5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreativity as Spiritual Practice — The Jewish Studio Project

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Creativity as Spiritual Practice

DECEMBER 13, 2019 · CREATIVITY, SPIRITUALITY

This article was originally published on My Jewish Learning

The way many of us in the Western world were schooled, creativity was conflated with artistic aptitude. If we weren’t skilled at drawing still lifes, we were left to conclude — or more detrimentally, told explicitly by some well-intentioned adult — that we are not creative.

Yet, the Torah teaches that creativity is our very birthright and foundational to Judaism. The first three words of the Torah are Beresheit bara Elohim — “In the beginning, God created.” God’s first act is one of creativity. Only a few verses later we read that humans are created b’tzelem Elohim (“in the image of God”). If God is, first and foremost, a creator, and we are created in God’s image, then we too are created to be creators. Each of us is endowed with creative capacity simply by being human.

The ancient rabbis knew that activating creativity could be a powerful way to tap into our deepest selves and to access the Divine. After the destruction of the Second Temple, two pathways to divine connection were established — the beit knesset, or house of prayer, and the beit midrash, the house of study. Both came to rely on fixed texts yet, paradoxically, the spiritual and intellectual foundation of the work in both of these centers was fueled by radical creativity.

3/12/20 Update on JSP Public Programs — Please read!

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5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreativity as Spiritual Practice — The Jewish Studio Project

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The Jewish prayer book calls upon us again and again to sing a shir chadash, a new song, to God. What constitutes a new song? Something unique, born of the moment, what is made possible when we open ourselves to the Divine and allow that which is bigger and beyond ourselves to come to us and through us.

The same word — chadash (new) — is also the basis for the sacred work of the beit midrash. As the great sage Rabbi Yehoshua taught: ee efshar l’beit midrash b’lo chiddush (“There is no house of inquiry without creative interpretation.”) Chagigah 3a To be a student of Torah is to bring one’s own creativity into conversation with our ancient texts as a way of eliciting new understandings.

The foundational practices of Judaism — prayer and text study — require an engagement with what is in order to bring about what will be. This is, essentially, what the creative process is: turning what is — an empty page, stage, or canvas — into what becomes our creation. This process is encapsulated in one of the most central names for God in the Torah. In a moment of intimate exchange between God and Moses, in which Moses asks God how he should identify God to the people (Exodus 3:14), God answers: Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh. (“I shall be that which I shall be.”) God self-identifies not as a person or a place, but as a process. God is the force that moves that which is into that which will be.

Creativity as a spiritual practice is a way for us to partner with God and to develop the character traits that allow us to stay in ongoing co-creative partnership. What this relationship requires of us is an openness to the creative process: a willingness to venture into the unknown, the ability to be present in the moment, an openness to our intuition and allowing ourselves to follow where it leads us, and a deep humility in knowing that nothing we bring into the world is ours alone.

At Jewish Studio Project, we work with thousands of adults across the country, helping them to rekindle their creative spark and reconnect to an authentic and meaningful relationship to Judaism and the Divine through

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5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreativity as Spiritual Practice — The Jewish Studio Project

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creative process as spiritual practice. Below are some tips, from our studio to yours, for embarking on your own spiritual journey into creativity. Whether you are painting, drawing, dancing, singing, playing music, taking photos, or scrapbooking, we hope these will be helpful in getting started:

• Start with where you are: Wherever you are is the perfect place to begin. Regardless of your perceived talent or ability, creativity resides naturally within you, as it does within us all. You do not need any special skills or training to engage in creativity as a spiritual practice, just a willingness to begin and an openness to explore.

• Start with who you are: Get quiet. Go inward. Are you happy? Angry? Agitated? Yearning? What’s live for you? Creativity is a way of being with what is — the good, the hard, and everything in between. It allows us to more deeply know it and, ultimately, to transform it.

• Start with what you have: Creativity as a spiritual practice can happen just as easily — and sometimes more so — with simple materials you already have on hand: ballpoint pen and paper, bare feet on the earth, a pile of sticks and leaves in your front yard, your own voice. No need to go out and buy fancy supplies. Part of the spiritual practice is coming to see the ordinary as extraordinary.

• Get Started: Pick up a material that intrigues you, a color that sparks your interest, and begin. When creating, we often tend to overthink what we’re doing. We want to map out the process and know exactly what the end result will be. Instead, try the reverse. Allow each brushstroke, each note, each move, to lead to the next rather than predetermining a plan. Be with what is and let that be the inspiration for what will be next.

• Free your Mind: Follow what has energy for you in each moment: bringing a particular image into focus, adding blue, the sound of a particular word in the flow of a sentence. Let the intellect relax as you engage your other ways of knowing: intuition and imagination.

• Keep Going: There are many stages to the creative process. Often after an initial round of painting or composing we become attached to what

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5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreativity as Spiritual Practice — The Jewish Studio Project

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The Jewish Studio Project: Art-Making as

Another Way to Interpret Our Texts

Our Offerings on the Altar - Yom Kippur

Drash 5780/2019

we’ve created and don’t want to wreck it, but we know the piece is not yet done. Find a way to record what you have and then keep going. Often the resistance we feel to letting a piece shift and change is a precursor to creative breakthrough.

Creativity is a way of moving beyond all we think we know and tapping into the place of all possibilities. Each day in the morning liturgy we describe God as mechadesh b’chol yom tamid ma’aseh b’resheit – the one who “renews daily the work of creation.” We human beings are God’s partners in the ongoing work of creation. We need to be creative, and God needs our creativity.

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5/20/20, 3:36 PMChagigah 3a:15

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בו אבל נחשים ועקרבים יש בו

The Gemara cites another statement of Rabbi Tanḥum. Rav Kahana said that RabbiNatan bar Manyumi taught in the name of Rabbi Tanḥum: What is the meaning ofthat which is written with regard to Joseph: “And they took him, and cast him into thepit; and the pit was empty, there was no water in it” (Genesis 37:24). By inference fromthat which is stated: “And the pit was empty,” don’t I know that there was no water init? Rather, this teaches that there was no water in it, but there were snakes andscorpions in it.

ת"ר מעשה ברבי יוחנן בן ברוקה ורבי אלעזר (בן) חסמא שהלכו להקביל פני ר'יהושע בפקיעין אמר להם מה חידוש היה בבית המדרש היום אמרו לו תלמידיך אנו

ומימיך אנו שותין אמר להם אף על פי כן אי אפשר לבית המדרש בלא חידוש

§ The Sages taught: There was an incident involving Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Beroka andRabbi Elazar ben Ḥisma, when they went to greet Rabbi Yehoshua in Peki’in. RabbiYehoshua said to them: What novel idea was taught today in the study hall? They saidto him: We are your students and we drink from your water, i.e., all of our Torahknowledge comes from you, and therefore how can we tell you something you have notalready learned? He said to them: Even so, there cannot be a study hall without anovelty.

שבת של מי היתה שבת של ר' אלעזר בן עזריה היתה ובמה היתה הגדה היום אמרולו בפרשת הקהל ומה דרש בה

He asked them: Whose week was it, i.e. who was the lecturer this week? They said to him:It was Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya’s week. He inquired: And on what subject was thelecture today? They said to him: He spoke about the portion of the mitzva of assembly.Rabbi Yehoshua persisted: And what verse did he interpret homiletically with regard tothis mitzva?

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5/20/20, 3:38 PMEnglish Explanation of Pirkei Avot 1:1:1

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English Explanation of Pir… Mishnah Yomit by Dr. Josh…

Chapter 1:1

Moses received the torah at Sinai and transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the elders,and the elders to the prophets, and the prophets to the Men of the Great Assembly.They said three things: Be patient in [the administration of ] justice, raise manydisciples and make a fence round the Torah.Avoth begins by tracing the transmission of Torah and contains three sayings by the Menof the Great Assembly.One of the most basic tenets of Judaism is related in this mishnah: that Moses received anoral as well as a written Torah and that there is an unbroken chain connecting the Rabbiswith the revelation at Sinai. Therefore the oral Torah, observed and studied during thetime of the Mishnah (and in subsequent generations as well) is not the creation of humanbeings, but is actually as divine in origin as is the written Torah. Now this an extremelysignificant claim, about which many, many books have been written, and indeed somefierce battles were fought (such as that between the Sadducees and Pharisees and thatbetween the Rabbinites and Karaites). There are many sub-questions that require furtherresolution, most importantly what was the nature of the oral Torah received at Sinai. DidMoses receive every detail of observance and belief that any Jew would ever need to know?If so then all of the debates in the Mishnah and Talmud are attempts to recover what wasoriginally known, and for some reason lost (this is Rav Saadiah Gaon’s position).Alternatively, were only the principles given to Moses, and perhaps rules by which laterJews could create new laws, laws that would have roots at Sinai but not have been specifiedat Sinai? If so, then the Mishnah and Talmud contain actual creativity in advancing andexpanding the Oral Torah (this is basically the Rambam’s position).Needless to say, we don’t have the answer to this question and it has been a great debatesince the medieval period. The Talmud itself is unclear on the matter, and there arestatements that support both. For instance the Talmud states that even any new innovation

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5/20/20, 3:38 PMEnglish Explanation of Pirkei Avot 1:1:1

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taught by a student was already revealed to Moses at Sinai. However, the Talmud alsorelates a famous story that God showed Moses what was going on in Rabbi Akiva’s studyhall and Moses did not understand a word. Nevertheless, one thing is clear from thismishnah. Jewish tradition teaches that the Oral Torah (whether all of the details or just theessence) does come from Sinai and that each generation thereafter is obligated to learn thatTorah and transmit it to the following generation.The Men of the Great Assembly refers to the leaders who arose at the time of the buildingof the Second Temple, around 500 B.C.E (See Nehemiah 8-10). Little is actually knownabout this group and there are very few sayings attributed to them. They may have hadjudicial as well as legislative powers, but again little is known.In our mishnah three sayings are attributed to them. The first is that judgements shouldnot hastily be delivered. This has also been interpreted to mean that even if a case hascome before a judge three or four times before, he must examine it closely perhaps he willfind a new angle that he had not before noticed.Although it may seem obvious that a teacher should seek many disciples, not all Rabbisthought so. Particularly Beth Shammai and Rabban Gamaliel were known for not allowingthose whom they deemed disqualified to participate in the discussions in the study halls.This mishnah emphasizes that students should be encouraged to continue to learn, even ifhe is not perfect.Making a fence around the Torah is another principle of supreme importance in Judaism.There are many laws that are not strictly obligatory upon a person from the Torah, butrather were instituted by the Rabbis to prevent a Jew from transgressing a Torah law. Anexample is the use of money on Shabbat. The Torah itself does not prohibit using moneyon Shabbat. However, the Rabbis said one should not do so, lest one write, which isprohibited by the Torah (at least the midrashic understanding of the Torah).

Chapter 1:2

Shimon the Righteous was one of the last of the men of the great assembly.He used to say: the world stands upon three things: the Torah, the Temple service, and

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5/20/20, 3:38 PMEnglish Explanation of Pirkei Avot 1:1:1

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the practice of acts of piety.The mishnah begins by noting that Shimon Hatzadik (the righteous) was one of the lastmen of the great assembly, which was the last link in the chain of the transmission of oralTorah mentioned in mishnah one. In other words, Shimon Hatzadik lived long before thetime of the mishnah, and is not really part of the rabbinic period. He is one of the fewpeople whose name is remembered from this period of Jewish history.There are two interpretations of Shimon Hatzadik’s statement that the world could notstand without these three things. The first is that he means that the world literally couldnot exist without these things. These three things are the three legs upon which the worldrests. Another interpretation is that it was for the sake of these three things that the worldwas created.According to the rabbis, without Torah the world could not exist. Without peoplecontinuing to study Torah, God would destroy the world, for the study of Torah is one ofthe purposes of creation.The word used to denote Temple service in the mishnah is “avodah”, literally worship.When the Temple stood, it was through the merit of the worship performed there, thatGod brought rain upon the earth (see Deut. 11:13-14). Without this worship, the worldcould not continue to exist. When the Temple was destroyed, prayer took its place.There are two other interpretations to the word “avodah” in the mishnah. The first is theperformance of mitzvoth in general. The second interpretation is literal work, plowing,harvesting etc. The idea behind this interpretation is that God gave the world to humanbeings so that they would tend to it and thereby become God’s partner in creation. Ifhuman beings were to cease acting as God’s partner, God would cease his role as well.Gemilut hasadim, acts of loving kindness, are not merely acts of charity, but any act thathelps another person in his time of need (visiting the sick, comforting the mourner,welcoming guests). The rabbis teach that these acts are even greater than giving charity, fora person gives charity with his money, but these acts are performed with money and by theperson’s own body.We should also note that according to Rabban Yochanan ben Zakai, after the destructionof the Temple acts of loving kindness take the place of the Temple service that can no

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eJP March 24,2015

Creativity & Innovation in Jewish Learning & Practiceejewishphilanthropy.com/creativity-innovation-in-jewish-learning-practice/

By Emily Messinger

The world is changing. Judaism is changing. The way people engage in Jewish life ischanging. However, the way we teach Judaism is not changing (at least not globally or fastenough). Furthermore, while there are pockets of innovation happening in the Jewish worldtoday, the way Jewish leaders and educators present Jewish life is not (yet) changing, atlarge. Generally, our religious and secular education systems still function according to aNewtonian model that “was built on the idea that the world could be controlled like a bigmachine.” (Caine & Caine, 1997)

Yet, people are not predictable or orderly and they no longer want to function in a worldthat expects just that. Instead, as educators and Jewish leaders, we must acknowledge andembrace our new reality – we must find a way to incorporate creativity and innovation intoall that we do. While innovation and creativity are not foreign concepts to the Jewish people,it is easy to forget their crucial role in our religion since so many pieces of Jewish traditiondo not change. For instance, every year, we read the same words of Torah that were givento us at Mount Sinai thousands of years ago. Each year, at our Passover Seders, we read thesame story of our ancestors who were freed from Egypt. Every Yom Kippur we read thesame prayers to help us atone for our sins and start anew.

However, Jewish life and practice is so much more than maintaining the status quo. At itscore, Jewish life and practice is filled with innovation, change, challenge, and creativeproblem solving. One of the most significant examples of this in Jewish history is thecreation of Rabbinic Judaism. Rabbinic Judaism was created after the destruction of thesecond Temple during the 6th Century CE and it is this approach to Jewish life and living thatis practiced by Jews today.

Yet, we must find a way to connect with and channel the spirit of our rabbinic ancestors.Our ancestors saw that Jewish practice needed to change in order to keep Judaism alive. Sotoo is the case for the Jewish people today. Jewish educators can no longer be ruled by aform of Judaism that was created centuries ago. Jewish educators today must be open toinnovation and creativity in order to create the Judaism of the future. According to Teresa M.Amabile, Harvard Professor and author of The Progress Principle, “the capacity for creativityis the result of an interrelationship among three things: expertise, creative-thinking skills,and motivation.” (Wagner, 24)

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Amabile’s framework highlights the intersection of John Dewey, the great educationalphilosopher, and Tony Wagner, an educational innovator and author of Creating Innovators:The Making of Young People Who Will Change The World. It takes into account the value of theexpertise (curriculum), motivation (passion of the student), and creative thinking skills (thecurrent milieu and 21st Century Learning). Like Dewey, Wager, and Amabile, I believe thatJewish educators must also find a way to connect these silos.

One particular avenue for bridging these silos may be through the integration of 21stCentury Learning Skills and Mussar Education. More specifically, one can incorporate theessential qualities of successful innovators, according to Tony Wagner, into Jewish educationthrough the integration of specific middot. See chart below for specific examples.

Interactive Whiteboards by PolyVision

Essential Qualities of a Successful Innovator(according to Tony Wagner) Middot

Curiosity (the habit of asking good questions and adesire to understand more deeply)

Hitlamdut: An Openness toLearn

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Collaboration (listening to and learning from otherswho have perspective and expertise that are verydifferent from your own)

Shmiat Ha-Ozen: AListening Ear Shomaya U’mosif: AbsorbKnowledge and Add toIt Shoayl U’Mayshiv: Askingand Answering

Associative or Integrative Thinking Mechavayn et Sh’muato: ToDetermine Exactly whatOne Hears

A Bias toward Action and Experimentalism Lomed al Manat La’asot:Study in Order to PerformMitzvot

Essential Qualities of a Successful Innovator(according to Tony Wagner) Middot

While there is no one-size-fits-all answer for how to link these silos, the charge to link themcannot be argued. Jewish educators and leaders must reflect upon the role of innovation,creativity, motivation, and 21st Century Learning Skills while creating Jewish experiences forthe current and future generations.

Emily Messinger is the director of teen engagement and the co-interim director of congregationallearning at Temple Isaiah in Lexington, MA.

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eJP May 17,2020

Creativity: The Secret Sauce to Rebuilding Our JewishCommunity for Resiliency

ejewishphilanthropy.com/creativity-the-secret-sauce-to-rebuilding-our-jewish-community-for-resiliency/

By Jori Mendel

Creativity is the process of using imagination and critical thinking to generate a new idea ofvalue. And ironically, similarly to innovation it is often the most misunderstood muscle atmost organizations, for-profit and nonprofit alike. Innovation is the creativity driver; it is themost valuable tool in our toolbox. It allows us to question everything, embrace complexity,attend to human needs and impulses, and have the courage to forge a new path through –and into – uncertainty as we rebuild for resilience in a post-COVID reality.

For the nearly a decade we have grown innovation for this community, funded 50organizations and initiatives, and built infrastructure to enable creative minds to learn fromand with each other. The challenge is how can we build on this work in an exponentialmanner, in this moment? How can we best bring those with creative ideas and innovativesolutions together, to guide us as we stand at the precipice of opportunity for the AtlantaJewish innovation ecosystem?

The solution is that together we must dedicate ourselves to rebuild for resiliency; we mustdouble down our efforts to facilitate the right integrations, build bridges, partnerships andpossibly Mergers & Acquisitions in our community.

First, we define new practical and creative goals together, which will continue to requireinnovative roles for lay and professional leaders to problem solve together in a remarkablyagile manner. We do this by letting go of our egos, our logos, and – for some – our pride.

Second, we must deeply understand what our customers want most so we as the collectiveand individual organizations can define our value propositions. We do this by increasing ourR&D (Research and Development), so we can use the right data, user-centered design andemerging trends, such as the post-COVID baby boom, to drive this strategy.

Third, we build a new understanding of the marketplace, by understanding unmet needsand leveraging different resources than ever before. We incent and build a thrive-togethermodel based on shared purpose, enabling organizations with different resources and assetsto share for the collective good. In addition, we turn to a different set of potential partnerswho are shuttering their doors now, such as universities, for wisdom and assets. As thetremendous leaders at UpStart shared, it is no longer about just investing in the idea,platform or program; we must invest in the people who work in this field like never before.

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Lastly, we must continue to act now, while also planning to nimbly and strategically executein the coming year. This must be done based on a new understanding of the marketplacethat we collectively create.

To accomplish this, we must build on the work we have already done as a community.JumpSpark is a great example of this. This year they built a community partner network of30+ organizations (synagogues, camps, and Creating Connected Communities, to name afew) to learn together and share their data about our teen ecosystem. This resulted inincreased partnerships and the ability for the teen ecosystem to deliver programs to matchthe changing needs of their customer, which has proven to be a game changer during thispandemic. Other great innovators in our community, Jewish Kids Group and In The CityCamps, immediately forged new roads for campers and families during this time, becauseof their agile platforms they have built to support their organizations. Or Moishe Housebringing local perspectives global and vice versa, via “Near, Far, and Wherever You Are”, orOneTable more than doubling shabbat dinners via Shabbat Alone, Together and inpartnership with 18Doors making Passover alone a beautiful ritual, or the creation of amultifaith support system for clergy created by Rabbi Joshua Lesser. There is so muchcreative inspiration now, let’s keep up the momentum and figure out how to go even biggertogether.

The solution seems simple; but as we know, whether we have been a part of this communityfor a few months or many years, there is a lot we need to overcome to creatively solve theseproblems for the long term together. As the wise Bari Weiss, writer for The New York Times,eloquently wrote, “This pandemic demands something bigger of all of us … Let this be a re-calibration.” It is our time to lead, and it is more imperative now than ever that we increaseour investment in the innovation ecosystem to do so. With the right strategic investments, athrive-together partnership model and resources, we have an opportunity to rebuild aresilient community, driven by the collective for maximum impact.

Jori Mendel is Vice President of Innovation at Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta. She leads theInnovation team to help the community ignite, grow and celebrate the ideas and leadersthroughout the Atlanta community.

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Destination Imagination participants experience these components of the creative process while solving our Challenges.

Recognize � Becoming aware of

the Challenge

� Gaining an

in-depth

understanding of

the Challenge

Imagine � Generating ideas

with team

members

� Focusing on

promising ideas

� Creating a project

timeline

Collaborate & Initiate

� Researching,

exploring, and

experimenting

� Committing to

options

� Building and

completing all

requirements

Assess � Assessing progress

� Reworking or

reimagining ideas

� Practicing

presenting the

solution

Evaluate & Celebrate

� Presenting at a

tournament

� Reflecting on

and celebrating

the experience

The Creative Process

Recognize

Imagine Assess

Collaborate & Initiate

Evaluate & Celebrate

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The CreaTive ProCess:

The creative process is a holistic view of the DI learning experience and is the educational focus of the Destination Imagination Program. Teams begin by imagining the possibilities and throughout the process work to develop an innovation, the solution to their selected Challenge. In a nutshell, the creative process identifies the elements involved in solving a Challenge as a team. The creative process is not a checklist of steps for teams to go through, but an identification of the skills developed through solving challenges. It is important to note that the creative process is not linear. Teams will find themselves returning to various stages of development while developing a solution. Our goal at Destination Imagination is to give students the chance to learn and experience the creative process from imagination to innovation and have fun doing so. The creative process is about thinking and doing in no prescribed order. Some people “do” first and then think about what they have done, while others “think” first, then initiate action. Below are the components of the creative process that our participants experience while solving our Challenges.

From imaginaTion To innovaTion

This stage of the creative process emphasizes the creation of the team and the development of teamwork. Identifying the key elements of a selected Challenge is also an important step within the Recognize portion of the creative process. During this stage the team also reads the Rules of the Road for an in-depth understanding of the expectations of the Challenge Program that relate to all Challenges.

Teams that effectively work through the Recognize stage develop healthy social skills and find themselves open to new challenge opportunities. One essential learning goal for team members is that in order to best explore new opportunities, they must establish routines which contribute to their mental alertness and peak performance. Team members should learn the value of nutrition, exercise, sleep and social engagement as important factors in the ability to think and learn at a high level. Team Managers should contribute to this learning by providing experiences that reinforce this concept. Healthy snacks rather than sugar-laden candy, activities that involve fun and movement and using team experiences to help define the expectations of team members are all excellent ways to reinforce the development of positive brain-health routines. When the Team Manager helps create fun shared experiences for team members, the team as a whole will benefit from the enhanced collaboration abilities of the group.

The Recognize stage also involves recognition of individual contributions and self-esteem. By using activities such as the Individual Specialties Inventory (Roadmap pg. 22), team members can identify those interests and talents unique to them and recognize the collective strength of the team as a whole. Team Managers should help foster this sense of strength-in-unity by asking guided questions of team members that help lead them to value unique specialties rather than simply acknowledging differences. By establishing a “safe place” for team members to share thoughts and ideas, the Team Manager will allow team members to open their minds and express ideas that may be off the wall, but lead to innovative solutions to the Challenge.

When members of a team operate in the Recognize stage, they identify goals for their solution by exploring new and exciting possibilities. After identifying their goals for the solution, the team is able to plan a to-do list for their solution. This list helps provide checkpoints for self-evaluation as well as opportunities to celebrate successes. A positive attitude and readiness to accept a challenge allows teams to explore newer, more creative solutions. Since DI is both self-directed and inquiry-based, the Recognize stage is one where the team will likely spend a considerable amount of time. Team Managers should allow the team that time to explore along with providing an environment that encourages team members to get to know each other. Team Managers should also look for the team that gets “stuck” in this stage so that they can help the team move on to the next stage in order to progress toward a final solution.

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The Imagine stage of the creative process involves thinking about the Challenge and the experiences and knowledge that team members have that may contribute to an innovative solution. Once a team has Recognized the Challenge and its individual components, they come together to generate ideas for potential solutions. Teams in this stage of the creative process are looking for novel ways to approach Challenge solutions. They utilize divergent thinking to expand the possibilities while refraining from judgment. Teams also learn to value the different individual strengths in how they can contribute to a solution. Teams should establish guidelines for how they share ideas, including their expectations for respect and withholding judgment during idea generation.

This stage is characterized by a team spending time developing fluency in idea generation through the use of various creative thinking tools and activities. During idea generation activities, it is not uncommon for teams to also spend some time engaging in “team-building” activities and conversations as they learn to freely offer and accept, without judging, ideas within the team. It is important for Team Managers to be aware of the potential for Interference in this stage as Team Managers can inadvertently insert themselves in the generating process. Team Managers should also remind parents and caretakers of the Interference rules, as they also apply to them.

These two stages go hand in hand. Initiation is about beginning the process of developing the solution. Teams make use of idea directing tools, like the Choice Helper (Roadmap pg. 87), to objectively evaluate the ideas and reach a team decision and path to follow. Teams should also begin to examine other elements of the Challenge, including material and resource needs, budget planning, organizing and setting priorities. Team Managers should work to help team members understand these concepts, and should contribute to their knowledge of communication skills, critical thinking and defining success. It is important that the risk-taking be encouraged throughout the creative process and highlighted in the initiation stage. As teams begin to direct their ideas into a solution, they may shy away from ideas that involve risk or the unknown, but often these ideas could contribute to a truly innovative solution. When encouraging team members to take risks, Team Managers should also prepare team members for failure. If Team Managers introduce the idea of failure and the many learning benefits of failure early in the process, teams will be less likely to be sidelined by small failures along the way. If failure is not introduced and to some extent encouraged, then teams will not be willing to take the necessary risk inherent in developing innovative solutions.

The team then works together to take the selected ideas and carry them out using their specific skill sets. At this point, the team commits to a solution, and works to bring that solution through to innovation. Teams should identify tasks and develop task lists with goals and timelines. Teams are collaborating to delegate tasks and make decisions regarding their solution. During this time team members also spend time learning new techniques as well as sharing information and skills they may possess with the rest of the team. The social element of collaboration is the crux of teamwork and group-learning, which is an essential part of the creative process. Teams in the collaboration stage do not necessarily work on everything together, but are working toward completing elements of the team’s solution. A team that struggles with collaboration can sometimes revert back to the Recognize phase as a way to overcome the hurdles involved with learning about each other’s social needs and expectations. It is important for the Team Manager to be prepared for team members to have minor disputes over the course of the Collaborate stage. The Team Manager should guide the team through these times while taking care not to interfere with the team’s solution. It can be very tempting to cast the “deciding vote” as Team Manager, but doing so inserts the Team Manager’s ideas into the solution while also circumventing opportunities for team members to learn and grow in their collaboration and interpersonal skills. It is also important for the Team Manager to ask guiding questions of the team that help them identify the strengths of their solution that result from valuing differences among team members. By having students reflect on the experience often, the students will internalize the ability to collaborate and team solutions will benefit from enhanced collaboration.

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Assessment is an ongoing stage within the creative process. As a team completes elements of its solution, it is important to celebrate these small successes. By revisiting the tasks identified in the Recognize stage, teams can not only stay on-track to completing their solution, they also find inherent points of celebration. When a costume is finished, the team can celebrate this moment by checking it off the to-do list. As the team reaches each milestone, they will continue to be encouraged by their progress. These moments also allow the team to recognize the things they are doing well, especially if they have been faced with recent setbacks or conflict. Team Managers should use these opportunities for celebration as shared experiences for the team, which can continue to encourage effective collaboration.

Teams should also consistently review their ideas and work for quality, originality and sometimes plausibility. Not only should the Challenge solution be creative, but the solution should also address all elements of the Challenge. If a technical element is not working properly, or if the story of their Presentation has lost cohesiveness with the intent of the Challenge, a team should review their process to enhance their solution in relation to the Challenge. Sometimes a solution seems perfect at first, but as teams progress through collaboration and begin to produce the elements of their solution, they find that the solution does not work or no longer solves the Challenge. At these times, teams should be willing to admit failure, and then return to a prior stage of the creative process to move forward with developing a valid solution. It is important for the Team Manager to reinforce that failure is a normal part of the creative process and should be used as a learning opportunity. Remind team members that innovation does not occur without failure. A failure does not define the team or its solution, but how the team responds to the failure often does. Sometimes the team will simply need to make minor changes that result in a workable solution. Yet other times, a team may need to begin the process anew, from the beginning of the Imagine stage. Team Managers should help the team learn to deal with this frustration and progress forward in developing their solution. Teams that are proficient in assessing their solutions will not spend long in this phase, but will return to this phase repeatedly. Often the Team Manager may need to encourage assessment, without offering their own assessments which alter the solution. While it is not Interference for a Team Manager to help the team understand the rules of the Challenge, teach a new skill, or provide access to a resource; it is Interference for the Team Manager to assist the team in solving elements of the Challenge.

At various times throughout the creative process, the team will learn valuable lessons. It is important the Team Manager helps to highlight these lessons for the team and encourage them to evaluate the process that helped achieve the new understanding. The creative process is, at the very least, an approach to learning 21st Century Skills, and the team and Team Manager should keep this in the forefront of their minds as they progress through the Challenge Program.

Teams should also take time after tournaments are completed to look back over the year and evaluate the growth of the team as a whole as well as the knowledge gained by each individual. Teams should celebrate this learning regardless of placement at tournaments. The most important aspect of Destination Imagination is in the entire creative process from imagination to innovation, not simply the solution product. But as learning is lifelong, so too is developing the creative process. Teams should continue to find opportunities to grow in their knowledge and understanding of the 21st Century Skills: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. And of course, teams should look forward to the next year, when the Destination Imagination Challenge Season begins again.

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5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreative Judaism | Jewish Week

Page 1 of 4https://jewishweek.timesofisrael.com/creative-judaism/

Newsweek recently ran a cover story on the crisis of creativity in America. To understand the Jewish perspective,JInsider asked Rabbi Yehuda Sarna to explain how our tradition promotes and fosters our creative self. Sarna hasearned a following in the college community for his thoughtful leadership as Rabbi for the Bronfman Center forJewish Student Life at NYU and University Chaplain. He is a 2009 Jewish Week “36 under 36” change maker.God the ArtistWe often forget that God’s first identity in the Torah is as an artist. He experiments, gives life to lifeless matter,deems His work-in-progress success – then failure, gets down on Himself, and comes to terms with the fact that Hecannot control that which He has made. The absolute first step in becoming like God is experiencing the tormentingrhythm of creativity.Inner CreativityHaving studied in yeshiva for years, I assumed that the rules of Judaism came to construct and animate religiousexperience. “Do this act now with that object and you will experience a spiritual moment.” I thought of a Jew as agolem (a lifeless body) that Judaism served to animate. My first exchanges with NYU arts students tore thisunderstanding apart. One dance student said to me, “My inner life is chaotically creative and spiritual already. What Ifind in Judaism are rules to tame, control, channel, or mature my inner creativity, just like the rules of dance. Rulesare necessary, even if they are absolutely arbitrary, and sometimes they are necessarily arbitrary.” I left theconversation feeling like I was not yet ready for Jewish law because I had not cultivated my inner creativity to thepoint where it needed to be channeled.

Creative JudaismBy MARK PEARLMAN

March 24, 2011, 12:00 am

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5/20/20, 1:16 PMCreative Judaism | Jewish Week

Page 2 of 4https://jewishweek.timesofisrael.com/creative-judaism/

Fostering CreativityKill the words. That’s what many actors are taught. Reading is not acting. If you don’t want the words to betray you,to lead you to believe that just by saying them you are somehow in character, then you first need to say them so manytimes that they become meaningless to you. Now the real work begins. Become the character and breathe life into thewords. For many of us, the words are long dead. Sometimes we feel like that’s a problem, but it’s actually a criticalstep in the creative process. It’s only once the words of prayer, the Talmud, or a ceremony are buried that they can beborn.Our challenge is that modernity has coached us to believe that Judaism is a science that offers formulaic instructionswith the ingredients of thought, speech and action. The truth is Judaism is an art – with rules – that depends on ourcreativity, sincerity and presence. We’ve lost, to a large extent, the ability to cultivate these middot “in-house” and wemust learn them from the great artists. As the eminent sociologist of religion, Robert Wuthnow, states “It is only aslight exaggeration to say that artists are becoming the most important theologians of our day.”Torah and CreativityRabbi Nahman of Breslav would deliver Torah sermons orally. On occasion, when he would write them down, theideas emerged on paper differently than he had spoken them. When his students complained, not knowing whichiteration was authentic, he said that they both were. “The Torah concept was different when it came time for me towrite it.” Newness is not extraneous to the Torah; it is part of its vitality. Medieval philosophers thought that theTorah would be considered imperfect if it could change. Some Hasidic masters thought the exact opposite: if theTorah didn’t grow, receiving new life and definition, then something must be wrong.Two great luminaries of the 20th century stand apart from their peers in their understanding of creativity. Rav Kookemphasized the visual experience. He strongly supported the nationalistic impulse to establish art schools andmuseums. He is quoted as deeming Rembrandt “a saint” and endowed with divine talents. In fact, the acronym of hisname (Re-a-yah) means vision.The second is Abraham Joshua Heschel. Heschel understood Judaism as a musical – not visual – experience. Visionfor Heschel was associated with a religion of space; Judaism is a religion of time, which means listening. He likensmitzvah performance numerous times to performing a score. No wonder he married a concert pianist.The path for us, following in their footsteps, is not to scientize their approaches but to find the artistic sensibility weare passionate about, cultivate our creativity in it, and breathe new life into our Judaism. For more from JInsider, click here.

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5/20/20, 2:57 PMThe Center for Jewish Creativity - The Tasman Center for Jewish Creativity

Page 2 of 4https://www.tasmancenter.org/the-center-for-jewish-creativity

Jewish CreativityThe Tasman Center for Jewish Creativity has been a long time in the making. It iscenter without walls and offers in-person and online resources for those seekingmeaningful, accessible, and personalized Jewish learning, spiritual coaching andrabbinic support. The Tasman Center incorporates various modalities of expressionand engagement with Jewish practice and creative expression, including writing, visualart, mixed-media art, meditation, yoga, poetry, rabbinic and modern texts andparticipant offerings.

Programs include: classes, workshops, retreats shabbat and holiday gatherings, andwomen's wellness groups.

Private services are offered for rabbinic counseling, spiritual direction, couplescoaching, visioning for partnership/family life, building an inclusive Jewish home,marking life transitions and officiating life cycle events.

What is Jewish Creativity?What is Jewish Creativity?

I first learned the phrase Jewish Creativity as a rabbinical student at Hebrew College(http://www.hebrewcollege.edu/rabbinical)nearly a decade ago, when the school wasredesigning it's mission statement. One of the values in the Hebrew College missionstatement is called Yetzira: Fostering Jewish Creativity(http://www.hebrewcollege.edu/mission) and it is defined as follows:

Judaism, at its best, is a creative, intellectual and spiritual encounter among theindividual, the community and the received tradition. Hebrew College encourages andempowers learners to see themselves as both inheritors and innovators — activeparticipants in the unfolding story of the Jewish people. We embrace music, literatureand the visual and performing arts as sources of inspiration and as vital modes ofJewish discovery and expression.

Jewish creativity was also explained to us as a counter part or alternative to the phrase"Jewish continuity" which is at the core of so many Jewish organizations, institutionsand congregations. That phrase, however, is often used from a place of concern or fearthat the Jewish people is shrinking in numbers, that less and less couples and familiesare joining synagogues or donating to Jewish communal organizations and that moreand more Jews are marrying individuals from other faiths and backgrounds. In contrast,

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5/20/20, 2:57 PMThe Center for Jewish Creativity - The Tasman Center for Jewish Creativity

Page 3 of 4https://www.tasmancenter.org/the-center-for-jewish-creativity

the phrase "Jewish creativity" is one born out of place of abundance rather than crisis.It is a phrase that sees that the Jewish people has always having been a diverse groupand that the diversity of Jewish practice, liturgy, observance, areas of interest andexpression is not only positive but that is Judaism at it's best. Jewish creativity is whathas allowed Judaism to continue throughout history, time and space. It is this legacy ofrichness that sees Jewish practice and the Jewish community as vibrant and what willallow it to Judaism to flourish.

It is from this place of Jewish creativity from which I was ordained and the lens throughwhich I view the world of Jewish learning and practice. It is design thinking and agrowth mind-set. It's how I approach teaching, officiating, ritual creation, providingrabbinic guidance, and building inclusive Jewish community.

While Jewish tradition often looks to Moses (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses) as themodel of rabbinic leadership, my vision of spiritual and communal leadership isinspired by Bezalel (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezalel), the great artist and architectin the Torah (Hebrew Bible). I first dreamed of forming my own Jewish spiritualeducational gathering space many years ago when reading the Torah about thebuilding of the mishkan, the tabernacle in the desert, that served as the holy ritualspace for the Israelites. The text teaches that the Bezalel, who was endowed withchochmat lev (literally wisdom of the heart but translated here as skill in all manner ofcraft), oversaw the project which was unique in that every person helped build it from aplace of voluntarily contributing gifts from their own chochmat lev (meaning their ownspecial skills and talents). I love that the Torah, and Judaism by extension, uses thephrase wisdom of the heart to mean unique skill and craft.

Each persons individual way of expressing themselves through what they make isinextricably linked to the heart, the ancient seat of wisdom and intuition. We have manymodels for leadership, institutions and communities. But this is the one that inspires methe most.

My vision is to guide and support others to discover their own chochmat lev, creativityand connection, their own unique way of expressing themselves, and their own specialway of finding meaning in Jewish practice. Through our offerings and services, TheTasman Center for Jewish Creativity aims to nourish the chochmat lev in each person.And in doing so, help our participants and community members live more integrated,inspired, and meaningful lives.

~Rabbi Sarah Tasman, August 2018 / Elul 5778

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Judaism: An Incubator of Creativity

The current world is one of information-overload and hyper-stimulation. In this increasinglychanging and competitive world, the stakes are high. Being creative gives you the competitiveadvantage. The fastest and best innovators thrive and survive, and creativity is the key factor. Inthis article, I propose and will provide support for the argument that Jews historically have beenhighly creative, and that they are currently very creative in many endeavors.

Jews are creative and use their creativity to innovate and improve the world. The title of thisjournal is “Conversations,” discussions among people. The concept of conversation is an example ofJewish creative dialogue and learning. This article will examine how the practice of Judaism leadsto high-order thinking and creativity. I will discuss the roles of prayer, Jewish education, and self-examination, as tools to become a better and more creative person. The final section of this articleprovides methods the reader can use to enhance creativity. Each person reading this articleprobably uses these methods to some degree already; but by articulating the strategies, readerscan consciously apply them and enhance their work and personal lives.

Jews Beat the Odds in Terms of Achievement

I nostalgically recall the 1960s when I attended University of California at Berkeley. It was the endof my senior year, and I was having coffee with two Jewish friends with whom I had grown up. Infact, we three students were the only Jews in our public school class in Sacramento, California. Welived in the Jewish part of town and went to Hebrew School together. In those days Sacramentowas a relatively small town, and the Jewish population was small as well. What are the odds ofthree students getting into and succeeding at one of the most challenging Universities in the UnitedStates? In Berkeley they do that thing with freshmen: “Look to the student on your left, and nowlook to your student on the right. Only one of you will graduate.” Fifty percent of freshman studentsflunked out before their junior year, and only about one-third of entering freshman graduated. Jewswere only about 3 percent of the population of California, yet they far exceeded that percentage atUC Berkeley.

The 1960s was a time of change, and Berkeley students were leading this change. Jewish studentswere major players in the student movements. These movements were driven by social concernssuch as free speech, antiwar efforts, equal rights, and unionization of farm workers. The leaders ofthe student movement as well as the student activists had vision and determination. They wanted abetter world, and they would work toward changing the status quo to make a world that was as fairand just as possible. They were practicing Tikkun Olam. Many of the leaders of these studentgroups were Jewish, including Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, and Bettina Aptheker.1

What was true in the 1960s and throughout Jewish history is still true today. Jews are creative andtake the lead. Currently Israel, where Jews flourish and prosper, offers so many examples of

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creativity. Most significantly, Israel is a world leader in the high-tech industry, medicine, andmilitary technology. This little country is in a very dangerous part of the world and has few naturalresources. Yet this small Jewish country soars in the marketplace of the world.The list of Jews and creativity would consume a complete article in itself. Therefore, I am going tochoose just a few examples that illustrate Jews and creativity.

Military. In terms of military technology, Israel has developed the Iron Dome and the Eitan. TheIron Dome can intercept short range rockets, and the Eitan is a drone spy plane.Medical. As for medical technology, my husband and I just benefited from Israel’s innovative andtechnologically advanced medical services. We were in Hashmona'im, a small Yishuv in the middleof the country. My husband went to the Urgent Care Center in Modiin, which uses the most currenttechnology and Telehealth system.

High Tech. As for the high-tech industry, many of the major international high-tech companies havelocated in Israel because of the well-educated, highly competent, and intelligent workforce. Foroverall brain power, just look at the number of Jewish Nobel Prize winners for examples of Jewishoutstanding achievement. The Jews have produced many great thinkers and world changers.

Jews can generate creative concepts, and translate them effectively into economic gain andprofessional achievements. They succeed in the current global market because they are able toproduce a high rate of questions and ideas, they have the ability to overcome obstacles, and theyhave skill set to translate those ideas into marketable products that solve real-world problems.Creativity drives the engine in many areas such as the arts, writing, music as well as business andcommerce to mention only a few spheres of interest. Personally, I have found that parenting andfamily matters benefit from creative thinking.

Jews are economic catalysts not only of the current millennia but throughout the ages. There aremany examples where Jews have been invited into countries and usher in an economic Golden Age.When Jews are expelled, the country’s economy goes from boom to bust. Many times the Jews areinvited back. Currently, Harbin, China is trying to attract Jews in hopes of regaining economicprosperity for their city. In the early 1900s, Jews were invited to come to Harbin. Jews came andwith the Jews came economic prosperity. The Jews were forced to leave in the 1950s, and Harbinhas experienced economic decline.2

Why are Jews high achievers and leaders? Lama lo! or in English, why not!

How Practicing Judaism Enhances Creative Thinking

The skill sets and brain power that Jews develop by practicing Judaism can be generalized toachievement in scientific, intellectual, artistic, and business scopes of practice. One of myprofessors at Teachers College, Columbia, Mel Alexanberg, described the shared culturalunderpinnings of Jewish life as Jewish metacognition.3 Jews are exposed to a shared intellectualand value system, which are Torah and Talmud.

Jews have a dialogue with God. It is through speaking to God and debating God’s response that amoral, ethical, and survival system was and continues to be developed. Jews are the “People of theBook.” Books are words and words are symbols. Words have meanings, various meanings. StudyJudaism and you are exploring multidimensional symbolic concepts. This includes multiples levelsof ideas and information. There is thinking, exploring, and conceptualizing in an ever-evolvinginteraction of ideas and points of fact. Through this process, Jews developed a highly sophisticatedstrategy that involves complex reasoning.Jewish education emphasizes asking questions, learning more, and then refining concepts and

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ideas. Jewish learning trains techniques in acquiring information, integrating the information, andgenerating new and innovative thought or concepts. Jews continue to refine their ideas byconstructing new interpretations and theories. This is a continual process where existinginformation and theories inform emerging concepts.4

Throughout the centuries, yeshivot and synagogues have been centers where Jews immersethemselves in complicated interactive information systems and challenge the construction of theseinformation systems, accessing their higher-order thinking. Jews are driven with a passion toquestion and then seek answers through studying the Torah.

Rabbi Marc Angel has often pointed out that “The Torah is an inexhaustible source of wisdom.”5The fundamental basis of talmudic discourse is to question. Each Jew is free to develop his or herown unique multilevel information storage base, skill and mental proficiency to recall symboliccode, and apply and use that information. Each Jew develops innovative conceptual schema, andeventually, new realities. Jews are trained to suspend judgment and live with ambiguity as theythink through their ideas and concepts. As time progresses, the examination of text andcommunicating with God through prayer establishes an ever-evolving value system. In mydissertation, I examined creativity in the Hassidic community in terms of an individual ininteractions with mental stimulation, and related this interaction to creative productivity. I was ableto document notable creativity in the Hassidic community.6

Jewish creative abilities skill sets learned through Judaism can be used in other areas of work. Thatis why Jewish scholars have soared in many business, academic, and artistic disciplines. Jews areexercising and building their mental capacity through studying Torah. Jews ask questions andwonder why. Jews construct complex mental systems which are reciprocal exchanges between theindividual in interaction with environmental stimulation to solve real-world problems.

The next section describes strategies for enhancing creativity. These techniques are taught intraditional Jewish education.

Jewish Techniques for Enhancing Creativity

Immerse yourself . Jews immerse themselves in study. They ask questions. Succeeding in anyintellectual frontier requires immersing yourself.

Throw yourself into your work. Learn as much as possible. Always question. Access the mostcurrent information. Acquire as vast a body of facts and opinions that you can. All that you arelearning is fascinating. At times you can feel overwhelmed with all the information. Learn to livewith ambiguity. The process of generating order out of all the information leads to innovation. Youknow that you have immersed yourself in the problem when you are engrossed and totallyconsumed by the question.

Be passionate. Jews historically have been passionate and committed to their religion, tounderstanding God’s message. The world is fraught with many problems and difficulties. God asksthat meaning be sought after through study of Torah and Talmud. Being passionate and intentlycommitted to seeking meaning and truth in life can be applied to any other areas of study.

Take on the study of a topic that is compelling to you. You have strong and intense feelings. Thetopic cries out to you, and all kinds of question soar in your head as you seek a deeperunderstanding. There is a problem that can be solved, or just another step can be taken in solving aproblem. You know that you are passionate when your mind drifts to the question, concept,problem, uncertainty, or difficulty. You are on a quest and feel a sense of being driven to learn

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more and more. You are on unconventional ground. You do not know the answers, and there is athrill to the work. There are more questions than answers.

Attach yourself to a community. Jews build communities, and live and work together. Jews developsupport systems and rules and principles which enhance their lives. Jews are always engaged invibrant groups to learn and reexamine the religious texts. Each person sustains and builds theirconceptual understanding by examining multiple and often contradictory concepts from others inthe group, from revered wisdom of our sages, and from current thinkers. Jews are life-longlearners; and when applied to other disciplines, leads to creativity in those disciplines.

Surround yourself with amazing people. Examine the work of people you admire, and have themreview your work. Build your conceptual framework on the shoulders of giants in your area ofstudy. Do not be afraid to hold contradictory theories in your brain at the same time. You know thatyou are part of a community of amazing people when these people stimulate your thinking. Theseamazing people have ideas and information that is helping you move your concept forward. Whenyou are with these people in discussions, you feel your creative juices flow. These people do nothave to agree with you. If fact, it is far more important that they challenge your thinking thanrubber stamp your theory.

Often people are considered successful when they reinforce the status quo in their field. They donot challenge the accepted conceptia. Do not mistake success, such as fame and fortune, forinnovation. Most of the time and most people doing creative work have a unique vision. This putscreative people outside the mainstream. Being outside the mainstream can be difficult. Do notmeasure your work in terms a yardstick from the mainstream. Rather, evaluate your work in termsof the amazing people that you have surrounded yourself with, and measure your success byaccomplishing your goals. The best of all possible worlds is to have the support of amazing people,accomplish your goals, and become rich and famous.

Use your mind’s eye. Jews pray as part of their life. When Jews are praying, they are also imaginingand envisioning. The Jewish experience is thinking of what I am now and what I can become, as Istrive to be a better person in the image of God. Most significantly, Jews are seeking clarificationand testing themselves as to the progress that they are making towards becoming a better personaccording to God’s guidance. Using your “mind’s eye” is necessary for novel ideas and innovativesolutions.

You want to envision and imagine; and to do this, you use your mind’s eye. This well-honed skill istransferable to the development of innovative products and marketing. It is a process of takingcomplex situations and making sense out of them. Essentially, you are using your imagination tosee the whole problem and the end resolution to the problem. Once you are able to envision, theabstract problem can be broken down into steps. Each mini-step resonates throughout the complexproblem and has an impact. When using your mind’s eye, you can match the impact of the mini-stepto the goal of solving the problem. You know that you are using your mind’s eye when each mini-step moves you closer to a solution to your problem. Or on careful examination, the mini-stepcreated obstacles to your solving your problem. Every mistake or misdirection offers you theopportunity to rethink the problem and redesign your next step. It provides you with fullerinformation, more questions, and guides you on your next step. Each mistake is a gift.

Be aware/be in the moment. Praying is a conscious experience that makes actions intentional.When praying with intention, you are in the moment. Kavanah is praying with intention and beingaware. You will be more creative in your work when you are aware, present, and in the moment.You should be consciously aware and use the information that you have to produce a clearerunderstanding of the concept that you are studying. You should be alert and have your mental

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faculties at their peak performance. All your actions are deliberate and cognizant. All theinformation that you have gathered facilitates your knowing as much information as possible. Yourmind is aroused. It is a dynamic process. You are interacting with the information and using thefeedback to refine your thinking. You are in the moment.

Be resilient. Jewish people have had to struggle to survive. They have had to be better than theaverage guy. Often they have had obstacles that would overwhelm others. Throughout history Jewshave experienced misfortune and have recovered and persisted. Jews do not have a choice whetherto be resilient. If they are not resilient, they will be destroyed. For periods of time, Jews have beenrelatively successful in many countries, which are known as Golden Ages. Then crash, the worldcomes down around them. Jewish history teaches a series of punishing events. Jews have a longmemory of all the calamities, yet they pick themselves up and rebuild their lives. I have heardJewish holidays described as a narrative: they tried to kill us, we won, and now let’s eat. In the faceof overwhelming obstacles and repeated failures, the resilient people go forward and possiblyachieve their goals. The choice is be resilient and possibly succeed, or give up and assure failure.Resiliency is recovering from disappointment and managing frustration. Each failure provides theopportunity to recover and keep going. When treading on new ground, you may come to dead ends.Your strength to bounce back will help you keep going even when you are discouraged. Your willknow that you are resilient when you are completely defeated, when you blunder and achievedisaster. Yet each obstacle only makes you more determined. You go back for a deeperunderstanding of what happened, and what went wrong. Despite the setbacks, you try somethingdifferent. You are imagining a possible different outcome. If you experience only success, then youare not challenging yourself.

Conclusion

Again, I am brought back to the day I sat with my Jewish childhood friends having coffee inBerkeley 1968. Was it by chance that we all succeeded? No, it was not by chance because theJewish rate of success challenges the probability it was simply by chance. Was it the Jewisheducation at Hebrew School, or living in a Jewish community, praying, Jewish family values, or ourconnection to our synagogue? The answer is all of the above and a resounding yes to the greatachievements of the Jewish People. There is a shared metacognition. Jewish metacognition is ashared set of symbols, values, and thinking strategies, that trains creativity.

Take a moment. How has your practice of Judaism enhanced your creativity? In terms of the Jewishconcept of always trying to improve yourself, what strategies can you use to be more creative? Howdoes your experience with Jewish thought and creativity help you contribute to improving theworld?

Notes

1. Mendes, P., ‘“We are all German Jews”: Exploring the Prominence of Jews in the New Left’,Melilah 2009/3.2. Hadassah Magazine February/March 2011, pp. 40-48.3. Conversations with Mel Alexanberg. He was my dissertation advisor in the late 1970s.4. Miran, MD, Miran E., & Chen, N., DESIGN OF LIVING SYSTEMS IN THE INFORMATION AGE:Brain, Creativity and the Environment. Eds. Joseph Seckbach ORIGIN(S) OF DESIGN IN NATURE:A Fresh, Interdisciplinary Look at How Design Emerges in Complex Systems, Life [ODIN] volume tobe published.5. Angel, M. Angel for Shabbat, Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals, USA, 2010.6. Miran, E. The Ecology of Creativity. Dissertation. Teachers College, Columbia, NY,

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