Tikun Layl Shavuot 5770 Program Ideas Shavuot in a nutshell: "And you shall observe the Feast of Weeks, of the first fruits of wheat harvest." (Exodus 34:22) weeks refers to the countdown from Pesach to receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai (49 days or seven weeks). Shavuot is one of the three Pilgrim festivals when Jews would make Pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem Other names for Shavuot include: Chag HaBikurim- the Festival of the first fruits- this holiday falls during the harvest season, it is a time when the fruits of the first harvest were brought to the Temple Z man Mantan Torah- the Time of the Giving of the Torah Chag Hakatzir: The Harvest Festival - this holiday marks the receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Following enslavement in Egypt, the Israelites wandered in the desert and became a nation, forming a covenant with God as God s people through the revelation of God s Law at Sinai. Customs include: Eating dairy (blintzes, cheesecake, dairy kuugel, oh my!) to remember the Israelites vegetarian diet before receiving the Law passed on to Moshe. Reading the Book of Ruth- Shavuot is the harvest festival, this is nature bears the first fruits of the season. The story of Ruth takes place during the harvest season. Additional reason can be that Ruth chose Judaism. By receiving the Torah, we chose to accept God s laws. Staying up all night and studying Torah! A text source for this custom is from the Mishneh B rurah 494:1: "Know that whoever does not sleep at all on this night and is involved in learning Torah, he is promised that he will complete the year and that no harm will befall him." What could be more fun for a USYer (and Kadimanik who thinks they can!) than staying up all night?!?
There is also a Midrash that says that the Israelites were sleeping when God gave them the Torah and God had to wake them. We therefore do not sleep in order to remind ourselves to be awake and aware to celebrate receiving the Torah. Looking for ideas for what to do at an all-night program?!? 1. Use some of these ideas to study the Ten Commandments through activity and discussion (Exodus/Shemot 20:6-13). As a general activity on the Ten Commandments, try some of these ideas: Rank them in your own order of most important to least Invent your own 10 commandments that all humanity should follow Decide which ones of more difficult to follow than others Decide which are particularly Jewish and which are universal Think of examples from your own life of when this commandment applied to you ( murder does not necessarily have to be the literal taking of a life but can be re-interpreted). Act out the real life examples as it applied to your life. Debate it: consider the origin of these rules. Did God really speak to Moshe using human language? Was Moshe Divinely inspired? *see below for more ideas on Revealing the Revelation Google images offers a variety of artistic depictions of each of the Ten Commandments. Print a couple of piece of art on each commandment and post them on the walls of the room. Have the group members choose the one they feel best represents the meaning or significance of the commandment. Try a few of these activities to focus on the individual rules: Commandment Questions Ideas I am the Lord, your God who took you out from the land of Egypt Why does God remind us of our enslavement right off the bat? What is the connection between being enslaved as a people and receiving the Torah? From Slavery to Freedom: Shavuot marks seven weeks from Exodus to receiving the Torah. Imagine you were an Israelite during this time. What would you life had looked like in those seven weeks? Imagine you are writing a blog about your experience. Go around the circle and have each person describe their experience,
You shall have no other gods before me You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God in vain. Remember the Shabbat day and keep it holy Why do human beings have such trouble grasping the God concept? Would it be easier to connect to the idea of God if we could picture God as an image? Why is one God such a core tenet of Jewish belief? Why do we tend to blame God for misfortunes but are less likely to thank God for wonderful things that occur? If God presents only 10 rules to live by, why do you think keeping Shabbat is in the top five? In what ways can we make this commandment a priority in our lives? one sentence at a time until you ve told (somewhat of) a story of the journey to Sinai. We not make images of God and struggle to apply anthropomorphic ideas to God. It is difficult for human beings to imagine what God is. We can however imagine when God is moments of Godliness, as well as what God does. Through discussion, drama or metaphors, discuss when God is, what is Godly or examples of what God does. Example: God is when thousands of people rallied together to aid the victims of the Haiti earthquake. Forgiving a friend for hurting your feelings is Godly behavior. Have a volunteer sit in a chair in the middle of a circle and have the group come up with questions to ask God when you re angry, frustrated or let down. Although the commandment is not to take God s name in vain, we can still reach out to God when we re feeling angry or depressed and question God s motives. Although silly, a good game to play to demonstrate the sanctity of Shabbat as day of rest is Red Light, Green light. The key to making this game relevant and for more mature audiences is to discuss it with questions such as: How does the action of green light feel? Are you rushed, stressed, is it chaotic? What does the action red light teach us? What if we never listened to
Honor your Father and your Mother. How has your relationship with your parents changed over time? What does it teach you about unconditional love? Can you still respect your parents even though you don t always agree with their rules? How? the red light cue and just kept going and going? Think about how stressful your life can get when you re bound by time and activities. If you don t stop it and drop it, you ll burn out and break down! Another fun game to play for Kadima-aged participants is the Paper Push. Using trash bags full of torn newspapers, spill the newspaper onto the floor so it is covered. Then give the group 20-30 seconds to pick up every little piece of paper as quickly as possible. The point of the game is that there is never enough time to do what it is you need to get done. If you don t stop and step back, you ll always feel stressed out and exhausted. Learning to communicate with Kavod: Role play different scenarios or common arguments your group members have with their parents and try and come up with effective methods of communication that demonstrate mutual respect and understanding. Discuss controversial arguments such as can you still respect a parent who has committed a crime or done something immoral?
You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal What else can you murder without taking a life? The sanctity of commitment: What are some of the other signs of commitment other than not cheating on your spouse? Can you commit adultery without crossing physical boundaries? How can you relate to this commandment without being married? If no one sees you and you can guarantee you would not be caught, would you steal something? When you take something that belongs to someone else, what else do you steal other than an object? What can you steal that can never be replaced? Use a case study from a popular TV show such as Law and Order or Private Practice to present a controversial case such as euthanasia, the death penalty or mercy abortion (aborting a fetus that would be born with life threatening complications). Hold a mock trial and split the group into defense and prosecution. Signs of Loyalty: What are the signs of loyalty one can express to a loved one? Build a human pyramid representing the foundations or character traits of loving and committed relationships. Rubber band activity- how far can you go without snapping? Ask one volunteer to place a rubber band between two hands, palms facing each other. Ask the group to come up with factors that pull people apart or challenge a relationship. Use the rubber band to test how far the relationship can stretch before snapping. Discuss their responses to the analogy. Perform a trust exercise such as the circle game where everyone stands in a circle, shoulder to shoulder and volunteer in the middle, crosses his/her arms, closes his/her eyes and falls, trusting the members of the circle to support him/her. Ask the volunteer how it felt to rely on others to support him/her and what would happen if the group members didn t catch him/her as
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor (do not lie) You shall not want what your neighbor has. Debate: is it okay to lie if it is to spare one s feelings? Have you ever been in really hot water because of a lie? Is it better to tell the truth and risk the consequences then to lie and possibly be caught in the lie? Debate both situations. It is human nature to lie. Why? What are the types of things we tend to lie about? What types of lies are worse than others? Have you ever felt so jealous that you behaved irrationally or done something you regret? Why do our feelings of want get the best of us? What do you think you have that could make others jealous? Is recognizing what you have he/she fell backwards. Explain: when you steal from someone, you steal their sense of security and trust. Most of us trust others around us that our security will not be threatened. When someone steals from us, whether it be our safety or an object, we lose our sense of security and trust and become emotionally distraught. Stealing is not just taking an object. Activity: Caught in a lie Ask one person to leave the room. Set up some kind of obstacle course as a group using different objects or furniture at your disposal. When the person re-enters the room, blindfold him/her and explain that he/she will have to reach the end of the obstacle course, blindfolded. He/she will struggle and stumble to get through. Be sure to spot him/her to ensure he/she does not get hurt. Debrief the experience: How did it feel trying to get yourself out of this maze? What did it look like as an observer, watching this person try to break free? How can we relate this experience or activity to the idea of lying? Pirkei Avot 4:1- "Who is rich? He who is happy with what he has." Use this quote to provide background to this quick activity. Distribute smiley face stickers to the group. Ask each group member to turn to a partner
enough to prevent you from feeling jealous? Is good enough or just enough ever enough? Is there anything you own that you couldn t live without? Is there anyone in your life that you couldn t live without? and discuss the idea of gratitude. Ask them to give their sticker to their friend and share one thing that makes them happy, that they are grateful for. Explain that by sharing (both an item and your thoughts) with another, you share in their gratitude. Option 2: distribute small mirrors (99 cent store) and ask each person to look deeply into the reflection and think of 3 material and nonmaterial things for which they are grateful. Explain that when you look in a mirror, you often look at the outside and wish you could see something different (different features, different clothing, a different person altogether) but when you take the time to deeply reflect and consider the inner self, it can be easier to appreciate what is there rather than what isn t. 2. Time for Torah Pirkei Avot 5:25 Ben Bag-Bag used to say of the Torah: Turn it and turn it again, for everything is in it. Pore over it, and wax gray and old over it. Stir not from it for you can have no better rule than it. It is customary to stay up all night and study Torah. Why study the Torah over and over? Because each time we look at it, we discover something new and can apply and re-apply it to our own lives. Try taking common biblical stories and acting them out with in 21 st century terms. Example: Moshe uses a GPS (God s Positioning System) to guide the Israelites through the desert. It is amazing how each generation that reads these same stories, is able to turn it and turn it again and see it on their own terms. 3. The Story of Ruth: Friendship and Loyalty (for more activities and discussion questions on the story of Ruth, friendship and loyalty, please order a copy of Love Your Neighbor, Love Yourself, United Synagogue Youth, 2009 available at: https://secure.uscj.org/bookservice/bookdetail.asp?item_id=686&).
"This scroll [of Ruth] tells nothing either of cleanliness or of uncleanliness, neither of prohibition or permission. For what purpose then was it written? To teach how great is the reward of those who do deeds of kindness" (Midrash Ruth Rabbah 2.13). Use the story of Megilat Ruth to discuss ideas of kindness, friendship and loyalty. (The full text of Megilat Ruth can be found at: http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt2901.htm) Text source:...where you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God... (Ruth 1:16) Examples: Our own sense of loyalty and commitment to our friends has been tested a number of times. Apply the story and themes of Ruth to your own lives! Act out a modern day scenario of the story of Ruth. What would the story of Ruth look like in the 21 st century? Lean on Me- Use songs about friendship to discuss concepts of allegiance and loyalty. Use examples from film and television to highlight examples of true friendship and friendship that has been tested Use the Ruth story to discuss concepts of how to distinguish between artificial friends (those who appear to be your friends but then end up hurting you or friends from online communities that may not be true friends) and authentic friendship. Jews By Choice- Packing for College (particularly appropriate for Juniors and Seniors) Explain: Ruth is considered the first Jew by choice or convert (this term is less common now-a-days). Why do you think someone who wasn t born Jewish would choose Judaism? Do you feel you sometimes take being Jewish for granted? How can you learn to appreciate Judaism more and re-discover it, choose to embrace it more as you grow into adulthood and prepare to make your own choices as you get closer to college? Once on your own at college, you too will choose whether to make Judaism a part of your life. You will always be Jewish but how will Judaism be part of your daily living? Ask the group to imagine a metaphorical suitcase they will take with them to college. OR bring a literal suitcase or duffle bag and ask each person to throw in elements of Jewish life (including ethics and values, ritual objects and customs) one by one. Pose some of the following questions:
What elements of Jewish life will they pack and be sure to take with them as they move out on their own? Why choose those specific ones? Is finding Jewish life on campus a priority for you? What about a Conservative Jewish community such as Koach? Why would this be important to seek? (example: finding Jews like you). The first few weeks of college can be very intimidating and lonely. How does being Jewish help alleviate the difficult transition? How does the Judaism you hope to take with you differ from the Judaism your parents may pack for you? Is your suitcase lighter or heavier or just packed differently? Summary: Ruth chose her own path toward becoming a Jew. You are already a Jew but your choice comes in how you choose to define your Judaism. Are you going to follow others, follow your parents as Ruth followed Naomi or 4. The Story of Ruth and Other Voices of Biblical Women Read the poem We All Stood Together by Merle Feld and ask: We all stood Together by Merle Feld My brother and I were at Sinai He kept a journal of what he saw of what he heard of what it all meant to him I wish I had such a record of what happened to me there It seems like every time I want to write I can t I m always holding a baby one of my own or one for a friend always holding a baby so my hands are never free to write things down And then As time passes The particulars The hard data The who what when where why Slip away from me And all I m left with is The feeling
But feelings are just sounds The vowel barking of a mute My brother is so sure of what he heard After all he s got a record of it Consonant after consonant after consonant If we remembered it together We could recreate holy time Sparks flying Core Question: Whose voice do we hear in this poem? Whose voice is represented that is often missing in biblical stories? How else do we remember the female voice on Shavuot? Explanation: What is truly remarkable about the story of Ruth is the power of loyalty between women. Ruth and Naomi stand out as noble women, whose faithfulness toward one another is an example of the strength of women to lean on and support one another. The voice of the woman is often missing from many biblical stories and Megilat Ruth gives us a chance for Ruth (and other women) to speak up and be heard. Activity: create your own Midrash (a interpretation by word, dance, a creative play) of: a) a woman at Sinai re-telling the story in the Women s Tent of Meeting to her daughters b) a paraphrased or ad-libbed version of the Ruth story that includes inner dialogue that may have occurred between the characters that isn t actually in the text. c) Ruth s blog or diary entry d) the male perspective- imagine you were Boaz and re-enact a conversation that may have occurred between Ruth and Boaz. 5. Re-enacting Sinai: A Camp Out We all stood at Sinai The generation of Jews who stood at Sinai and received the Torah represented all future generations of Jews. Each year on Shavuot, we recall (and have the chance to re-discover ) the Revelation or Sinai experience of our ancestors as if we ourselves were present: I make this covenant with its sanctions not with you alone, but both with those who are standing here with us this day before the Eternal our God and with those who are not with us here this day. (Deuteronomy 29:13 14) Note that the Torah does not say, those who are not standing here with us this day, rather, it says, those who are not with us here this day. This refers to the souls who will be made in the future, who do
not yet exist. And so it cannot be said that they re standing. But even though they did not exist at that moment, every single one received its share in the Torah. Exodus Rabbah 28:10 6. The Revelation at Sinai What exactly are we commemorating on Shavuot? What is the Revelation at Sinai and how can we uncover its mystery? a) Seeing Sinai: Use these texts to explore the experience at Sinai TEXT 1: Seeing the Voices All the people saw the voices (Exodus 20:15). The voice was that which said, I am the Eternal your God [second-person, singular]. Each one of Israel saw the root of his or her own life force. With his or her very eyes, each one saw the part of the divine soul that lives within. They had no need to believe the commandments because they saw the voices. That s the way it is when God speaks. S fat Emet, Parashat Yitro 2:91 TEXT 2: Additional text to discuss the voices of God (ask the group if this text looks familiar to them- it is the Psalm we sing when returning the Torah to the Ark!) Pslam 29 ג קוֹל י הו ה, ע ל-ה מּ י ם: א ל-ה כּ בוֹד ה ר ע ים; י הו ה, ע ל-מ י ם ר בּ ים. ד קוֹל-י הו ה בּ כּ ח ; בּ ה ד ר. קוֹל י הו ה, ה קוֹל י הו ה, שׁ ב ר א ר ז ים; י הו ה, א ת-אַר ז י ה לּ ב נוֹן. ו ו יּ ר קיד ם כּ מוֹ-ע ג ל; ל ב נוֹן ו שׂ ר י ן, כּ מוֹ ב ן-ר א מ ים. ו י שׁ בּ ר 3 The voice of the LORD is upon the waters; the God of glory thunders, even the LORD upon many waters. 4 The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. 5 The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild-ox. fire. 7 The voice of the LORD hews out flames of ז קוֹל-י הו ה ח צ ב; ל ה בוֹת א שׁ. ח קוֹל י הו ה, י ח יל מ ד בּ ר; י הו ה, מ ד בּ ר ק ד שׁ. ט קוֹל י הו ה, י חוֹל ל אַיּ לוֹת-- ו יּ ח שׂ ף י ע רוֹת: י ח יל 8 The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the LORD makes the hinds to calve, and strips the forests bare; and in His temple all say: 'Glory.'
וּב ה יכ לוֹ-- כּ לּוֹ, א מ ר כּ בוֹד. TEXT 3: Come out, God called, and stand on the mountain before the Eternal. And lo, the Eternal passed by. There was a great and mighty wind, splitting mountains and shattering rocks by the power of the Eternal; but the Eternal was not in the wind. After the wind a mighty earthquake; but the Eternal was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake fire; but the Eternal was not in the fire. And after the fire a still, small voice. I Melachim 19:11 12 What does it mean that all the people saw the voices [of God]? What are the different voices of God and how do we interpret/experience them? Each of us experience God in our own way, at our own time. God is not just to be believed but to be seen, to be experienced. What does this mean? When do you see the voices of God? God is difficult to imagine because the image of God is within us there is no old man with a white beard to picture, but we can experience when God is on a communal level as well as individually. A few ideas to include the senses in a God discussion: Depending on the weather in your area, host a camp-out or indoor mock camp out in order to explore revelation through the senses. Pitch a tent, tell campfire stories and sing songs. Act out the scene from Shemot through a Pantomime. Feel- close your eyes and reach out and grab someone s hand. Feeling closeness to another is experiencing God for some of us See- look into another s eyes and see the reflection of yourself in the pupil- we each can envision a little bit of Godliness in each other Hear- Read the sounds described in the Revelation text from Shemot and ask the group to make these sounds using their bodies and nearby props, similar to the group Stomp. Use the Revelation story as well as Pslam 29 for ideas on sound and voices of God. Tell both stories using only sound and no words. Taste- If you can make a fire, roast marshmallows! The Israelites likely didn t eat marshmallows at Sinai, but the smell of campfire may be similar to the Sinai experience! Make it your own- Re-enact the scene at Sinai using your own interpretation of the events from the text. Make it multi-sensory using actions and sound. Split the group into smaller groups and assign different modes of story telling to each group (examples: sound only, no sound, using everyday English, using words from the text)
Try describing your interpretation without words or ask participants to close their eyes and try reading the text through a visualization exercise. Ask them to imagine they are present. Use pages 97-99 in the USY Publication Conservative Judaism: From Our Ancestors to Our Descendents (available at https://secure.uscj.org/bookservice) to discuss the authority of the Law and different perspectives on Revelation. Study the literal text from Shemot below and compare with the perspectives presented in the book in order to form your own conclusions as to what happened at Sinai. Revelation: A Great Debate! What exactly happened at Sinai? Shemot 19:16-24 טז ו י ה י ב יּוֹם ה שּׁ ל ישׁ י בּ ה י ת ה בּ ק ר, ו י ה י ק ל ת וּב ר ק ים ו ע נ ן כּ ב ד ע ל-ה ה ר, ו ק ל שׁ פ ר, ח ז ק מ א ד; ו יּ ח ר ד כּ ל-ה ע ם, א שׁ ר בּ מּ ח נ ה. יז ו יּוֹצ א מ שׁ ה א ת-ה ע ם ל ק ר את ה א ל ה ים, מ ן-ה מּ ח נ ה; ו יּ ת י צּ בוּ, בּ ת ח תּ ית ה ה ר. יח ו ה ר ס ינ י, ע שׁ ן כּ לּוֹ, מ פּ נ י א שׁ ר י ר ד ע ל יו י הו ה, בּ א שׁ; ו יּ ע ל ע שׁ נוֹ כּ ע שׁ ן ה כּ ב שׁ ן, ו יּ ח ר ד כּ ל-ה ה ר מ א ד. יט ו י ה י קוֹל ה שּׁ פ ר, הוֹל ך ו ח ז ק מ א ד; מ שׁ ה י ד בּ ר, ו ה א ל ה ים י ע נ נּוּ ב קוֹל. כ ו יּ רד י הו ה ע ל-ה ר ס ינ י, א ל-ר אשׁ ה ה ר; ו יּ ק ר א י הו ה ל מ שׁ ה א ל-ר אשׁ ה ה ר, ו יּ ע ל מ שׁ ה. כא ו יּ אמ ר י הו ה א ל-מ שׁ ה, ר ד ה ע ד בּ ע ם: פּ ן-י ה ר סוּ א ל-י הו ה ל ר אוֹת, ו נ פ ל מ מּ נּוּ ר ב. כב ו ג ם ה כּ ה נ ים ה נּ גּ שׁ ים א ל-י הו ה, י ת ק דּ שׁוּ: פּ ן-י פ ר ץ בּ ה ם, י הו ה. 16 And it came to pass on the third day, when it was morning, that there was thunder and lightning and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of a horn exceeding loud; and all the people that were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. 18 Now mount Sinai was altogether on smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. 19 And when the voice of the horn waxed louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by a voice. 20 And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, to the top of the mount; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. 21 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 22 And let the priests also, that come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon
them.' כג ו יּ אמ ר מ שׁ ה, א ל-י הו ה, ל א- יוּכ ל ה ע ם, ל ע ל ת א ל-ה ר ס ינ י: כּ י- אַתּ ה ה ע ד ת ה בּ נוּ, ל אמ ר, ה ג בּ ל א ת-ה ה ר, ו ק דּ שׁ תּוֹ. כד ו יּ אמ ר א ל יו י הו ה ל ך-ר ד, ו ע ל ית אַתּ ה ו אַה ר ן ע מּ ך ; ו ה כּ ה נ ים ו ה ע ם, אַל-י ה ר סוּ ל ע ל ת א ל-י הו ה--פּ ן- י פ ר ץ-בּ ם. כה ו יּ ר ד מ שׁ ה, א ל-ה ע ם; ו יּ אמ ר, א ל ה ם. {ס} 23 And Moses said unto the LORD: 'The people cannot come up to mount Sinai; for thou didst charge us, saying: Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it.' 24 And the LORD said unto him: 'Go, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee; but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest He break forth upon them.' 25 So Moses went down unto the people, and told them 7. Decorate the space with fruits and flowers Shavuot celebrates the harvest season. One Shavuot custom is to decorate the synagogue with fresh fruits and flowers. Create a garden within the synagogue or plant flower pots to decorate the space and celebrate the first fruits. Serve snacks of wheat and fruit 8. Go Dairy! Make no-bake cheesecake bites. Add a Secret Ingredient to make it creative or to turn it into an Iron Chef contest. Recipe: http://www.recipetips.com/recipe-cards/t--2481/nobake-cheesecakeminidesserts.asp Be sure to provide explanation as to why we eat dairy on Shavuot: Until the Israelites received the Torah, they had no guidelines for ritual slaughter of animals. We therefore eat dairy to remind ourselves of the Israelites who refrained from eating meat before receiving God s laws. Torah to the soul is like milk to the body: "Like honey and milk [the Torah] lies under your tongue" (Song of Songs 4:11). To commemorate receiving the Torah, we consume milk products. The Gematria or numerical value for chalav, the Hebrew word for milk is 40. Moshe spent 40 days on Mt. Sinai waiting to receive instruction or Torah. 9. Judaism and Identity- Holy-wood
Shavuot marks the moment when the Israelites became a people. Use http://www.usy.org/yourusy/reled/holy-wood.doc, a discussion on the identity of Hollywood Jews to discuss what it means to be a Jew today and the state of the Jewish people, both its joys and challenges. Have the group come up with their own prayer for the future of the Jewish people or a recipe for Jewish living. What ingredients do we need for the survival of our people? 10. Values and Valuables (Adapted from CHUSYfest 2008, CHUSY Region USY) When we received the Torah, we received our guidebook or manual for ethical living. In today s world however, we tend to lose ourselves to valuables rather than values. Each round is a different activity on the concept of values vs. valuables. Round 1: Using a barometer method where participants stand on a line according to a spectrum of agree to disagree, have them debate some of the following examples of values vs. valuables. Present each value as a Jewish value and discuss how Jewish values are reflected in their actions I would give up all technology for a week if it meant animals would stop being mistreated for that same length of time (Tzar Baalei Chayim- kindness to animals). I think that giving both time and money to charity is important (Tzedaka) I have a part time job both for extra cash to buy new tech toys and clothes but also for the dignity of labor, to be proud of myself and build a sense of work ethic. The earth is for humans to use and enjoy (vs. be partners with God in preserving and caring for it- Shomrei Adama) I should be able to dress how I want to without fear of being judged is misrepresenting myself (Tzniut) I shouldn t have to share my hard earned money with the poor. The government should be taking care of its people (Tzedaka, Tikun Olam) I often wish for more [rank in order] a) time- to spend with friends, family and myself b) money- to spend on items I want c) freedom- to make my own choices, do my own thing
Round 2: Play the game Would You Rather in terms of values vs. valuables by presenting two options and having participants choose which they d prefer. Examples: Would you rather Spend a year with all the money in the world at your disposal or stop world hunger for a day? Would you rather have many different friends or fewer but quality friends? Would you rather be known for your beauty or intellect? Would you rather have tons of money or feel safe and secure? Round 3: Real Life experiences: Values vs. Valuables When in your life have you had to choose between your values and valuables? How did you decide what to do? What were your options? Why were you conflicted or torn? Final Round: If you could choose one valuable that could represent your values what would you choose? Wrap Up Discussion: In a world of obsession with tangible, physical items, we often forget about being thankful for the values we have which as Jews, date back to the moment (or process) of becoming a people at Sinai. What can we do to try and change that thought process? What Torah values do we have as Jews that we should be grateful for and how can we incorporate these into our every day actions? 11. Envisioning the Future Akavya ben Mahalalel said Know from where you came and where you are going Pirkei Avot 3:1. Sinai is where we started. Where are we heading? Prophets were emissaries of God who would relay God s message of hope, warning and redemption to the people. They have the talent to make forecasts and predications under Divine influence. We re not profits but we do have some knowledge of our past in order to move us forward into the future. Split the group into teams and brainstorm the 5 greatest moments of Jewish history from Avraham to today. Then, predict where one could imagine the
Jewish people to be in 50 years. Is it true that one must know one s past in order to know one s future? What do our roots teach us about ourselves as a people? (example: we have faced such adversity and always risen from defeat, we have persevered throughout time as a people despite persecution and hardship). For additional assistance and ideas for your Shavuot program, please contact Amy Dorsch, USY Educator Coordinator at: 212-533-7800 ext.1115