Learning Through Jewish Lenses
The following "lenses" provided the structure for our Fellowship experience. These terms and their definitions come from the Jewish Early Childhood Education Initiative (JECEI), a national framework that encourages families become connected to the community early on and stay connected after the preschool years. The work of JECEI is rooted in Jewish ideas and values through which we view and experience our world. We have grouped these core concepts, drawn from our ancient tradition, into seven interconnected categories, which we call lenses. These lenses provide an ethical model for living, a set of resources designed to help us experience increased sanctity in an increasingly confusing, commercial, and difficult world, and a language through which we can articulate a shared vision that we want to pass on to future generations. The lenses open windows to transcendent Jewish values, serve as guides, and are lived in the classroom as well as the extended school community.
These lenses articulate our approach to our work. They inspire as much as they inform. They are ideally manifest daily in each of our early childhood centers - in the ways in which we structure our time, our curricula and our classrooms; the quality of our relationships with our students, our faculties, our host institutions; and the partnerships we forge with the families in our communities. They improve and sharpen our vision, and
enable us to see our world more clearly and in a particularly focused way.
Judaism is not exclusively a matter of the “what” or “when” in the world of ritual and faith, but includes the deeper matters of the “how” and “why” of the totality of our lives and our relationships to the world as a whole. It welcomes diversity, inclusion, reflection and innovation. For each lens there is a Hebrew word which captures the essence of the lens, a literal translation of the Hebrew, and a more interpretive word or phrase which illuminates JECEI’s understanding of the core value within each category.
Masa - Journey (Reflection, Return, and Renewal)
Judaism asks that we see ourselves as part of a larger picture - our personal stories impact and inform our community, our personal vision is part of a communal promise. Jewish tradition understands that our success in life depends as much upon the integrity with which we progress as it does upon reaching our goals. Our journeys are both internal and external, and must be taken in context – others came before us and shaped our journey, and our journey will always affect the journeys of others. Even as we travel toward a particular goal, we strive to recognize each step as a moment of learning, containing unique value in and of itself.
B'Tzelem Elokim - In the Divine Image (Dignity and Potential)
We are, each of us, created in the Divine image. This knowledge/perspective has enormous impact on both our self image and the ways in which we relate to all those around us. It affects our views on potential, special needs, multiculturalism, diversity, and our communal relationships. The way one treats, and feels about others is directly related to the way one relates to and feels about God.
Brit - Covenant (Belonging and Commitment)
We do not make our journeys alone. We live in partnership with our family, our schools, our larger community, and God. The ways in which we fashion and nurture relationships are key to the success of our journey. We honor agreements, follow rules and norms, and trust that others will do the same. Our behavior is a sign of the covenants we honor with others and with ourselves. We strive to maintain our integrity and continually develop healthy relationships filled with honor, trust, honesty and faith. Both our personal and professional lives are enriched by binding relationships in which we feel a true sense of security; relationships in which our individuality is honored, our opinions are heard, our needs are considered.
Hit'orerut - Awakening (Amazement and Gratitude)
Our sense of awe when faced with the enormity of our world, is a gift. Judaism provides us with vehicles for realizing our dreams, and fills us with gratitude for the processes as well as the products. From the outer reaches of the universe to the smallest atoms, there is much in the world to fill us with amazement and respect. Wonder fuels a culture of inquiry and reflection. Awe and amazement are natural responses to things that we do not understand, but it is important to realize that understanding does not preclude awe – if anything, it can intensify it. Amazement and wonder are products of awakening, and that awakening leads to a sense of gratitude and desire to return the favor.
D'rash - Interpretation (Inquiry, Dialogue, and Transmission)
The spirit of inquiry within human nature is the impetus for growth and reflection. It leads to discovery, broadens ones horizons, and uncovers information from which others will grow and learn. The Jewish understanding goes beyond inquiry to interpretation, interaction, and transmission. It engages the knowledge and experience of the past in conversation with the present, and documents the new learning for the benefit of future generations. The art of inquiry within Judaism is a time-honored tradition. Our Torah (the scroll itself) lays the foundation for inquiry and instruction as our eternal partners, teachers and companions. We keep Torah alive, we engage it in challenging conversation, we listen to it, we add to its lessons with the context of our own generations, and we pass it along to those who will come after. To ask, to argue, to interpret, and to transmit are all essential elements of our growth and maturity as human beings. To constantly be both the teacher and the student, placing equal emphasis on the answers we have already received, and allowing them to give birth to new questions and challenges within our own lives is to take advantage of the spirit of d’rash and its important place in the life of the Jewish people.
K’dushah - Holiness (Intentionality and Presence)
The first instance of k’dusha in Torah is the sanctification of time - Shabbat. Setting aside portions of time for reflection, deepening understanding, and regeneration is a sacred act. Moses meets God on holy ground - the burning bush, and responds “Hineini - I am ready.” His full attention to his surroundings attune him to the unique relationship he has to this particular moment in time and what is required of him. The Israelites build a holy place in the desert in order that they might be more constantly aware of God’s presence in their midst. We are commanded to realize our communal potential for holiness through our intentional relationship with the Divine - “You (pl.)shall be kadosh, because I, your God am kadosh.” Our surroundings, our relationships, our schedules, are reflections of our values and beliefs. Times, spaces and communities are enhanced when given our full attention and our full intention. When we mark our time and build and use our spaces in a sacred way, it is we who are sanctified, enriched, re-energized.
Tikkun Olam - Repair of the World (Responsibility)
We live in a fragmented world, and it is our nature to be somewhat dissatisfied with the acceptance of things the way that they are. We speak and yearn for a time of increased harmony, unity, synthesis and partnership with others. Judaism places an enormous and unique emphasis on our role in bringing about this redemption of the world. Tikkun Olam is connected to, but not confined to Tzedakah, and Tzedakah is about giving of all of our resources to the world – not because we are told to, but because it is the right way to behave. Jewish faith obligates us to be “response-able” to all we experience and the numerous gifts we have given. We must realize the Divine Image in others and ourselves through right action, our responsibility to be partners with others in repairing what has been broken in the world, and our commitment to act now, not later.
These lenses articulate our approach to our work. They inspire as much as they inform. They are ideally manifest daily in each of our early childhood centers - in the ways in which we structure our time, our curricula and our classrooms; the quality of our relationships with our students, our faculties, our host institutions; and the partnerships we forge with the families in our communities. They improve and sharpen our vision, and
enable us to see our world more clearly and in a particularly focused way.
Judaism is not exclusively a matter of the “what” or “when” in the world of ritual and faith, but includes the deeper matters of the “how” and “why” of the totality of our lives and our relationships to the world as a whole. It welcomes diversity, inclusion, reflection and innovation. For each lens there is a Hebrew word which captures the essence of the lens, a literal translation of the Hebrew, and a more interpretive word or phrase which illuminates JECEI’s understanding of the core value within each category.
Masa - Journey (Reflection, Return, and Renewal)
Judaism asks that we see ourselves as part of a larger picture - our personal stories impact and inform our community, our personal vision is part of a communal promise. Jewish tradition understands that our success in life depends as much upon the integrity with which we progress as it does upon reaching our goals. Our journeys are both internal and external, and must be taken in context – others came before us and shaped our journey, and our journey will always affect the journeys of others. Even as we travel toward a particular goal, we strive to recognize each step as a moment of learning, containing unique value in and of itself.
B'Tzelem Elokim - In the Divine Image (Dignity and Potential)
We are, each of us, created in the Divine image. This knowledge/perspective has enormous impact on both our self image and the ways in which we relate to all those around us. It affects our views on potential, special needs, multiculturalism, diversity, and our communal relationships. The way one treats, and feels about others is directly related to the way one relates to and feels about God.
Brit - Covenant (Belonging and Commitment)
We do not make our journeys alone. We live in partnership with our family, our schools, our larger community, and God. The ways in which we fashion and nurture relationships are key to the success of our journey. We honor agreements, follow rules and norms, and trust that others will do the same. Our behavior is a sign of the covenants we honor with others and with ourselves. We strive to maintain our integrity and continually develop healthy relationships filled with honor, trust, honesty and faith. Both our personal and professional lives are enriched by binding relationships in which we feel a true sense of security; relationships in which our individuality is honored, our opinions are heard, our needs are considered.
Hit'orerut - Awakening (Amazement and Gratitude)
Our sense of awe when faced with the enormity of our world, is a gift. Judaism provides us with vehicles for realizing our dreams, and fills us with gratitude for the processes as well as the products. From the outer reaches of the universe to the smallest atoms, there is much in the world to fill us with amazement and respect. Wonder fuels a culture of inquiry and reflection. Awe and amazement are natural responses to things that we do not understand, but it is important to realize that understanding does not preclude awe – if anything, it can intensify it. Amazement and wonder are products of awakening, and that awakening leads to a sense of gratitude and desire to return the favor.
D'rash - Interpretation (Inquiry, Dialogue, and Transmission)
The spirit of inquiry within human nature is the impetus for growth and reflection. It leads to discovery, broadens ones horizons, and uncovers information from which others will grow and learn. The Jewish understanding goes beyond inquiry to interpretation, interaction, and transmission. It engages the knowledge and experience of the past in conversation with the present, and documents the new learning for the benefit of future generations. The art of inquiry within Judaism is a time-honored tradition. Our Torah (the scroll itself) lays the foundation for inquiry and instruction as our eternal partners, teachers and companions. We keep Torah alive, we engage it in challenging conversation, we listen to it, we add to its lessons with the context of our own generations, and we pass it along to those who will come after. To ask, to argue, to interpret, and to transmit are all essential elements of our growth and maturity as human beings. To constantly be both the teacher and the student, placing equal emphasis on the answers we have already received, and allowing them to give birth to new questions and challenges within our own lives is to take advantage of the spirit of d’rash and its important place in the life of the Jewish people.
K’dushah - Holiness (Intentionality and Presence)
The first instance of k’dusha in Torah is the sanctification of time - Shabbat. Setting aside portions of time for reflection, deepening understanding, and regeneration is a sacred act. Moses meets God on holy ground - the burning bush, and responds “Hineini - I am ready.” His full attention to his surroundings attune him to the unique relationship he has to this particular moment in time and what is required of him. The Israelites build a holy place in the desert in order that they might be more constantly aware of God’s presence in their midst. We are commanded to realize our communal potential for holiness through our intentional relationship with the Divine - “You (pl.)shall be kadosh, because I, your God am kadosh.” Our surroundings, our relationships, our schedules, are reflections of our values and beliefs. Times, spaces and communities are enhanced when given our full attention and our full intention. When we mark our time and build and use our spaces in a sacred way, it is we who are sanctified, enriched, re-energized.
Tikkun Olam - Repair of the World (Responsibility)
We live in a fragmented world, and it is our nature to be somewhat dissatisfied with the acceptance of things the way that they are. We speak and yearn for a time of increased harmony, unity, synthesis and partnership with others. Judaism places an enormous and unique emphasis on our role in bringing about this redemption of the world. Tikkun Olam is connected to, but not confined to Tzedakah, and Tzedakah is about giving of all of our resources to the world – not because we are told to, but because it is the right way to behave. Jewish faith obligates us to be “response-able” to all we experience and the numerous gifts we have given. We must realize the Divine Image in others and ourselves through right action, our responsibility to be partners with others in repairing what has been broken in the world, and our commitment to act now, not later.