Avodah

You know what gives us hope for 5785? Avodahniks. Avodahniks are young, idealistic Jewish leaders from across the United States that come together to create communities where they can openly and honestly care for each other, learn from one another, challenge each other, and inspire each other to act. Avodah is a place where American Jews can engage in hard conversations about social justice, with respect, with trust, and with a shared commitment to building a better future for all. These spaces are as essential as they are rare, and are the engine that powers our justice work. Here are some of our favorite pictures from last year. They capture two of the values central to Avodah: kehillah, community, and simcha, joy. These pictures are glimpses of what the world can be, even as we reckon with the turmoil of the world that is. We know that Avodah is an essential part of closing the gap between these two worlds, for the next year and beyond. Shanah tovah! Wishing you a sweeter, more peaceful new year filled with hope.

The Avodah Justice Fellowship is an incredible opportunity to expand your Jewish social justice community and receive support in connecting your professional role with your commitment to justice. Applications are open now, and I'm happy to answer questions or connect you with a staff member at Avodah who can share more!

Avodah is an amazing social justice organization and I’ve know more than a few people that have have had the opportunity to do the Avodah Justice Fellowship. It’s a great opportunity to expand your Jewish social justice community and receive support in connecting your professional role with your commitment to justice. Applications are open now.

Today is my last day at Jewish Council on Urban Affairs, and what a year it's been. I've grown so much in my capacity as an organizer, employee, and leader. I am so proud to have worked extensively on JCUA's numerous campaigns for social justice in Chicago and Illinois. My heartfelt thanks go to both JCUA and Avodah for making this possible. I look forward to staying involved with JCUA as a member and continuing to advocate for housing and economic justice, immigrant justice, and community safety in my city. I’m excited to announce that starting August 12, I will be joining JCFS Chicago as an Employment Specialist, working with recent refugees through JCFS’s HIAS program. You can learn more about HIAS and its impactful work here: https://www.jcfs.org/hias Here's to new beginnings! To hear more about my reflections on the year, you can read my blog post on the JCUA website here: https://lnkd.in/gYEfzcWd

👏👏👏 Yasher Koach (congratulations!) to the 10 entrepreneurial leaders named to elluminate's Collective and Global Jewish Women's Leadership Network! This group of trailblazing leaders includes several SRE Network members and partners: Avodah's Cheryl Cook, JOFA Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance's Daphne Lazar-Price, and Women's Rabbinic Network's Rabbi Mary Zamore. "The challenges facing women and marginalized communities are on the rise in the US and around the world. We believe that visionary entrepreneurial women leaders working with a gender lens and on the frontlines need to be supported now more than ever," said Elluminate CEO Melanie Roth Gorelick. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gx-jbNWc

Want to help people detained by the draconian US immigration system? Want to stand up to anti-immigrant hatred? Do you speak Spanish? We're still accepting applications to serve the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights in Washington DC through the Avodah Jewish Service Corps. If you're passionate about immigrant justice and living in thoughtful Jewish community, this is the opportunity for you. Learn more and apply ASAP at Avodah.net/serve

This week marked the conclusion of the 2023-24 Chicago Avodah Social Justice Fellowship. What a joy to have spent the year learning alongside these wonderful people! I am in awe of your thoughtfulness, your questions, your commitment to covid safety, your tenacity, your capacity for staying in conversation even when it's hard, your kindness, your comedy, your poetry, your whatsapp threads... So much gratitude to you all! #jewish #socialjustice #education #jewishsocialjustice #jewisheducation

In honor of #Pride Month and Shavuot we're sharing a beautifully queer-feminist-and decidedly Jewish reflection on the Book of Ruth courtesy of Elana Spivack, a brilliant writer and contributor to the Jewish Women's Archive. "Do not urge me to leave you, to turn back and not follow you. For wherever you go, I will go; wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. These are the story’s most famous words and act as the entrypoint for interpreting the biblical tale through a queer lens." Read the full blog post: https://lnkd.in/e4Qv4v2c

We're so grateful to be looking back on this year's Partners In Justice Event, an annual celebration of our incredible community of organizations and organizers in New Orleans working for social change. Here's a few photos from the day featuring a few of our placement partners, current program participants, staff, and other members of our Avodah family. ❤️

Welcome to the Jewish Service Corps, Tova Petto!