agreed with us.  I'll offer examples from two of our meetings.  Senator Cynthia Creem had actually sponsored two of the gun safety bills we were lobbying for, so when meeting with her chief of staff, Richard Powell, we didn’t need to sell him on those measures.  After thanking him for her support, we were able to go further, and talked with him about ways of changing the public debate around guns. Specifically, he was interested in our recommendation that Massachusetts law enforcement to compile and publish data on the sources of guns used in crimes. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms already collects that data but is forbidden from releasing it to the public. He wrote down the name of that federal gag rule, the Tiahrt Amendment. It was an incredibly empowering for me to see that even though we are only teenagers, we could add new information to the discussion and be taken seriously by such an experienced and influential person.

On the issue of the minimum wage, Brookline Representative Frank Smizik said he liked the

idea of an increase with no strings attached, in theory. However, he said that as a rank-and-file

member of the House, he would probably have to support the Speaker’s version of the bill,

which ties a wage boost to cuts in unemployment insurance. Gabe and the minimum wage group

listened to Representative Smizik’s description of the politics of the issue, and still encouraged

and gently prodded him to take a stand.  Gabe quoted Deuteronomy, saying that as Jews, we should take seriously the mitzvah to treat workers fairly.  It was great for us to learn about the politics of the issue, and to be able to offer Representative Smizik a fresh perspective.

Two years ago, Gabe and I attended the L'Taken seminar in DC, and Mariel is part of the group headed there in one week.  I loved going on L'Taken.  It got me very excited about getting involved in politics.  With TIKKUN, we took the basic format of L'Taken and pushed it to the next level, with the a more detailed back-and-forth.  The experience of meeting with power-brokers was very satisfying.  It was great to be able to have a conversation with the legislators and staffers and to press them a bit with questions. I felt like I was able both to speak my mind and to have an impact on them.  They took us seriously and treated us with respect.  TIKKUN showed us that state politics are really compelling. In Massachusetts, a policy can be more creative and more energetic than it can be on the national level, and we can have a much bigger impact on it.  Celia, our teacher, said that civic groups are the "special sauce of American democracy," and that hit home for me. I think that our tight-knit teen community at TI, coupled with a set of values and traditions that transcend one historical moment or problem, give us the strength to make a difference at the State House, which we now call, "Our House."  Shabbat shalom.

The L'Taken D'var

The following d'var Torah was delivered by the RYFTI teen who had recently returned from their trip to Washington, D.C. to participate in the Religious Action Center's L'Taken Social Justice Seminar, February 7-10, 2014:

Shabbat shalom!  In this week's parashah, Metzora, we are instructed in the procedure for the cleansing of a house whose physical structure has been afflicted with a kind of plague.  The Torah puts us directly to work.  It does not spend any time wondering why the house might have warranted affliction: was the house facing the wrong direction, or was it built on tainted soil?  Did its residents do something wrong?  The Torah doesn't ask; it doesn't wonder.  It tells us, this house is broken: go fix it; get to work.  This year, our teens went to two houses: one on Beacon Hill, and one on Capitol Hill, and where they saw brokenness, they went to work.  

On February 7th, 17 Temple Israel teens, accompanied by Rabbi Soffer, Jessie Weiser, and me, traveled to Washington, D.C., to participate in what turned out to be the biggest L'Taken Social Justice Seminar to date.  L'Taken is developed, administered, and staffed by the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, often called "the RAC."  In the 1950s, the Reform movement's Commission on Social Action was working to stimulate social action committees in every Reform congregation in America, and it increasingly felt the need for an office in Washington, through which the voice of the movement could be heard on Capitol Hill.  The RAC is that office.  When it was founded, the RAC resided at the corner of Massachusetts Ave NW and 21st St in Dupont Circle.  That was its address until 2003, when that stretch of 21st street was formally renamed "Kivie Kaplan Way," in honor of the RAC's original funder.  The name Kivie Kaplan may be familiar to some of you - he lived in Chestnut Hill and was a Temple Israel member and trustee.  Kivie was President of the NAACP, and was a great connector of the Black and Jewish communities during the Civil Rights Movement.  The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was drafted at the Religious Action Center. 

The RAC's L’Taken seminar provides teens with opportunities to learn about major public policy issues, to get familiar with the lobbying process, and to explore the Jewish values that underlie the Reform Movement's positions on social issues. L'Taken groups study together, tour major sites in the nation's capital, and most importantly, they spend a Monday morning on Capitol Hill, lobbying their own senators and representatives.  L'Taken inspires interest in political advocacy, anchored in Jewish identity.

This Shabbat, we're honored to share with you a taste of our experience at the L'Taken Seminar, including a compilation of reflections written by several of our 5774 L'Taken participants: freshman Nina Miller, sophomores Rebecca Wishnie, Ben Groustra, Ayden Mallory, Michael Marget, Abby Rosovsky, Ada Levine, and Talia Putnoi, and juniors Marc Davis, Mariel Ehrlich, and Juliana Kaplan.

For the 17 of us, L'taken was a rewarding experience that encouraged us to step outside of our comfort zone and to try very new things.  It has become one of our favorite Jewish experiences.  We all appreciated the opportunity to meet over 400 other high schoolers from across the country, who are all in youth groups like RYFTI.  We loved being around such a large number of teenagers who felt very strongly about a variety of different issues, and it was especially interesting to hear opinions different than our own.  We had a good time exploring parts of Washington D.C.  Havdalah on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial was beautiful.  It was pretty cool to walk around Capitol Hill and to get a behind-the-scenes look at the workings of our government.

Throughout the weekend, we worked to learn about the many interesting and compelling issues that the RAC fights for.  We learned how prepare to stand up for our beliefs and for the rights of people throughout the nation by writing detailed lobbying scripts and research pages.  Mariel reflected, "This was the first time I'd ever been able to truly support myself with evidence and texts spanning from the Constitution to the Torah, and as result I felt confident in my abilities to have strong points that policy makers would listen to and respect." 

As we started to focus on the issues we chose for our own lobbying, Juliana, who had participated in TIKKUN a month earlier and had lobbied on Beacon Hill, compared her state and federal-level lobbying work.  We had noted that joining these national campaigns meant accepting less individual control of our lobbying.  Juliana said that in Washington we were working on a broader scale, which meant that we did lose the sense of a smaller grassroots campaign, but instead gained the support and power of the Reform Jewish community, as we prepared to act as their representatives to staffers in the offices of Senators Warren and Markey and of Congressman Kennedy.

For some of us, as Michael reflected, the biggest impact of the whole weekend was made on Sunday night, in our small lobby groups, as we worked intensely to write a speech in just a few hours.  We worked together and helped each other out, and it was a great bonding experience.  

 

For many of us, the biggest highlight of the trip was the experience of giving a lobbying speech in the offices of our federal legislators.  Talia wrote, "I never thought I would do anything like this in my life, or that I was capable of reaching into the political world through the lens of Reform Judaism."  Ben said, "I felt that giving my speech was very empowering. I got to give voice to an issue that I felt very passionate about, and I felt like the people who were listening to my speech were taking me seriously, which was very exciting. It was also a great experience to be involved in the democratic process."  Rebecca recalled, "I had been unsure about how the people we lobbied to would react to the references to Judaism in our speeches, but one of the aides said that the religious aspects gave our arguments depth, and made them more persuasive."

In groups of three or four, we lobbied our legislators on immigration reform, gun violence, reproductive rights, and comprehensive sexuality education.  Here's one reflection on that experience from Juliana: "In Washington my team advocated against a bill that would put restrictions on women's access to abortion and would essentially ban later-term abortions. We looked to Jewish texts when discussing this issue; the health of the mother is a distinctly Jewish issue, and we proudly helped bring this view to our representatives."

 

Our time at L'Taken impacted us in a number of ways.  We gained a better understanding of several current issues and learned about the bills involved in those issues.  We learned about the process of political advocacy.  We learned how to work together as a group, and we became closer as a group.  We saw that Reform Jews are motivated to stick up for what they believe in, and are ready to act on those beliefs.  We developed a more sophisticated understanding of the relationship of church and state.  Ada's realization that she can make a change in her government inspired her to join her school's chapter of Amnesty International, which will take her back to Washington for another round of lobbying.  Abby said, "The thing I will take away most from L´Taken was the realization that my voice really matters, that what I say and what I believe actually matter, and that if I feel strongly about something I can speak up and make a difference."  Nina said, "What I took away from L'Taken was that there's always going to be people in the world who care about the same things I do, and that I can count on others to help me out."  Juliana reflected, "being able to participate in both of these events - TIKKUN and L'Taken - was life-changing, and not only helped me feel as though I had the power to influence these law-makers, but also to really work to address the inequities that plague our society. I recently participated in a rally at the State House to raise the minimum wage.  I hope to continue my work advocating on issues that affect everyone in our community, and I hope others join me."

In the 1976 biography of Kivie Kaplan, Albert Vorspan, vice president of the UAHC (later the URJ) and director of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, wrote: "[Kivie's] faith in the future rested with the young."  To that, we can surely say, amen.

Shabbat shalom!

Photos from the first MNS of 5775!

First Night of MNS, 5775

TIKKUN 5774 Photos

Check out this album of photos from our big day on Beacon Hill! Though the new TIKKUN Intensive and Lobby Day program, these students, all RYFTI Juniors and Seniors who are enrolled at Monday Night School, identified public issues of their own concern, researched those topics, decided how they wanted their legislators to act, and, after an afternoon of preparation, they lobbied their own MA State legislators on Beacon Hill.

September/October 2014

Teens Begin the Year!

Welcome back to all our teens! 

Join us for Monday Night School beginning September 15^th at 5:45 for dinner and an exciting new year!

The 5775 Temple Israel Madrichim applied to the program and were offered positions over the summer.  These teens will work in our religious school classrooms on Sundays throughout the year.  They will assist teachers with classroom management and facilitation, and will develop as classroom leaders and teachers.  They will meet on Sunday, September 7^th for their orientation.

RYFTI (9th-12th) has 12 fantastic teens serving as board members for 5775, and they began planning for the coming year from the moment they were elected last spring.  They met here at TI at the end of the summer for their annual overnight planning event, and began mapping out a very exciting year.  Stay tuned!

Introducing Our New RYFTI Advisor, Roberta Bergstein!

We are thrilled to introduce our new RYFTI Advisor, Roberta Bergstein.  Roberta recently graduated from Brandeis University with a B.A. in Psychology and Health, Science, Society & Policy.  She is currently enrolled in the Master of Public Policy program at Brandeis's Heller School. This year, before finishing her master’s, she is working at the Joseph Smith Community Health Center in Allston as a Patient Navigator helping non-English speaking patients 'navigate' their way through the complicated health care system.

Roberta writes: “I could not be more excited about working with the teens of Temple Israel. Ever since I was in high school and a member of my temple's youth group I have wanted to be a youth group advisor, so that I could share the same incredible experience I had with others.  I cherish the memories I have from my youth group experiences as well as from my trip to Israel.  I am passionate about giving back to the community and look forward to a great year with the members of RYFTI.”

            Roberta will be with us at Monday Night School and at all RYFTI events beginning this fall.  Please join us in welcoming her!  We’re very excited for all the Roberta will bring to RYFTI, and to the whole TI Teen Ed community. 

A Summer of Israel Engagement

Our teens had meaningful, impactful summers in variety of ways.  Many were campers or camp counselors; others participated in enrichment programs or travel.  Six of our teens spent their summers engaging with Israel – experiences made even more significant by this summer’s unique and challenging circumstances.  Rising senior Marc Davis, and rising juniors Olivia Berlin, Noah Solomon, Ben Groustra, and Lily Schwartz travelled to Israel through NFTY-in-Israel programs.  All five had wonderful trips, and are home safe.  Rising sophomore Nina Miller participated in a remarkable program called Artsbridge, through which she lived and created art with five other American teens, and with a combined 17 Jewish Israeli, Arab Israeli, and West-Bank Palestinian teens.  The Teen Ed community looks forward to hearing from these six students about their experiences and to learning from their insights throughout the year and beyond.

 

Celebrating Our Jewish Summer Campers – Send Photos!

Temple Israel families sent over 80 students to Jewish camps this summer, both as campers and as counselors.  We are proud of all these students, who continued to develop and strengthen their Jewish identities over the summer!  We will honor our campers and camp families at our annual Camp Shabbat service this fall.  As part of Camp Shabbat, we’re putting together a slide show of our campers, and we want to include them all!  If you/your child was at a Jewish camp this summer, please send a couple of photos to Mike (mfishbein@tisrael.org) to be included. 

Fall 2014 Teen Program Dates to Remember

• Madrichim Orientation 9/7
• First Night of Monday Night School 9/15
• Rosh HaShanah volunteering with RYFTI 9/25
• Yom Kippur volunteering with RYFTI 10/4
• Confirmation Kallah 10/24-26
• Levi Leap (with NFTY-NE in Framingham, MA) 10/25
• NFTY-NE Fall Conclavette 11/14-16
• RYFTI Fall Kallah 11/21-23
• RYFTI Alumni/ae Shabbat 11/28

The Confirmation Journey is about to begin. All that’s missing is… YOU!

  

Calling all incoming 10^th Graders!

The 5774 Confirmation class is forming and we need you to play a part.

Join us for the Confirmation Kallah!

October 24-26, 2014 at Camp Burgess in Sandwich, MA

If you haven’t yet signed up – don’t wait! Call or e-mail Mike at 617-566-3960 x126 or mfishbein@tisrael.org.