issue #017: the moment of turning
when we turn away from denial and begin to face exile and alienation
in preparation for this month’s issue, i started leafing through my copy of Alan Lew’s This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared (2003), looking for what Lew had to say about Tisha B’Av. i wanted to see if there was anything that could be valuable to share here, ahead of Tisha B’Av in a couple weeks, and found a few particularly relevant and seemingly evergreen excerpts:
Spiritually, the only question worth asking about any conflict, any recurring catastrophe, is this: What is my responsibility for it? How am I complicit in it? How can I prevent it from happening again?
When things go bad, there is an enormous temptation to blame it on externals, on the evil of others, or on an unlucky turn of events. Spiritually, however, we are called to resist this temptation, no matter how strong it may be and no matter how strongly rooted in fact or reason or history it may seem.
Spiritually we are called to responsibility, to ask, What am I doing to make this recur again and again? Even if it is a conflict that was clearly thrust upon me from the outside, how am I plugging into it, what is there in me that needs to be engaged in this conflict? Why can’t I just let it slough off me like water off a duck’s back, as I am able to do with so many other things?
[…] Tisha B'Av is the day on which we are reminded of the calamity that keeps repeating itself in the life of our people. And against all reason—against the overwhelming evidence of history—Moses and the rabbis insist that we are not powerless in the face of that calamity. Moses and the rabbis insist that we take responsibility for what is happening to us. Moses and the rabbis insist that we acknowledge our complicity in the things that keep happening to us over and over again.
[…] I find it impossible to read the texts of Tisha B’Av, with their great themes of exile and return, and their endless sense of longing for the land of Israel, without thinking of the current political tragedy in the Middle East. I write this at a very dark moment in the long and bleak history of that conflict. Who knows what will be happening there when you read this?
who knows what will be happening there when you read this?
housekeeping
this newsletter is “too long” for your email & will get cut off. go to shtetlcrier.substack.com to read the entire post
new events that haven’t appeared in a prior issue are marked with 🆕
an event appearing in this newsletter is not an endorsement of said event
this newsletter is free & compiled with love for community. and i wouldn’t say no if you ever wanted to buy me a coffee
i would love to see more canadian events outside of toronto in future issues. if you know progressive jews living outside toronto, please share this newsletter with them
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🇨🇦 canadian events
art exhibition
Botannica Tirannica (Koffler Arts)
📆until October 20, 2024
📍Ontario > Toronto > 180 Shaw St.
Koffler Arts is proud to present Botannica Tirannica by award-winning Brazilian artist Giselle Beiguelman. The exhibition explores how common botanical names both mirror and perpetuate societal prejudices against racial, cultural, gender, and social groups. Beiguelman was inspired to create this exhibition after receiving a gift of a Tradescantia zebrina seedling, commonly called “Wandering Jew,” a name referencing the 13th-century myth that recurred in Nazi propaganda. This led Beiguelman to investigate the complex, interwoven histories of botany, taxonomy and colonialism that often result in discrimination against specific groups of people. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education
🤔Questions? admin@kofflerarts.orgevent
🆕Queer Family Craft Brunch (Museum of Jewish Montreal / Musée du Montréal juif)
📆August 4, 2024 / 10:30AM - 1:30PM ET
📍Quebec > Montreal > 5220 Saint-Laurent Boulevard
Come celebrate Pride, family style! The Museum of Jewish Montreal and Queer Moms Nite Out are teaming up to throw a bagel brunch with a side of tie-dye for kids of all ages. Bring your own white cotton items to dye, or make a funky rainbow bandana to rock throughout Montreal's Pride week!
Join us for a drink, a nosh, a dance, and leave with some cool summer gear and a new friendship – or several! Learn more
For: Everyone, Kids, Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 🥳Social, 🌚Holiday Observance
🤔Questions? anya@imjm.caevent
🆕Shoresh’s Honey Harvest at Bela Farm (Shoresh)
📆August 7, 2024 / 10-6PM ET
📍Ontario > Hillsburgh > Bela Farm
Join us for one or two days of harvesting honey at Bela Farm for some sticky, sweet fun! We'll spend some slow time together becoming grounded in the land and we'll work together to extract honey from the frames of Bela's bees' hives. The honey comb will be uncapped by hand, the frames will be spun in our extractor, the honey will be poured into buckets, weighed, tested for moisture, and recorded, before being transferred to jars, which will be spread to our community in advance of Rosh Hashanah for a sweet new year! Participants will take home a jar of raw honey. Learn more
For: Youth, Adults
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌿Nature
🤔Questions? tamar@shoresh.caworkshop / class
🆕Jewish Love Potions: Herbalism Workshop for Tu B'Av (Museum of Jewish Montreal / Musée du Montréal juif)
📆August 11, 2024 / 1-3PM ET
📍Quebec > Montreal > 5220 Saint-Laurent Boulevard
Celebrate Tu B'Av – the Jewish day of love – by learning how to make your own love potion! The workshop will celebrate the ancestral plant traditions and recipes associated with Tu B’Av, a holiday that comes in late summer, during the grape harvest, and has traditionally been a day of matchmaking, wine-making, and ritual. We will make “love potions” in the form of oxymels - mixtures of herbally infused honey and vinegar. Together, we will learn about the herbs that have connections in Jewish culture to the heart, strength, and romance traditions. Participants will take home their own mixture of herbs that they can infuse or gift as they wish.
Tickets are $18 each, and include all workshop materials. Please note that capacity is limited. Reserve your tickets in advance to avoid disappointment. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? taryn@imjm.caevent
🆕Tisha B’Av Climate Grief Gathering 5784 (Shoresh)
📆August 13, 2024 / 5:30-8:30PM ET
📍Ontario > Etobicoke > Kings Mill Park
Tisha B’Av, the saddest day of the Jewish calendar, marks the destruction of both temples and many other tragedies throughout Jewish history. Today, we are faced with a daily awareness about the ecological collapse of Earth’s life-giving systems. As we watch the anemic responses of our social and political leaders, we can identify with the grief and powerlessness of our ancestors. Join us on this special day to grieve the destruction, to give space to all the feelings that accompany loss, and to find grounding in nature and community. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🌿Nature, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? tiferet@shoresh.caretreat
Reclaiming Traditions: A Queer & Trans Shabbaton (Queer Shabbaton)
📆August 16-18, 2024
📍Ontario > Gravenhurst
Join us for the 6th annual Reclaiming Traditions Shabbaton! The Shabbaton, taking place near Gravenhurst, Ontario at the edge of a beautiful lake, is a small community-led retreat for queer and trans Jewish people. Centered around rest and the structure of Shabbat, this is an opportunity to engage in ritual, learn together, connect with traditions, and strengthen, deepen and build new relationships. Together we will bring new energy to ancient knowledges, in a space that is affirming and delightfully queer! This event will have covid mitigations in place. Learn more
For: Queer and Trans Jews
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, ✊Social Justice, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? ShabbatonTO@gmail.comevent
🆕Jewish Magic and Fantasy Weekend at Camp Naivelt (The United Jewish People's Order)
📆August 16-18, 2024
📍Ontario > Brampton > Camp Naivelt
Dybbuks, Golems and Liliths will be joining us at Naivelt for this weekend of Jewish magic and fantasy. Jewish-themed role-playing games, magical crafting, Jewish herbalism with Tracey Tief, live music, film and lots of play: it’s going to be a LARPing good time!
- Dungeons and Dragons campaign set in ancient Persia (ages 8-12)
- Open concept role-playing game set in a fantasy shtetl in Eastern Europe (for everyone!)
- Jewish Herbalism: nature walk and magic wand making with Tracy Tief
- Bagel brunch with Jewish witch, musician, author, and comedian, Shoshana Sperling
- Film night, live music, crafting, and more!
Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, ✊Social Justice
🤔Questions? lainieb@gmail.comretreat
Nosh Week at Camp Naivelt (United Jewish Peoples Order / Camp Naivelt)
📆August 19-25, 2024
📍Ontario > Brampton > Camp Naivelt, Eldorado Park
Why don't you come up to Brampton and eppes essen - eat something! Join food historian Kat Romanow of Montreal's Wandering Chew and your friends from Camp Naivelt in the kitchen for a week of delicious, delectable and delightful food explorations. With hands-on workshops, lectures, films, and communal meals a'plenty, we will venture beyond the bagel and build community how we do it best... with a little nosh.
For questions and to join the fun email noshweek@gmail.com
Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, Food And Culture
🤔Questions? noshweek@gmail.comretreat
KlezKanada's Summer Retreat (KlezKanada)
📆August 20-26, 2024
📍Quebec > Sainte-Agathe-Des-Monts > Dos bisele glik (Le P’tit Bonheur)
KlezKanada's Summer Retreat is a place where a true community is formed and where the living, vibrant tradition of Yiddish culture and Jewish music continues to thrive. Each year, KlezKanada's Summer Retreat draws people from around the world. Whether on the shores of a calm lake, nestled amongst the beautiful Laurentian mountains or through the screen, participants celebrate the tradition, innovation, and continuity of Jewish music and Yiddish culture. Intergenerational, interdisciplinary, and international, KlezKanada's Summer Retreat has grown into one of the leading Jewish cultural events in the world. Registration information coming April. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🎶Music, Yiddish
🤔Questions? info@klezkanada.orgfestival
Ashkenaz Festival 2024 (Ashkenaz)
📆August 27-September 2, 2024
📍Ontario > Toronto > Harbourfront Centre
The 14th live edition of the Ashkenaz Festival will take place August 27 to September 2, 2024, at multiple venues across Toronto. The Festival will once again celebrate Jewish musical and artistic creativity from across the globe, spotlighting diverse musical expressions of the Jewish experience, with everything from klezmer and Yiddish styles to Sephardic, Mizrachi, and Falasha music, and much more. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🥳Social, 🎶Music
🤔Questions? info@ashkenaz.ca💻 virtual
workshop / class
🆕Ben HaMetzarim (In the Narrows): Grief Technologies for the Broken (Open) Hearted (Elana-June Margolis, Jo Kent Katz, Ray Himmelman le Blanc, meital yaniv)
📆August 4, 2024 / 6-9PM ET, 3-6PM PT
💻virtual
Join Jo Kent Katz, meital yaniv, Ray Himmelman le Blanc & Elana-June for a workshop exploring, experimenting with and expanding our embodied relationships to ancestrally encoded Jewish grief technologies in service of the healing of our hearts and our life-long commitment to fighting for a Free Palestine, the sanctity of the Jewish soul and the liberation of all beings (including us).
This workshop is offered in preparation for the Nine Days of Grief (beginning the next day, on Rosh Chodesh Av) which are part of the Three Weeks of Grief (AKA Ben HaMetzarim "In the Narrows"), culminating on Tisha b'Av (the 9th of Av, the most sacred grief day in the Jewish calendar). Our work will offer alternative (anti-Zionist) frameworks for understanding the Ben HaMetzarim as well as Tisha b'Av - practices and prayers existing simultaneously outside of and in active opposition to Zionism. Learn more
For: Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 📚Education, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? elana.june.margolis@gmail.comworkshop / class
🆕Creating with the Moon: Rosh Chodesh Av with Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife (Jewish Studio Project)
📆August 4, 2024 / 1-2:30PM ET, 10-11:30AM PT
💻virtual
Together we’ll reweave ourselves into the cycle of Jewish time and nourish our creative spirit so that we might enter the month refreshed and renewed. During this 90-minute, virtual session we’ll use the Jewish Studio Process, a unique methodology combining practices from the field of art therapy with a reimagined approach to Jewish learning, to cultivate our inherent creativity as a spiritual practice. Learn more
For: Youth, Adults
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness
🤔Questions? cgoodwin@jewishstudioproject.orgcourse
Worlds To Come - Hebrew TTRPG (Lexi Kohanski)
📆starts August 4, 2023 / 1-4:30PM ET, 10AM-12:30PM PT
💻virtual
Worlds To Come is an immersive TTRPG experience for learning Biblical and Rabbinic Hebrew. Inspired by the high fantasy magic of Dungeons & Dragons and the collaborative liberatory storytelling of games like Dream Apart, Worlds To Come lets you harness the language of Torah and Talmud to imagine what it looks like to fight for a better world.
Play as a group of spellcasters traveling Roman-occupied Judea/Palestine after the destruction of the Second Temple. Meet the peoples of the Land and help them as they reel from war and exile. Fulfill merit-generating mitzvahs, face the demonic consequences of sins, and use your newfound Hebrew knowledge to cast spells that will reshape your broken world. Learn more
For: Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, ✊Social Justice, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? lexi@thetorahstudio.orgcourse
🆕For Times Such As These: Jewish Ritual Leaders Cohort (Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg)
📆registration due August 5, 2024
💻virtual
Join for a year-long deep dive into bringing Jewish holidays to life in our communities. This monthly cohort group is for people who are organizing and leading rituals in their communities. Ritual leaders will meet monthly to discuss the coming months' holidays, deepen their learning about the history, texts, practices and traditions of the holiday, and discuss and build how to lead each coming month's holidays in their specific community settings. Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? fortimessuchasthesebook@gmail.comworkshop / class
Kvirshaft / Quirkshop: Advanced Yiddish Writing Workshop (Rad Yiddish and Queer Yiddish Camp)
📆August 6, 2024 / 8-9:30PM ET, 5-6:30PM PT
💻virtual
Led by Queer Yiddish teacher Hinde Burstin from Naarm (melbourne, australia), this workshop will take place entirely in Yiddish and is open to all who are open to experimenting with expressing themselves in Yiddish with gay abandon. Blending writing, improv theatre games and zaftik Yidishkayt, this quirkshop (queer, quirky workshop) will fire up your imagination and stimulate your creative juices!
Yiddish-ASL may be available if requested by July 15 on the Registration form. Learn more
For: Everyone, Queer and Trans Jews
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education, Yiddish, Writing
🤔Questions? hello@radyiddish.orgonline community
🆕JeLiThIn's Parashat HaShavua Group (Jewish Liberation Theology Institute)
📆starts August 8, 2024
💻virtual
JeLiThIn's Parashat HaShavua Group is a non-Zionist/anti-Zionist space for nonjudgmental community and connection with like-minded people. We aim to be anti-racist, anti-colonial, anti-ageist, anti-ableist, and feminist in our relationships with each other, welcoming feedback and collaboration as we create our non-Zionist/anti-Zionist radical community together.
Through JeLiThIn's Parashat HaShavua Group, you will have the opportunity to study the parasha of the week, reflect on its meaning to us today, and share your thoughts and experiences within a welcoming community. We meet meet via Zoom every Thursday at 12 pm and 7:00 pm ET, to delve into the parasha of the week. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? pizarro.lucia@gmail.comevent
🆕Webinar on Yeshayahu Leibovitz presented by Daphna Levit (IJV Canada)
📆August 11, 2024 / 6:30PM ET, 3:30PM PT
💻virtual
Jews in North America, Europe and Israel are protesting the Israeli government for its long history of militant, disproportionate violence against an occupied people; they are saying “Not In My Name” because the Israeli narrative has long been Israel=Zionism=Judaism. The outcry today is crucial because the conflation of Judaism with Zionism is pervasive.
Yeshayahu Leibowitz (1903-1994) was an influential Israeli orthodox Jew, considered by many to be ‘The Conscience of Israel”, a scientist and a philosopher with political integrity who was critical of militant Zionism. He outraged the Israeli establishment with his outspoken political courage, arguing that the idea of a State as holy is the ultimate definition of idolatry, In a speech he gave in 1993, the year before he died, he called on soldiers to refuse to serve in the Territories, comparing special units of the Israeli army to the SS. Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 📚Education, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? info@ijvcanada.orgcourse
🆕A (Re)Introduction to Israel-Palestine (Jews for Racial & Economic Justice)
📆starts August 14, 2024 / 8-9:30PM ET, 5-6:30PM PT
💻virtual
Join us on zoom this August to dive into key history, analysis, and political education on Israel-Palestine in a 3-part series with JFREJ member leader Jeremy Siegman!
Jeremy Siegman (he/him) is an active JFREJ and TJV member, a grant writer at Make the Road New York, and an academic with a background in anthropology and political science. He previously did his doctoral research about Palestinian service work in Israeli settlements, and the fraught politics of Israeli-Palestinian market encounters, which was published in the Journal of Palestine Studies, Palestine Square, and PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review. He has taught at University of Chicago, Harvard, and CCNY, on themes including neoliberalism, settler colonialism, militarization, social theory, and the Middle East. He has also done political education and organizing on Israel/Palestine with a number of other progressive organizations. Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 📚Education, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? info@jfrej.orgworkshop / class
🆕Have You Made Art About It Yet? Tisha B'Av Edition with Rabbi Adina Allen (Jewish Studio Project)
📆August 15, 2024 / 12-1:30PM ET, 9-10:30AM PT
💻virtual
Join us as we explore the contours of communal grief in preparation for the Jewish holiday of Tisha b’Av. The 9th of the Hebrew month of Av not only commemorates the destruction of the ancient Temple, but has become a day on which to mourn for the many collective tragedies and losses of our time. By making space to feel the grief of what has been lost, Tisha b’Av opens up an opportunity for us to imagine anew what yet might be. Using the Jewish Studio Process - we’ll draw on our creativity as a way to open to our sadness and know our grief so that we might emerge connected, empathic and awake. Learn more
For: Youth, Adults
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? cgoodwin@jewishstudioproject.orgworkshop / class
🆕Deepening Our Roots: Preparing for the High Holidays with Soul and Substance (with Rabbi Tiferet Berenbaum) (Ammud: Jews of Color Torah Academy)
📆August 15, 2024 / 6:30-8PM ET, 3:30-5PM PT
💻virtual
The High Holiday season, rooted in the rich tapestry of Jewish tradition, offers a profound opportunity for personal and communal transformation through introspection, prayer, and renewal. Beginning with Elul, a month dedicated to self-examination and preparation, this period invites us to carve out time and space for spiritual growth, leading into Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. Engaging deeply with these rituals and teachings, participants can emerge fully prepared to enter a meaningful and spiritually enriched High Holiday experience, rejuvenated by the timeless wisdom of our ancestors. Learn more
For: Jews Of Colour, Sephardi Jews, Mizrahi Jews
Tags: 📚Education, 🌚Holiday Observance, ✨Wellness
🤔Questions? team@ammud.orgcourse
🆕Decoding the Alef Bet (Shel Maala)
📆starts August 18, 2024 / 2-3:30PM ET, 11AM-12:30PM PT
💻virtual
Do you want to learn to read and write in Hebrew? Is it because you just want to understand what the shapes of the letters mean? Or do you have a bigger goal in mind? Together we can take that first step either for its own sake, or so that you can start learning how to chant Torah, understand the siddur, or even study Talmud (with us!). If you’re a beginner or just wanting to refresh your skills, this is the class for you! Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 📚Education, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? shelmaalayeshiva@gmail.comworkshop / class
🆕Jewish Witch Circle (Beit Kohenet & Temple of the Stranger)
📆August 18, 2024 / 3:45-5PM ET, 12:45-2PM PT
💻virtual
Join Rabbi Jericho Vincent of Temple of the Stranger and Kohenet Or Har-Gil for this monthly circle, to explore the legacy, gifts, and practices of Jewish witches. Welcoming folks of all genders & backgrounds. Held via Zoom. This month we will be exploring love & sex magic with Rav Jericho! Learn more
For: Everyone, Adults
Tags: 📚Education, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? or@templeofthestranger.comworkshop / class
🆕Sand Into Pearls: Shaping Painful Text into Powerful Midrash (Shel Maala)
📆August 21, 2024 / 7-9PM ET, 4-6PM PT
💻virtual
Eli Ramer, acclaimed author of such seminal queer Jewish literature as Fragments of the Brooklyn Talmud and Queering the Text, is joining Shel Maala for a special, one-night-only class on midrash, the sacred Jewish art of story telling.
Maggid Eli is an ordained interfaith storyteller, and will guide you through the process of alchemizing painful, complicated text and turning it into sacred prophecy, straight from your own heart.
If you've ever been interested in Rabbinic midrash; found a Jewish text challenging but been unsatisfied by the idea of throwing it away; wanted to combine your passions for Judaism and writing/storytelling; read one of Eli's books; or just wanted to unlock your creative spirit in holy community, this evening will be for you! Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? shelmaalayeshiva@gmail.comworkshop / class
🆕Dying to Live: Activating the Death/Rebirth Potency of the Days of Awe: A workshop for Queer/ Trans Jews on an anti-Zionist path (Elana-June Margolis)
📆September 3, 2024 / 8-10PM ET, 5-7PM PT
💻virtual
Dying to Live will be an active inquiry into the mystical, revolutionary potencies of the Ya’amim Noraim. Participants will explore and experiment with three of the primary tools & technologies of the month of Elul: the shofar (ram’s horn, through which we receive and learn to tune into the call to transform/ realign), mikveh (ritual bathing, in which water assists us in releasing, renewing & invoking) & Kneutlekh-leygn (making soul candles to work with ancestors) as a means of tapping in to the Teshuvah that is uniquely ours to do in service of the agonizing yet miraculously potent times we live in. Additionally, participants will receive a map for ceremonially activating the death/rebirth potencies of the Ya’amim Noraim, beginning on erev Rosh ha Shana, peaking during the 24 hour window of the Yom Kipportal, landing in the Sukkah (harvest hut) as rebirth-cradle and then sealing on Hoshana Rabba (the night of the last day of Sukkot/ the day of the willows), as well as indications for integrating & carrying the work forward beyond the High Holy Day season. Learn more
For: Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🌚Holiday Observance, ✊Social Justice, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine, Kabbalah
🤔Questions? elana.june.margolis@gmail.comcourse
🆕Alef-beys Yiddish Alphabet Course with Moishele Alfonso (Yiddish Book Center)
📆starts September 3, 2024
💻virtual
Learn and practice the Yiddish alphabet in this intensive four-day online course taught by Moishele Alfonso. This course will focus on reading and pronouncing the printed Yiddish alphabet, with an introduction to handwriting. Optional homework exercises will be provided. Space is limited; registration closes August 30. Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 📚Education, Yiddish
🤔Questions? info@yiddishbookcenter.orgVirtual retreat
Queer Yiddish Camp Intensive (Queer Yiddish Camp & Rad Yiddish)
📆November 3-17, 2024
💻virtual
Queer Yiddish Camp is a two-week online Yiddish intensive from for ALL levels. Take language, literature, song, history, and culture classes from an all-queer faculty of world-renowned Yiddish teachers, scholars, artists, activists, and cultural workers!
Follow our socials @queeryiddishcamp to find out when registration opens. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education, 🥳Social, ✊Social Justice, 🎶Music, Yiddish
🤔Questions? info@queeryiddish.camp🌎 retreats outside canada
retreat
Family Farm Camp (Adamah)
📆August 14-18, 2024
📍USA > MD > Reisterstown > Pearlstone Campus
RETREAT, FARM, LEARN AND CELEBRATE AT FAMILY FARM CAMP! Family Farm Camp brings together families for an immersive experience of learning, playing, celebrating and community building.
Earth-based Jewish wisdom is woven into campfire songs and storytelling, wild edible walks and brachot (blessings), high adventure ropes course & team building games, night hikes, and of course a vibrant and joyous Shabbat celebration! Our schedule includes a drop-off camp component, activities for the whole family, and programming at night once kids are in bed. Learn more
For: Families
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌿Nature
🤔Questions? alustig@pearlstonecenter.orgretreat
🆕Rosh Hashanah at Isabella Freedman (Adamah)
📆October 2-6, 2024
📍USA > CT > Falls Village > Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center
Start the new year with us surrounded by the natural beauty of the Berkshires! Mornings are filled with meaningful spirited prayer led by inspiring leaders in the beautiful setting of the Berkshires amongst the tall trees and sparkling lake. Afternoons and evenings are packed with leisure activities, classes and fun, including special programs for children. We offer the highest quality organic kosher meals to Jews of all denominations and backgrounds. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness
🤔Questions? registrar@adamah.orgretreat
🆕Rosh Hashanah with Hadar’s Rising Song Institute (Hadar’s Rising Song Institute & Adamah)
📆October 2-6, 2024
📍USA > MD > Reisterstown > Pearlstone Campus
This Rosh Hashanah, gather with family and friends at Pearlstone outside Baltimore for a transformative musical New Year and Shabbat experience. Enjoy the changing autumn season with four days of song-filled traditional egalitarian davening, vibrant community, delicious organic kosher food, and ample outdoor farm space for kids and families.
Davening led by Joey Weisenberg, Rabbi Aviva Richman, and Rabbi Elie Kaunfer will be complemented by profound divrei Torah and inspiring classes from the Rising Song and Adamah team and our special guest speakers. Highlights include outdoor nature activities, engaging children’s programming, communal meals, and singing throughout the program. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🎶Music, 🙏Religion & Spirituality
🤔Questions? registrar@adamah.orgretreat
🆕May I Become Ready: a season of High Holy Day Offerings / a Portal for Transformation (Elana-June Margolis)
📆October 2-27, 2024
📍USA > CA > Ukiah > Mariposa Institute
How long has it been since October 7th, 2023? A year, a week, a lifetime, a generation? How can we metabolize & reckon with all that has occurred, been revealed, been destroyed, been desecrated? How can we grieve the genocide? How can we integrate all that has emerged, all we have witnessed/ embodied in the fierce, brilliant resistance rising? How can we take responsibility? How can we be transformed & grow together through this moment? How can we continue to connect to hope, to joy, to love, knowing that all of these are essential elements in any movement moving towards liberation?
The season will be anchored by three retreats during Rosh ha Shana, Yom Kippur and Shemini Atzeret/ Simchat Torah. Guests are welcome to register for any/ all of these gatherings, as well as to stay for days in between to engage in personal practice during unprogrammed time.
Retreat Offerings:
- B’Tzelem (in the Image): a Rosh ha Shana retreat for Queer/ Trans Jews on an anti-Zionist path
- Yom Kipportal: a Yom Kippur retreat for Queer/ Trans Jews on an anti-Zionist path
- Ending is Beginning (One Year Later): a Hoshana Rabba/ Shemini Atzeret/ Simchat Torah retreat
Learn more
For: Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? elana.june.margolis@gmail.comretreat
Rest to Return: A Days of Awe Deceleration Retreat (Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife & friends)
📆October 7-10, 2024
📍USA > CT > West Cornwall > Trinity Retreat Center
In a culture that pushes us to go fast, Rest to Return is an opportunity to slow down in order to root deeply as we prepare to move into 5785. This retreat, held during the Days of Awe, will invite us to engage in facilitated rest, reflection and connection through song, prayer, ritual, reflective writing, art-making, wandering, wondering, dreaming, and more. Hosted by Kohenet Keshira haLev Fife (and friends TBC), this is an opportunity to bring meaning and connection to the process of yeshivah (returning). Learn more
For: Adults, Jewish Leaders
Tags: 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness
🤔Questions? keshira@keshirahalev.comretreat
🆕The Art of Possibility: A Yom Kippur Retreat 5785 (Jewish Studio Project)
📆October 11-13, 2024
📍USA > CA > Simi Valley > Brandeis Bardin Campus
We invite you this Yom Kippur to join us in Simi Valley, CA (near Los Angeles) for a two-day creativity retreat! At this one-of-a-kind immersive experience we will draw on the power of our inherent creativity to access the deep meaning and healing potential of this sacred time in the Jewish calendar. Through a mix of prayer, ritual, text study and art-making we will open ourselves to the possibility of release, renewal and forgiveness in the year to come. Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 🌚Holiday Observance, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness
🤔Questions? info@jewishstudioproject.org📢 announcements
job
🆕The Morris Winchevsky School is hiring an Education Director! (The United Jewish People's Order)
📆start date August 19, 2024
📍Ontario > Toronto > 918 Bathurst St.
We are currently hiring an Education Director for the Morris Winchevsky School. This part-time position offers a unique opportunity for the right person to join an established organization with a strong and active Board of Directors, a small staff and a passionate membership who treasure a culture steeped in social justice.
We are looking for an enthusiastic staff member who:
• Understands and will champion social justice, antiracist, and secular Jewish values
• Is committed to inclusive, respectful, democratic engagement and leadership
• Is able to promote and integrate secular Jewish culture, education and social action into all facets of the shule’s curriculum and holidays
• Is eager to make an impact, and turn values into education and events
Learn more
For: Adults
Tags: 🎨Art & Craft, 📚Education, 🥳Social, 🌿Nature, 🌚Holiday Observance, ✊Social Justice, 🎶Music, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine
🤔Questions? ed@winchevskycentre.orgweekly anti-Zionist grief circle
🆕Kruim Yachad (Torn Together): Diasporist Griefwork for the Longhaul (JVP Havurah)
📆August 5, 2024 / 8:30-10PM ET, 5:30-7PM PT
💻virtual
Kruim Yachad (Torn Together) is a weekly space for Jews to gather to metabolize our grief over the recent and (at the time of this writing) ongoing genocide in Palestine. Weekly sessions will incorporate a variety of Jewish grief technologies, including (but not limited to) prayer, kriah (tearing fabric), song, movement, lighting candles and work with sacred plants. Learn more
For: Adults, Queer & Trans Jews
Tags: 📚Education, ✊Social Justice, 🙏Religion & Spirituality, ✨Wellness, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine, Grief
🤔Questions? elana.june.margolis@gmail.comannouncement
Arabic language lessons (Palestinian Arabic Bridge)
Palestinian Arabic Bridge is a small and quickly growing mutual aid project which connects those who want to learn Arabic with Palestinians in the West Bank who are offering online Arabic lessons and conversation practice. Learn more
For: Everyone
Tags: 📚Education, 🥳Social, ✊Social Justice, 🇮🇱Israel/🇵🇸Palestine, Language
🤔Questions? PAB.connect.info@gmail.comyelling into a virtual megaphone 📣
while ringing a virtual bell 🔔
while unfurling a long parchment scroll 📜
— and sending love as i do it,
💖 vlada, AKA your shtetl crier