We just began a new unit on Hallel / Praise. We’re looking to a few different Jewish texts to think about how praise can help us notice, appreciate, and protect the best parts of the world around us.
These are some snippets of conversation from this week when we studied some of the birkhot hashar (morning blessings). The day of these conversations, we were studying these two brakhot (blessings) in-depth:
“Wow God! You gave me the opportunity to be part of the Jewish community.”
“Wow God! You created me a free person.”
We told our students to story from 20+ years ago of how Billings, Montana rose up as a community against white supremacist groups in their town as a way to think about how we freedom and being in community are so intertwined. To read more about that story, click here.
What communities are you a part of?
- School
- Driveway
- Block
- Sidewalk
- Classroom
- Makom Community
- Synagogue
- Ocean City Beach
- Pool club
- family
What do I do to stand up for people in my community?
- Tell a bully that what they’re doing is wrong
- Tell someone who is bullied that I see what’s happening
- Tell an adult that you need help to protect a friend
- Say, “What are you doing? That’s not right.” when I see someone hurting someone in my community
How do I contribute to the communities I’m a part of?
- By being kind to the people in the community before me (“the people who own it”)
- Respect what was built before I got here– standards of behavior, brit
- Take something that isn’t great about a community you’re a part of and change it
Do free people get to do whatever they want?
- Yes! No one tells us what to do!
- No! Being free means everyone gets what they need and does what they can. That’s not what’s happening yet. People wouldn’t have everything they need if they could do whatever they want.
- No! Even adults have someone who tells them what to do– bosses.
- Yes! Free means not having big evil things in life like torture and hate. It’s not about someone telling you that you can’t have ice cream.
Who is not free?
- Someone who is homeless– less resources = less choices
- Children- have parents and adults who make lots of choices for them
- Parents- responsible for children, and that limits their lives
- Animals- people use them for clothes and food
- A prisoner- whether they are innocent or guilty
What am I free to do?
- Help other people
- Use it [freedom] wisely! Watch TV, but don’t get spoiled. Make sure your teacher doesn’t get mad if you get a bad grade
- Play! Do things that bring me joy
- Stand up for my friends. If I don’t, they could be locked in a cage of a bad situation.
- Get what I need [not just what I want].