Full Curriculum

Unit III: Jewish Peoplehood and Community

For Further Exploration


Here are some additional ways to extend this unit or explore its themes in greater depth:

Compare and Contrast Photographs

Have students look closely at two or more of Ozeri’s photographs that depict the diversity of the world Jewish community. Have students discuss the differences and similarities between the images. How do the photographs help students understand what connects or distinguishes various Jewish communities? For example, have students examine some of the following pairs of images:

The Needs of a Community

Have students create plans for a hypothetical Jewish Community Center in your local community. What kinds of facilities would they want to include? What kinds of services would they offer? Who would come? Is there anything they would include that’s not currently available in the community? What do their choices say about what they think is important to the community? Students can work in groups to develop their plans.

Community and Geography

You might choose to tie your students’ exploration of world Jewish communities to ongoing studies in geography. Students can research the geographic, topographic, and climatic features of the locations in which some of the diverse Jewish communities they’ve studied are found. Are these communities near the sea? In the mountains? In tropical climates? Near major urban centers? Do these features influence the social or religious life in these communities? How? Students can create maps of these locations to show various important features, such as population, ethnic distribution, political boundaries, climate, etc.

Tension in the Community [Recommended for High School]

Unfortunately, the members of a community don’t always agree on political, religious, or social issues. A quick read through a local Jewish newspaper will often reveal such fault lines within the local or world Jewish community. Ask students to do just that—read the Jewish paper and find articles that reflect tension or dissent within the community. Discuss these articles and have students brainstorm ways to resolve the conflicts. Is it always possible to resolve them? Is it always necessary? When does a conflict become too divisive? What are the dangers of such divisions?

Insider/Outsider [Recommended for High School]

Have students consider the relationship between photographer and community. For example:

  • Is taking pictures of your own community different from taking pictures of a community that you’re not part of?
  • Does looking at your community through a camera lens change your relationship to the community? How?
  • Does the act of taking pictures pull you out of the community or the events you’re photographing?
  • Is it possible to photograph a community accurately, or does the act of taking pictures necessarily change events and dynamics?
  • Is there any way to lessen these effects?

Museum Visit

As students are developing their exhibition, take the class to a nearby museum to explore how the exhibitions are organized and what kinds of information they contain. Have students read the exhibition labels to see how they are written, noting what they like or don’t like about them. Students might also get ideas about brochures, tours, placement of artworks, etc.


If your students have not yet done the Introductory Lesson, we recommend beginning with that lesson before progressing through the lessons in this unit.

 

PHOTOS

 

 

Speak to God, Tel-Aviv, Israel, 2006

Ozeri met this young man in Tel-Aviv, at the entrance to Shuk Ha-Carmel (Carmel Market), a busy, open-air mall. The man is a member of the Bratslav sect of Hasidic Judaism. Bratslavers follow the teachings of Rabbi Nahman of Bratslav (1772 – 1810), who encouraged followers to cultivate an intense, personal, joyous relationship with God. This man’s sign reads “Daber Im Hashem,” or “Speak to God.” (Literally, the phrase means, “Speak with the Name.” “The Name” is a euphemism for God’s name, which is too holy to pronounce in everyday speech.)

You can see some Hebrew letters on this man’s large white yarmulke. It’s the beginning of a mantra used in meditation by some members of the Bratslav group. The complete mantra is “Na Nach Nachma Nachman Me’Uman,” and it refers to the name of the sect’s founder and his burial place in Uman, Ukraine. The phrase has become very popular in recent years and can often be seen on signs, bumper stickers, yarmulkes, and graffiŒti throughout Israel.

 

Sample Texts:

, – ,  .

Hillel said, “Be like one of Aaron’s students, loving peace and pursuing it, loving people and bringing them to the Torah.”
– Pirkei Avot 1:12


 

, , .

Rabbi Yishmael would say:
“Be yielding to your elder, be pleasant with the young, and greet every person with joy.”
– Pirkei Avot 3:16


 

Faith is not only in the heart; it should be put into words.
– Rabbi Nahman of Bratslav

 

 

 

The Shape of Sound, Yemen, 1991

Whether you’re in a cave in Yemen or a yeshiva in Brooklyn, the letters of the Hebrew alphabet and the words of the Torah remain the same. It is these universal Jewish traditions that keep communities connected across time and space.

Why do you think the photographer calls this picture The Shape of Sound?

 

Sample Texts:

, – , ”- “ ( ,).

Ben Zoma said: Who is wise? One who learns from all people, as it is written (Psalm 119:99) “I have gained understanding from all my teachers.”
– Pirkei Avot 4:1


 

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Rabbi Chalafta of Kefar Chanania used to say: If ten people sit together and occupy themselves with the Torah, the Divine Presence rests among them as it is written (Psalm 82:1) “God has taken his place in the divine assembly.” And from where do we learn that this applies even to Œfive? Because it is written (Amos 9:6) “He has established his vault upon the earth.” And how do we learn that this applies even to three? Because it is written (Psalm 82:1) “He judges in the midst of the judges.” And from where can it be shown that the same applies even to two? Because it is written (Malachi 3:16) “Then those who revered the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord took note and listened.” And from where even of one? Because it is written (Exodus 20:24) “In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.”
– Pirkei Avot 3:7


 

 

Upsherin, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York, 1995

What do you see in this photograph? A young boy sits on a rabbi’s lap, and together they point to Hebrew letters while a jar of honey sits beside them on the table. It is a custom in some communities that when a boy reaches three years of age, he gets his hair cut for the fiŒrst time (everything except the peot, or corners) and learns his fiŒrst Hebrew letters. But what is the honey for? They use the honey to show the child that studying Torah is sweet. This is an important event in the life of this boy: His sisters and other family members look on as he starts down the path of Talmud Torah—Jewish learning.

 

Sample Texts:

There are three names by which a person is called:
One by which her father and mother call her,
And one by which others call her,
And that which she earns for herself.
The best one of these is the one that she earns for herself.
– Adapted from the Midrash Tanhuma


 

, , , ,   . : , ,  .

At Sinai Moses received the Torah and handed it over to Joshua who handed it over to the elders who handed it over to the prophets who in turn handed it over to the men of the Great Assembly. The latter said three things: Be deliberate in judgment, raise up many disciples, and make a fence around the Torah.
– Pirkei Avot 1:1


 

Nuptials, Libertad Synagogue, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2002

In this photo, a bride and groom stand under a chupah (wedding canopy) in the Libertad (Liberty) Synagogue in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The rabbi looks on as the groom signs a large book in which all the important events of the community are recorded. He will also sign the ketubah—the traditional Jewish marriage contract. Notice the bride standing behind him. What do you think she’s thinking or feeling?

Argentina has the largest Jewish community in all of Latin America. Because they are the biggest, they have taken on the responsibility of helping smaller communities. As photographer Zion Ozeri points out, “Buenos Aires has the only rabbinical and cantorial seminary in all of South America. And if you go to other countries in South America, the rabbis are always imported from Argentina. You have to remember, it’s the largest [Jewish] community [in Latin America], numbering about 200,000 people. I was in Aruba, for example, and the rabbi was from Argentina, and I was in Cuba and they had sent people from Argentina as well.”

 

Sample Texts:

, , .

…may there be heard again in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem glad and joyous voices, the voices of groom and bride…
– from the traditional Jewish wedding ceremony


 

, ; , -.

A joyful heart makes for good health;
Despondency dries up the bones.
– Proverbs (Mishlei) 17:22



 

 

B’nei Yisrael Wedding, Mumbai, India, 2008

The rabbi reads from the ketuba as part of this traditional wedding ceremony in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India. A ketuba is a marriage contract that outlines the husband’s responsibilities to his wife. This ancient document not only protects the woman’s rights during the marriage but also in the event she is divorced or widowed. Traditionally, the ketuba is written in Aramaic, but today it is sometimes written in Hebrew and/or the local language as well. Some couples have their ketuba decorated and then hung on the wall of their home.

Compare this photo with Nuptials, Libertad Synagogue, which shows a wedding in Argentina. How are the two pictures similar? How are they different?

 

Sample Texts:

 

- , : , .

And God created man in His image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
– Genesis (Bereshit) 1:27


 

God creates new worlds constantly. In what way? By causing marriages to take place.
– The Zohar


 

“Tell Me, What’s Your Name?”, Rehovot, Israel 2008

Tell Me, What’s Your Name? is the title of the book these girls are reading. It may also have been the first thing they said to each other when they met in their nursery school class in the Israeli city of Rehovot.

Rehovot, is one of the oldest and most diverse modern Israeli cities, was founded in 1890 by Polish Jews. The original inhabitants were joined 16 years later by immigrants from Yemen. Today, Rehovot is home to more than 100,000 people, representing religious, as well as secular communities, and hailing from Ethiopia, North Africa, Yemen, the former Soviet Union, and elsewhere. The young girls in this photograph reflect not only the diversity of the local community but the spirit of fellowship that typifies the residents of Rehovot.


 

 

Bet-Levi, Peru, 2003

This family lives in the Amazonian jungle of Peru. You can see the refl‰ection of the rainforest just outside their house. You can also see symbols of Jewish identity on their door. Photographer Zion Ozeri explains the family’s history: “Moroccan Jews came to Peru for the rubber industry about 100 years ago. The rubber industry died out, and they married indigenous Indian women, but they still kept their names and they feel Jewish and want to belong. And some of them have gone through conversions because by the second or third generations they may not be halachically [according to Jewish law] Jewish. This is the family of Bet-Levi [‘the House of Levi’].”

 

 Sample Texts:

, ; , , , . , : , , , .

You shall make a lampstand of pure gold; the lampstand shall be made of hammered work; its base and its shaft, its cups, calyxes, and petals shall be of one piece. Six branches shall issue from its sides; three branches from one side of the lampstand and three branches from the other side of the lampstand.
– Exodus (Shemot) 25:31-32


 

, - . , - , , ; , . -, - -, , –, - .

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Advance the tribe of Levi and place them in attendance upon Aaron the priest to serve him. They shall perform duties for him and for the whole community before the Tent of Meeting, doing the work of the Tabernacle.”
– Numbers (Bemidbar) 3:5-7

 


 

Cave, Haidan A-Sham, Yemen, 1992

Click to Enlarge

You don’t need to be in a classroom or synagogue to study the Torah. You can do it almost anywhere—even in a cave. The town of Haidan A-Sham is located in a rugged and mountainous part of Yemen, and the Jews there made use of whatever spaces were available. These boys have gathered in a cave to study the weekly Torah portion. Since the time this photo was taken, most of the Jews have left that part of the country, moving to bigger cities or to Israel.

Jews fiŒrst moved to Yemen in ancient times. They practiced their religion faithfully throughout the centuries but were generally treated as second-class citizens by the Muslim authorities. Because of the way they were treated, as well as their longing to return to the Jewish homeland, Yemenite Jews started immigrating to Israel in the late 1880s. This culminated in 1949 – 50 with a huge airlift known as Operation Magic Carpet. For the Yemenite Jews, this airlift seemed to fulfiŒll Isaiah’s prophecy that the Jewish people would be brought to the promised land “on the wings of eagles.” Today, only a tiny number of Jews remain in Yemen.

 

Sample Texts:

, , , ,   . : , , 

At Sinai Moses received the Torah and handed it over to Joshua who handed it over to the elders who handed it over to the prophets who in turn handed it over to the men of the Great Assembly. The latter said three things: Be deliberate in judgment, raise up many disciples, and make a fence around the Torah. 
– Pirkei Avot 1:1


 

,  ,  ; .

Joshua ben Perachyah said, “Get yourself a teacher, fiŒnd someone to study with, and judge everyone favorably.”
– Pirkei Avot 1:6


 

 

Basic Training, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1996

These men and women are cadets in the U.S. Air Force. Every day, they get up at the crack of dawn and go through the challenges and rigors of basic training. But these cadets are also Jews. So once a week, on Friday night, they get together for a couple of hours at the synagogue on their base in Colorado Springs, Colorado, for services, a piece of cake, and a much-needed break from their training. If you look behind them, you can see the Ten Commandments on the synagogue wall. The left-hand column begins with the sixth commandment: “Lo tirtzach” (Thou shall not murder).

 

Sample Texts:

.

The law of the land is the law.
– Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim 28a


 

.

Do not stand idly by the blood of you neighbor.
– Leviticus (Vayikra) 19:16


 

, – ’, : , .

When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. 
Are trees of the Œfield human to withdraw before you into the besieged city?

– Deuteronomy (Devarim) 20:19

 


Bomba Israel, Santiago, Chile, 2002

Bomba Israel is the Jewish volunteer fiŒre department of Santiago, Chile. Photographer Zion Ozeri explains: “There, every ethnic group has its own Œfire engine. That doesn’t mean they’re not going to help others, but there is a sense of pride: ‘We have our own volunteers.’ And the younger ones are trainees.” Bomba Israel was founded in 1954, and its mission is to serve all those in its area who need assistance.

 

Sample Texts:

True salvation can come only to a person who renders service to the community.
– Rabbi Yisrael Lipkin Salanter


 

If each one sweeps before his own door, the whole street is clean.
– Yiddish saying


 

, , ; , .

Therefore man was created singly to teach you that whosoever kills a single soul the Bible considers to have killed a complete world. And whosoever sustains and saves a single soul, it is as if that person sustained a whole world.
– Mishnah, Sanhedrin 4:5

 

 


Soccer Fan, Kibbutz Mefalsim, Negev, Israel, 2008

The title of this photograph, Soccer Fan, says it all. And if the title doesn’t get the point across, the banner behind this boy does. It reads, “After you I will go…I’m ready to die for you—Maccabi Tel-Aviv.” Maccabi Tel-Aviv is the oldest and most successful soccer team in Israel. In fact, the team was established even before the State of Israel was.

Soccer, known in Hebrew as cadur-regel (literally, “football”) is arguably Israel’s most popular sport, and fans (like sports fans everywhere) clearly take it seriously. This boy lives on Kibbutz Mefalsim in the Negev Desert of southern Israel, but his heart lies elsewhere—on the sports Œfields of Tel-Aviv.

 

Sample Texts:

Rabbi Yehudah ben Teima said:
Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer, and strong as a lion, to carry out the will of your Father in Heaven.
– Pirkei Avot 5:23


 

Bodily health and well-being are part of the path to God. One must therefore avoid anything that may harm the body and one must cultivate healthful habits.
– Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Deot 4:1

 


 

 

Oil Pressers, Alibag, India, 2001

This Jewish family lives in Alibag, India, a small village outside of Mumbai. Many of the Jews from the towns and villages around Mumbai have worked as oil pressers for generations. In fact, they were sometimes known among their non-Jewish neighbors as Shanwar Telis, or “Saturday Oil Pressers,” because they didn’t work on Shabbat. In this picture, you can see some symbols of Jewish life—like the Magen David (Jewish star) and Hamsa (good luck sign in the shape of a hand)—alongside the traditional tools of the oil pressers’ trade.

Jews have lived in India for 2,000 years. Unfortunately, the country’s Jewish community is shrinking. Most of India’s Jews have immigrated to Israel, and only a few thousand are left in the entire country.

 

Sample Texts:

, –-. , , , .

Take to heart these instructions with which I charge you this day. Impress them upon your children.
Recite them when you stay at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you get up.

– Deuteronomy (Devarim) 6:6-7


 

, :
, - – , .
, ; , .
, – :
, – , .
-, – .

A song of Ascents.

Happy are all who fear the Lord,
who follow His ways.
You shall enjoy the fruit of your labors;
you shall be happy and you shall prosper.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house;
your sons, like olive saplings around your table.
So shall the man who fears the Lord be blessed.
– Pslams (Tehilim) 128:1-4


 

 

Honorable Discharge, Ben-Gurion Airport, Israel, 1992

Look at the expression on this man’s face. How would you describe it—fear, sadness, confusion, joy? He has just arrived in Israel from the former Soviet Union. Under communism, Soviet Jews were not allowed to practice their religion openly and were often denied the right to immigrate to the U.S. or Israel. But after Gorbachev (the Soviet president) opened the doors to emigration in 1989, hundreds of thousands of Jews from the former Soviet Union fl‰ocked to Israel, with the help of Jews around the world.

These immigrants often arrived with very little and faced many challenges in their new homes. But the man in this picture has brought something very precious with him: the military medals he wears with pride. They serve as a reminder of his previous life, of the risks he took Œfighting for his country.

Here is what the photographer, Zion Ozeri, has to say about this picture: “I call it honorable discharge. He was obviously discharged from the Russian army. And many Jews, by the way, either sacriŒficed their lives or fought heroically during World War II…. I always look for the image that would defiŒne the moment, so to speak. So I sort of saw it in his face…. You see the ‰flag, you see El-Al, and that look.”

 

Sample Texts:

; , .

Gray hair is a crown of glory;
It is attained by the way of righteousness.
– Proverbs (Mishlei) 16:31


 

, .

Bring us in peace from the four corners of the earth and lead us with upright pride to our Land.
– from shacharit (the morning service)


 

- , -; - -, - . --, - , , ; , -, , .

Assuredly, a time is coming—declares the Lord—when it shall no more be said, “As the Lord lives who brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt,” but rather, “As the Lord lives who brought the Israelites out of the northland, and out of all the lands to which He had banished them.” For I will bring them back to their land, which I gave to their fathers.
– Jeremiah (Yirmiyahu) 16:14-15


 

 

Backpack, Ben Gurion Airport, Israel, 1991

Jews have lived in Ethiopia for hundreds and hundreds of years. But in the 1970s and 1980s, life became very diffiŒcult for them. They were no longer safe. So, in 1984, the Israeli government organized a secret operation—known as Operation Moses—to bring Ethiopia’s Jews to Israel. In six short weeks, almost 8,000 Ethiopian Jews were rescued through the Sudan. It was a diffiŒcult journey, and many suffered or died along the way. When the operation ended, about 15,000 Jews still remained in Ethiopia.

In 1990, Israel and Ethiopia reached an agreement that would allow Ethiopia’s remaining Jews to move to Israel. But before anything could be done, rebel forces threatened to topple the Ethiopian government. So in May 1991, as the rebels seized control of Ethiopia’s capital, the Israeli government organized an unprecedented rescue operation, called Operation Solomon. Beginning on Friday, May 24, and continuing non-stop for a day and a half, 36 El-Al jumbo jets and military transport planes carried more than 14,000 Ethiopian Jews to freedom in Israel.

The people in this photograph were part of Operation Solomon. The man carries his mother on his back as they enter the land of Israel for the Œfirst time. Look at the expression on their faces. How do you think they feel?

Here’s what the photographer, Zion Ozeri, had to say about the experience: “I was here [in the United States] at the time. Reading carefully through the Israeli newspapers and the New York Times, I felt that something was going to happen—some kind of an airlift. I smelled it in the air. So I called someone I knew at the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem, and I said, ‘What’s happening? Is it what I think is going to happen? Is there going to be an airlift?’ He said, ‘Are you crazy? I can’t talk to you about this over the phone.’ I said, ‘I understand. But tell me, should I just buy a ticket to come to Israel right now?’ And he said, ‘Yeah.’ I bought a ticket and I got there Friday afternoon. I put my luggage down at my parents’ house, took my camera, and said, ‘Goodbye, I’m going back to the airport.’ They said, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘I can’t tell you now, but you’ll know in a couple of days.’ And it was the most amazing thing. An hour or two after I got to the airport, they started landing. And you’d see babies who were being born on the planes. It was just amazing.”

 

Sample Texts:

.

All people, in every generation, must regard themselves as having been personally freed from Egypt.
– from the Passover Haggadah


 

, ; , . 
, ; ,

My son, heed the discipline of your father,
And do not forsake the instruction of your mother.
For they are a graceful wreath upon your head,
A necklace about your throat.
– Proverbs (Mishlei) 1:8


 

-, , - , :  , - - –. , - –-, : - , -, , .

And Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You dealt ill with Your servant, and why have I not enjoyed Your favor, that You have laid the burden of all this people upon me? Did I conceive all this people, did I bear them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom as a nurse carries an infant,’ to the land that You have promised on oath to their fathers?”
– Numbers (Bemidbar) 11:11-12

 

 

 

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