BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Ritualwell - ECPv6.15.19//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://ritualwell.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Ritualwell REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20210314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20211107T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20220313T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20221106T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20230312T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20231105T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241210T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241210T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20241113T191648Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241114T141838Z UID:28663-1733832000-1733837400@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:A Secret Chord: Exploring Leonard Cohen’s Sacred/Secular Songs DESCRIPTION:December 10 and 17\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EST\n$54\n \n\nThe iconic songs of Leonard Cohen have influenced the cultural landscape\, from films to well-known cover renditions to contemporary liturgy. Throughout his life\, Cohen wrestled with Jewish tradition and many of his lyrics and poems are woven with references to the Bible\, psalms\, Lurianic kabbalah\, and traditional Jewish prayers.\n \nJoin writer Amy Gottlieb for an interactive discussion to unpack several songs\, examining how Cohen engages with Jewish texts and theology. Our discussion will conclude with a generative writing workshop using prompts from poems and song lyrics.\n\n \nBoth sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\nAmy Gottlieb’s debut novel\, The Beautiful Possible\, was a finalist for the Ribalow Prize\, Wallant Award\, and National Jewish Book Award. Her fiction and poetry have been published in On Being\, Lilith\, Ilanot Review\, Paper Brigade\, and Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry\, among others. She has taught at the San Miguel Writers Conference\, Canberra Writers Festival\, Sydney Jewish Writers Festival\, AWP\, New York Public Library\, and elsewhere. She lives in New York City\, where she teaches fiction workshops and works with individual writers on book projects.\n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/a-secret-chord-exploring-leonard-cohens-sacred-secular-songs/2024-12-10/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/11/SecretChord_AmyGottlieb_Dec2024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241204T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241204T140000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20241118T212834Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241127T010726Z UID:28688-1733317200-1733320800@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Capturing Your (Grand)Child's Stories DESCRIPTION:December 4\, 2024\n1:00-2:00 p.m. EST\n\n \nSo often\, we experience meaningful moments with our children or grandchildren that we’d like to capture–or have special stories from our own childhood that we hope to share with the next generation. Dr. Barry Mann has crafted a delightful children’s book\, Miri and her Drum Set\, inspired by a real-life adventure with his young grandchild. Miri and her Drum Set explores both the miracle of Hanukkah and also ways to unite people across religions and cultures.\n \nJoin us for an engaging conversation about Dr. Mann’s journey of transforming a personal story into a published book. Whether your goal is to publish or simply to create a family keepsake story\, discover an effective process to outline and breathe life into your narratives. This event is perfectly timed for those looking to create and share a story that could make a memorable Hanukkah gift for the family.\n \n\nThis session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nBarry Mann is a retired surgeon and currently System Medical Director for Health Equity in the Main Line Health System of suburban Philadelphia where he served as Chief Academic Officer and director of the surgical residency training program. Dr. Mann has received numerous prestigious awards for his work in medical education including the Distinguished Teacher of Medicine Award from the American Association for Medical Colleges and the Distinguished Educator Award from the Association for Surgical Education. While professor of surgery at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia\, he co-authored five medical textbooks including SURGERY—A Competency Based Companion. His interest in Hebrew and Arabic led him to write Dreams of Peace\, A Dual Language Primer for Learning Hebrew and Arabic in 2015. Miri and her Drum Set is his first children’s book and is based on a true story of kindness he experienced with his grandson Ezra at the Lime Ridge Mall in Ontario\, Canada.\n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/capturing-your-grandchilds-stories/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/11/Capturing-Your-GrandChilds-Stories-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241125T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241125T143000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20241113T162451Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241113T162538Z UID:28668-1732539600-1732545000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Bring the Jewish Practice of Gratitude to Your Thanksgiving DESCRIPTION:Monday\, November 25\, 2024\n1-2:30 p.m. EST\n$18\n \n\nGratitude is an integral aspect of Jewish tradition. From starting the day with the Modah Ani prayer to offering prayers throughout the day that express appreciation for both the natural and human worlds\, Jewish practices provide us with valuable frameworks to foster awareness and joy through gratitude.\n\nWith Thanksgiving approaching\, this is the perfect opportunity to delve into gratitude as expressed in Jewish tradition and to create our own forms of thanks through poetry\, prayer\, or ritual. Join Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer\, Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs\, for a special pre-Thanksgiving event designed to inspire you before the holiday\, inviting you to explore your personal feelings of gratitude. Uncover rituals that will bring a sense of sacred awareness to your Thanksgiving table and into your everyday life!\n\n \n\n \n\nGabrielle Ariella Kaplan-Mayer is Ritualwell’s Director of Virtual Content and Programs. She is a spiritual director\, author and educator whose work focuses on spirituality\, creativity and disability. Her personal essays have been featured in Tablet\, Shondaland\, NBCThink\, Wisdom Daily\, WHYY and many other publications and she has published several nonfiction books as well as plays for children. Gabrielle is currently working on a memoir about the power of intuition and ongoing conversations with her ancestors. She writes a Substack newsletter called “Journey With The Seasons\,” a weekly practice of meditative reading with creative self-expression prompts. \nGabrielle holds a BFA in theater and creative writing from Emerson College and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. \n\n\n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/bring-the-jewish-practice-of-gratitude-to-your-thanksgiving/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/11/Gabby_ThanksgivingGratitude_Nov2024-RAW.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241114T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241114T150000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20241031T190003Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241101T150341Z UID:28509-1731592800-1731596400@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Braided Together: 'Take Challah' Ritual in Community DESCRIPTION:Wednesdays\, November 14 and December 12\, 2024\n2:00-3:00 p.m. EST  \n\nWhen was the last time you came together with friends or family to prepare a meal? Perhaps to bake bread? Picture everyone gathered around a table\, crafting beautifully braided dough with delightful aromas\, sharing stories filled with laughter and even a few tears. The warmth of connection and belonging\, not just from the oven\, has been lacking in our lives as we’ve drifted away from our Jewish communities and intimate family circles due to various life circumstances. However\, it doesn’t have to remain this way\, especially with technology supporting us.\n\n\n\nJoin Adva Chattler for a monthly gathering to explore the ritual of “Taking Challah”: the tradition of blessing the dough of our challah before baking it. Aside from the ritual\, we will learn a new braiding and decorating technique each month.  Our time together will be sprinkled with song\, chant\, storytelling  and more\, as we braid our challahs together. Recipe\, step-by-step guide and more resources will be shared in advance. \n\n\n\n\n\nAdva Chattler is an Israeli-Mizrahi Jew\, born and raised in Be’er-Sheva\, Israel. She loves to create meaningful experiences through her cooking and baking that prompt sharing stories\, teachings and rituals about Judaism\, Israel and Mizrahi Jewish cultures and heritage. Her rituals\, prayers and poems were published on Ritualwell. Adva is passionate about bringing people together in ways that spark relationship building and connecting to others on a deeper level\, both in the challenging and ever-changing world of online gatherings\, and in person. She holds a MA in conflict Resolution and Management from Ben Gurion University of the Negev and BA in Public Administration and Management from Sapir College in Sderot\, Israel\, and a Makhloket Matters Fellow for Jewish Professionals by the Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies. With her experience in teaching and curriculum building\, she support facilitators and presenters for Ritualwell and Reconstructing Judaism and encourage them to bring not only their best self\, but best practices and tools for successful teaching online. Adva is also a mother and a foodie who lives in Del Rio\, Tx.\, with her husband\, three daughters and two dogs. \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/braided-together-take-challah-ritual-in-community/2024-11-14/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Monthly program ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/Braided-together-.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241107T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241107T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240726T155116Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241014T135943Z UID:25970-1730980800-1730986200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Compassionate Ink: Promoting Caregivers' Well-being through Writing DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, November 7\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EST\n \n\nRitualwell is proud to partner again with Sharsheret during Caregivers’ Awareness Month for poetry\, prose\, and writing surrounding the caregiving experience. Focused on healing and support from the stress of this difficult role\, we will find refuge in expressing our emotions through writing. During our time together there will be an opportunity for everyone to begin writing something personally meaningful and healing through our writing prompts. This session will focus on writing and ritual as a means of healing\, which has been studied as an effective way to heal from both physical and emotional trauma. There will be time for sharing your own new writing from the session\, something that you have already written before\, or come to listen to others.\n \nNo previous writing experience necessary–our focus is on the power of expressing personal stories. This session is open to all\, no matter who you are supporting\, or why they may need support. Please feel free to invite friends\, loved ones\, and anyone you think will need this kind of support.\n\n \nThis event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n\n \n\nMelissa K. Rosen\, two-time cancer survivor\, current caregiver\, and a member of the ADVOT writing community. She is the Director of Training and Education at Sharsheret: The Jewish Breast and Ovarian Cancer Community.\n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/compassionate-ink-promoting-caregivers-wellbeing-through-writing/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/CompassionateInk_MelissaRosen_Nov2024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241029T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241029T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20241001T160159Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241014T153052Z UID:28009-1730203200-1730208600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Spiritual Preparation for Election Day DESCRIPTION:October 29\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m.\n$18\n \nWith a week until Election Day in the US\, it’s natural to feel anxiety and uncertainty.\nJoin Rabbi Malkah Binah Klein and the Ritualwell community for a special event to draw on spiritual and embodied practices for cultivating courage\, resilience\, and compassion to help find equanimity for the week ahead. Craft a personal ritual or prayer\, drawing from the deep well of Jewish and world wisdom traditions\, to carry you through the week ahead. Gather strength through creative expression–and the power of being with others.\n \nThis session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n\n\n\n \n\n\n \n\nRabbi Malkah Binah Klein is a ritual artist\, community leader\, and teacher of Torah and embodied spiritual practice based in Philadelphia. She is the founder of Merkava\, a new organization that supports spiritual transformation and healing through creative ritual. Among her creative endeavors are composing Hebrew chants\, nature photography\, and channeling the voice of Queen Esther. Malkah Binah is devoted to weaving relationships of nurture\, resilience\, and authenticity.\n \n\n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/spiritual-preparation-for-election-day/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/10/Spiritual-Preparation-for-Election-Day-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241023T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241023T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240916T210731Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240930T165224Z UID:27835-1729684800-1729690200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:The Jewish Spirit of Hope DESCRIPTION:October 23\, 2024\, \n12-1:30 p.m.\n$18\n \nRabbi Schneur Zalman wrote “A little bit of light dispels a lot of darkness.” Join the Ritualwell community to read and discuss examples of hope expressed in writing through song\, story\, humor and metaphor that will stir you to think about where hope lives within you. Memoirist Ellen Blum Barish will lead us in writing prompts designed to help you conjure these concepts of hope\, as they relate to yourself\, your loved ones\, your community\, the environment or world at large. Begin this new year by discovering and sharing your individual spirits of hope in community.\n \n\nThis event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n\n \nEllen Blum Barish is the author of the spiritual memoir Seven Springs (Shanti Arts\, 2021)\, the essay collection Views from the Home Office Window (Adams Street Publishing\, 2007)\, and a contributor to Chicago Storytellers From Stage to Page (Chicago Story Press\, 2020). You can find her personal essays in Tablet\, Lilith\, Brevity’s Blog\, Full Grown People\, Literary Mama\, and The Chicago Tribune and hear them on Chicago Public Radio. She founded the literary publication Thread\, which earned four notables in Best American Essays. Ellen has taught writing at Northwestern University\, Chicago-area synagogues\, and writer’s studios\, including Story Studio Chicago and Lighthouse Lit Fest. She works privately with writers on essay collections and memoir.\n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/the-jewish-spirit-of-hope-2/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/09/EllenBB_TheJewishSpiritofHope_Oct2024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241021T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241021T121500 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240725T154729Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240924T142727Z UID:26118-1729512000-1729512900@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Holding Each Other DESCRIPTION:Every Monday\, 12-12:15 p.m. EDT\n \nNow more than ever\, we need each other.\n \n\nEvery Monday\, join “Holding Each Other\,” a 15-minute online minyan\, facilitated by a leading Ritualwell contributor.  Together\, we’ll recite Mourners’ Kaddish and Mi Shebeirach\, the prayer for healing. To foster our spiritual resilience\, we’ll engage with a brief creative meditation.\n\n \n\nOn October 21st\, a few days before the holiday of Shemini Atzeret\, our special guest leader will be Rabbi Deborah Waxman. Rabbi Waxman will lead us in grieving\, praying and sharing as we mark the anniversary of the Hebrew date of the tragic Hamas attacks.\n \nGather your strength and provide support to others.\n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/holding-each-other-2024-10-21/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/Holding-Each-Other-24-25-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241007T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241007T130000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240725T154729Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240829T201020Z UID:26116-1728302400-1728306000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:A Day of Memory: Holding Each Other on October 7th\, 2024 DESCRIPTION:Monday\, October 7th\n12-1:00 p.m. EDT\n \nNow more than ever\, we need each other. Our community meets every Monday for “Holding Each Other\,” a 15-minute online minyan\, but on October 7th\, we’ll gather for an hour of grieving\, praying and sharing.\n \nOur guest facilitators are two beloved Ritualwell facilitators who live in Israel: Rabbi Haviva Ner-David and Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein. They will each share about their experiences and perspectives from the last year and lead us in opportunities for creative expression.\n\n \n\n\n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/holding-each-other-2024-10-07/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/Holding-Each-Other-24-25-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240925T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240925T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240724T113240Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240725T141156Z UID:25269-1727265600-1727271000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:The Poetry of Your Ancestors DESCRIPTION:Wednesday\, September 25\, 2024\n12- 1:30 p.m. EDT \n \nJoin us as we investigate\, conjure\, and generate new poetry from our ancestral wisdom\, and delve into our prophetic ancestors in our Jewish sacred texts. Led by Anna Goodman Herrick\, author of A Speaker is a Wilderness: Poems on the Sacred Path from Broken Whole \, this Rituawell Event aligns with the month of Elul\, a time of introspection and reflection in the Jewish calendar. At this moment in Jewish time\, we re-examine our spiritual goals in order to get ourselves ready for the Days of Awe. Learn innovative and nourishing approaches to engaging with sacred texts and connect with your own sacred wisdom\, transforming it into poetry. For new and seasoned writers alike. No prior writing experience necessary.\n \nThis event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \n \nAnna Goodman Herrick is the author of A Speaker is a Wilderness: Poems on the Sacred Path from Broken Whole (Monkfish\, 2024). She works at the intersection of spirituality\, sacred words\, and human rights\, towards collective liberation. Anna has performed her poetry at the Emily Dickinson Museum and One Billion Rising’s Artist Uprising at the El Paso Border\, and shared her work at the Library of Congress\, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum\, and Bloomsday on Broadway. She has recent and upcoming poetry in Spirituality + Health Magazine\, Rattle\, and the Los Angeles Press. Anna has created work for television and branded content for platforms like Teen Vogue\, Sony\, ABC Family\, Oprah Winfrey Network\, MTV\, and the Sundance Channel\, and created installations based on her poetry for museums and galleries worldwide. \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/the-poetry-of-your-ancestors/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/ThePoetryofYourAncestors_AnnaGoodmanHerrick_Sept2024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240918T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240918T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240711T194654Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240904T173416Z UID:25267-1726660800-1726666200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Writing Letters: Dispatches to the Divine DESCRIPTION:Wednesday\, September 18\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EDT\n$36\n \n\nThroughout history\, letters in the form of prayers have been a longstanding tradition: the act of direct prayer to God traces back to Abraham\, who pleaded for the righteous in Sodom. Join memoirist Ellen Blum Barish\, just weeks before Rosh Hashanah\, to discover how letter writing can enhance your spiritual life and strengthen your bond with the Divine. This practice is a timely opportunity to prepare for a meaningful transition into the High Holy Days.\n \nAs the Days of Awe draw near\, we are all reflecting on the past year – grateful for what we have and hopeful for what we aim to mend. Composing a letter\, whether to yourself\, a loved one\, or to the Divine\, is a way to articulate your thoughts. Similar to prayers\, letters can express gratitude\, admiration\, and devotion\, as well as make requests\, seek guidance\, confess\, and find comfort\, forgiveness\, or divine support.\n\n \n\nNow it your time to write the letter that’s in your heart.\n\n \nThis session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nEllen Blum Barish is the author of the spiritual memoir Seven Springs (Shanti Arts\, 2021)\, the essay collection Views from the Home Office Window (Adams Street Publishing\, 2007)\, and a contributor to Chicago Storytellers From Stage to Page (Chicago Story Press\, 2020). You can find her personal essays in Tablet\, Lilith\, Brevity’s Blog\, Full Grown People\, Literary Mama\, and The Chicago Tribune and hear them on Chicago Public Radio. She founded the literary publication Thread\, which earned four notables in Best American Essays. Ellen has taught writing at Northwestern University\, Chicago-area synagogues\, and writer’s studios\, including Story Studio Chicago and Lighthouse Lit Fest. She works privately with writers on essay collections and memoir. \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/dispatches-to-the-divine-soliloquys-to-spirit/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/DispatchestotheDivine_EllenBlumBarish_Sept2024_raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240916T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240916T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240729T172110Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240829T200134Z UID:26344-1726488000-1726493400@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Reading and Writing Mi Shebeirach Le'Holim\, the Jewish Prayer for Healing DESCRIPTION:Monday\, September 16\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EDT\n \nIn another special Elul event\, we will study the origins of Judaism’s central healing prayer; reading between the lines in an effort to discover its theological underpinnings\, and how/when/why it has been utilized historically. What does the Mi Shebeirach teach us about how Judaism understands healing? Are there risks in saying it or not saying it? We will also and craft and share our own original versions of this healing prayer.\n \nThis event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nRabbi Joshua Boettiger is Jewish Chaplain and Visiting Assistant Professor of Humanities at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson\, New York. He is the current Rosh Yeshiva for the Center for Contemporary Mussar and for the last decade\, directed the Mussar program at Temple Emek Shalom in Ashland\, Oregon. Joshua also teaches Jewish Meditation and co-leads silent retreats. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Pacific University and his poetry has appeared in the Missouri Review\, the Southern Review\, B O D Y\, and elsewhere.\n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/reading-and-writing-mi-shebeirach-lecholim/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/Reading-and-Writing-the-Mourners-Kaddish-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240911T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240911T130000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240719T170650Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240827T144012Z UID:25802-1726056000-1726059600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Resilience Boost: Spiritual Accelerant for the Election Season DESCRIPTION:Wednesday\, September 11\, 2024\n\n12–1:00 p.m. EDT\n$18\n\n \n\nCome together with the Ritualwell community on September 11 for a special hour dedicated to the Jewish values connected to pursuing justice.\n \nWe will begin with an opportunity to recognize and mourn those whose lives were lost on September 11\, 2001. Then we will learn with Rabbi Mike Pollack\, the Executive Director of March On Harrisburg\, an organization dedicated to fighting for democracy. Rabbi Pollack will share Jewish texts that reinforce our commitment to pursuing justice and guide us in discussion and reflection.\n \nWe’ll close with a creative prompt to inspire you to craft an original poem or prayer reflecting on your intentions for the upcoming election season.\n\n\n \nRegistration for this event includes a special Resilience Boost package of curated resources of poetry and prayers to help keep your energy going strong through election season and (optional) weekly meditations for hope and equanimity arriving to you by text or email each Tuesday through the election. The printable PDF of resources will be sent to you electronically on 9/10.\n \n\nThis session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nRabbi Michael Pollack grew up in Rockville\, Maryland. During his last year of rabbinical school at RRC\, he co-founded March On Harrisburg\, a group dedicated to making corruption illegal and taking our democracy where it’s never been before by passing anti-corruption\, pro-democracy bills in Pennsylvania. Michael is also a statewide tri-chair of the PA Poor People’s Campaign. He lives in Cheltenham\, and his hobbies include convincing politicians to not be corrupt\, long marches through the Pennsylvania countryside\, and sitting down in inconvenient places in the State Capitol. \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/resilience-boost-spiritual-tools-for-the-election-season-2/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/ResilienceBoostEvent_Sept112024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240909T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240909T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240729T172024Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240815T191844Z UID:26348-1725883200-1725888600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Reading and Writing the Mourner's Kaddish DESCRIPTION:Monday\, September 9\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EDT\n \nIt has been noted that the Mourner’s Kaddish is not explicitly about death or loss; rather\, on the surface\, it appears to be a prayer of praise and exaltation. But what is the relationship between grief and praise? Who is the Mourner’s Kaddish for? What have been our own experiences of this prayer? Join us for a special Elul program where we get inside the structure of one of Judaism’s most powerful and enigmatic prayers\, examining some of the context and history of this liturgy and then mapping and writing our own versions.\n \nThis event will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nRabbi Joshua Boettiger is Jewish Chaplain and Visiting Assistant Professor of Humanities at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson\, New York. He is the current Rosh Yeshiva for the Center for Contemporary Mussar and for the last decade\, directed the Mussar program at Temple Emek Shalom in Ashland\, Oregon. Joshua also teaches Jewish Meditation and co-leads silent retreats. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Pacific University and his poetry has appeared in the Missouri Review\, the Southern Review\, B O D Y\, and elsewhere.\n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/reading-and-writing-the-mourners-kaddish/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240812T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240812T130000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240726T181620Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240726T181620Z UID:26433-1723464000-1723467600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:ADVOT@Ritualwell Open House DESCRIPTION:Monday\, August 12\, 2024\n12-1 p.m. EDT\n \n\n \nNow more than ever\, Jewish writers and other creatives need a nurturing home to encourage each other and uplift each other’s creative work.\n \n\n\nJoin us for an open house to learn about ADVOT@Ritualwell\, a creative home for poets\, liturgists\, ritual creators\, songwriters\, and other Jewish artists. Meet fellow writers\, learn more about ADVOT & engage in a creative writing prompt! learn more about ADVOT here.\n\n \n \n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/advotritualwell-open-house/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:ADVOT,Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/07/Lets-Get-to-Know-ADVOT@Ritualwell-1.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240801T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240801T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240607T175216Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240725T185528Z UID:24913-1722513600-1722519000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Prescription to Feel: A Guided Conversation on Love\, Loss\, and the Power of Community to Sustain Us DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, August 1\, 2024\n12-1:30 p.m. EDT\n$36\n \nRitual can help us to navigate life’s most challenging circumstances. In her new book\, Fifty-Seven Fridays author Myra Sack illustrates how embracing rituals can help us find beauty and fulfillment while simultaneously experiencing grief. She writes poignantly about the extraordinary love and extraordinary grief that she experienced during her daughter Havi’s diagnosis with Tay-Sachs disease\, through Havi’s death\, and during the first year after she died.\n \nJoin Myra and the Ritualwell community for a conversation about both her personal journey of grief\, and to learn about the many rituals that her family has developed to keep their daughter’s essence alive. Myra will share her orientation toward grief\, her exploration of bereavement-science and spirituality\, and devotion to grief literacy. She will invite us to consider this possibility: that each of us can find a different way to be in grief with ourselves and each other.\n \nDuring this event you will have an opportunity to engage in a writing prompt to reimagine grief so that it makes room for life.\n \nYou can learn more about Myra’s story here.\n \nAll sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nAn all-american\, scholar athlete who turned her love for sport into a platform for social change\, Myra Sack has led sports-based youth development non-profits for over a decade. A writer\, coach\, and activist\, she is the mother of two daughters and one son and lives in Boston\, MA with her family. Her oldest daughter\, Havi\, passed away on January 20\, 2021 of Tay-Sachs disease.\n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/prescription-to-feel-a-guided-conversation-on-love-loss-and-the-power-of-community-to-sustain-us/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240627T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240627T203000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240520T212012Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240520T212200Z UID:24647-1719514800-1719520200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Advot End-of-Year Celebration and Poetry Reading DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, June 27\, 2024\n7-8:30 p.m. EDT\n \n\n\n\nJoin us for an evening dedicated to celebrating the contributions of our Advot@Ritualwell members and the unveiling of our third anthology showcasing their creations. Advot@Ritualwell serves as an online community for Jewish writers to learn\, connect\, and collaborate\, providing a platform for mutual support in what can often be a solitary journey. Members bring their diverse backgrounds and expertise to share\, co-create\, and inspire one another. This event is their opportunity to showcase their work to you. Show your support by attending! Registrants will receive a 15% discount on their purchase of the anthology. \n\n\n\nThe members of our ADVOT community include: Elliott batTzedek\, Elizabeth Caplun\, Alex Carter\, Cathleen Cohen\, Audrey Cohn-Ganz\, Muriel Dance\, Batya Diamond\, Tzivia Gover\, Joanne Greene\, Judith Kerman\, Rabbi Janet Madden\, Mandie McGlynn\, Yael Navid\, Rabbi Taylor Poslosky\, Melissa Rosen\, Anne Schulman\, Janice Steinberg\, Cantor Karen Webber and McKenzie Wren\,\n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/advot-end-of-year-celebration-and-poetry-reading/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:ADVOT,Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/05/Advot-EOY-Celebratation-2024-raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240314T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240314T143000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20240212T202954Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240213T162014Z UID:23333-1710421200-1710426600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Behind the Mask: A Creative Exploration of the Characters in the Purim Story DESCRIPTION:Thursdays\, March 14 and 21\, 2024\n1-2:30 p.m. EDT \nWe each carry inside of us both the hero and the villain. One of the things that makes writing effective is the willingness of the writer to step into the voice of a character who we might not “identify” with. This is the way we build empathy\, both on the page and in our lives. \nThere is pshat\, the literal text of the Torah\, and drash\, the interpretation. So much of our understanding of Judaism and the Torah comes from the exploration of drash. In this workshop\, we will use the persona form—a kind of drash—where the writer takes on the mask or voice of a character who is clearly not them. We will try on the voices of multiple characters in the Purim Story and beyond. Gaining inspiration from texts by Patricia Smith\, Margaret Atwood\, and others to inspire us to move beyond writing from the personal “I” and see what we can discover about the Purim stories and their meaning for our own lives when we put on the mask and write. \nAll sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience. \n  \nElana Bell is a poet\, sound practitioner and creative guide. She facilitates artistic rituals and processes that support individuals and groups in accessing their authentic voice and alchemizing raw experience and emotion into artistic expression. Elana is the author of Mother Country (BOA Editions 2020)\, poems about fertility\, motherhood\, and mental illness. Elana’s debut collection of poetry\, Eyes\, Stones (LSU Press 2012)\, was selected by Fanny Howe as the winner of the 2011 Walt Whitman Award from the Academy of American Poets and brings her complex heritage as the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors to consider the difficult question of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In addition to leading her own embodied Creative Fire workshops\, Elana teaches poetry to actors at the Juilliard School and sings with the Resistance Revival Chorus\, a group of women activists and musicians committed to bringing joy and song to the resistance movement. She is also the founder of the Mother Artist Salon\, a community dedicated to supporting mothers in their artistic practice. www.elanabell.com \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/behind-the-mask-a-creative-exploration-of-the-characters-in-the-purim-story/2024-03-14/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/02/ElanaBell_BehindtheMask_Purim2024-1.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240111T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240328T123000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20231025T201303Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240321T230909Z UID:21844-1704974400-1711629000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Holding Each Other DESCRIPTION:Two is better than one…for should they fall one can lift the other.\n–Ecclesiastes 9-10\nWe are here. We’re in this challenging time together. \nRitualwell invites you for a weekly meeting time where we will lift each other up with prayer\, song and creative prompts. Join us every Thursday from 12-12:30pm EST \nBring pen and paper– each week a different poet/liturgist will lead us in an expressive prompt. Pour out your feelings in words\, images\, doodles or whatever works best for you. We look forward to seeing you. Invite a friend or loved one who might appreciate this comforting space. \nUpcoming Date: March 28th \nGuest speaker: Tiferet Welch \n \n  \nTiferet Welch is a poet whose work is inspired by kabbalah. She writes: “My poetry is\, I hope\, steeped in modern Jewish mysticism and draws on the arc of Torah and deeply felt personal experience to create a sensuous and sensual swirl of living in and through the four worlds\, especially in the time of the pandemic\, the death of my mother\, and sadly\, post October 7th. Exploring the parshiot by way of the sages\, drawing out the kaballistic essence\, mining the subterranean allusions of the Hebrew letters and binding them all within the personal\, the poems form a chronicle of this liminal time.” \n  \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/holding-each-other-israel-on-our-heart/2024-01-11/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231102T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231102T133000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20230805T160135Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230823T151028Z UID:19393-1698926400-1698931800@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Writing Our Aging Selves DESCRIPTION:Thursday\, November 2\, 2023 \n12-1:30 p.m. EDT \nThere are so many new things to pray about as we age! Our memory\, skin\, mobility\, and hair color have all changed\, developed\, and evolved slowly and noticeably. We accumulate wisdom and peel away shame\, caring less about what the world thinks of us and more about what we think about ourselves and the changing world around us. Join instructor Trish Arlin to design your own prayers and rituals of gratitude\, worry\, anger and hope for the life that is unfolding before you. Write\, reflect and share your creative self with the Ritualwell community in this free\, open for all session. No prior writing experience is required. \nAll sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience. \nTrisha Arlin is a liturgist\, writer\, performer\, and student of prayer in Brooklyn\, NY. She has served as a liturgist\, scholar\, and artist in residence and taught for venues including the National Havurah Committee’s Summer Institute\, Ritualwell.org\, Haggadot.com\, and for synagogues around the country. She is a builder of Bayit’s Liturgical Arts project. Trisha received a BA in Theater from Antioch College in 1975 and an MFA in Film (Screenwriting) in 1997 from Columbia University. In 2009/2010\, Trisha was an Arts Fellow at the Drisha Institute. In 2011\, she graduated from the sixth cohort of the Davennen Leadership Training Institute (DLTI). Trisha’s liturgy has been used in services\, for ritual occasions\, and at venues of many denominations nationwide. She is the author of Place Yourself: Words of Poetry and Intention (a collection of liturgy and kavannot). Her work has appeared in a variety of journals\, siddurim\, and collections of liturgy and can be found online at TrishaArlin.com\, Ritualwell.org\, and opensiddur.org. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/writing-our-aging-selves/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Standalone session ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/08/TrishaArlin_WritingOurAgingSelves_Nov2023_raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231026T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231026T123000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20231019T162357Z LAST-MODIFIED:20231020T193838Z UID:21751-1698321600-1698323400@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Ritualwell Community Event: Holding Each Other with Rabbi Annie Lewis DESCRIPTION:Take time to pause and pen with the Ritualwell community on Thursday\, October 26 at 12-12:30 p.m. \nWe’re all holding many emotions and concerns that change day by day\, hour by hour. Poetry\, prayer and creative expression can bring comfort and provide us with support. \nTogether we will say the Mi Sheberach for healing and Kaddish for the fallen\, and pray for the captives.\nBring pen and paper–Rabbi Annie Lewis will lead us in an expressive prompt.\nPour out your feelings in words\, images\, doodles or whatever works best for you. \nWe look forward to seeing you. Invite a friend or loved one who might appreciate this comforting space. \nRegistration through Zoom. \nRabbi Annie Lewis was ordained from The Jewish Theological Seminary in 2012\, received a master’s degree in Jewish women’s and gender studies and was awarded a Wexner Graduate Fellowship. She served as Assistant Rabbi of Germantown Jewish Centre from 2012-2016.  Rabbi Lewis has served as a visiting rabbi of Congregation Beth Israel in Gulfport\, Mississippi and has led community organizing trainings with JOIN for Justice. Annie studied linguistic anthropology at Brown University and at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. She fell in love with Judaism at Camp Ramah in the Poconos\, delved into Torah at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem and spent a year as a madricha (counselor) for the Conservative Movement’s Nativ College Leadership program in Israel.  Rabbi Lewis has been in training as a couples and family therapist and brings this relationship toolkit to supporting people through life transitions and to officiating at life cycle events. She is a singer\, poet and performance artist with roots in the Storahtelling ritual theater company. Her writing has been published by Ritualwell\, Lilith and Kveller. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband\, Rabbi Yosef Goldman\, and their children\, Zohar Lieba and Shir Emet. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/ritualwell-community-event-holding-each-other-israel-on-our-hearts-2/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Standalone session ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231023T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231023T130000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20231004T201428Z LAST-MODIFIED:20231016T173817Z UID:21350-1698062400-1698066000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Verses of Resilience: Poetry & Ritual From the Path of Cancer DESCRIPTION:October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Ritualwell\, along with our partner Sharsheret\, a Jewish breast and ovarian cancer community\, invites you to join us for an hour of poetry\, prose\, and ritual relating to any aspect of the cancer (or other illness) experience. \n\nCome with a piece that you have already written or come to hear others share their stories. We will create the opportunity for everyone to begin writing something personally meaningful and healing through our writing prompts. No previous writing experience necessary–our focus is on the power of expressing personal stories. This session is open to all; please feel free to invite friends\, loved ones and those who have provided support.\n \nAll sessions will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience.\n \nMelissa K. Rosen\, Sharsheret’s Director of Training and Education\, holds a master’s degree in Jewish Communal Service from Brandeis University and has been working in the non-profit sector for over 30 years. Her professional experience includes informal education and programming\, advocacy\, and community outreach. Melissa has facilitated unique and lasting connections among organizations in the diverse American Jewish community. Melissa oversees community education throughout the country\, training health care professionals\, Jewish professionals\, and Sharsheret’s volunteers. She also manages Sharsheret’s Community Partnerships. Herself a two-time cancer survivor\, Melissa has used writing as a healing technique. She is passionate about the Jewish community and cancer support and advocacy.\n \n \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/verses-of-resilience-poetry-ritual-from-the-path-of-cancer/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/Verses-of-Resilience-Large-Raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231019T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231019T123000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20231016T223126Z LAST-MODIFIED:20231016T223731Z UID:21679-1697716800-1697718600@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Ritualwell Community Event: Holding Each Other: Israel on our Hearts DESCRIPTION:Take time to pause and pen with the Ritualwell community this Thursday\, October 19 at 12-12:30 p.m. \nWe’re all holding many emotions and concerns that change day by day\, hour by hour. Poetry\, prayer and creative expression can bring comfort and provide us with support. \nTogether we will say the Mi Sheberach for healing and Kaddish for the fallen\, and pray for the captives.\nBring pen and paper–poet Cathleen Cohen will lead us in an expressive prompt.\nPour out your feelings in words\, images\, doodles or whatever works best for you. \nWe look forward to seeing you. Invite a friend or loved one who might appreciate this comforting space. \nRegistration through Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMsdeGtrjwrGNQMObJ6Y8-MJfI3Sakj_2qW URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/ritualwell-community-event-holding-each-other-israel-on-our-hearts/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Standalone session ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231011T120000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231011T124500 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20231010T143140Z LAST-MODIFIED:20231010T143221Z UID:21493-1697025600-1697028300@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Holding Each Other: Israel on Our Hearts DESCRIPTION:Gather with the Ritualwell community for reading\, prayer and meditation. Hear the voices of Alden Solovy\, Rabbi Haviva Ner-David\, Sivan Rotholz and Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein. Together we will say Mi Sheberach for healing and Kaddish for the fallen\, and pray for the captives. \nRegistration through Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0rd-6vqzMsGtcB1HbAjZ3lo286SW7gQw62 URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/holding-each-other-israel-on-our-hearts/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/10/raw.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230629T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230629T200000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20230509T165745Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230602T140236Z UID:18203-1688065200-1688068800@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:ADVOT End-of-year Celebration DESCRIPTION:Celebrate the end of our second year of ADVOT@Ritualwell\, our cohort of ritual innovators\, poets and liturgists. Members of our community will read work created this year and we’ll celebrate the publication of our second annual anthology Like a Tree By Water. \nPurchase the ADVOT anthology\, Like a Tree By Water. \nADVOT@Ritualwell is an online creative community of ritual innovators\, poets\, and liturgists who meet regularly to share work and support and empower each other to create and innovate Jewish ritual\, poetry\, and liturgy. Launched in 2021\, ADVOT means “ripples” in Hebrew. RIPL (pronounced “ripple”) is the acronym of “Ritual Innovators\, Poets\, Liturgists.” \nThank you to Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah for supporting ADVOT. \nThis event will be recorded and sent to registrants. \nWe are happy to offer this event for free. A suggested $18 donation has been added to the ticket. If you are unable to donate\, you may remove that suggested amount from the ticket. Please consider donating if you’re able\, to help us continue to offer free programs like this one. \nBy registering for a Ritualwell program you will be automatically added to our e-newsletter. You may unsubscribe at any time. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/advot-celebration/ CATEGORIES:ADVOT,Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/Advot-EOY-Celebratation-June-2023-RAW.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20230313T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20230313T120000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20230106T184212Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230126T235807Z UID:16647-1678705200-1678708800@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Poetic Midrash: A Conversation between Hila Ratzabi and Alden Solovy DESCRIPTION:Join Ritualwell’s Hila Ratzabi in conversation with liturgist Alden Solovy in discussion of his new book\, These Words: Poetic Midrash on the Language of Torah. Hila and Alden will explore creative midrash and the process he used to write 70 poetic midrashim on individual words of Torah. Alden will also read selections from the book and discuss the Torah learning behind several of the poems. \n \nAlden Solovy spreads joy and excitement for prayer. An American Israeli liturgist\, lyricist\, poet\, author\, and educator\, Alden is the Liturgist-in-Residence for the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies. Alden teaches prayer and spirituality throughout the world. Based in Jerusalem\, his six solo books include These Words: Poetic Midrash on the Language of Torah\, This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day\, This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings\, and This Precious Life: Encountering the Divine with Poetry and Prayer\, all published by CCAR Press. A regular contributor to Ritualwell and a member of the Ritualwell Immersion faculty\, his work is anthologized in more than 20 other volumes across the religious spectrum. Alden also contributes regularly to RavBlog\, ReformJudaism.org\, and the Times of Israel. He’s a three-time winner of the Peter Lisagor Award for Exemplary Journalism. Alden made aliyah to Jerusalem in 2012. See his work at www.tobendlight.com. Alden can be reached at alden@tobendlight.com. \nThe session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience. \nWe are happy to offer this event for free. A suggested $18 donation has been added to the ticket. If you are unable to donate\, you may remove that suggested amount from the ticket. Please consider donating if you’re able\, to help us continue to offer free programs like this one. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/poetic-midrash-a-conversation-between-hila-ratzabi-and-alden-solovy/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/Poetic-Midrash-A-Conversation-between-Hila-Ratzabi-and-Alden-Solovy-Raw-for-Web.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20220914T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20220914T140000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20220822T170146Z LAST-MODIFIED:20220909T214125Z UID:13376-1663153200-1663164000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Ritualwell Open House – September 14th DESCRIPTION:Hosted by Hila Ratzabi & Adva Chattler \nExplore Ritualwell’s online learning offerings at our open house days! Enjoy a taste of our faculty’s inspiring teachings with short\, 30-minute sessions. Free and open to all. \nOpen House sessions schedule: \n11:00 a.m. EDT\, Leslie Contreras Schwartz: “Poetry as Prayer: Writing the Personal through Invocation”\nPoetry can be a conduit to exploring how our own lives connect to a sense of the Divine. We will explore how poets can examine the personal using aspects of prayer in their work. We will study poems that act as prayer or relate to prayer by Jewish writers\, and take home a prompt to start our own personal prayer-poem. \n  \n11:30 a.m. EDT\, Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein: “Returning to our Deepest Selves: Lessons on Teshuvah from Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook”\nTeshuvah is sometimes understood as “repentance\,” but a more accurate translation would be “return.” Join us to explore perhaps its most important aspect: the journey of returning to our most authentic selves. Together\, we will learn and reflect upon our responses to heart-opening teachings about teshuvah from the great twentieth-century poet and mystic\, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook. \n  \n12:00 p.m. EDT\, Trisha Arlin: “Truth and the Talking Donkey” \nWhat is truth telling? In parashat Balak\, it’s a talking donkey (and his passenger)\, and these days\, in shul\, sometimes it can be the liturgist and the poet. We will examine the relationship between truth and prayer\, and ask: What does a good talking donkey need to be their best self? \n  \n  \n \n12:30 p.m. EDT\, ADVOT Info session\nCurious about ADVOT@Ritualwell\, our year-long cohort for ritual innovators\, poets\, and liturgists? Hop into an info session to ask your questions and learn more about this dynamic\, online\, Jewish creative community! \n  \n1:00 p.m. EDT\, Amy Gottlieb: “A Taste of Story Magic: Short Story / Life Story”\nHow can a very short story contain the magnitude of a life story? We’ll dip into a brief short story by Grace Paley\, dissect its magic tricks\, and talk about how time is an invisible thread running through all good fiction. At the end of the session\, I’ll offer an inspiring prompt for sketching a short story / life story of your own.\n \n  \n2:00 p.m. EDT\, Ayeola Omolara Kaplan: “Dreaming up Olam Shalem: Creating a World that is Whole”\nExplore the creative relationship between Jewish spirituality and the practice of using art to build a holy society with Ayeola Omolara Kaplan\, a Black\, Queer\, and Jewish artist. Our conversation will inspire a collaborative artwork that Ayeola will begin sketching during the session and share with participants the following week. This experience will model a playful way to engage in Jewish spirituality that you can practice whenever you need to recharge your sense of hope and possibility. The collaborative art piece will serve as a reminder of the divine world we aspire to create together. \nThese sessions will not be recorded. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/ritualwell-open-house-september-14th/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Other Events,Standalone session ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/08/Open-House-Sept-7-ForWeb.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20220908T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20220908T200000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20220817T220143Z LAST-MODIFIED:20220823T184825Z UID:11557-1662663600-1662667200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Voices of the Divine Feminine: A Poetry Reading with Joy Ladin & Hila Ratzabi DESCRIPTION:Hosted by Rabbi Deborah Waxman\nJoin us in celebrating the launch of two visionary new books of poetry. Shekhinah Speaks\, by Joy Ladin\, gives voices to the Divine Feminine by remixing language from the Book of Isaiah and Cosmopolitan magazine. There Are Still Woods\, by Hila Ratzabi\, is an urgent\, prayerful book of poems responding to the climate crisis\, and includes the voices of spirits\, gods\, and goddesses from a variety of sources. The poets will each read from their books and engage in a discussion with Rabbi Deborah Waxman on the creative process of tapping into the Divine Feminine to express the inexpressible. Audience Q&A will follow. \nJoy Ladin has published ten books of poetry\, including her new collection\, Shekhinah Speaks (Selva Oscura Press); The Book of Anna\, winner of the National Jewish Book Award; and Transmigration\, a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. She is also the author of a memoir of gender transition\, Through the Door of Life\, which was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award\, and The Soul of the Stranger: Reading God and Torah from a Transgender Perspective\, a finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards and the Triangle Award. Ladin has received fellowships and scholarships from the National Endowment for the Arts\, the Fulbright Foundation\, and the American Council of Learned Societies Research\, among other honors. A nationally recognized speaker on transgender issues\, she convenes an online conversation series\, “Containing Multitudes\,” which is available at JewishLive.org/multitudes. Her writing is available at joyladin.wordpress.com. \nHila Ratzabi is the author of the poetry collection There Are Still Woods\, forthcoming in September 2022 from June Road Press. She holds a BA in English/Creative Writing from Barnard College\, a BA in Jewish Philosophy from the Jewish Theological Seminary (Double Degree Program\, 2003)\, and an MFA in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College (2007). Her poetry is published in a variety of literary journals and in The Bloomsbury Anthology of Contemporary Jewish American Poetry and Ghost Fishing: An Eco-Justice Poetry Anthology. Her articles have appeared in publications including The Wisdom Daily\, MyJewishLearning.com\, the Jewish Daily Forward\, Kveller\, Alma\, and Zeek. Ratzabi is Director of Virtual Content & Programs at Ritualwell.org and lives in Oak Park\, Il.\, outside Chicago\, with her spouse and two children. \nRabbi Deborah Waxman\, Ph.D.\, president and CEO of Reconstructing Judaism\, is the first woman rabbi to head a Jewish congregational union and seminary. She has drawn on her training as a rabbi and historian to be the Reconstructionist movement’s leading voice in the public square. Her writing has appeared in the Forward\, The Times of Israel\, The Philadelphia Inquirer\, HuffPost\, Jewish Telegraphic Agency\, and other news and academic outlets. Rabbi Waxman was named an LGBT History Icon in 2020. She projects a vision of Judaism that embraces all people and inspires Jews to be strong allies to the most vulnerable among us. \n  \nThe session will be recorded and sent to participants. We encourage live attendance for you to get the most out of the experience. URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/voices-of-the-divine-feminine-a-poetry-reading-with-joy-ladin-hila-ratzabi/ CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/08/Divine-Feminine-Sept822-ForWeb.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20220907T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20220907T140000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20220822T164623Z LAST-MODIFIED:20220824T164803Z UID:13352-1662548400-1662559200@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Ritualwell Open House – September 7th DESCRIPTION:Hosted by Hila Ratzabi & Adva Chattler \nExplore Ritualwell’s online learning offerings at our open house days! Enjoy a taste of our faculty’s inspiring teachings with short\, 30-minute sessions. Free and open to all. \nOpen House sessions schedule: \n11:00 a.m. EDT\, Hila Ratzabi: “Writing the Earth’s Torah”\nNow more than ever we need to give voice to the Earth’s cry for protection and reverence. Join poet Hila Ratzabi in exploring a few texts from the Psalms and Kabbalah that will serve as our inspiration for writing our own environmental prayers and poems. No writing experience necessary! \n  \n11:30 a.m. EDT\, Sonia Gordon-Walinsky: “An Artistic Interpretation of the Name Pasuk”\nDiscover the tradition of the “name pasuk” (name verse)—a medieval minhag (custom) that Rashi refers to as an “ancient remedy”—and how artist Sonia Gordon-Walinsky is transforming it into an expression of personal connection to Torah/Tanakh. \n  \n12:00 p.m. EDT\, Cathy Cohen: “Ekphrasis: The Poet” \nMarc Chagall painted Half-Past Three (The Poet) in 1911 after leaving Russia and settling in Paris among the community of artists and poets. This painting of his friend\, the poet Alexander Mazin\, conveys energy and emotion as well as a variety of intriguing symbols. It’s a perfect springboard for us to explore the relationship between painter and poet\, between visual art and written text. We will write our own ekphrastic poems based on the painting. \n12:30 p.m. EDT\, Rabbi Haviva Ner-David: “Finding Hope in Israel/Palestine”\nJoin rabbi and author Haviva Ner-David to hear about some of what is happening in Israel/Palestine that offers glimmers of hope: stories you don’t tend to hear in the mainstream media. She will share about her ongoing activity as part of a growing Arab-Jewish movement working together to build a shared equal and just society through deep listening\, acknowledging one another’s narratives\, healing collective trauma\, and joint grassroots activism to build a better future for all in Israel/Palestine. \n1:00 p.m. EDT\, Mike Brown: “Planning Your Jewish Garden”\nWhat makes a “Jewish garden”? Some plants will help transport you to different times and places; others will entice your senses with aromas\, tastes\, and beauty\, while providing fruits and vegetables for Jewish holidays. This session will prepare you to “hit the ground running” in the spring with tips on preparing your Jewish garden. In honor of the upcoming Jewish New Year\, we will also discuss ways to help bees by patronizing local beekeepers and planting flowers\, shrubs\, and trees that nourish bees. \n \n1:30 p.m. EDT – ADVOT Info session\nCurious about ADVOT@Ritualwell\, our year-long cohort for ritual innovators\, poets\, and liturgists? Hop into an info session to ask your questions and learn more about this dynamic\, online\, Jewish creative community! \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/ritualwell-open-house-september-7th/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Event,Free,Other Events,Standalone session ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/08/Open-House-Sept-7-ForWeb.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20220827T200000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20220827T210000 DTSTAMP:20260417T192917 CREATED:20220817T220143Z LAST-MODIFIED:20220822T181714Z UID:11556-1661630400-1661634000@ritualwell.org SUMMARY:Making Ripples: Celebrating ADVOT@Ritualwell DESCRIPTION:Hosted by Hila Ratzabi & Adva Chattler\nJoin us to celebrate the first year of ADVOT@Ritualwell\, an online creative community of ritual innovators\, poets and liturgists. All year long our members have been writing new poems\, prayers and rituals\, nourished by monthly salons on topics related to Jewish creativity\, and supporting each other at our weekly online writing studio. We now come together to celebrate the fruits of our creative labor and hear the voices of our inspiring community. This event is free and open to all. \nFeaturing: Terry Boyle\, Jane Blumenthal\, Alex Carter\, Jessica de Koninck\, Batya Diamond\, Janet Madden\, Heather Paul\, Danielle Selber\, Janice Steinberg\, Amy Steingart\, Karen Webber \nDonations are welcome and will support the ADVOT program. \nADVOT@Ritualwell is an online creative community of ritual innovators\, poets and liturgists who meet regularly to share work and support and empower each other to create and innovate Jewish ritual\, poetry and liturgy. Launched in 2021\, ADVOT means “ripples” in Hebrew. RIPL (pronounced “ripple”) is the acronym of “Ritual Innovators\, Poets\, Liturgists.” \nThank you to Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah for supporting ADVOT. \n  URL:https://ritualwell.org/event/making-ripples-celebrating-advotritualwell/ CATEGORIES:Event,Free ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://ritualwell.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/08/TT-Ritualwell-Making-Ripples-Aug2022-ForWeb-e1661192150439.png END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR