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Our online synagogue won a WOMMY!
You’re probably thinking, what’s a WOMMY? I’m so glad you asked!
WOMMYs celebrate the people, agencies, and brands behind the most innovative and effective word-of-mouth marketing campaigns implemented within the past year. They are industry awards given by WOMMA (Word of Mouth Marketing Association).
This year, OurJewishCommunity.org (along with Likeable Media) won a bronze WOMMY for the “best word of mouth communication program to introduce new products/services.”
We are so incredibly thrilled that OurJewishCommunity.org has had this national recognition. We were honored alongside such industry giants as Ford, Sony, Best Buy, Random House, LG, Coke Zero, and others! It was pretty humbling.
OurJewishCommunity.org is obviously in a very different position than these companies. They have budgets exponentially bigger than ours and they tend to be marketing new products. We’re marketing a pretty ancient product (Judaism) but with an entirely new spin (our contemporary philosophy and of course the tools of social media).
It was an amazing privilege to accept this award. Am amazing validation of the work we’ve been doing since 2008, building OurJewishCommunity.org into a vibrant global Jewish community. Thank you so much for helping us build OurJewishCommunity.org.
You can find the press release (pdf) here.
Pictured below from L to R are: John Greene (WOMMY Judge), Rabbi Laura Baum (that’s me – from OurJewishCommunity.org), Dave Kerpen and Jenna Lebel (Likeable Media), David Rabjohns (WOMMY Judge)
©2010 Gary Michael – www.exposuresltd.com
Egalitarian Jewish Baby Ceremonies – Three Cheers for Judge Wood!
Three cheers for Judge Kimba Wood. So, here’s the story…
Bennett Epstein, a Manhattan lawyer, realized that he might be scheduled to be in court on the day of his possible-grandson-to-be’s bris. Mr. Epstein’s daughter is pregnant and due on December 3rd, and Epstein realized that if it is a boy, he’ll want to attend the baby’s bris. Thus, he wrote Judge Wood, a New York Federal Judge, to mention he may need a day off.
You can read the full letter with Judge Wood’s response, but here are some highlights.
Mr. Epstein wrote:
“Should the child be a girl, not much will happen in the way of public celebration. Some may even be disappointed, but will do their best to conceal this by saying, “as long as it’s a healthy baby.” . . . However, should the baby be a boy, then hoo hah! Hordes of friends and family will arrive . . . for the joyous celebration . . . known as the bris. . . . My presence at the bris is not strictly commanded, although my absence will never be forgotten by those that matter.”
I have to say that when I first saw the letter earlier in the week, it struck me as so tongue-and-cheek that I didn’t know if it was for real. But it is.
Epstein is pointing out a really important point about Judaism. It’s traditionally a sexist religion. One manifestation of that is that boys have a bris (a public circumcision) ceremony on their 8th day and girls tend to get by with nothing. I believe new baby boys and new baby girls should be celebrated equally.
Judge Wood agrees. She wrote Mr. Epstein:
“Mr. Epstein will be permitted to attend the bris, in the joyous event that a son is born. But the Court would like to balance the scales. If a daughter is born, there will be a public celebration in Court, with readings from poetry celebrating girls and women.”
What a fabulous response!
When I meet with families to plan the Jewish rituals surrounding the birth of their child, I generally recommend that regardless of the baby’s gender they have a public naming ceremony. The ceremony need not be any different for boys than for girls. Personally, I’m not a fan of public surgery (and I’ve learned I’m not alone in this sentiment) so I generally recommend a private circumcision for baby boys. Then, the celebration for the new baby boy or girl can simply be a time of celebration and welcoming the child into Judaism.
The Human Side of Gratitude
Happy Thanksgiving to those of you who are celebrating!
There’s a thought-provoking article in the Wall Street Journal this week called “Thank You. No, Thank You” and it’s all about the importance of gratitude. The article asserts that “gratitude can improve psychological, emotional, and physical well-being.”
The article also says: “As simple as it sounds, gratitude is actually a demanding, complex emotion that requires ‘self-reflection, the ability to admit that one is dependent upon the help of others, and the humility to realize one’s own limitations’” according to Dr. Emmons. What lovely messages. Gratitude is not something that necessarily comes easy or naturally; it requires that we lean on others and realize our own limitations – these are such human messages.
The article also discusses a Buddhist exercise called Naikan self-reflection. It asks people to consider each day “What have I received from…? What have I given to…? and What trouble have I caused…?”
These seem like great food for thought (because we don’t need any more real food on Thanksgiving!). Some of us will ponder the questions on our own and others may want to join in conversation. Comment away!
And thank you – for your participation in OurJewishCommunity.org!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704243904575630541486290052.html?KEYWORDS=Melinda+Beck+
Reform Judaism’s Turn to Keeping Kosher: Good for the Jews?
An article about the Reform movement caught my attention this week. It’s called “Is Reform movement going kosher?” and the answer appears to be yes if you listen to the voices of many Reform rabbis and leaders.
The article specifically talks about a new book published by the CCAR (Reform Rabbinical Council of which I am a member) called “The Sacred Table: Creating a Jewish Food Ethic.” Apparently the book talks both about traditional kashrut (keeping kosher) practices as well more modern ways to view kashrut.
I don’t keep kosher. That said, I do think that eating consciously and in ways that are healthy for us and our world is so important. I don’t need Judaism to tell me that; it’s simple good sense.
If an individual wants to keep kosher and has his or her own reasons for that, I support their choice. I don’t think keeping kosher is a bad idea, it’s just not the choice I make. Still I have concerns about the Reform movement making such a push toward keeping kosher and here are just some of my reasons.
1. Keeping kosher is not necessarily a good thing. We saw this in 2008 with the Agriprocessors scandal, in which we learned that though they were producing kosher food, it was far from ethical. I would choose ethical over adherence to ancient dietary laws any day.
2. I’m concerned about the Reform’s movements general return to tradition lately. While Reform’s roots are about a willingness to break from the past to create a meaningful contemporary Jewish experience, that does not seem to be the framework anymore. My sense is that many in the Reform movement think a return to ancient traditions is more authentic. For me, an authentic Judaism is not only about the past; it’s embracing values and a philosophy that make sense to us today.
3. According to this article, Rabbi Joel Abraham of Temple Sholom in Scotch Plains, NJ writes that he does not keep kosher because he sees its power to separate Jews from non-Jews. I agree that this is an important point. He also says he feels marginalized at Reform events that serve only kosher foods. I agree completely. Reform Judaism is supposed to allow for personal choice, so I don’t appreciate being told there is only kosher food at Reform events. I believe the subtext of serving only kosher food is that it says to Jews who don’t keep kosher “you’re not Jewish enough.” The organized Jewish community is all too good at sending this message, instead of telling people there are many ways to be Jewish.
4. Finally, most kosher food is certified kosher by Orthodox Jews, i.e. often by men who do not recognize female rabbis as rabbis. If they don’t believe I should be a rabbi or that women should be treated equally in society, there is nothing that makes their food good enough that I would eat it.
Speaking of kosher, if you missed my blog about kosher wine (being a monopoly), check it out.
Jewish Condom Slogans
So I’m in Las Vegas at the WOMMA (Word of Mouth Marketing Association) Summit. OurJewishCommunity.org was recognized today as a WOMMY award winner, along with our friends at Likeable Media. More on that very exciting news later.
Jewish Condoms
First our condom slogan list, and then our reasons for creating it.
The top 10+ Jewish Condom Slogans are… drumroll please…
“Put a yarmulke on your other head.”
“Guard your coming and your going.”
“Keep your sausage kosher.”
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”
“Even Noah had a raincoat.”
“In case this night is different from all other nights.”
“For your Tree of Life.”
“In case you can’t Exodus before you Genesis.”
“Not quite ready for another Jewish mother?”
“Next year in Jerusalem, not in Maternity.”
“Ten plagues you didn’t get; don’t press your luck.”
So here’s how this list came to be. At WOMMA, we did a presentation about Judaism and social media. It was actually a split presentation, because Likeable was also presenting on their NYC Condoms Campaign. So, we decided to have some fun with it and ordered condoms that say “Spreading Judaism, Not Spreading STDs.” In the process, we (with the help of our creative friends) came up with some alternatives for other Jewish condom slogans. Stay tuned for our video with these slogans coming out very soon. And add your ideas as a comment. Maybe we’ll use them in our video!
Kristallnacht: Night of Broken Glass Video
Last night was the anniversary of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. This horrific event took place on November 9-10, 1938 and was a series of attacks (pogroms) against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria. Jewish homes, shops, synagogues, towns, and villages were ransacked (hence the broken glass). Ninety-one Jewish men were killed, and 30,000 Jewish men were taken to concentration camps.
The Holocaust was a terrible event in our history. One out of every two Jews in Europe was killed, and one out of every three Jews in the world was killed. Many of us know the story of Anne Frank who shared her story in a Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
that is still read by many today.
This summer, Rabbi Barr visited the Anne Frank House and there read our memorial reading. The video is below. May we all work to prevent such tragedies in the future.
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- — Watch Video-Streamed Holocaust Panel about bystanders
- — Our Holocaust page is up - including an online panel discussion event on January 27th
- — Baum's Blog on Lisa's Adoption of Judaism
- — Baum's Blog on Coco the Clown, Conversion, and Online Community
- — Barr's Banter on Hypocrisy
- — Join us for streaming Shabbat every Friday at 6 PM Eastern Time