Reaching out

Understanding our neighbors in need

Judaism envisions a world without poverty. Judaism and Urban Poverty is designed for students of bar or bat mitzvah age to learn a little about poverty, how it affects people and ways that we can address some of the problems.

Our small class size allows us to have an open exchange of ideas and responses — a forum with lots of questions and no lectures. Each topic we cover has basic concepts, which build toward the goals. Each topic has references to Torah, Talmud, Midrash and rabbinic sources, reinforcing the students’ understanding about our heritage and its teachings.

Among the concepts we explore are the nature of community, the innate value of each person, the degradation of poverty, the relationship between the powerful and the powerless, the choices forced by tight family budgets, the causes of poverty and the ways we can respond to poverty.

The course includes at least two field trips: one to a food pantry or shelter, preferably with student participation, and one grocery shopping trip, purchasing balanced meals for a family of four on a specific budget.

This course on Judaism and Urban Poverty was designed by the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs. Since 1994, Shir Hadash has offered either this course or the Judaism and Justice course, designed by the Jewish Fund for Justice, based on demand. Most of our teachers have been volunteers from the congregation and many of our classes have met in members’ homes. Completing this course is a requirement for bar or bat mitzvah at Shir Hadash.

Contact us for more information.

Estelle Katz is the instructor for this class.

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