A Place For Everyone At The Table...We Are All Created B'tzelem Elohim

We Are All Made בצלם אלהים Btzelem Elohim

This past weekend I worked with approximately 150 children and their educators at Temple Israel Center (TIC) in White Plains New York on a special project celebrating and learning about inclusion and the connection with the concept of being made B'tzelem Elohim (In God's Image).  

For this project students studied three Jewish texts that teach us about being made in God's image, and importantly, what this means for us as humans--what are our responsibilities to ourselves, our planet, our neighbors?  

Text One:

 And God said: 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.' 27 And God created man in His own image, in the image of God created him; male and female created He them. 28 And God blessed them; and God said unto them: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have rule over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that lives on the earth.‘    -Genesis 1:26-1:28

Text Two:

(Rabbi Akiva)would say, ‘Human beings are beloved because they were created in the image of God. It is an even greater love that this was made know to humanity, as it says, "and in the image of God were people created."-Mishnah Pirkei Avot 3:14 

Text Three:

Rabbi Hama, son of Rabbi Hanina, said: What does the Torah mean when it says: “You shall walk in the ways of the Lord(Deuteronomy 13:5).”  Can a person really walk in the shadow of God?  Rather, it means that you should imitate the ways of God… Just as God visits the sick, so you too should visit the sick.  Just as God comforts those who are sad, so you too should comfort those who are sad.   --Babylonian Talmud, Sota 14a

Each text presents a different perspective, and we used them to layer our conversation to come up with what it means to be made in God's image. We talked about being stewards of our environment, about including and loving all people, no matter how different they are, and about how being made in God's imge is not about how we look but about how we act.    

Then I taught students how to use watercolor resist using oil pastels and watercolor paint, and they created self portraits that showed how they were uniquely made in God's image.  

Student portraits included images of themselves taking care of animals, being kind to their friends, planting trees, painting, dancing, playing sports, reading and doing math amongst other things.  

They were able to demonstrate their uniqueness in a way that celebrated themselves along with God and creation.  It was a beautiful thing.  

Once the study and art creation was complete, I gathered all the artwork together and began the two day process of transforming this table into a complete work of art.  

I prepared the surface for our work (and used a hand sander for the first time!)

I cut out each and every piece of artwork, so that I could layer the self portraits and their details in an appealing way.  then I began laying out the images.  

I designed the table so that no matter which angle you approached it from, the faces would always be looking at you.  

I layered the self portraits and the special details, and used Mod Podge to seal them on the table.

I used acrylic paint to paint the sides and fill in the gaps where the artwork did not overlap.

And then, based on the conversations and text study, I used paint pens (Liquitex has some amazing ones) to detail the edges with the students' own words on the meaning of being made B'tzelem Elohim.

Here are some final close up pictures before the table gets its acrylic table top (for protection).  This table will live in this alcove, with the benches, for learners and community members to use and enjoy for many years to come.

I had an amazing time working with this community.  Thanks for having me Temple Israel Center!

Hayom Harat Olam, Today the Earth is Born Anew.

On Rosh Hashanah we hear the shofar blast and recite "Hayom Harat Olam"  Today the world is born. I just love this idea--this concept of renewal and rebirth.  Today we are fresh and our world is fresh.  We are filled with the potential of tomorrow, we are pregnant with all that is possible.  Today we await what will be and we are also the creators of what will be.

-Mystical Earth

I am ready for this new year. I have great hopes for myself, my family and my community. I have two nephews and a niece to love and spoil, and another new nephew on his way. We have an upcoming  wedding that will bring joy to a family that has known too much sorrow.  My own children bring so much light and joy and laughter.  They are growing too fast and it is a pleasure to witness. My husband has meaningful work and our community continues to embrace us alongside him.  My work is satisfying and I keep finding new projects to keep me learning and growing. I have some hopes too. Perhaps this will be the year that I will finally let go of the behaviors that weigh me down and the parts of my life that are not as they should be.  Who knows what will be. Today is pregnant with eternity. Today is my chance to make change.  

With Best Wishes For a Shana Tovah! Happy New Year!

Making Micrography and Text Study at Camp

This Summer I taught at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires (Chinuch Staff, Yahadut for those of you playing along in Ramah Hebrew).  I was excited but nervous---I have loved my two previous years in the art room (omanut), and was not sure what to expect with the switch.

In true Jewish Leaning Thru Art form, I wanted to make sure that my classes included both real art creation and meaningful Jewish learning.  I worked with incoming 7th graders (Tzeirim) and 9th graders (Bogrim).

Our first project was based on the art form known as micrography or microcalligraphy.  I taught students about the history of the form, which developed in Egypt in the late 9th century, as a response to the Halackhic (Jewish Law) prohibition against creating graven images (images that could be used in idol worship). The rationale behind micrography was that an image created out of holy words could never be used in idol worship.  Interestingly, at the same time, and completely independently, this same art form arose in the Muslim world, as a response to a similar prohibition.  It seems that all cultures have the same need to create, and given a prohibition that attempts to block this urge, artists will go to great lengths to work around it.

Omer Calendar (detail)

Italy, ca. 1825 Micrographic text: Five Megillot (Esther, Ruth, Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, and Lamentations) B (NS)Mc43

My campers looked at traditional micrographic images and talked about the reasons for the development of the art form. Then we looked at modern images and played with the technique.
Then, we pulled out the siddurim (prayer books).

Each student chose a prayer or text from Siddur Sim Shalom to study.  they talked about the prayers in Chevruta (study partnerships) to help them deepen their understanding of the prayer and its meanings:

After studying they created images using watercolor paint and pencil, and filled them in with the words of the text using sharpie markers.

These campers worked really hard, they learned a lot, and had a chance to slow down and really consider the words of prayer and their meanings.  I was so proud of them and really loved working with them!

Why Jewish Art Education???

There is an old Robert Frost Poem that says that "good fences make good neighbors".  And while the premise is just that, and the two neighbors spend their time mending the walls between them, Frost guides us to wonder: just because conventional wisdom says walls and borders and fences are good, does that really make it true?
When it comes to education, I have to think that good fences make for neighbors who are cut off from each other, who don't every really see eye to eye, who don't work together, and are weaker for it. Unless, as Frost suggests, we have cows who need to be fenced in, perhaps we don't really need the fences at all.  (*note: I originally came across this analogy in an article by Connie Dalke on art education and special needs inclusion,There are no cows here, 1984)

The prevailing ethos in general education is blending--engaging in multi media experiences, using technology and integrating subjects to create a more holistic learning approach.  When we really focus on our learners and their experience, rather than on our teaching and our experience, we see that making connections and integrating subjects really values our learners as a whole. Our learners' brains are not wired with fences between subjects.  Our learners' brains are glorious connection making machines.

This is why, when talking about the arts in Jewish education, it is so surprising to me when they get shrugged off.  As a synagogue educator I KNOW that we are facing a lack of time, a paucity of resources, and a crisis of disconnection.  When forced to make choices, it is easy to see why "the arts" may fall off the list of offerings.  And yet, ESPECIALLY because we are so limited, we NEED the arts even more.

I am not talking about adding craft projects to an already overloaded schedule.  While there is a time and a place for making kiddush cups and challah covers, this is not what I am referencing.  What I am talking about is arts integration--using arts based techniques to help teach and reflect on core curricular topics. In this model, the arts are used as a tool for teaching and reflection.  In our settings, when we teach Torah and reflect on relationships by acting them out, or by giving voice to a silent character, this is using the arts to further our learning.  When we create T'fillah (prayer) Stones that reflect on our intentions when we enter into prayer, or when we illustrate our own prayer books, this is arts integration.  When we slow down, focus on the process of learning and creating, rather than the speedy accumulation of skills, we are using the lessons of art integration.

 Our students are interested in meaning---they want to know about relevance.  And so while skills and literacy are building blocks that we cannot do without, if we do not provide them with context, with an opportunity to slow down and consider their relevance, then we are providing tools for a job (being Jewish), that our students may never choose to take on.

Not to be too dire, but the reality we are facing is one in which our students KNOW that Judaism is a choice, are often frustrated with the time they are spending on learning about that choice, and, given a lack of context, meaning or relevance, may very well end up making a different choice about what they believe or how they live in the long run.  We are fighting a battle for survival, and no amount of dikduk (Hebrew grammar), or ritual divorced from real life experience is going to help us.

In the long run, our only choice is to educate towards greater spiritual engagement, to explore moral education, to present our tradition in terms of the great human desires: for belonging, for creative exploration, for moral development, for connection.  When viewed with this lens, we know that Judaism and Jewish Education have much to offer.  And there is no field more ready to help take this on in real, human ways, than the arts.

When engaged in the arts, our students are able to slow down, to consider the many sides of a topic. The arts help us to think about meaning in metaphorical terms. They inspire us (even require us) to make our own connections.  The use of stories, dramatic interpretations, the creation of prayer imagery, the reconstructing of Biblical relationships, are all ways to make learning come alive.  Our students are thirsty for this kind of learning.  It is our job to provide it for them.