Rabbi Allan Smith, mentor to thousands of Reform Jewish youth, died. He had a profound influence on my life, and on the direction of the Reform Jewish movement.
Category: Teens
Disruptive Judaism: Will Your Synagogue Be Beit Blockbuster or Kehillat Netflix?
Responding to a Disruptive Marketplace for synagogues: The choice is pretty clear: Kehillat Netflix or Beit Blockbuster. Which one will your synagogue become? Kehillat Netflix takes its name from a company that openly and confidently takes chances, risks failure, goes up against conventional wisdom, constantly pivots strategically, and thus has so far ensured both its survival and its success. Beit Blockbuster closed down.
Seth Front on L’dor Vador: HUC-JIR Interns Positively Influence My Daughter
In a speech at Hebrew Union-College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Or Ami congregant Seth Front kvells about the positive impact that Congregation Or Ami interns and rabbis have had on their daughter Amanda.
Creating an Escape for Teens After the SoCal Fires and Shooting
How might synagogues and Jewish communities respond to the needs of teens to express their inner turmoil and to learn new techniques for managing stress and emotional exhaustion?
We are Here for You: A Clergy Letter about Sexual Violence
The rabbis and cantor of Congregation Or Ami sent this letter about sexual violence to our adult congregants, our 9th-12th graders, recent high school graduates (18-22 year olds), and our faculty. We also sent a note to parents of 7th-12th graders with suggestions on conversations with their children.
Parent-Teen Mental Health and Wellness Summit
The Parent-Teen Mental Health and Wellness Summit realized a dream: to transform our synagogue, Congregation Or Ami (Calabasas), into a truly safe place for teens, their unique emotional journeys, and the parents who love but are unsure of how to protect them.
Teen Mental Health: Rolling Darkness into Light
Why did Congregation Or Ami focus our energies on creating a mental health and wellness retreat? Because today's teens are particularly stressed out, overwhelmed by anxiety, buffetted by the emotional turmoil engendered by social media. They crave support and relief.
Watching Adulthood Emerge on Capitol Hill
Adulthood arrives later than when we were kids. When young people take more real responsibility not only for their own lives, but also for those around them, and for their community, country and world, they begin to manifest a level of maturity that evidences approaching adulthood.
Open Letter to Camp Newman Teens, Staff and Alumni from Rabbi Paul
An open letter to Camp Newman teens, staff and alumni from Rabbi Paul Kipnes about getting through after the fire. (Okay to share with adults too)
Lifting the Veil of Silence about Mental Illness
It is time for us to lift the veil of silence around mental illness, talking about it and our mental health journeys. Especially in the Jewish community.
How My Synagogue Helped My Child Save Herself (in her Battle with Depression)
A mother speaks about her appreciation that the Congregation Or Ami and its rabbis offered deep support for their daughter on her battle with depression.
Confessions from the Edge of a Cliff: My Teen Mental Health Journey
Teen Dani, an 11th grader, shared her mental health journey (through depression) to an overflowing synagogue on Yom Kippur.
When the Lights Went Out during the Bar Mitzvah
Adin becomes a Bar Mitzvah by candlelight when the power went out. And the lessons learned were powerful.
Teens Take Over High Holy Day Children’s Services
Wouldn’t your heart soar too, if children left the High Holy Day children’s program and services kvelling? When older teens lead and mentor younger teen leaders, they felt energized as they passed on the responsibility of Jewish educational leadership to their younger peers?
Taking Teens to Washington for L’taken
Guest Blogger Rabbi Julia Weisz reflects on taking 8 teens to Washington DC for the L'taken Social Justice Program, transforming their lives and intensifying Congregation Or Ami's teen program.