Chai Mitzvah
New national educational program
kicks off locallly at Beth Ahm.
Debra Darvick
Special to the Jewish News
R
abbi Steven Rubenstein had
several reasons to jump at
the chance to bring the newly
developed Chai Mitzvah program to
his members at Congregation Beth
Ahm in West Bloomfield.
The goal is to provide adults with
opportunities to "grow their Judaism"
in a meaningful way. Chai Mitzvah,
based in Hartford, Ct , was created for
Jewish communities across the coun-
try; Beth Ahm is bringing it to Metro
Detroit for the first time.
"I love communal learning:' Rabbi
Rubenstein told the group of two
dozen or so congregants who met
recently to learn more about Chai
Mitzvah. He stressed the program's
ongoing opportunities for human
interaction.
"We don't have so many face-to-
face experiences these days," he said,
"and that's what Chai Mitzvah is all
about. You choose, within each of the
program's categories, what it is you
want to learn, how deeply you want
to pursue your chosen topic and what
community resources you want to
draw upon."
Chai Mitzvah's five components —
learn about Jewish heritage, partici-
pate in a new ritual, engage in social
action with a Jewish flavor, join a
monthly community discussion and
celebrate — were conceived to give
participants a broad array of entry
points to Jewish life and learning.
In addition to the self-generated
learning, participants meet once a
month for eight months for text-
based discussion sessions organized
around the Chai Mitzvah core cur-
riculum. Adult rites of passage, inter-
personal relationships, mindfulness
and conscious living, and days of
remembrance are just some of the
topics to be discussed as the Chai
Mitzvah year progresses. At the end
of the program, the group will have
a celebration within the synagogue
marking individual and collective
achievements.
"Another positive aspect of the pro-
gram," said Rubenstein, "is the focus
on the individual. It's up to you how
much you want to learn and to what
depth. Someone may choose to learn
to leyn (chant) Torah, while someone
Grow You
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else will learn to read Hebrew. For
the social-action component, partici-
pants could choose to get involved
in the shul's own Tikkun Olam
Social Action Team, continue cur-
rent involvement, volunteer with any
number of community programs or
even come up with something totally
new — devoting energies to a cause
the participant has a special interest
in.
Judy Vine of West Bloomfield said,
"I have focused on the growth of
my Jewish experience since a 2005
trip to Israel. Israel emerged quite
significantly in my work as a painter
after that visit. I plan to visit again in
2013 and am taking on the challenge
of learning conversational Hebrew. I
was attracted to this program because
I learn best in an active/self-directed
style. The Chai Mitzvah program is
structured that way."
According to the program's website,
one of the goals of Chai Mitzvah is to
create a new minhag (tradition) that
will, over time, become the norm for
the Jewish community. Chai Mitzvah
is non-denominational and is accessi-
ble across the spectrum of the Jewish
community.
"I think this is a great program,"
Rubenstein said in closing, as those
who had shown up began to fill out
the registration form. "Ifs individual
and communal. The focus is on us
and others, and on us and God. I
appreciate that about it, too."
For more information, go to www.
chaimitzvah.theguerillagroup.net/ or
consult with your rabbi about begin-
ning a Chai Mitzvah group at your
home synagogue.
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