Archive for category Jewish Innovation

Revisiting “The New Colossus”

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on November 3, 2011

digitalhistory.uh.edu

Nextbook Press just introduced a wonderful interactive version of Emma Lazarus’ “The New Colossus.” The tool provides background on allusions and does an excellent job of marrying technology to a sonnet written in 1883. When I clicked on “huddled masses,” a blip about Lazarus’ work with Russian immigrants appeared. It talked about Lazarus’ work at “the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society at 105 East Broadway, where she helped train refugees and she also taught English.”

Reading about Lazarus’ devotion to Russian immigrants made me think about my day in school today. One of my students was asking about my background, particularly wondering from where in Europe my family came. He assumed England or Scotland (kind of amusing because I have no Anglo features), so when I told him Russia and the Ukraine, he was mildly shocked. He didn’t connect Russian ancestry to Jewish ancestry, but for me (and many others), the two go hand-in-hand.

My Bubie’s family hales from Kiev. Sometimes my Bubie shares stories her mother would tell her of the Old Country. During Passover last year, she shared a bunch of stories about continued practices in America. She focused a lot on her parents’ attempt to re-create daily life in Kiev here in Philadelphia. We talked for a long time, mostly her sharing and me commenting. Her stories and my rereading of  “The New Colossus” remind me a lot of JPS’ book 36 Letters. 36 Letters tells the story of one couple as they experience courtship and immigration. The book is amazingly detailed, yet familiar for readers with similar family histories.

As the country celebrates the Statue of Liberty’s 125th anniversary, spend time with not only “The New Colossus” and Joan Sohn’s 36 Letters, but also stories of your own family’s immigration to America.

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Who’s Ready to Tweet #Torah Next Year?

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on June 17, 2011

First and foremost: if you tweeted #Torah with us for Shavuot, thank you infinite times!  Over here at JPS, I thoroughly enjoyed tweeting the Book of Ruth.  Similarly, I enjoyed watching others tweet and re-tweet various parshas or lines.  It felt quite wonderful to know that a group of us were focused on Torah for an entire day of tweeting- not pop culture or political turmoil, but Torah.  While the rest of the Twitter world focused on Anothony Weiner, we celebrated the receiving of the Torah by sharing it in 140-character-slices.  So now what?

Admittedly, we did not manage to get #Torah trending in the top ten.  I could blame Anthony Weiner, but instead I’ll venture to guess that many more people expressed interest in tweeting than actually tweeted along with us.  So how is it that we can spread the word more successfully next year?  I think that it could prove significant to engage students and congregants who would not usually use Twitter.  I myself am not an avid user of Twitter, honestly only tweeting for JPS and not a personal account, but I really got a kick out of tweeting something of significance.

For Bloomsday (the literary holiday that celebrates the day on which James Joyce’s Ulysses takes place, chosen because it was the day Joyce first stepped out with his life companion, Norah Barnacle), some Twitter users tweeted all of Ulysses (whoa, way intense).  As a student and lover of literature, this tweeting of Ulysses is totally rad to me and almost makes me want a personal Twitter account to join the fun.  So how do I move from an onlooker to a participant?

11ysses.wordpress.com/

I would like to figure out how to get students and lovers of Torah from the “that’s-so-groovy” stage, to the “I-am-creating-a-Twitter-account-so-I-can-join-this” stage.  So I ask myself: what would it take for me to create a Twitter account to tweet Ulysses?  Probably a group of my equally nerdy friends creating accounts for the same reason.  Based on the above Ulysses analogy, I charge those of you who tweeted Torah this year to talk it up and encourage your fellow lovers of Torah to join you next year!   I would also greatly appreciate any suggestions you may have as to how we can attract more participants in next year’s tweeting of #Torah!

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Help us Tweet #Torah to the Top!

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on May 31, 2011

In exactly one week (June 7th), we at JPS (along with CCAR Press and Davka.org) will aim to tweet #Torah to the top ten of Twitter for Shavuot.  In order to do so, we need as many people to join us as possible.  JPS has created a #Torah Twitter tool that breaks text into Twitter-sized portions (140 character pieces), so it is really simple for others (YOU!) to join us on our journey to tweet #Torah to the top!  Here’s how it will work: You select your favorite public domain Torah text (sign up for your free copy of the 1917 JPS Tanakh!), paste the text you wish to share into our tool, and then tweet away!  You can use your preferred Twitter tool to schedule automatic tweets throughout the day or overnight.  The hashtag #Torah will automatically be added to each of your tweets, making it even easier to join the movement.

So why should you join us in tweeting #Torah to the top?  MyJewishLearning.com puts out a daily e-newsletter called “Jewniverse,” and in yesterday’s edition they wrote: “The project’s immediate goal is to make “Torah” one of Twitter’s most-talked-about topics. But the larger goal is to remind us how inspirational the Torah can be–even if you’re reading it 140 characters at a time.”  Even if you’re not a regular user of Twitter, the opportunity to fuse Torah and technology is extremely exciting.  Tweeting the Torah not only displays the Torah’s relevancy in modern society, but also gives followers an opportunity to take in the text in smaller chunks.

Shavuot, a holiday marking the joyous occasion of the receiving of the Torah, is celebrated with Torah study and dairy consumption.  Why not make Shavuot a little sweeter this year by sharing Torah text with your Twitter friends?  Whether you tweet Ruth or a portion you find particularly meaningful, please join us as we tweet #Torah to the top on June 7th!

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Modernizing Yiddish

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on May 12, 2011

modiya.nyu.edu

I have grown up with a Bubie who boasts impressive Yiddish skills.  She always reminds me of which songs she can still sing in Yiddish, teaching me phrases along the way.  What amazes me is the way in which Yiddish is more of a way of life for her than just a language.  Speaking in Yiddish is a link to her upbringing, and teaching it to my mother, and then bits to me, was a way of infusing a past way of life into our modern living.  I have my favorite Yiddish words – mishegoss and schvitz –, and though many have snuck into modern English, I still feel a bond with my Bubie when I use them.

This feeling that I am describing is probably most aptly termed “communal,” for it ties me to Jews all over the world.  Orthodox Jew and non-observant Jew alike use “oy vey,” and in a sense we are connected across oceans and through primary language barriers because of Yiddish.  This being said, the newly introduced Yiddish cell phones in Israel offer a more modern way for Yiddish speakers to connect.  Manufactured by Alcatel-Lucent, the phones are the product of many months of hard work to help bring traditional Jews into contact with modernity.  Yiddish phones have a Yiddish interface and – most shockingly for me as a Western cell phone abuser – are without internet access or texting capability.  The phones also screen calls from sex lines, for the community fears explicit calls or texts.  Essentially, Yiddish cell phones are a way for those using them to say in touch, but without outside temptations or distractions.

The modern Yid phenomenon is really well represented in the anonymous blogger, “Katle Kanye,” highlighted by The Forward.  Katle combines Yiddish street lingo with rabbinic literature vernacular, while writing about Hassidic life.  (Side note: Katle has my vote, for the article lists P.G. Wodehouse among Katle’s influences, and I harbor extreme affection for Bertie Wooster and Jeeves.) The article describes Katle as not only “amusing,” but also quite clever.  Is Yiddish finally emerging from the past, floating from the tongues of our grandparents to modern bloggers?  The future for Yiddish seems rather bright, and somewhat hip- not a description those of my Bubie’s generation would expect.

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Jewish Books Technological (r)Evolution!

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation, Link Roundup on April 11, 2011

The Jewish book publishing community is not only rich with texts, but also tech (ha!).  This blog post is dedicated to celebrating the fantastic rise of technology within Jewish book publishing.  Happy clicking!

http://www.shalomshirts.com

  • Preparing to chant Torah?  Make sure to check out URJ’S Torah and Haftarah MP3s. URJ also offers free downloads of blessings for before and after the readings.  Call me crazy, but the blessing after the Haftarah has always been my favorite to chant.
  • CCAR has eBooks for both eReaders and smaller handheld devices.  You can purchase entire books, individual chapters, or the Responsa Collection as an annual subscription.
  • Have you always wanted to insert photos of your family in your Passover Haggadah?  Behrman House has created a customizable Haggadah in which you can include photos and clippings for or from your Seder.  Behrman House also has really neat podcasts with authors and a free webinar explaining how to use your synagogue website to create a community.
  • Artscroll has come out with their A Daily Dose of Torah Series in eBook form.  They also have a series of audio lectures from rabbis and other popular personalities.
  • Kar-ben’s eBook collection is viewable through the Lerner Publishing Group site which also has a groovy eSource program that provides digital and printable supplemental resources for their books.

Of course, JPS has also been hard at work building our own eBook store. Don’t forget to check it out!

Do you have a favorite tech resource in the Jewish book world that I forgot?  Let us know!

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A Penny for Your 140-Character Thoughts

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on March 24, 2011

bradfitzpatrick.com

March 21st, 2011 marked the fifth year anniversary of Twitter.  If you’re like me, a Twitter neophyte, you’re just learning that the art of writing only 140 characters is no game of jacks.  Rather, writing 140 characters of pithy but still interesting material is really rather intimidating.  For those who have mastered Twitter, 140 characters is all one really needs for breaking news alerts, serialized posts, and even poetry.

The Week in Review section of this past weekend’s New York Times celebrated five years of Twitter with “twaikus” written by readers.  The celebratory article was titled “How Do I Love Thee?  Count 140 Characters,” and highlighted other examples of brief but entertaining tweets, ranging from 140 character summaries of great literature to a serialized twitter story from author John Wray.  In reading the article, I couldn’t help thinking: is this what the current age is about- brevity?  If so, why am I about to begin my senior seminar paper that requires at least twenty sources?

For the Jewish world, being brief seems rather impossible.  I don’t want to generalize, but we tend to be a people with a knack for gabbing.  There are a few arenas in Judaism for which I cannot picture 140 characters would provide enough wiggle room.  Though I can’t say how many Jews tweet their experiences in synagogue, I suspect most would have much to say in reaction to a sermon or joyous occasion.  Examples of Jewish moments that need more than 140 characters to tweet about include my rabbi’s sermons, a Bar or Bat Mitzvah speech, and an adult education lesson.  Examples of Jewish moments that I sometimes wish would only be 140 characters include my family’s Passover Seder so that I can eat, the lecture I get every year at five minutes to sundown on Yom Kippur when I am dying for a bagel, and endless kvetching.

On the other hand, could Twitter be a way to get kids more engaged in Jewish learning?  Instead of a response paragraph, could an educator ask for a tweet response and possibly see greater participation?  If blog posts are the current form of discussion that educators are including in their curriculum, tweets could be next.  140 character summaries or responses are not only trying, but also require true knowledge of a text.  Next time you finish a book or an article, see if you can boil it down to 140 characters!

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The Greenest Summer Yet!

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on March 15, 2011

With spring on the way, I have summer fever.  You know the symptoms: glancing longingly at your shorts, playing Rubber Soul, wishing your garden would blossom, and planning meals around delicious summer produce.  Growing up, this time of year always had me really excited for the greatest Jewish social experience: summer camp.  Though I was a dedicated day camper at Camp America Day Camp, there are some really wonderful Jewish overnight camps that I wish I could attend now.

The grooviest Jewish overnight camp I have thus far come across is Eden Village Camp in Putnam Valley, New York.  This summer will be Eden Village’s second, and they have some seriously cool programs.  Eden Village is the only Jewish farm overnight camp.  It marries traditional camp with a focus on food and wilderness.  Campers and staff grow and make all of their food to learn what it is to be an ethically responsible consumer.  The food is all certified kosher- the camp has an eruv and a kosher supervisor.

Located 50 miles north of New York City, Eden Village has 248 acres and touches the Appalachian Trail.  In addition to food and farming related activities, Eden Village offers: expanded culinary arts; a ceramics program including pottery wheel and kiln; geology; yoga; rock climbing and rock scrambling; natural building projects including a treehouse, huge clay oven, outdoor kitchen, and fort village, and expanded wilderness and hiking programs.

Interested? (How can you not be?)  There are open houses on second Sundays, in April, May, and June complete with hiking, kayaking, arts and crafts, farm projects and Jewish text study.  If you can’t wait until April, they are offering Maple Sugaring programs, complete with blindfolded taste tests, on March 20 and 27.

As our society becomes increasingly in search of ways to develop healthful and sustainable lifestyles, places like Eden Village are critical for younger generations.  Eden Village is growing a community of ethically responsible and knowledgeable Jewish kids- the very people who will propel our civilization into the future.

I will now listen to “Norwegian Wood” and dream of summer camp.

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iJew

Posted by Rachel Broder in Jewish Innovation on March 1, 2011

 Two Sundays ago the New York Times Sunday Styles section had a small piece about customizing your iPhone signature.  The thought of customizing my iPhone in general has occurred to me before, but I have never really acted upon it- unless you count my very own Septa app.  This creative signature really has me thinking.  I rather like the idea of changing my signature to “Sent from my Brain” or something about excusing any mistakes in my email because the iPhone autocorrect often changes my type (my only real complaint about the phone).  I am thinking that this small change could be a great way to give my iPhone some personality.  Some people bedazzle their phone, others name it, but I am been seeking other ways to make my iPhone unique.  In seeking, I have realized that one way to customize an iPhone is to tailor it to its user’s cultural identity.  This realization has led me to design the perfect Jewish iPhone.  By loading it with the best Jewish apps and creating the perfect customized signature, I am going to pimp (even my mom loved the MTV show Pimp My Ride) my little iBubbelah. 

The Jewish Week put together a great list of the 2010 best Jewish apps.  My favorites are the Grogger Factory, the iManorah, the Hebrew Calendar, and the ParveOmeter.  The Jewish iPhone Magazine highlights a few apps that are a bit more obscure.  There’s an app called What to say that provides material for bar/bat mitzvah speeches, eulogies, and possibly sermons.  This particular app makes me uncomfortable; however, SparkNotes and CliffsNotes are a cherry bomb of a success.  The extremely tantalizing iHummus allows users to wipe hummus across the screen.  I plan on positioning this app between my mail and New York Times app so that I can snack between work and the news.  Sites such as Gigaom.com have lists of some really great kosher apps.  There are apps for cooking kosher, finding kosher restaurants, and also determining if a food is kosher.  Finally, there are a bunch of really great Jewish texts and studies apps.  The iTalmud is a bit out my price range, but the JPS Tanakh is a perfect addition to my Jewish phone.  The iPhone community has really thought of everything.  For those who watch Curb Your Enthusiasm: the only app I am still waiting for is George Costanza’s “iToilet”.

Sent from an iJew.

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A Poetry Contest With A Powerful Subject

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Jewish Books, Jewish Innovation, Jewish Knowledge, Publishing on January 17, 2011

Are you a poet? A historian? A social activist? The Forward is holding a commemorative contest that you might be interested in. From now until February 14th, The Forward is accepting poems that reflect on the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.

Nearly one hundred years ago, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City caught fire. While the source of the blaze is still a topic for debate, the outcome was tragic from any viewpoint. With 146 people killed, the Triangle Factory disaster remains the deadliest industrial accident to occur in New York.

In the aftermath of the fire, a lot of questions were raised about the rights of American factory workers. After all, most of the victims of the fire died because their only exit had been locked to prevent people from leaving their posts early. Worse, the workers on the upper floors had no warning, as the building had no alarm system.

Morris Rosenfeld, known as the “poet laureate of the slum and the sweatshop,” wrote a poem to express the grief of the city. The Jewish Daily Forward published it, running it down the length of the paper’s front page. The press was key in initiating a lawsuit against the factory owners, which in turn pushed the nation to demand safety regulation in industry.

One century later, what difference has the Triangle Fire made? What was the tragedy’s legacy? Did it facilitate change, or did the country only react superficially?

The Forward is seeking original, unpublished poems reflecting on these questions. Entries can be in Yiddish or English, and must be submitted by February 14th, 2011 at 5 pm EST. Please see the above link for rules, terms, and conditions.

You can find out more about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory here. For inspiration, here’s Morris Rosenfeld’s original poem. Spread the word, and best of luck to all who choose to submit their work!

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A Treasured Museum Opens Its Lovely New Doors

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Jewish Innovation, Jewish Knowledge on November 17, 2010

The day after Thanksgiving is usually spent either shopping or lolling about the house in a food coma (or both, if you’re extremely industrious), but if you’re in the Philadelphia area, this year you can do something a lot more worthwhile.

The Majestic New Building

The National Museum of American Jewish History opens its new building to the public on Friday, November 26th. The museum, which first opened in 1976 under Congregation Mikveh Israel (which, FYI, has been around since 1740 and is known as the “Synagogue of the American Revolution”) has been moved to a spectacular new building down the block at Fifth and Market Street. I’ve only seen it in person from the outside, but it’s an amazing piece of architecture. Best of all, it sits proud and visible, adding to the excitement of Independence Mall instead of hiding just around the corner. Jonathan D. Sarna, chief historian at the museum, explains what the new facility hopes to convey:

Some have expressed surprise that Jews took to Independence Mall to educate visitors about the meaning of freedom rather than about more traditional subjects, like the distinctiveness of Judaism, the horrors of the Holocaust and the perils of prejudice. But that is entirely the point: The NMAJH represents a sharp break from decades of focus on Jews as victims and outsiders. It argues, instead, that Jews have arrived in America and feel confident enough to take pride in what they have accomplished under freedom, and to share those lessons with others. Gone are the days when Jews leave Main Street to the gentiles and hide themselves on hard-to-find side streets. Today, taking full advantage of the freedom that the museum itself celebrates, they can look down onto Independence Mall and America’s most hallowed ground.

The opening gala was, by all accounts, a huge success. Jerry Seinfeld hosted the event, Bette Midler performed a stunning concert, and Barbara Streisand attended to check out her section of the “Only In America” hall, which honors 18 Jewish Americans from different fields as chosen by online voters. That’s the most exciting thing about the museum: It’s modern, it’s fun, and it’s extremely interactive. I started my experience with the museum almost a year ago when I voted for my favorite American Jews (Babs was among my picks, of course, along with Henrietta Szold, a founding member of JPS), and I can’t wait to continue the fun when I visit in person.

Tickets are available starting this Friday. Order ahead if you want to visit on the opening weekend! Hope to see you there.

For more info, check out this collection of articles from The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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