“I didn’t know rabbis played basketball!”

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by Rabbi Toby Manewith, Director of Education and Temple Emanuel in Chicago, and Tiferet faculty

As I walked into the sports center filled with all of the Tiferet chanichim (campers) waiting for their evening program to begin, I noticed a pick-up game underway. There were four chanichim  against three moomchim (specialists). Though the specialists clearly had the height advantage, I jumped in to even out the teams. I mostly played defense, guarding the fastest of the campers. When the game ended, a young woman who had seen me leading services and teaching Torah shared in surprised-delight that she hadn’t expected me to be playing sports.

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This session at camp has been all about the unexpected. The Tiferet campers have been learning about Midrash the past four weeks, specifically the stories behind the stories in the biblical book of Exodus.  As they work on their visual art, dance, music, and drama, they’ve been asked to peel back layers, to pull things apart and put them back together in different ways. Each studio has developed the theme a little differently. The visual artists have created layered paintings and kinetic sculptures in which you see an artwork one way in one moment and another the next. The musicians have written variations on the mi chamocha prayer we sing in daily tefilot (services), learning that they, too, can interpret text. The dancers worked that same text in a different way using the poetry of the words as inspiration for a mirrored partner dance. The actors (in studio they use the gender neutral term “actron”) have written scenes based on words of Torah, transforming something that seemed out of reach at first into something shaped by their own hands.

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Learning about Midrash has been the perfect vehicle for middle school artists. They’ve learned about their craft: that things are not always the way they appear at first, that what seems like a flaw might turn into something beautiful, that knowing the story behind a watercolor or concerto gives it a new depth of meaning. They’ve also grown to see this in themselves and one another. They’ve made discoveries that have amazed them and given them confidence. They know that the people they once labeled dancer, actor, videographer, musician, and artist might also be called foodie, writer, inventor, critic, and sports enthusiast.

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Do rabbis play basketball? For me, the answer is neither well nor often. Yet, it’s still part of my identity, especially at camp, and one I’m pleased that the campers uncovered. I’m glad they’ve made discoveries about themselves as well; camp is a place that fosters self discovery and growth. It allows for risk -both artistic and personal. Here, we are all like the Israelites; we are standing at the shores of the Sea of Reeds waiting to see where our journey will take us and what truths we will uncover. We’re wearing sandals, just like they did. We’re not carrying staffs; we’re carrying brushes, cameras, shoes, lights, props, music stands, and even basketballs.

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