By Jake Levine
As part of our Tzfat Shabbaton, we were lucky enough to participate in a workshop with Rabbi Noah Greenberg during which we learned about the significance of Tefillin in Jewish life: how they're made, what goes in them, where in the text we are commanded to wear them, etc. However, rather just discussing the concept, we actually made them. From start to finish, we were active participants in the process, starting with plain parchment and leather all the way through tying the knots of the retzu'ot (leather straps). Never before had I seen such a physical application of Jewish text to our everyday ritual. Of course it was always there, and on some level I was aware of the textual basis for much of our practice, but it is quite a different thing to go through each step myself.
This speaks to a larger educational concept that I am becoming attached to: authentic, hands-on programming – exploring Judaism by doing Judaism. If there is anything to be learned from the challenges facing Jewish education today, it is that Jews as a whole (and especially in North America) do not feel an ownership over our practice and theology. Things like tefillin – pieces of Jewish practice that have been deemphasized by more liberal streams - have been assumed to be the sole property of the traditionally observant. The reality is this isn't true. As Jews we all own our tradition, whether or not we choose to incorporate it into our daily lives. Ignoring that which is outside the realm of our common practice does not equip the next generation with the ability to think critically and engage deeply with their Jewish identity. I am thankful that I was able to see first hand what it means to wrap tefillin, regardless of what that means for my day-to-day. It enriched my sense of connection to the Tanakh, to the generations that came before me, and to Jews all over the world. It is not enough to make our children comfortable in a shul similar to theirs. We must be teaching in a way that will make them comfortable in any shul in the world, even if it looks on the surface entirely foreign. Noah Greenberg is helping to do that, and for that I am both grateful and very excited.
