Boneh update: northern tiyul, modern Israel, sister chava seminar, and more

Hello from Ein Dor and happy Jerusalem Day!  The last couple weeks of classes here have been spent learning about the history of the modern state of Israel and the Arab- and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts. The chanichim began the module by learning about the United Nations Partition Plan, the establishment of the state in 1948, and the wars that surrounded those events. Then, they moved on to consider the massive demographic shifts that occurred in connection with those wars regarding Jewish and Palestinian refugees.

The module continued with the Six-Day War, particularly the terrifying march to war as well as examining its euphoric aftermath. The chanichim discussed how that war affected the way that Israelis and, indeed, world Jewry thought of themselves and of their state. They also considered the role of the developing Palestinian leadership in the 60s, 70s, and 80s.

The week rounded out with ruminations on the last several decades. The chanichim looked at the era of Yitzhak Rabin and the peace process, of Israel and Palestine on the edge of disentanglement and cooperation. Finally, they examined the last decade or so of seemingly directionless conflict, including the reactions of the Israeli and Palestinian public towards the violence and perceived stagnation.

In connection with the module, Neil Harris – HDUK boger, co-founder of Kibbutz Tuval, activist and educator – came to help us explore the relationship between the state and four different groups: Jewish citizens of Israel living within the Green Line, Arab citizens of Israel living within the Green Line, Jewish citizens of Israel living in the West Bank and Gaza territory, and Arabs living in the West Bank and Gaza.

The chanichim also watched a couple of movies to help expand on their discussions of the Arab- and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts. Waltz With Bashir (2009) was useful in trying to unravel the very complex histories and issues in Lebanon, and the documentary Promises (2001) gave them a look at Jerusalem youth and how they are affected by the twin prospects of violence and peace in their society.

 Meanwhile, a few weeks ago we took a break from the routine of classes and headed north into the Golan Heights for a four-day northern tiyul.  The group camped at Yehudiya National Park and explored the Golan's strategic and historic significance, as well as its stunning natural landscapes and plentiful water resources. As is the nature of tiyulim, they also bonded as a group and spent time relaxing together, both around beautiful natural waterfalls and back at the campsite.   A tzevet of chanichim who chose to be involved in the planning and implementation of the tiyul prepared food and activities as well as taking a leadership role in each day of hiking.  

Finally, this past weekend the group went through the Sister Chava Seminar - a meeting with a kvutza of Israelis their age who are on Shnat with our Israeli sister youth movement, Hanoar Haoved Vehalomed.  The seminar dealt with perspectives on Zionism and Jewish identity, looking at the similarities and different experiences of Jews in Israel and abroad, as well as the common vision the two movements share.  Beyond the ideology the groups also had time to hang out together and just talk, and a lot of connections were formed which we hope will continue.  

Tomorrow morning the group sets out bright and early for the four-day Jerusalem Seminar, exploring a panoply of issues in Israeli society for which Jerusalem is a microcosm.  They will be meeting speakers religious and secular, Jewish and Arab, leftist and West Bank settlement-dwelling.  It promises to be a seriously provocative experience; we'll tell you all about it in the next blog post here!

National holidays, May Day and more

It has now been a couple of weeks since the Shnatties have returned from Pesach Chofesh, and they have had quite an eventful time since then. Upon returning from their break they started an educational module called Chalutziut, during which they explored the ideas of early Socialist Zionist thinkers and the way this impacted the creation of the state. They also looked at the structures and values behind kibbutzim and learned about the Histadrut (General Labor Federation) and the many political factions which influenced the Yishuv (pre-state Jewish community in Palestine) in its early days. 

The chanichim also signed up for the next set of Power Courses, the special interest classes they will be taking for the rest of Boneh. The three options they had to choose from were: The Art of Cooking (where the chanichim will be learning how to make exciting new dishes),Techniques in Acting (where they will be rehearsing and putting on a theatrical performance), and The Real Price of Products (where they will be discussing how consumer goods are made today and how this effects society at large).  The chanichim seemed very excited about all three options and had their first Power Course yesterday!

There have also been quite a few national holidays over the last few weeks. The first of these days was Yom Hashoa (Holocaust Memorial day) during which the chanichim attended the local tekkes (ceremony) on Kibbutz Ein Dor and a national tekkes at Kibbutz Lochme Ha’getaot (Ghetto Fighters kibbutz).  On Lochmei prior to the national tekes, the North American and Dutch Shnatties from Habonim led a meaningful commemoration for all the HD members who were present based on their experiences on the Journey to Poland from which they recently returned, and this gave our Shnatties a lot of food for thought.

They also had a couple of peulot that day about the three “Yomim” that fall in a two week span (Yom Hashoa, Yom Hazikaron, and Yom Ha’atzmaut). During Yom Hazikaron, the Shnatties went to Haifa and participated in the 'Zer Lanofel' operation led by our sister youth movement Hanoar Haoved, in which youth movement members hand out bouquets to the bereaved families which come to visit military cemetaries.  Haifa has had over 1,700 fallen soldiers since the founding of the State and the cemetery was full of people and a very solemn atmosphere; it was very meaningful to be there and observe the atmosphere, as well as taking part in the commemoration.  After the official state ceremony the group had a short peula and read about a member of another Israeli socialist-Zionist youth movement (Hamachanot Haolim) from Haifa who was killed in the Second Lebanon War, as well as marking ANZAC Day which fell on the very same day.  They then were released for their free day for Yom Ha’atzmaut. and many of them travelled to fun city celebrations in Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.

Following Yom Ha’atzmaut, the Shnatties all went to May Day seminar, which is a seminar with all the Habonim Dror English-speaking Shnat groups. The seminar dealt with the place of labor in today’s society and how we relate to work, solidarity, exploitation, and much more.   The groups from different countries bonded extremely well and the discussions were fruitful and interesting, even when there were disagreements.  The seminar also dealt with question of why HD participates in the May Day rally in Tel Aviv, which we then attended this past Tuesday.  The different countries' Shnat groups met up once again on Tuesday for the rally, enjoying the festive atmosphere, the social message and the concert by Israeli pop star Moshe Peretz!   You can see one of the hits he performed here.

This past week, the chanichim have started a module called Dilemmas in Nation Building, where they explore the different questions and challenges that the creators of the state faced, such as the place of religion, how to absorb refugees, and how to create a unified military. They also went on a siyur today in Haifa, examining the relationship between Jews and Arabs in Haifa during the British Mandate period as a microcosm for the Jewish-Arab relationship across the country, examining the roots of the conflict we are still facing today.

Next week the Shnatties are going on a gorgeous tiyul in the Golan Heights. There is a Tzevet Tiyul chosen by the group responsible for planning many aspects of the trip, including evening programs and hiking routes.  We will be sure to take lots of pictures and update you soon!

Update from Boneh

Since the last Boneh update, the chanichim on Boneh have really gotten into the weekly routine. They had 4 full weeks of modules. The first of these weeks, they learned about Jews in the Modern World, during which they discussed what the Jewish community in Europe looked like before the Enlightenment, how things began to change for the Jews during the time of the Enlightenment, the Haskala (Jewish Enlightenment) and the beginnings of religious reform. The following week the Shnatties discussed different roots and forms of anti-Semitism. They discussed theological anti-Semitism and its roots in early Christianity, the Crusades and how they led to laws and violence against Jews, Jewish responses to anti-Semitism, and anti-Semitism in the 19^th century. Following this module, the chanichim explored Zionism. During this week they read many different early Zionist thinkers and approached Zionism from many different angles. They discussed the rise of European nationalism and the beginnings of Jewish nationalism as a product of the time, the idea of Zionism as a creation of a safe haven for Jews, Zionism as economic normalization of a Jewish people, and Zionism as a revival of the Jewish people. This last week before Pesach, the chanichim discussed peoplehood and dove into various topics about what makes Jews a people historically and today.

In the course about Israeli Society today, the chanichim went through a rationale about West Bank settlements, the different reasons people live in the settlements, and their effect on Israel. They also began a learning module about the army and its role in the country. There were two guest speakers who spoke to the Shnatties about this topic. One speaker was Avner, an activist from an organization called Breaking the Silence. Breaking the Silence was founded by soldiers who served during the 2^nd Intifada and felt that some of the things they did during their service were not right and that civilians should be exposed to the realities of the army. While Avner brought difficult content, many chanichim expressed that he was one of the most interesting guest speakers. The other speaker about the army was Shai Bar-Ephraim. Shai is an Oleh from Dutch Habonim who served in a combat unit. Shai discussed his experience serving in the army, bringing a unique perspective of the choice to serve in a combat unit as an oleh and the dilemmas it raised for him.

Another interesting guest speaker who came a few weeks ago was Muki Tzur, a well-known Israeli historian who has written many books about the early kibbutz movement. Muki is always a very unique speaker because as a historian he deals not only with large-scale sociological trends but also researches personal stories and can bring the early kibbutz to life through moving anecdotes.

Aside from guest speakers, the chanichim’s educational experience was also enriched with two siyurim (day trips). On the first siyur, the chanichim went to the art museum at Kibbutz Ein Harod (http://www.museumeinharod.org.il/english/). They saw an exhibition by a Bedouin Arab artist and discussed the place of minorities and specifically Bedouins in Israeli society. There was also artwork by a group of Orthodox feminists and it brought an interesting perspective of the place of women in the Orthodox community.

On the second siyur, the Shnatties visited the archeological site at Bet Shean as a means to understand Israel during ancient and biblical times. They discussed the different civilizations that have lived in Bet Shean and the importance of the land to different people. In the afternoon, we visited Nazareth and discussed the city as an example of both shared and contested space in Israel.

The last week before Pesach break had a number of unique experiences. The first was that each power course ran a peulah (educational activity) for the rest of the Shnatties about their respective topics. This proved to be an extremely meaningful way to share the different experiences and knowledge gained over the last couple of months, and it was extremely gratifying to see them leading their peers in learning and discussion with so much interest in the topics they had chosen to study in a more in-depth way.

Another unique experience to Shnat was the chanichim planning and running their own Pesach seder. The chanichim had a number of peulot about Pesach which led to them writing their own haggadah, planning a menu for Pesach dinner, creating beautiful decorations and then running an outdoor seder on Thursday night. This was truly a great way to finish off the first half of Boneh and send them off to a nice and relaxing break!

Hoping you had a chag sameach!

Teva-Matzpen bonding day

This just in: Machon and Boneh get together for fun, Jewish creativity and bonding! Last Friday, the Boneh kvutzot drove down to Jerusalem for a Teva-Matzpen shichva bonding day. The day started off with presentations by each one of our three Shnat kvutzot about their lives, including a video by Boneh Bet, a song by Boneh Aleph, and a slideshow about life on the Machon. Then the shichva was split into three mixed groups for an open discussion about their different experiences on Boneh and Machon, how each resembles or differs from their expectations before Shnat, and how they feel that the experience is affecting them and their kvutza. It was fascinating to listen in on some of the discussions and hear how how different each kvutza's experience is and how the Shnatties have a lot to offer each other.

Next up was a haramat cosit or toast ceremony in honor of the upcoming Pesach holiday. Again each of the kvutzot was asked to prepare a short activity or reading on one of the themes of Pesach. Rapha from Boneh Bet led a meaningful guided meditation, Boneh Aleph led a short activity writing messages on eggs, and Nathan from Machon read a thought-provoking piece about refugees in Israel today and questions of modern freedom and slavery. The kvutza sang some Pesach and freedom-related songs accompanied by Jesse from Machon on guitar and we all drank a small glass of wine and toasted L'chaim together.

The final part of the day was a very small tiyul to a spring outside Jerusalem called Lifta. This spring and village are actually ancient, mentioned in the Bible and Talmud but today they sit just outside the main entrance to Jerusalem from Highway 1. The group walked together to the spring where we enjoyed delicious and unique sandwiches, the beautiful Jerusalem hills and some fresh air, but mainly just the chance to relax and catch up with their friends from the different programs and spend time together. After lunch we headed back up the hill and headed out to Machon, Boneh or different travel destinations for Shabbat. All in all, a wonderful day which got everyone excited for the upcoming seminars that Machon and Boneh will go through together after the Pesach chofesh.

Daylight savings

Just a quick note to remind everyone that on Friday morning, 30th March, Israel moves the clocks forward 1 hour, and starts daylight savings time. Shabbat shalom!

Boneh Update: Exile and Migration module, Southern Tiyul, Purim festivities and more

Since the last Blog update, the chanichim have had a pretty exciting couple of weeks. The first week’s educational theme was Exile and Migration. The chanichim looked at Jewish history during the First and Second Temple periods and what life in exile looked like after the destruction of the Second Temple. They examined what keeps a Jewish community together and the patterns of migration from the Babylonian exile to the French revolution, including a giant Choose Your Own Adventure style game with simulated stops in Jewish communities throughout the world. This week also included the regular elements of Boneh: Hebrew twice a week (it is amazing to see how much they have learned in a very short period of time!), a peer-led evening program, Hadracha (leadership training), and a course on Israeli Society. The guest speaker for the week was Arieh Malkin, a 92-year old founder of Kibbutz Ein Dor who came to Palestine before the state was established on an Aliyah Bet (illegal ship transporting immigrant refugees). He has an extremely powerful life story and the chanichim were very touched to hear him speak. They also heard a bit from his Australian-born wife who spent time on the youth movements' hachshara farm outside Melbourne. The Shnatties have also settled into the work they are doing on kibbutz. The Kibbutzniks that they work with are very appreciative of the work they do and I think both the chanichim and Kibbutzniks are building positive connections with each other.

The new Power Courses track of elective courses of interest to Boneh participants has been a great success; this 'semester' we are offering Middle East Politics, Gender Relations and Exploring the Exodus Story through Drama. I teach the Middle East politics course which so far has explored the development of Islam, the colonial period in the Middle East and modern Arab nationalism; the discussions have been wide-ranging and I am amazed and excited about the deep interest the Shnatties have brought to the course. At the end of the Power Course 'semester' the participants from each class will build and lead a workshop to teach the rest of their Boneh machzor some of the key elements of what they have learned.

Unfortunately, the Thursday siyur (day trip) for the week was rained out and had to be postponed, but the chanichim had a fun day of programming on the kibbutz.

The following week, we also spent three days in the Judean Desert on Southern Tiyul. The tiyul was a great introduction to the desert, its striking natural beauty and its centrality in the history of the Jewish people from Biblical times until today. It was also an awesome experience of classic youth movement-style tiyul - full days that start by waking up with the sun and then hiking, cooking, cleaning, pitching tents, building bonfires, and enjoying evening cultural programs. This kind of trip develops independence and self-reliance as well allowing a unique environment for group bonding and getting to know one another, through shared hands-on activities. The hike was led by our awesome tour guides, Vered and Ben, who know the land and its history as well as the trails that run through it, and the Shnat madrichim played a key role as well. The group finished off the last day with a tour of the ancient Jewish stronghold of Masada, discussing its tantalizing and complex symbolic meaning; we then drove down to the Dead Sea for an invigorating dip and picnic lunch before heading back to Ein Dor.

After a short sleep-in on Wednesday, the Shnatties had mostly a regular day including Hebrew and their power courses. Thursday we had Yom Purim on Boneh which included making contemporary movies retelling the Purim story, a peulah about how and why we relate to the Purim story and what role contemporary meanings have in how we celebrate the holiday; making hamentashen cookies and newspaper baskets, and educational Chuggim (one-off interest groups). The chuggim topics were Feminism in the Purim story, Vengeance vs. Justice and the absence of God in the Purim story. The Shnatties broke into groups based on what interested them and all had meaningful discussions that allowed them to think more critically about the themes of the Purim story.

This week’s theme is Jews in the Modern World and we are looking at the place of Jews and Jewish Life in Europe right before and after the Enlightenment. More updates on this and the happenings of Boneh coming soon!

Machon Update #1

Dear Parents, Shalom, Well, it is now almost four weeks into the programme and, as the Director of English Speaking Machon, I just wanted to write to let you know how things are going from our perspective and to share with you a few of the highlights from this opening period, though hopefully your children have also been keeping you up to date with what is happening on the programme from their point of view. It seems to us that the Machon is in general going very well so far, the atmosphere among the Machon community seems really good and most of them seem to be really enjoying the programme and the early stages of the learning. In the very first week the idea was to set up the big questions that will accompany and confront us throughout the programme; questions of Jewish Peoplehood and our connection to Israel, to Zionism and to leadership and community. On Monday, after taking just one day to get them settled into to their new home at Kiryat Moriah, we took the whole group on a 2 day desert-based tiyul (trip/hike) down to the Judean desert area. The main aim, apart from seeing that area, was a group bonding one where people could start to get to know and make friends with people from the other youth movements with their very different ideologies (we have 6 movements this year; Habonim Dror, Hashomer Hatzair, Netzer, Betar and Hineni) as well as those from other cities and countries (we have Australians, South Africans, New Zealanders British and Americans on this Machon). All told, we have 78 Machonikim (as we call them) in the group. In particular we wanted them to get to begin to bond within their chavura, the small group framework that the Machon is structured around. To that end much of the desert activities were done within these chavurot including various desert hikes, and survival style activities such as a blindfold 'trust' walk and various group challenge exercises. As a whole group we slept out under the stars for the night, and had an evening bonfire where they cooked their own dinner. On the Tuesday we also had a chance for swimming in the springs at Ein Gedi and a lovely barbeque lunch. Overall the tiyul was really successful, especially the hiking and the bonding elements. Then, later in the week, we went out from Kirya to see some key sites that symbolise for us the big educational questions mentioned above, such as Har Herzl and the Old City of Jerusalem, including the Kotel tunnels, and we also devoted a whole morning to exploring what kind of community they wanted to build and what would be the norms of behaviour that they would want their community to live by. At the start of the second week we moved more into class mode and actually started with the various lessons in earnest. There are 5 basic areas of learning on Machon: Judaism, Israel/Zionism, Hadracha (youth leadership), Hebrew and the Story of the Jewish People, which is an overview of Jewish History. In each area the Machonikim have various choices of courses, some based on different content and some based on the style of learning that they most wanted. Some classes are more lecture-based while others use more interactive programmes. As well as the classes in these main areas, there are a few other slots in the week when they can choose from a range of sessions covering a whole variety of different topics. To give you some idea, the options for this first part of Machon included such courses as "Couples in the Bible", "Contemporary Israeli Politics and the Disengagement", "Streams of Judaism" and a "Jewish Identity through Coaching" workshop. As part of these main topic areas there is also a weekly Israel Update class focussing on what's going on in the news in Israel and a course looking at issues of Jewish identity through key biblical stories. At the very start of that second week we went through the programme in detail and they gave all their choices for the various courses and then the team worked out who could do what and in almost all cases most people were able to get either their first or second choices. By the Monday therefore we were already starting the classes for each area, though within the first week or so of lessons anyone who really thought they were in the wrong place could ask to swap classes and we tried to allow that whenever possible. Things have now pretty much settled down and we as a staff team are pretty pleased with the level of participation and learning going on. Once a week we get them out and off the campus for educational experiences in places other than Kiryat Moriah. Each Wednesday we have a more or less full day trip called "Yom Yisrael" to see important sites around and near the Jerusalem area. So far these trips have included a day focussed on our connection to the land of Israel (including a visit to Tel Gezer and Kibbutz Gezer to contrast the old and the new and to the Tayelet to see an overview of the whole of Jerusalem and process the day) and a day focussed on the Education system in Israel including them visiting two contrasting schools that represented different approaches to education here, which including meeting students and teachers and chatting to them about their view and experiences of the schools. One of the particularly special moments for one of those groups was discovering when they left the school that one of the students that they had been chatting with during the visit was actually Prim Minister (Bibi) Netanyahu's son, even though they didn't know it at the time. There are also a various other special elements throughout the week. Sunday afternoons they have an In-Depth session where they can choose one of the above 5 main Machon learning areas to specialise in and look at in more depth. Twice a week, on Sundays and Wednesdays, they meet in their chavurot small groups to do group building, reflect on what they've been learning and thinking about and plan activities for the rest of the Machon. On Sunday evenings we have a slot called 'Sunday Selections' which is optional but where we bring in to Machon, among other things, some exciting guests including contemporary Israeli artists. The first week we had a group called Bible Raps who came in and for the first hour did a performance with audience participation of Raps they have written to biblical stories and then after that they split our group into smaller groups to write and perform their own rap about their experiences so far this year which they would then record and create into one whole piece. The evening went so late that we couldn't finish it that night but they will hopefully be coming back later this week on one of their free evenings to finish it off with those that can be around. Then in the second week there was a guy whose work is based on the 'Pay it Forward' idea and movie where he teaches participants, in a fun and really participative way, basic sign language and then they must commit to teaching it to two new people they know. Finally, this week, we had a one-woman show where the actress portrays a number of clearly defined different characters from within Israeli society in a very challenging way. Initially, for the first character, a Haredi woman, they do not know that she is an actress and when she revealed herself as such, there was an explosion of laughter and a release of some strong feelings and even frustrations which her character had created. The whole evening was enormously successful. So far these first three such evenings have had 55, 30 and 65 people attending respectively out of the 78 people we have on Machon which is a great level of participation for an optional activity from our point of view. On the Tuesday afternoons and evenings is a time slot that they spend in their separate youth movement groups with their own movement madrichim and Wednesday evenings is a special programming evening, some of which later in the programme will be run by them for each other, some will be run by us and some will be a Beit Midrash style informal Jewish texts study evening which will be optional. So far we have had the first Beit Midrash on the theme of different interpretations of the Adam & Eve story in the garden of Eden (it was really fascinating having teachers drawn from various different Jewish streams and approaches) and a "Dancing with the Stars" group dance competition run by the tzevet (staff team). Most weekends they are free from Thursday evenings until we start classes again on the Sunday morning. They can of course stay at Kiryat Moriah if they wish but this is also a great opportunity for them to go off and explore other parts of Israel and see family and friends around the country. When the weather becomes a bit more certain, many will also no doubt choose to go hiking and camping on their weekends. We certainly encourage them to make the most of their time here and to do such things and are always available to give help and advice about places they might visit if the need. Last Shabbat however was one of the two weekends where we do ask them all to stay and where we have Shabbat activities that we do together. We had planned some of the ideas to be out and about in Jerusalem but during the week a really cold snap came to Israel and, finally, the snow that had been predicted for Jerusalem for the last week or two finally fell. Although they were very excited (for many it is the first time they have actually experienced snow) and enjoyed a snowball fight or two, it did mean that we had to cancel the Jerusalem based activities we had planned for the Friday morning. On the Friday evening, despite the weather, they all went out to be hosted for Shabbat dinner by different families around the area, some being their staff and teachers on Machon and others being friends of the staff and people who work for the Jewish Agency and are based at Kiryat Moriah. On Saturday morning they had a choice of participating in a service at one of the many local synagogues of various denominations or of participating in a Cultural service here on the campus. Together with activities centred around the Shabbat lunch, where they shared their different movement's' songs, and Seuda Shlishit (the 3rd Shabbat meal) where they discussed and shared how they 'do' Shabbat at home and in their movements, and a very spirited Havdala, it all made for a very special Shabbat which seems to have been enjoyed by all. For the second Machon Shabbat later in the year a group of them will be planning and running everything for the rest of the group rather than being done by the staff as it was this time. I think that is all for now and I hope that I have been able to give you a small flavour of the programme thus far and what has been happening. Later this week it is Purim which should be a lot of fun and then next week we are going off on our one week 'Southern Tiyul, where we will be exploring the South of the country. We the staff are very much enjoying working with the Machonikim, both individually and as a group. I hope to write again in a month or so, just near to the Pesach break, to give you another Machon update. Until then, best wishes to you all and we hope you all have a great Purim wherever you are in the world. Haggai Kimmelman and the Machon staff team