Religion

In Pursuit of Justice (B)

Rabbi Rachel Cohen decided that the best approach to changing the Mitzvah Projects at Temple Beth El was to find allies among the newer members of the leadership team. In the coming months, Cohen planned to speak with the other Assistant Rabbi and the Director of the Religious School, and ask: “Can we brainstorm about the Mitzvah Projects?”1 Cohen knew that any changes would represent significant work and that the young people would need more guidance in the early stages.

I would be willing to, at least for the first few years, say, ‘I’m not only going to make it easier than you think, but [also] fun. I’m going to build community around it, I’m going to almost handhold you into the process until we get the culture, where its ‘Oh right, it’s your Mitzvah Project, you have these choices, here’s the booklet, here are the key leaders, here are the people that did it last year.’

For those who wanted to do a project outside of the five core areas, Cohen thought, they could meet with a rabbi for a half an hour. “And the rabbi has the right to really push you and say, ‘Show me your project, show me the impact, and then you need to come back and show me that you’re really doing that. And then you have to come back and report on what you’ve done.’ So there’s a higher level of accountability.” Through rethinking and restructuring, Cohen also hopes to build greater community:

The goal of doing a Mitzvah Project is that it makes you really think and exposes you to some painful truths about how we live, and what resources we have, what our future might look like. It’s not a vision quest, where you go out into the world and ‘Best of luck, if you survive you come back and we give you a spear.’ It’s ‘Go out into the world, and come back and talk to us about it. Go out into the world, bring some people with you, and have a community as you experience this. Come back and brainstorm with more people about how twenty people can address this problem instead of just one. And if you come back and you fail, that’s ok too. Because the goal is not that, in ten hours, you’ve solved hunger. But that you have learned about yourself, and what scares you and inspires you, you have a new vocabulary, you have met people beyond your sphere of comfort, you have new skills that you didn’t have before.’

Even in a best-case scenario, Cohen didn’t imagine there would be significant change for at least one year. Until then, she knew that out of the thirty kids she works with each year, “I would say five of those I’m able to walk into the Bar Mitzvah and know the kids and families really well … and they’ve done some great work around social justice. I’d probably say another ten do a decent job and maybe check in once, and the rest-- there was one year I tried to track them, but there is no system, there’s no time.” While she acknowledged that many at Temple Beth El may not recognize the source, or the importance, of the words above the doorway -- Tedzek Tedzek Tirdof -- Cohen remains patient and resolved. “I try to use the words as much as possible, and hope people remember them.”

This case is authorized for Jan Quesada. Written by Ellie Pierce. Copyright © 2021 American Jewish World Service, President and Fellows of Harvard College, and the Pluralism Project at Harvard University. Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. For permissions please contact the Pluralism Project at 617-496-2481 or [email protected].

In Pursuit of Justice (B)

Endnotes

1 All quotes from interviews conducted by the author Elinor Pierce with “Rabbi Rachel Cohen” (pseudonym) in December 2010.

This case is authorized for Jan Quesada. Copyright © 2021 American Jewish World Service, President and Fellows of Harvard College, and the Pluralism Project at Harvard University. 2

CASE STUDY

IN PURSUIT OF JUSTICE

Group A

C A S E S T U D Y S U M M A R Y

- The case centers on Rabbi Rachel Cohen, an assistant rabbi at Temple Beth El, a large

synagogue in New Jersey.

- The synagogue prominently displays the phrase "Tzedek, Tzedek Tirdof" (Justice, Justice

You Shall Pursue) as a symbol of their commitment to justice.

- Rabbi Cohen notices a gap between the congregation’s values and their actual

commitment to justice.

- Challenge: These Mitzvah Projects are often seen as mandatory requirements rather than

genuine acts of service.

- Goal: Rabbi Cohen aims to make Mitzvah Projects meaningful, using them as opportunities

to instill values of compassion and justice in the synagogue’s youth.

11/17/ 2024

2

W H A T I S A B A R / B A T M I T Z V A H ?

• A coming-of-age ritual/rite of passage for 12-13 year olds who

practice Judaism.

• Usually includes:

o Torah readings – read a passage from the Torah

o Aliyah – Father says a blessing (sometimes people throw candy)

o Tefillin -Black leather boxes containing parchments inscribed with

the Shema and other biblical passages which adult Jewish men

bind to their upper arm and head with leather straps. They are

worn during weekday morning prayers.

o Speech – usual surrounds how he/she will apply the Torah passage

to their life

o Big party/reception

A M I T Z V A H P R O J E C T

• A Mitzvah Project

o It's an initiative by Jewish teenagers as a preparation for their Bar/Bat Mitzvah ceremonies

o It's about connecting with their faith while making a positive impact on the world

o "10 hours of your time dedicated to service work"

o Temples social justice pillars to base the projects off of: hunger, homelessness, education, the

environment, and international justice

o "Makes you really think and exposes you to some painful truths about how we live, and what resources we

have, what our future might look like."

• Examples

o Preparing food at a soup kitchen

o Teaching people to read

o Collecting donations of food, sporting equipment, or books

R A B B I R A C H E L

C O H E N Rachel's Call to Action:

After realizing that Mitzvah Projects are not prioritized

within their community, with them treated as an

afterthought.

She decides to incorporate more social justice aspects,

emphasizing community service.

"Without action, I think we've missed a really key part of

what it means to be Jewish."

She suggests to implement emphasis on five core areas:

hunger, homelessness, education, the environment, and

international justice.

Background:

• Grew up in a traditionally Conservative

Jewish home in the suburbs of New

Jersey

• Attended prestigious high schools and

universities

• After a conversation with her

teacher, she realizes that others aren't

born into privilege and the unfairness of

the world.

T E M P L E B E T H E L

Temple Beth-El, a Reform congregation, is an engaging destination for connection, comfort, joy and spirituality. We are a home where all are encouraged to explore their knowledge, faith and activism within a safe atmosphere to find their place in Judaism.

Connection with the Temple: - Reform Rabbi - Identification as a social justice congregation,

with a sixty-year history of vibrant action. - Are we actually impactful? Go deep instead of

broad - Five core areas: hunger, homelessness,

education, the environment, and international justice

Activities: - 10 hours of your time dedicated to service work - Forty-page guide:

o Lead your family in the blessing one Friday night

o Learn all your prayers and blessing from the prayer book.

C H A L L E N G E S

• Found the Mitzvah Projects "lame" - collection boxes with scribbled signs, and bake

sales for random charities

• Losing members because of the switch in emphasis

• Lack of support from the elders and members

• Felt that Mitzvah projects were an "afterthought"

• Criticism about Cohen's emphasis on social justice

• Disagreement on Jewish values; Bar/Bat Mitzvah vs. Justice/action

• The Temple accommodate congregants than challenge them

11/17/ 2024

7

G R O U P A C T I V I T Y - 7 M I N U T E S

• What are Rabbi Cohen’s primary concerns about the B’nai Mitzvah program? How

should she prioritize these?

• Which stakeholders might Rabbi Cohen consider when making a change to the B’nai

Mitzvah program? Of these, which group is most important?

• Rabbi Cohen reflects that addressing this issue should be “easy.” What barriers might

she face?

• What solution would you suggest that could please all the groups?

11/17/ 2024

8

W H A T C O H E N D I D

• Her solution

• Cohen attempts to find allies in the newer leadership

• To compromise if someone wanted to do a project outside of the 5 core areas,

they would need to have a meeting with the rabbi to make sure they cared, and

the project will still have a similar impact

• Cohen says she knew there would not be a big change within a year, and even she

could only truly focus on 5 of her kids out of the 30, and most of those kids did not

care anyway

11/17/ 2024

9

W H A T W E W O U L D H A V E D O N E

• Our solution

• Cohen could have focused firstly on core Jewish values of charity and repairing the

world (Tzedakah and Tikkun Olam,) educating the youth within the ministry to

understand the religious significance behind Mitzvah's and giving them the

opportunity to feel a true connection with their work.

• Creating an incentive for the youth to pursue their Bar/Bat Mitzvah as a way to become

closer in their Jewish faith and their local communities through social services.

• We feel Cohen could have asked for the kid's input on how to make the mitzvah

projects more engaging, while also keeping to the core values of the project

• To put an interfaith spin on this, she could've suggested the projects have an interfaith

component similar to Eboo Patels service work project with kids.

11/17/ 2024

10

W O R K S C I T E D

• https://levlalev.com/mitzvah-project-bat-mitzvah/#:~:text=Definition%20of%20Mitzvah%20Projects,-

In%20the%20world&text=A%20Mitzvah%20Project%20is%20a,Bar%20or%20Bat%20Mitzvah%20ceremonies.

• https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/bar-and-bat-mitzvah-101/

• https://mybarmitzvahprep.com/blog/what-happens-at-a-bar-mitzvah