Yachad is now Midrasha

New Joint Midrasha Program
By Ian Lobel, Director

I am excited and honored to introduce myself as the director of the new joint Mosaic Law and Beth Shalom Wednesday Midrasha program. Our two congregations have vibrant youth communities, and as such we need a vibrant youth program that will channel their enthusiasm and reward their curiosity. That is what both congregations are coming together to create, and that is why I am so excited about this new program.

As a teacher at Yachad, I created classes, which focused on Judaism and the Jewish perspective in a way that was entertaining as well as educational, provoking laughs as well as thought. Midrasha will similarly be about important issues in a way that is relevant, thought-provoking, and fun. Our goal is to strengthen Jewish identity through education and engagement, so that our teens go from being inquisitive, bright youth to active, Jewishly committed adults. As a youth I went through Midrasha, and my activity during that time period was a big part of establishing my commitment to Judaism and Jewish principals such as tzedakah and tikkun olam, and I am committed to passing on that experience to today’s future leaders.

Our curriculum will delve into who we are, where we have been, what we believe, social action and much more; in other words, Judaism as a faith, as a concept, and as action. The program will begin in late October, though we will be holding events to give the community a chance to connect with the program before then, details for those events will be provided soon. We are currently putting together an enthusiastic teaching staff, and would love to hear from those of you who would like to be a part of it. We are also looking for volunteers who would like to share their commitment and passion for Judaism, whether as part of special programs. Anyone interested in participating please contact me at sacramentomidrasha@yahoo.com. We want to invite all of our youth to be a part of Midrasha, and look forward to the chance to help our students not only learn about Judaism, but come to define what it means for them.