10 Questions Based on 10Q ReBoot www.doyou10Q.com

1. Describe a significant experience that has happened in the past year. How did it affect you?

2. Is there something that you wish you had done differently this past year? How would you have done it differently? And how can you learn from it to improve how things turn out in the future?

3. Think about a major milestone that happened with your family in this last year. How has this affected you?

4. Describe a broader event in the world that has impacted you this year? How? Why?

5. Have you had any particularly religious or spiritual experiences this past year?

6. Describe one thing you’d like to achieve by this time next year? Why is this important to you?

7. Is there a part of yourself that you want to work on in this new year?

8. Is there something (a person, a cause, an idea) that you want to investigate more fully this year?

9. What is a fear that you have and how has it limited you? Think about how you could overcome it this year.

10. When September 2011 rolls around and you revisit your answers to these 10 questions, how do you think you’ll feel? What do you think/hope might be different about your life and where you’re at as a result of pondering these questions?

Because we at Texas Hillel believe so passionately in the need for a strong, democratic Jewish State of Israel (witness our active Texans for Israel group and our largest annual event, the Israel Block Party),  I share with you a few reasons why today’s college students have a dramatically different experience of Israel than did their parents.   It is critical that those interested in Israel advocacy on campus understand that we cannot do “business as usual” with the millennials and emerging adults on campus today.

Here are a few reasons why advocacy on campus right now is different than at other places in other times:

• Today’s college students have no memory of a world without Israel, no memory of 1967 or 1973 and no memory of a pre-intifida Israeli/Palestinian narrative.
• Today’s college students are much more likely than their parents to have visited Israel (thanks to Birthright, NFTY, USY, BBYO, etc.) so their attachment is more nuanced.   They see an Israel that doesn’t need tzedakah because its economy is stronger than our own.  They have met Israeli soldiers and know that the story of Israel is complex.
• Today’s college students likely have no personal experience of anti-Semitism and are not swayed by the “everyone is out to get us” mentality that fueled their grandparents’ Jewish identities.   Many have never met a Holocaust survivor.
• Today’s college students have multi-layered identities, like windows on a computer screen.  Sometimes their Jewish identity window is maximized, sometimes it is minimized and sometimes it is closed altogether.  Israel is but one piece of that Jewish identity, and it is very often informed by anti-Israel bias they hear from professors, read online or see on TV news.

As a result of all of this, traditional pro-Israel advocacy models won’t work for the overwhelming majority of students.   They are more likely to believe that Israel is invincible and their idealism tells them that if Israel gives more land/money/rights to the Palestinians then the problem will be solved.   They fail to recognize that for Israelis the matzav is not Israel vs. Palestine but Israel vs. the radicalized segments of the Muslim world and world opinion that deligitimizes Israel.

Some students are naturally drawn to Israel advocacy, but there are fewer than you’d think. And telling them “If we don’t stand up for Israel, no one will” is not convincing enough Jewish students that the cause is just.   They have been led to believe that Israel is responsible for the problems of the Middle East (and beyond) and so our task is to tell a different story and get them engaged in sharing the alternate narrative with their peers.

What we’re trying to do at Texas Hillel is to connect with Jewish college students on their terms.   Scare tactics don’t work, so we celebrate Israel’s diversity and demonstrate how Israel is the only country in the Middle East that shares their Western values. We have our annual Israel Block Party on campus (not at Hillel) and draw thousands of participants (and always some protesters).  The Israel Block Party has themed pavilions appealing to student interests and Israeli accomplishments in multiple areas.    We sponsor Texans for Israel and its ongoing advocacy so that our story has a chance to compete with the anti-Israel propaganda that is so well-funded and easily accessible.

Advocating for Israel on campus is frustrating.   Some think we are soft and are giving up too much and some think we are stubborn and not giving up enough.    I am trying to steer our Hillel to the middle, making it clear that we have to be a safe place for pro-Israel students to celebrate the Jewish State while at the same time promoting a mature relationship between American Jews and Israel.   That mature relationship means loving Israel, supporting her, advocating for her right to exist within self-defined and secure borders… and also speaking the truth with each other about what more can be done to realize the dreams of the State’s founders.   Israel is not perfect, but she is ours and she is democratic and she is far from being morally equivalent to terrorists, racists and mass-murderers. Adolescent love (Israel can do no wrong) and married-for-sixty-two-years frustration and anger (Israel can do no right) are not reasonable options for today’s students.   They need nuance and honesty and they need us to provide them a place for the discussions.

I invite you to share with Texas Hillel in our attempt to enrich the lives of the largest population of Jewish students in the region. Today’s students will be tomorrow’s decision-makers and if we can’t convince them now that the State of Israel is legitimate and righteous, we may lose them forever.

I know how you feel. It has taken me a long time to learn that giving isn’t just about money and possessions; It has taken even longer to learn that giving my attention, a listening ear, a commitment, or my presence is often needed and appreciated beyond any monetary amount I could have offered. More surprisingly, it has been out of this type of giving that life seems to go deeper and peaceful. Connections open up, trust builds.

Maimonides, the great Jewish philosopher and scholar,  outlined 8 levels of Tzedaka (charitable giving):

• Help someone to help themselves

• Donor does not know who receives, receiver does not know the donor

• Donor knows the receiver, receiver doesn’t know the donor

• Receiver knows the donor, donor doesn’t know the receiver

• Give before being asked

• Give when asked

• Give-but less than you can and with happiness

• Give…unwillingly

I used to think that this ladder of giving was only intended as it relates to financial giving. Now I can see how giving encompasses so much more. So, ask your friend if there is anything you can do to support her during her training (run with her, give a massage), bring over a bowl of pasta the night before the race, send her an encouraging email or make a card, find out how you can volunteer on race day and hand her some juice or water, ask her to share about how she has been affected by cancer, or be at the finish line with a flower or balloon. Get creative and start recognizing what a giving person you are, with or without spare change.

It has never been external forces that have kept Judaism alive. Quite the contrary. Dedication to the ideals of ethical monotheism (the idea that there is one God who expects humanity to behave in a particular way) and a passionate commitment to learning have sustained our people for thousands of years, and they sustain us still.

Tuesday evening May 18th begins the festival of Shavuot, one of the three pilgrimage holidays during which our ancestors would flock to the Temple. Shavuot commemorates the giving and receiving of the Torah seven weeks after the Exodus from slavery. Passover was about freedom, and Shavuot is about responsibility. A Jewish people that is only free from bondage is destined to wander, while a Jewish people committed to the Torah’s principles is more than simply free. Freedom is more than being free from something, it is being free to do great things. The Torah has freed us to live fully in accordance with how the universe is supposed to be ordered, with distinctions between right and wrong, good and evil, justice and injustice. The Torah also gives us the tools to interpret the gray areas of life. Moses freed us from physical oppression and seven weeks later he freed us from spiritual bondage by bringing us an eternal covenant, sworn to Abraham and Sarah, for all generations. A Jewish people without Torah has no anchor, no connection to its past or vision for its future.

Many communities celebrate Shavuot with an all-night study session, bringing people closer to the tradition of learning that has kept our people spiritually alive for millennia. Working in a university setting, where learning is my congregation’s full-time job, I am keenly aware that the life of the mind is paramount. This Shavuot, with classes having ended and new graduates celebrating their achievements, I hope that we will all see ourselves as eternal students and teachers of Torah, bearers of the everlasting light of knowledge that has illuminated the way for generations of Jews before us.

Yes, we suffer. But we also celebrate, and Shavuot is a time for celebrating the Jewish commitment to study and learning. The Hebrew root of the word Torah is the same as the root for teacher and parent, and the thirst for knowledge is an essential component of our Jewish birthright.

Chag Shavuot Sameach!

Rabbi David Komerofsky

My roommate is very wasteful and refuses to take the extra step to recycle or even turn the water off when brushing her teeth. Any suggestions?

Dani, class of 2012

This morning I was about to turn on my dishwasher and noticed a setting called “Eco.”  How did I not see this before? I have had the dishwasher for about a year…. Maybe I just didn’t have my eyes wide open. Cool. I am already considered to be pretty eco-conscious but I also like technology and efficiency. It’s really easy to get on my own soap box about what others are not doing, but the truth is, I have to first focus on what other steps I can take and just share why it matters to me and invite others to try it too.

This is the perfect time to be thinking through these issues and take a personal inventory of my personal carbon footprint… Earth day was fist celebrated in 1970 and this year it is celebrated on April 22. The Torah is filled with ways in which the Earth needs to be treated and the consequences we can expect if we are careless. The book of Leviticus, for example, warns the Children of Israel that immorality will cause the Land of Israel to “vomit” them out (Lev. 18:24-28, 20:22). Gross.

We also learn in the “Shema” that if we follow God’s word, we will receive rain, fertility and abundance  – but if we ignore God then we can expect drought and famine (Deut. 11: 13-21). Personally, I like to think of these passages as a very strong recommendation to be conscious as to how I care for the earth and the environmental consequences of my action. The shema warns: “Beware that your heart be deceived and you turn and serve other Gods and worship them” (Deut. 11:16). Maybe this verse is referring not to the typical idol but to greed and power which can cause corruption and oppression leading to the poorest people paying the price of pollution, drought and deforestation.

As students, soon to be leaders in our global economy, you have a large say in shaping the future of our planet. Just as Yom Kippur and Passover are days for reflection, so is Earth Day. Think about and appreciate the many gifts we receive from the Earth, from clean air and water to the many plants, animals and other organisms that fill our world. Get outside, go barefoot, and celebrate. Breathe in the fresh air, go see the new movie  “Oceans”, check out Hillel’s community garden on the patio… then commit to taking a new action that will bring about a stronger, more sustainable world  from buying organic food and clothing, planting a window herb garden, to signing up for Jewish Farm School’s alternative breaks (www.texashillel.org) or planting a tree in Israel (JNF).

Judaism is a tradition of taking action. What will you do?

For more information check out http://www.coejl.org/~coejlor/celebrate/earth_jewish.php

When you view our work through the lens of engagement, things become clear.  Sometimes long-held beliefs are challenged (like the value of particular programs) and new priorities emerge (like the Campus Entrepreneurs Initiative).  Hillel remains cutting edge and dynamic because we are always changing and the population we serve is anything but stagnant.  It is indeed exciting!

In August, professionals and interns from practically every Hillel in North America, Israel, Europe and Latin America will gather for a “Hillel Institute” in St. Louis.  We’ll have a week-long series of meetings and seminars about engagement, best practices in the field, Israel advocacy and much more.  I am pleased to let you know that I will be one of the two co-chairs for this year’s Hillel Institute.  I’ll be looking for models of success from elsewhere even as my team and I brag on what we’re accomplishing here.  I do plan to wear burnt orange the entire week!

These are just a few examples of what’s happening here, so that you can share the stories of our success with your friends and encourage them to support our work.  No one need wonder what the Jewish future looks like… we see it here every day.

Dear Devora,

I feel like I am living a double life. Some of my friends see me as the ultimate party-er and others only see my studious side. Do you think it is mis-leading to behave only one way with some friends and another way with others?

- Jill, Plan 2, 2011

Dear Jill,

This is such a great questions and one that many people deal with throughout their lives. Up until around age 5 we are able to skip along through life just being exactly who we are with no conscious thought as to how we are portraying ourselves. Soon after that we start to get deeper messages from family and society about what is or is not acceptable and we may start suppressing or expressing certain parts of ourselves.

The holiday of Purim gives us a chance to really reflect on this. Purim’s theme of hidden identity is most apparent in the creative and outrageous costumes worn during its celebration. In Megillat Esther, Esther hides her Juewish identity from King Ahasuerus (the name Esther comes from the Hebrew word ‘haster,’ meaning ‘to hide’), and just as God is masked in the Book of Esther that we read on Purim (God’s name is never mentioned!), we too mask our true selves for an evening of celebrating and partying. Jewish communities often organize lavish and festive carnivals during Purim. These carnivals provide opportunities for people to come together, show off their costumes, and participate in the merriment of the holiday.

What are the benefits of concealing our identity? What does it mean to hide behind a mask and give others a false perception of who we are? Although on Purim we literally cover our faces, are there situations in your everyday life— at school or work, in relationships with friends or loved ones—where you also mask your true self? Purim is a time when we can reflect upon who we are on the inside and outside, and make sure that while we may be slightly inverted on this holiday, we are as sincere and genuine as possible in our own lives.

The key is to do exactly what you are doing – inquire into the question of whether or not you are being true to yourself – whatever circumstances you are in or with whomever you are around.

Form more on this topic and Purim, please visit http://jrp.com/files/Purim%20Notes%202007%20Final%20Draft%20for%20PDF.pdf

Also, please join on us Sunday February 21, 2010 for our Jewish Arts Alliance gallery open house from 1 -3 at Texas Hillel to explore through art the theme of Masks and Identity.

Exodus 30:11 – 34:35

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: When you take a census of the Israelite people according to their enrollment, each shall pay the Lord a ransom for himself on being enrolled, that no plague may come upon them through their being enrolled. This is what everyone who is entered in the records shall pay: a half-shekel by the sanctuary weight — twenty gerahs to the shekel — a half-shekel as an offering to the Lord. Everyone who is entered in the records, from the age of twenty years up, shall give the Lord’s offering: the rich shall not pay more and the poor shall not pay less than half a shekel when giving the Lord’s offering as expiation for your persons. You shall take the expiation money from the Israelites and assign it to the service of the Tent of Meeting; it shall serve the Israelites as a reminder before the Lord, as expiation for your persons.

These verses will be read around the world this weekend for Shabbat Shekalim, the Sabbath preceding the beginning of the month of Adar. Adar is a month of joy of celebration that includes the festival of Purim.

The central message of these verses for Shabbat Shekalim is simple – every member of the community bears equal responsibility for the building of the tabernacle.  Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch commented on this text that the mission of Israel is dependent on the unity of the whole.   We are whole as a people when we see ourselves as personally responsible, not relying on others to do what needs to be done.

Every generation of Jews has been building community – tabernacles at which we can worship and to which we can flock for celebration – by making personal investments in the well-being of the whole.  How much better the whole world would be if every person did his or her part!   Small acts of kindness and generosity can make all the difference, and the instruction in the verses for this Shabbat are clear:  do what you must not because it is convenient or makes you feel good, but because the world depends on you.