Edwin R. Frankel has served as head of day schools and supplementary schools in North America. Currently, as owner of Thrive Jewishly, he works as an educational and ritual consultant in Columbus, Ohio, with a particular interest in Curriculum Integration.
Internalization demands understanding values, and commitment is observed to the degree one’s acts reflect those values.
Introduction
We are all Jews by choice. Born to Jewish parents or adopted by Abraham and Sarah, we live side by side in an era with substantial outside influences to which we are regularly exposed, and to which we are encouraged to bend. Self-identifying as Jews, practicing Judaism, standing up to the world and risking ramifications that may befall us demonstrate that those reading this paper, the constituencies with whom they interact, and the communities that they serve remain committed Jews. There is nothing to bemoan, we should be giving ourselves a well deserved pat on the back.
The issue is not how to commit to Judaism. Commitment already exists. The challenge is to broaden, build and help stakeholders understand commitment for what it is, so that they can assist in enhancing it.
There can be no denying that the practice of Judaism has changed through the centuries. Tunes we sing in synagogue, words we pray, methods by which we learn and teach have been influenced by world culture. Commitment builds despite those influences because of the value and meaning found within Judaism.
Defining commitment
Benjamin Bloom (n.d.), the educational psychologist known for his taxonomy, notes a direct link between cognition and valuing:
The worth or value a person attaches to a particular object, phenomenon, or behavior. This ranges from simple acceptance to the more complex state of commitment. Valuing is based on the internalization of a set of specified values, while clues to these values are expressed in the learner’s overt behavior and are often identifiable.
Internalization demands understanding values, and commitment is observed to the degree one’s acts reflect those values. Values attained through serious study lead to understanding and practice.
Rabbi Bradley Artson (n.d.) of the American Jewish University writes:
Judaism, in this regard, is no different than any other achievement of consequence. A complex civilization that stretches over four thousand years of human history and development, a wise way of life that can enrich every moment, every day, and every significant encounter, a sacred cycle of depth, profundity, and wholeness second to none: surely all that is worth some investigation and commitment prior to making demands or to passing judgment.
No Judaism – from the secular to the hasidic – can elevate souls, root and nourish families, sanctify and mold communities without the prior willingness of its adherents to make a commitment of mind, energy, and belonging.
In the same vein, Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, founder of Reconstructionist Judaism, is quoted as saying:
The basic qualifications for being a Jew are: the identification of oneself as a Jew, i.e. the acceptance of the Jewish People with its past, its present, and its future as one’s own People; belief in the spiritual values of the Jewish tradition, i.e., the conviction that the Jewish spiritual heritage affords inspiration for living, and constitutes a worthy contribution to the totality of man’s spiritual wisdom; and participation in Jewish life… (Wallis, 1966, p. 101)
Commitments must be rooted in the text of our Jewish heritage to prevent them from becoming subject to contrary persuasion. Whether described as Artson’s commitment of mind or Kaplan’s acceptance of its past, commitment presupposes knowledge. Without a foundation of knowledge and skills, ungrounded commitments are tenuous. They might be abandoned in a world filled with passive and active efforts to assimilate or advocate apostasy, particularly as learners are presented with potentially stronger, more evocative sets of experiences.
Robert Marzano (1992), formerly of the Mid-continent Research Education Laboratory, described five dimensions of learning geared to advance students through lessons into becoming active thinkers:
I. Attitudes and Perceptions
II. Acquiring Knowledge & Refining Knowledge
III. Extending and Refining Knowledge
IV. Using Knowledge Meaningfully
V. Habits of Mind (Marzano)
Marzano’s ladder rises from a premise that students arrive with preexisting attitudes and perceptions that must be considered. It moves through development of knowledge and ends with the existence of well formed habits of mind. Commitment is a habit of mind.
Attitude and Perception is the underpinning of all other dimensions and therefore merits greater focus. Marzano and colleagues (1995) argue that in all situations learners ask themselves six questions:
- Do I feel accepted?
- Am I comfortable?
- Am I safe?
- Is this information useful to me?
- Can I do this?
- Do I know what is expected?
Applying theory to educational settings
Working with learners in schools, camps, social groups, trips to Israel or any other venue, educators assure the emotional, physical and spiritual well-being of their charges. Moreover, they convince learners that there is merit in content taught, skills repeated and values instilled. The first step, perforce, is finding the proper motivation. Motivation can be based on predisposition to help in emergencies, as witnessed by the huge disposition of the world Jewish community to support Israel during its Six Day War, to free Jews from Soviet Persecution, or to airlift Ethiopian Jewry to Israel in Operations Moses and Solomon. Placing learners among those already devoted, surrounding them in a dedicated community organized to develop involvement and commitment, as is done in Jewish youth groups, summer camps, and many Israel programs is a commonly used means to instill commitments. Motivation can also be achieved by providing learners with living models and heroes of the behaviors sought.
When motivation is based on an emergency situation, as in the above examples, one must wonder whether commitments remain when an emergency has evaporated. Does communal support for Israel in critical days of the Six Day War (or any war since) translate into ongoing individual commitment to Israel? Do efforts for Soviet and Ethiopian Jews reflect ongoing communal and individual commitment of working for pidyon shevuyim (freeing captives)? A definite, very positive, maybe! The above situation bound commitments were reflected in actions, and were blessed with communal approbation. When actions are based not only on ameliorating a situation, but on learning their basis in literature, fuller commitments can be established. The educator also must take measures to involve learners with opportunities for similar actions when there is no crisis. As actions are repeated and become habit, they lead to commitment.
When based on a combination of texts, models of action and community standards, even artificially created communities, motivating is readily accessible and establishing commitments is attainable. No crisis is required.
As learners are motivated, goals must be reinforced. Primarily, educators influence clients/students by cultivating knowledge. There are two kinds of knowledge – declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge (Marzano, et. al, 1995). If actions are a means through which commitments are brought to life, then following, simultaneous with or even prior to the study of source material, those actions can be understood to be skills that require grooming and repetition to be developed. Familiarity with the Jewish past, awareness of Jewish heritage and ability to cite vast amounts of past lore are all declarative knowledge. Knowledge that accumulates through rehearsal of skills is procedural. Educators assist learning by providing opportunities for understanding and living. Acting independently, and doing so regularly and steadily, is a reflection of commitment. Students are moved from the cognitive domain that includes declarative and procedural knowledge to the affective domain.
Repeating actions is vital to changing acts from being contrived to natural. As a budding pianist needs hours of drill before he can play with ease, or a promising ballerina needs to stretch and rehearse endlessly before she can dance confidently or little Yoni needs to repeat multiplication tables until he can perform automatically, so too actions that are the basis of commitment need to be rehearsed, drilled and practiced.
Commitment is the habit of mind responsible for independent action. Commitment is observed in readiness to act. By practicing actions associated with intended commitments, actions and commitments are rehearsed and instilled.
Jewish sources and current thinking
These ideas are broadly accepted by the Jewish world. Literature of the biblical and rabbinic eras is replete with references to this process that has been reexamined by educators with well foreseen results.
“When one who has taken upon oneself the doing of a commandment, that commandment never leaves him [nor] his family” (Shemot Rabbah 4:2). Furthermore, “Mitzvot were given to Israel only so that they should live by them” (Tosefta Shabbat chapter 16).
Hanokh lana-ar al pi darko, gam ki yazkin lo yasur mimenah (Proverbs 22:6). Many educators see this as justification for each student to have his own unique way of learning, “train the youth in his way,” a view with which few would disagree. In its context, however, the verse might be read to mean, “Train the youth in His (i.e., God’s) way, for when he grows old he will not leave it.” Reading the verse both ways implies a dual approach to the text. To do God’s way means to know it, but to do God’s way also means to live it. Susan Tave Zelman, former Superintendent of Education for the State of Ohio, suggests that just as declarative knowledge needs to be individualized to be taught properly, so too actions and skills that constitute procedural knowledge and commitment. The former reading speaks to a child’s ability and the educator’s skills, the latter to her potential and the educator’s goals.
The idea of living among devotees is also found in the Sources. “Be warmed by the light of the wise” (Avot 2:10). Living among sages, warmed by their light, a person would be influenced by their example. This quote speaks to teachers, youth groups and camps which owe success to the intensity with which they create communities of people dedicated to the common mission of providing ongoing, living, heartfelt, Jewish experiences.
Desired outcomes are not automatic. Our sages recognized recalcitrance; they also noted that persistence works. “A person must always be involved in Torah and mitzvot, even if not for its sake, for as [he does this] not for its sake – [he] comes to [do it for] its sake” (Pesahim 50b).
Mastering commitment
As lessons are learned through action performance, learners realize that they are not alone. Not only does this foster bonding with something larger, it helps to build a particular effort or commitment. In my own experience teaching students about Ethiopian Jewry, I observed that, “Mastery of the lesson [of working for freeing captives] is reflected not only by normal, academic measurements, but by new student involvements and commitments” (Frankel, 1985, p. 17). I further noted that:
… education of the children in regard to their Ethiopian brethren was a result of the synagogue’s commitment to the nationwide Project Moses campaign. The lay and professional leaders realized that to raise funds is insufficient. Children and community had to be made aware of that to which they were committed. As students came to understand the Ethiopian situation, education and fundraising projects could operate symbiotically.
Programs organized to enculturate commitment have been successful when they have rested on three pillars – textual study, action and community support/involvement. As Wertheimer (2009, p. 5) notes,
Effective schools define a vision of their ideal graduate and the means they will develop to produce such students. Such a vision surely encompasses learning goals for students, but it also includes developing an ambience that will nurture students by giving them opportunities to enact their Jewish commitments and engage in Jewish activities.
He further notes that,
Good schools intentionally work to develop a community among their students, staff and parents… Good schools place an emphasis on taking Jewish study seriously. … Moreover, good schools create opportunities for students to engage in experiential Jewish education. (p. 5)
It is not only in schools where this three-legged approach is valued.
Surfing the web for Jewish organizational efforts on commitment, one will find a straightforward comment at the homepage of Houston’s UOS.
United Orthodox Synagogues believes in the philosophy of Torah u’Mada, commitment to Torah, halakhah, and the quest for kedushah, holiness and spiritual growth. Like other Modern Orthodox institutions, UOS values open intellectual inquiry and expression in both the secular and religious arenas; engagement with the social, political and technological realities of the modern world; recognition and deep appreciation of the religious significance of the State of Israel; and the unity of the Jewish community at large. (UOSH)
Similarly, just as this paper’s title borrows from the literature of conversion to Judaism, much of the writing on Jewish commitment speaks to the conversion process. One website describing the conversion process explains:
As you embark on your quest for Judaic knowledge, the rabbi will ask you to start implementing some of the Jewish practices in your home, such as keeping kosher. So be prepared to make a full-fledged commitment. Judaism is not interested in active recruitment or garnering “paper” members. Rather, it only embraces those who embrace Judaism with an open heart. Throughout this process, the rabbi will constantly talk to you about how you feel, assessing your commitment to and knowledge of Judaism. Now, don’t get freaked out if you think this all sounds like a lot of effort. It is a lot, but it’s also partly a test of persistence to make sure you really are interested in the religion. If you really want to convert, you should find the information interesting. If you find yourself falling asleep in every lecture, you might want to try a different religion.” (EHOW.com)
Another, identified with the Conservative movement, is explicit.
You are expected to attend Sabbath services regularly – at least three times a month. If you do not already have a synagogue affiliation where you live, you should spend the first two months exploring Conservative synagogues near you and choose one which you will attend and ask its rabbi to be your sponsor. You should meet with the rabbi every month or six weeks and he or she will monitor your progress and deal with any pressing issues you may raise. At the end of the process, the sponsor and Rabbi Lerner will determine whether you are ready to come before the bet din, the Jewish court, for conversion.
During this period, you should make every effort to attend services for every holiday and to begin the process of living as a Jew. Essential areas of commitment include making the Sabbath and its practices and prohibitions part of your life and to incorporate kashrut into your life as well.
The goal is to climb a ladder of Jewish observance, faith and commitment. Since the ladder stretches toward heaven, we recognize that no two people will reach the same rung. But we expect to see you well along the way. (Lerner)
The interplay of community, activity and text learning are prominent in the Synagogue 2000 and Synagogue 3000 movements, both created to reenergize synagogue involvement. Rabbi Lawrence Hoffman of Hebrew Union College and of “S2K” writes:
The level of religious sophistication in the community will grow as members become more knowledgeable and involved. Further, as the community becomes increasingly vibrant, some people who were initially unwilling to fulfill the communal expectations will choose to make this greater level of commitment in order to join. Commitment will spiral into even greater commitment. Communal expectations are the lynch pin of this virtuous cycle. (Hoffman, p. 5)
Communal expectations can play a crucial role within existing synagogues, if programs are structured to take advantage of the virtuous cycle. If joining a program necessitates agreeing to certain obligations, those who attend will be committed. Such programs will attract congregants inclined to volunteer to provide for the collective needs of the group and to take the program seriously. Ongoing programs that impose expectations will thus be the most vibrant because they will attract the most committed participants. (p.11)
Conclusion
As Jews of choice in the modern period, we are free to be Jews (or not), and we make frequent choices of how we will live as Jews.
Rabbi Mitch Levine, a colleague in Columbus, suggested that we might not only be Jews by choice but supermarket Jews, able to pick from numerous opportunities the values, practices, mitzvot (commandments) and minhagim (customs) that are most meaningful or appealing. That leads to a recognition that it might be impractical to push for a program that is all encompassing, promulgating a profusion of commitments. Instead, the educator’s challenge is to identify subjects of study and practice that can be accomplished effectively. Advancing by a piecemeal approach would likely be more effective. Textual exposure, communal involvement, regular opportunities to practice and their educators’ compassion and ardor will together enable learners to embrace more and more of the lifestyle of fully committed Jews. In an era of vastly improved technological resources, Zelman (personal communication) suggests that we make greater use of them not only to disseminate content but to build community and to impart skills.
Ultimately, this three pillared approach of text, practice and community responds to learners who ask “Is this information useful to me?” Thorough grounding through intellectual and procedural review in a supportive community enables the learner to renew, rededicate and existentially commit as a part of the millennial tradition of literature, peoplehood and practice that marks us as Jews. Simply, the learner can again choose for him/herself to live as a Jew.
The one who learns in order to act, we enable to learn, teach, maintain and act (Avot 4:5). The value expressed in this Mishnaic dictum is echoed in the daily prayer prior to the Shema. Grant our minds the ability to understand and consider, hear, learn and teach, observe, do and support all the words of Your Torah teaching lovingly.
Note: I am indebted to my colleagues – Rabbi Melissa Crespy, Rabbi Mitch Levine, Rabbi Idit Jacques, Dr. Susan Tave Zelman, Dr. Norman Fischer and David T. Frankel –who read earlier drafts of this paper.
References
Artson, B. S. (n.d.). Religion Lite: Everything You Ever Wanted In Judaism, But Less. http://judaism.ajula.edu/Content/ContentUnit.asp?CID=1523&u=5129&t=0
Bloom, B. (n.d.). Taxonomy of Objectives in the Affective Domain. http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html
Frankel, E. R. (1985). Teaching Students Concern for Ethiopian Jews. Pedagogic Reporter (36)4.
Lerner, S. C. Introduction to Judaism Program. http://www.jewishconversion.com/Introtojudaismprint.htm
Marzano, R. (1992). A Different Kind of Classroom: Teaching with Dimensions of Learning. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Marzano, R.J., Debra J. Pickering, Daisy E. Arredondo, Guy J. Blackburn, Ronald S. Brandt, and Cerylle A. Moffett (1995). Dimension of Learning Trainers Manual. McREL Institute and Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development
Wallis, C. (ed) (1966). The Eternal Light, A Heritage Album Mirroring Four Thousand Years of Jewish Inspiration and Wisdom. New York: Harper & Row.
Wertheimer, W. (2009). Schools That Work: What We Can Learn from Good Jewish Supplementary Schools. New York: Avi Chai.
Incorporate Judaism Into Your Daily Life. http://www.ehow.com/how-to_4845383_4_go-converting-judaism.html#ixzz10lIcrLw9
United Orthodox Synagogues of Houston. http://www.uosh.org
Hoffman, L. The Binds that Tie: Creating a Virtuous Cycle of Commitment through Communal Expectations. http://home.uchicago.edu/~bdm/PDF/judaism.pdf