“My Jewish Home” Insights from Base’s First Six Years

Welcome.

When Base started six years ago as a project incubated by Hillel International’s Office of Innovation, it was often promoted as a new “engagement” model. While this was true, we have always felt that Base, at its core, is an educational model. To this end, as we embark on our next chapter as a new strategic priority of Moishe House, we felt it was important to capture some of the key learnings of our first six years.

Through this project, Dr. Ezra Kopelowitz, Base’s external evaluator, has set our work in the context of what's come before, and where it's situated within the current Jewish communal landscape, bringing in academic research as well as the voices of the Basers whom we serve and insights from the rabbinic couples who lead our communities – a style intended to evoke the layers of commentary offered throughout Jewish tradition. While this project is intended to be viewed online, we hope this plain text version will still enable you to appreciate the richness of these findings. Each of the report’s sections offers a unique lens through which to view the values that drive our work and the reasons we build Jewish community through a relationally driven approach.

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“My Jewish Home” Insights from Base’s First Six Years

Table of Contents

Executive Summary 2 Introduction 6 I. Base is my Jewish Home 6 II. The Significance of “my Jewish Home” 7 III. Creating a Jewish Home 9 IV. Home and Community 12 V. Base within the Context of Jewish Community 17 VI. Strategies for Jewish Learning and Observance 19 VII. A Supportive Organizational Culture 31 VIII. What’s Next? 32 Bibliography 33

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Executive Summary

I. Base is my Jewish Home

At the heart of Base’s work is the creation of a “Jewish home” for young adults. While the Base rabbinic couples do create a physical home, the experience of “my Jewish Home” is best understood as an experience that is not limited to a physical location. Learn More

II. The Significance of “my Jewish Home”

1. The Transformation of Jewish Community – Base’s work to create a “Jewish home” for young adults is part of a broader community building movement in American and Jewish life, in which younger generations are seeking alternatives to “legacy” communal institutions. The focus is on intimate social settings that enable individuals to at once lead a personal intellectual and/or spiritual journey in the context of nurturing and continuing social relationships. Learn More 2. Jewish Community for our Times – Base, as with other alternative communal organizations, emphasizes “meaningful social relationships” as a core building block for determining success. Learn More 3. Actualization of Self through Community – Base’s mission explicitly addresses a desire to rebuild Jewish communal life in a manner appropriate for younger Jewish generations. The goal is to create an intentionally planned experience of Jewish community. Each individual is provided a social context within which to pursue a personally meaningful Jewish journey that is intellectually and spiritually nourishing. Learn More

III. Creating a Jewish Home

1. Experiential Education and a Jewish Home - The Base strategy for creating a Jewish Home builds on principles of experiential Jewish education. Experiential Jewish education is a rapidly developing field that stresses the importance of learning within a social context. Learners develop meaningful social relationships while acquiring Jewish knowledge. The social context enables the learner to make sense of knowledge learned and the implications for their lives. Learn More 2. Community Built on Intimacy and Depth - “This is my Place” - Applying principles of experiential Jewish education involves weaving cognitive, emotional and behavioral strands of the human experience - “seeing and acting out our lives through Jewish relationships and Jewish tradition.” Learn More 3. The Rabbinic Couple - and where applicable, their children, are central to the experience of Base: (1) providing a home environment that values partnership, (2) insights.basemovement.org 2

leading high-quality learning, marked by a conversation-focused social, intellectual, and spiritual experience, along with (3) spiritual guidance and pastoral care. Learn More

IV. Home and Community

1. Home is Part of a Broader Community - People leave and return home. Indeed, Basers describe their Jewish lives playing out in multiple contexts, including family and friendship circles integrated with participation in Jewish organizations, the most prominent of which are Base and synagogues or minyanim. Learn More 2. An Address for those who are Uncomfortable with Organized Jewish Life – Many Basers describe “Base as my primary Jewish place,” for others “Base is one of my Jewish places.” Members of the former group find the Base=Home dynamic as a richly compelling Jewish involvement opportunity and are unlikely to be as involved in Jewish life through alternative venues. Learn More 3. Feeling Comfortable with Community. Intimate community can be difficult to access. Feeling socially and Jewishly comfortable is a primary condition to enabling an experience of intimacy and trust. Basers might feel Jewishly inadequate, lacking previous experience studying Jewish text, or never having participated in a Shabbat meal, or simply feeling socially awkward in a new situation. Base works to enable a person to feel comfortable through creating a hospitable and non-judgmental environment. Learn More a. Practice of Welcoming. Entry into Base means a feeling of intimacy. Numbers at any given event are limited. Hospitality means never having to worry about where to go. Learn More b. Non-Judgmental Community. Creating a home for individuals coming from diverse Jewish and personal backgrounds aspiring to enable each to feel comfortable with who they are. Learn More

V. Base within the Context of Jewish Community

1. Creating an Extended Jewish Community - Charismatic rabbinical couples building community-based social networks that exist even without their presence through participation in the broader local community; and, enabling Basers who live and work elsewhere to nevertheless connect to community through Base. Learn More 2. Strengthening the Larger Jewish Community through Organizational Partnerships. Base works to bring a unique added value to Jewish life in a geographical community, striving to complement and strengthen the work of other Jewish organizations. The work includes a focus on complementing Moishe House by offering professionally-led insights.basemovement.org 3

Jewish learning and organized community; and complementing synagogues by offering a non-denominational pathway into Jewish community. Learn More

VI. Strategies for Jewish Learning and Observance

Base is an intentional community. Professionals, the Rabbinical couple, craft an experience that is at once inclusive and invites in-depth engagement with Jewish learning and exposure to Jewish religious ritual. The organizing principle: There are many ways to show up Jewishly, only one of which is synagogue and prayer. Learn More

1. Base’s Educational Philosophy By R’ Avram Mlotek. Base Co-Founder, of Base MNHTN, and Mashgiach Ruchani/Director of Spiritual Life. Learn More 2. An Authentic and Grounded Jewish Experience - The goal is to create an authentic and grounded Jewish experience, in which each person can feel a sense of belonging. The strategy is to view the diversity of participants as a core educational asset, built on the recognition that Jewish rabbinic tradition is pluralistic and that tension is positive. Learn More 3. Trust is Core to the Experience of “My Jewish Home” - The Base Home and all supporting programming is intentionally designed to develop shared experiences built on trust. Shared Base experiences include intimate conversations in which Basers open themselves up to a high level of vulnerability and honesty, by actively sharing and contributing their own perspectives and life experiences. Learn More 4. Relationships and Community Building - Base builds Jewish community through four types of interactions. (1) One-on-one meetings and (2) small group discussions provide the sense of structured intimacy that drives the feeling that Base = my Jewish Home. (3) Informal conversation and (4) large events are vital for the feeling that the intimate- structured interactions are part of a larger communal life. Learn More 5. Programming Pillars - The four modes of interaction (one-on-one conversations, small groups, informal conversation and large events) appear in various combinations in each of Base’s four core programming pillars: (1) Shabbat and Jewish holidays, (2) Jewish Learning, (3) Service learning and (4) Pastoral care. Learn More 6. Learning Opportunities include Chevruta learning with Rabbi or Rabbi’s partner, drop in classes, cohort-based experiences (groups that meet on a regular basis), embedded learning during social occasions, for example at Shabbat meals, Jewish service and empowering Basers to give back to the community by leading cohort groups in areas of interest to them and hosting each other for Shabbat dinners that include a learning component. Learn More 7. Pedagogy - Context informs learning. Home, neighborhood, community, friendship frames and informs the learning activity producing an experience that is not formal or institutional, but rather intensely personal. Learn More insights.basemovement.org 4

8. Teacher as Model - The Base and their partners are selected due to their personal charisma and identification with the values and way of life with which many young Jewish adults identify. Learn More 9. The Role of Ritual - Religious traditions and rituals are part of the Base home environment. Prayer and blessings occur in the context of Friday night dinners and holiday celebrations. Basers seeking a prayer focused community complement their Base involvement by going to a neighborhood synagogue. The educational goal is to provide positive exposure to home and family focused religious ritual, including rabbinic guidance for life cycle ceremonies. Learn More

VII. A Supportive Organizational Culture

Base practices an organizational culture that reflects the values it seeks to impart to Basers. The goal is a continuous Base experience for Base staff, for the purpose of sharing and developing a common set of values around “Base is my Jewish Home,” each Base applying those values in a manner that is appropriate and authentic to their family and home. When successful, a Baser will enter into any Base home and recognize “the Base vibe,” but at the same time, the experience will also be different from Base to Base. Learn More

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Introduction

Base Rabbis and their partners establish communities for young Jewish adults. The first Base homes were created in City in 2015. Today, there are nine Bases in two countries touching the lives of an estimated 6,000 young Jewish adults each year. Drawing on three years of evaluation research*, we examine what draws Basers to Base, and the community building and educational strategies that attract them. The analysis provides insight into how Jewish institutions, whether “legacy” or new, can successfully engage young adults.

*The evaluation work includes an annual survey of Basers, with a response rate of approximately 600 individuals each year, as well as on-going strategic planning discussions with Base staff.

I. Base is my Jewish Home

At the heart of Base’s work is the creation of a “Jewish home” A Baser’s Perspective for young adults. While the Base rabbinic couples do create a physical home, the experience of “my Jewish Home” is best “When I ended up at Base, I found home. So much of understood as an experience that is not limited to a physical Jewish identity in your location. twenties is based on what you grew up with. I was As described by Basers themselves, the experience of a trying to find my own path - Jewish home at Base includes: which in many ways meant ● An intimate, warm, welcoming, and inclusive (non- more Jewish life than what I judgmental, pluralistic) environment had grown up with. I needed ● A place where my voice is heard to find my own Jewish space ● A home-like Shabbat experience with meals together and define what that meant are a core part of the experience by me by creating community. How is this ● Prayer that is inclusive, egalitarian, creative, and different? There is a comfort meaningful in Base. This place is ● The Rabbinic couple is central to the experience of inclusive. It is more than that Base as providing a: though. I think it is deeply ○ Home environment in which Basers feel rooted in the space and the welcome people.” ○ A place for high-quality learning, marked by a conversation-focused experience. ○ Spiritual guidance and pastoral care. ○ Systematic approach to relationship building and developing trajectories for Jewish involvement for Base participants

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II. The Significance of “my Jewish Home”

The Transformation of Jewish Community Base’s work to create a “Jewish home” for young adults is part of a broader community-building movement in American and Jewish life, in which younger generations are seeking alternatives to “legacy” communal institutions.

The focus is on intimate social settings that enable The Transformation of Religious Community individuals to at once lead a personal intellectual “In recent years, religious leaders have been and/or spiritual journey in the context of nurturing paying increasing attention to small groups. Bible studies, prayer fellowships, house churches and and continuing social relationships (Wuthnow 1994; covenant groups are being touted as the wave of 1998). In the Jewish world, new forms of the future. … Their members can care for each community range from the secular/cultural to other, pray with one another, work together on religious (Uram 2016; Wolf 2013; (Kaunfer and Sarna community projects, and spark vitality in religious 2012; Wolf 2013; Belzer 2016; Uram 2016)). institutions” (Wuthnow 1994, 1–2)

Jewish Community for our Times Base, as with other alternative communal organizations emphasizes “meaningful social relationships” as a core building block for determining success. The relationship emphasis stands in contrast to the large membership organizations that were built as moved from urban ethnic neighborhoods to the suburbs in the 1940s and 1950s. The most prominent examples were large Synagogue-Centers and Jewish Community Centers (Kaufman 1999), which were built on the assumption that Jews find inherent value in spending time with other Jews. Jews sought out the company of other Jews, Jewish institutions gave them a place to do so. Success was predicated on the number of members paying dues, rather than the number of individuals increasing their social, intellectual and spiritual involvement in Jewish life (Kopelowitz 2001).

With time younger generations have increasingly The Challenge of Individualism eschewed the veteran membership focused “Today, seeing one's own Jewish life as an communal institutions. A trend that is often individualized spiritual search is not limited to moderately involved Jews, but is also associated with increasing individualism (Wuthnow characteristic of many of the most involved 1998; Putnam 2000; Cohen and Eisen 2000; Fishman younger American Jews.” (Fishman 2015, 112) 2015).

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The reasons many Basers cite for participating in Jewish community at Base speaks to their discomfort with existing legacy Jewish communal institutions:

“Base is much more comfortable and welcoming than most other Jewish spaces I interact with. I feel safe and at home there.”

“Joining a synagogue can feel overwhelming and impersonal. I love the close community that Base intentionally builds and the meaningful relationships built with the rabbis and their families.”

“The Shabbat meals and Jewish learning programs I have participated in have brought me closer to my Jewish identity and community, yet not in a way that demands more than I have the capacity for at the moment (like a JCC membership, synagogue membership etc).”

Actualization of Self through Community Base’s mission explicitly addresses a desire to rebuild Jewish communal life A Baser’s Perspective in a manner appropriate for younger Jewish generations. Referring to the weakening of established Jewish communal institutions, Base’s founding “I truly believe that Base is Executive Director, Faith Leener states: forming a great new sect of , where community “We are increasingly seeing a diminishing of the center of American is the keystone and your Judaism...I think Base is trying to rebuild that center of people who are observance is your own.” committed to Judaism, to Jewish people not through institutions but through the actualization of a set of values.”

The goal is to create an intentionally planned experience of Jewish community. Each individual is provided a social context within which to pursue a personally meaningful Jewish journey (Horowitz 1998) that is intellectually and spiritually nourishing. Community is imagined as a ship anchored in the rapid currents of a changing society. A person can choose to change ships, or pull up anchor at any point and continue to search, or they can explore within the vessel they have chosen as their Jewish home.

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III. Creating a Jewish Home

“Base is sustained best when both partners feel connected to the vision and mission of the work. Whether that’s Shabbat dinners or community service, because our work is based out of our home, the partner and rabbi need to present a united front on what they are doing and why.”

- Yael Kornfeld, Base co-founder and Base MNHTN Senior Educator

Experiential Education and a Jewish Home

The Base strategy for creating a Jewish Home builds on principles of experiential Jewish education.

Experiential Jewish “Education, in the popular imagination, usually involves a place called education is a rapidly school and an endeavor called schooling, but in fact the process of developing field that education encompasses a much broader complex of experience, stresses the learning, and growth.” (Chazan, Chazan, and Jacobs 2017, 116) importance of learning within a social context. Experiential education “is more learner-centered and focused on the interests and needs of individual learners, as well as the relevance of the Learners develop subject matter and skills to the learners, rather than merely meaningful social perpetuating the Jewish canon and Jewish tradition. It is increasingly relationships while concerned with the total education of the individual as a social being acquiring Jewish and with the improvement of society at-large, rather than being limited knowledge. The social to the project of instilling Judaism and Jewishness. … It is accessible to context enables the an increasingly ‘mixed multitude’ of participants from diverse racial, learner to make sense ethnic, national, socioeconomic, gender, age, ability, sexual orientation, of knowledge learned political, denominational, and religious (that is to say, Jewish and/or and the implications for non-Jewish) backgrounds, identities, and affiliations, and is thereby their lives. more inclusive than exclusive” (Chazan, Chazan, and Jacobs 2017, 119– 20)

Community Built on Intimacy and Depth - “This is my Place”

At Base, applying principles of experiential Jewish education involves weaving cognitive, emotional and behavioral strands of the human experience - “seeing and acting out our lives through Jewish relationships and Jewish tradition.”

A Base Co-Founder’s Perspective "At Base, we model authentic Jewish living in real time. Our rabbis and partners teach Torah not only in the form of scheduled classes and events, but in how we greet guests into our insights.basemovement.org 9

home, how we imbibe the news, how we engage social media, how we decorate our homes and how we react if and when our children “interrupt” our lesson plan. We believe in the need of a Torah that speaks to the vulnerabilities and struggles of our time, in real time, in real life. “At Base, we believe in people, not programs. We are privileged to help shepherd souls through a small but potentially monumental chapter of their lives." - Rabbi Avram Mlotek, co-founder and Base Mashgiach Ruchani/Director of Spiritual Life

The Rabbinic Couple

The Rabbinic couple and where “We are the only pluralistic organization who hires partners and applicable, their formally recognizes their invaluable contributions to building children, are and sustaining a community. In today’s world, where there is an central to the increasing emphasis on individuality and a heightened pressure experience of to be all things at one time, we believe that there is tremendous Base: value in modeling partnership and the rewards earned through 1. Providing a home complex reciprocity that is necessitated in an intimate environment that relationship and shared home. We do not have a narrow values partnership definition of partnership but seek to empower people who are 2. Leading high- deeply committed to one another called to the work of building, quality learning, together. For example, we have a Base where the partners are marked by a not married. conversation- "At Base, we encourage rabbis to lean into their strengths and focused social, we respect our partners as integral in our Base rabbinate. All too intellectual, and often in the Jewish communal landscape, our partners are spiritual intended to be on-call. At Base, rabbinic partners are experience compensated since they are key shapers of our Basers 3. Spiritual guidance experiences.” and pastoral care - Faith Leener, co-founder and Executive Director of Base

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Perspectives of Base Educators and Rabbis “Building Base has been one of the greatest adventures of our marriage. Being able to dream and plan alongside Adam has helped us each grow within our partnership and as professionals within the Jewish community.” - Jessie Gindea, Base Senior Educator

"Part of what makes Base so unique is the way that deep content, a relationship with a rabbinic family, and one's social life can come together in one community. The life Paige, Bri and I model is not so drastically different from our Basers: we watch the same TV, care about similar causes and come from similar backgrounds. In everything we do, we model our authentic Jewish life while teaching young adults how to have a pastoral relationship with a rabbi, build friendships and learn Torah. Through this modeling, we create something I have only seen in Jewish summer camps: the seamless integration of our Basers’ full selves spiritually, socially and educationally." - Rabbi Megan GoldMarche, Base CHI

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IV. Home and Community

Home is Part of a Broader Community

People leave and Three Patterns of Engagement with Jewish Community return home. Base is My Primary Jewish Place: Base is a warm, welcoming, less formal Indeed, Basers alternative to other Jewish communal spaces. These Basers do not describe their participate in other Jewish contexts. Base is their primary home for Jewish Jewish lives playing friendships, prayer, spirituality and intellectual growth. out in multiple contexts, including Base is One of My Jewish Places: These Basers like Base for the intimate family and experience and intellectual experience it provides. They also look for friendship circles Jewish involvement opportunities elsewhere, for more structured or integrated with denominational prayer services, a multi-generational environment at participation in synagogues, formal classroom learning, such as lectures on specialized Jewish topics, or advanced Jewish learning, or focused volunteering opportunities organizations, the with organizations that specialize in a particular area of service. most prominent of Base is more of a short-term experience. This group of Basers participate which are Base and less frequently. Base is one of their Jewish addresses and they don’t intend synagogues or staying involved for the long term. minyanim.

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To what extent would you say your Jewish life plays out in each of the following contexts? (N=475)

Average score: 0 = not at all, 100 = to a great extent

Your immediate family 77

Your close friends 70

Friends and acquaintances 64

Base 64

Your extended family 62

A synagogue or minyan 61

Online groups and contacts 48

Another Jewish organization 47

Your workplace or profession 36

Moishe House 20

A JCC 19

An Address for those who are Uncomfortable with Organized Jewish Life

Those who state that “Base is my primary Jewish place” (see previous page) describe the Base=Home dynamic as a richly compelling Jewish involvement opportunity. Many in this group are unlikely to be as involved in Jewish life through alternative venues.

A Baser’s Perspective “The home based, small group, and meaningful learning aspects of Base are what make it special to me. I tend to connect better to Jewish practices that are home-based rather than primarily synagogue based. As a young person without many Jewish friends where I live, Base provides that needed space for me. The intimacy of small group learning and Shabbat meals makes it easier to form real, meaningful connections, both with Base Rabbis/partners and other Basers. While other organizations, like Chabad, also offer home-based learning, I have had a hard time connecting to

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the less-egalitarian Judaism in those spaces. The fact that Base has an egalitarian model and is home/community based is very unique and something I have not encountered outside of a college setting before.”

A Base Rabbi’s Perspective "What makes Base different from any other Jewish organization on campus is the way students feel welcomed with their entire being from the moment they enter the (physical or virtual) space. We strive to create an environment where nobody needs to check any part of themselves at the door, where people are embraced and celebrated.” - Rabbi Hayley Goldstein, Base ITHACA

Feeling Comfortable with Community

Intimate community can be difficult to access. Strong social bonds are critical for the experience of “Base = Home;” yet, in some cases they deter participation. There are Basers who report difficulty forming friendships and feeling comfortable in Base’s highly social and Jewish environment. Feeling socially and Jewishly comfortable is a primary condition to enabling an experience of intimacy and trust. Basers might feel Jewishly inadequate, lacking previous experience studying Jewish text, or never having participated in a Shabbat meal, or simply feeling socially awkward in a new situation.

Base’s strategies for enabling a A Baser’s Perspective person to feel comfortable “Base has quickly become the center of my Jewish life because 1. Hospitality it is an organization where building relationships is the central 2. Non-Judgemental: (a) No focus and jumping off point for all learning and engagement. shame in not knowing, (b) Being (consistently) invited into someone's home for Shabbat or accepting of difference, to learn is an incredibly meaningful gesture. It removes a (c) every voice is heard barrier to connecting with others that is often present in other 3. Differentiated institutions. The hospitality, kindness, thoughtfulness, and environments for thought that R'EBC and Matt put into this community is individuals with different immense. And that is why Base is so special - it reflects social and learning skills, them, two people, rather than an organization. The larger Base and religious sensibilities movement provides the framework, but Base Boston is to feel equally at home. distinctly reflective of the people who run it and the people who participate because they find it just as special and meaningful as I do.”

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A Base Rabbi’s Perspective "Making people feel at home isn’t just about inviting them into ours. It’s about seeing the Divine sparks of each soul in front of us, and inviting them to share their most authentic self. At Base BSTN, we strive to ensure everyone who walks through our door or into our Zoom room feels truly seen, able to set aside any feelings of inadequacy, and appreciated for who they are." - Rabbi Elizabeth Bonney-Cohen, Base BSTN

Practice of Welcoming

Entry into Base means a feeling of intimacy that builds into a meaningful ice breaker. A Base Co-Founder’s Perspective

Numbers at any given event are limited. “Base is sustained best when both partners feel connected to the vision and mission of Hospitality: Entering someone's home the work. Whether that’s Shabbat dinners or means, never have to worry about where to community service, because our work is go. (1) greet every person, (2) hug every based out of our home, the partner and rabbi person (if they are comfortable), (3) “what need to present a united front on what they can I get you to drink,” “here is the are doing and why.” bathroom,” (4) Introduce them to someone else there. - Yael Kornfeld, Base co-founder and Base MNHTN Senior Educator

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From the 2020 survey of Base participants. To what extent do you feel comfortable walking into the Base home? (N = 379)

Non-Judgmental Community

Creating a home for individuals coming from diverse Jewish and personal backgrounds aspiring to enable each to feel comfortable with who they are.

A Base Educator’s Perspective A Baser’s Perspective “We see God in each person. Each of “Base is an incredibly warm and welcoming us has the Divine within us and should community with people from all different walks of experience a sense of loving life. I love getting to know everyone and using our belonging. We aspire to see you the commonalities to bond. It is much more way God sees you.” approachable and warm than other Jewish places. - Faith Leener, co-founder and It feels more like a home than a place to attend the Executive Director of Base Jewish events. People gather to be together in a Jewish context rather than gathering just to observe Judaism.”

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V. Base within the Context of Jewish Community

Creating an Extended Jewish Community

Social Networks Charismatic rabbinical couples building community-based social networks that exist even without their presence. Two expressions:

1. Geographic Community ○ Dozens of people living near to one another and building community together ○ People choosing to move to a specific neighborhood - In Brooklyn and , Base homes moved neighborhoods, and in both cases, there were Basers who moved with them. ○ Each location is rooted in its neighborhood, exemplified by the local service projects they undertake and collaborations with local partner organizations. 2. Dispersed Community. In other cases, Basers live and work elsewhere but are willing to travel across the city to participate in Base events. The ability to connect to their age cohort and the environment built by the rabbinic couple is a central pull.

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Strengthening the Larger Jewish Community through Organizational Partnerships

Base brings a unique added value to Jewish life in a geographical community, striving to complement and strengthen the work of other Jewish organizations.

A Baser’s Perspective Complementing Moishe “There's much stronger continuity at Base. I have seen House by offering Moishe Houses completely change in a year (not a bad professionally-led Jewish thing, just people are moving to new places). I think it also learning and organized helps that the Base Rabbis are close to us in age, but not community. exactly our peers. This allows them to facilitate community building, friendship building, and network building, without being completely in it. I love the relationships I made with the Base Rabbis and their spouses, and I appreciate how they are more than my friends, they are also mentors.”

A Baser’s Perspective Complementing Synagogues “Prayer. I really like mechitzah prayer spaces and the by offering a non- special intimacy that comes with a small minyan meeting denominational pathway into regularly. I like shul life and Base isn't that. For what it's Jewish community. worth I really like having these two spaces in my life, both Base and my synagogue. …I like both Base and my shul and the way both amplifies the value of the other.”

A Base Rabbi’s Perspective "Since our work is rooted in personal interactions, usually centered around our home, the connections we make and relationships we build lead to deep understanding of both the individuals and the collective community we serve. With that depth of understanding, Base rabbis are unique community builders of curated groups and experiences while serving as a pluralistic rabbinic resource." - Rabbi Adam Gindea, Base MIAMI

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VI. Strategies for Jewish Learning and Observance

Base is an intentional community. Professionals (the Rabbinical couple) craft an experience that is at once inclusive and invites in-depth engagement with Jewish learning and exposure to Jewish religious ritual. The organizing principle: There are many ways to show up Jewishly, only one of which is synagogue and prayer. Base’s leadership cites as inspiration a quote by Frederick Douglass, who escaped slavery in the U.S. and became a leading abolitionist, activist and statesman, which was applied to a Jewish context by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.

“I prayed for 20 years but received no answer until I prayed with my legs.” Frederick Douglass.

“When I marched in Selma, my feet were praying.” Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

A Baser’s Perspective “Base is young, it is open, and it doesn't require prayer or observance - there's many ways to engage very deeply that don't involve any pressure to pray mincha etc. Also Jon and Faith are just so welcoming and feel like friends instead of semi-removed professionals moderating an experience, which often feels semi alienating or fake.”

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Base’s Educational Philosophy By R’ Avram Mlotek Base Co-Founder, Rabbi of Base MNHTN, and Mashgiach Ruchani/Director of Spiritual Life

● At Base, we model authentic Jewish living in real time. Our rabbis and partners teach Torah not only in the form of scheduled classes and events but in how we greet guests into our home, how we imbibe the news, how we engage social media, how we decorate our homes and how we react if and when our children “interrupt” our lesson plan. We believe in the need of a Torah that speaks to the vulnerabilities and struggles of our time, in real time, in real life.1

● At Base, we do not own a monopoly on truth and “the” Jewish way. Instead, we invite Basers into our homes, humbly and vulnerably, and engage them on their own path of discovery and learning.2 Still, we believe passionately in our practice and traditions. We invite students to explore the Jewish calendar through radical hospitality, to tap into the wellsprings of Jewish thought, to engage in acts of love (gmilut hasadim) in service of our local community.

● At Base, we strive “ldaber kilshono,” “to speak in their language,” as The Piaseczno Rebbe wrote.3 We do this naturally because it is our language as well: we are the millennial rabbis our generation seeks: rooted in tradition, open to the world and unafraid of a damning question. Instagram becomes but another kli, a vessel in which to share our rabbis’ Torah with the world: Nireh Or, Rabbi Elizbeth Bonney-Cohen, Avram Mlotek.

● At Base, we encourage rabbis to lean into their strengths and we respect our partners as integral partners in our Base rabbinate. All too often in the Jewish communal landscape, our partners are intended to be “on.” At Base, rabbinic partners are compensated since they are key shapers of our Basers experiences.

● At Base, we believe in people, not programs. We are privileged to help shepherd souls through a small but potentially monumental chapter of their lives. Our rabbis

1 Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach referred to an idea of a “Bshivtekha bveysekha u’velekhtekha va’derekh.” 2 Hanokh na’aro al pi darko - teach a child according to their particular path. Proverbs 22-6 3 Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, wrote in his treatise, The Learner’s Obligation. P. 24

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are pastors, teachers of Torah, social justice activists, writers, musicians, artists. We believe that what you love will set other people on fire.4

An Authentic and Grounded Jewish Experience The Base Ethos The goal is to create an authentic and grounded Jewish “We want people to feel they have a place no experience, in which each person can feel a sense of matter what. There is always room for one belonging. more chair. You don't need to check your The strategy is to view the diversity of participants as a identity at the door.” core educational asset. - Faith Leener, co-founder and Organizing Strategy: Diversity + inclusion = a sense of Executive Director of Base belonging. "Pluralism is about finding a community in Principles for creating an authentic grounded Jewish which all people are pushed to be made a experience: little uncomfortable at times. Just like Israel wrestles with the angel and wins, that is our 1. Jewish rabbinic tradition is pluralistic, goal for our Basers. We want to welcome encouraging a dialogue of perspectives, them in to wrestle a bit, and then come out communal inquiry and debate. Base rabbis with a win. That looks different for every model the approach. person. The miracle of Israel is that we come together as a people acknowledging our 2. Tension is positive. “It is desirable to live with differences. If we were all the same, it would paradox and hold tension in our lives.” Rabbinic be obvious. Our beautiful, complex and couples are open about tensions in their lives, miraculous task is to come together in all of inviting conversation touching on the often our different shapes, shades and colors." complex relationship between pluralism, - Rabbi Ezra Balser, Base LOOP egalitarianism and Jewish tradition.

4 Dvarim mehalev nichnasim el halev.

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Basers’ Perspectives “Base Berlin is the most vibrant and diverse Jewish community I have ever been part of. Base offers me a grounding point for Jewish community building and communal religious & holiday practice.”

“Base is a place in which I find a very diverse group of people who are all discovering and enhancing their Jewish life. I learned a lot about different sections and ideas of Judaism from Base and found places where I can explore those ideas.”

“I value how different people come around the table and how openly we can discuss themes, regardless age, nationality and the 'seriousness' of one's religious faith.”

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Trust is Core to the Experience of “My Jewish Home” The Base Home and all supporting programming is intentionally designed to develop shared experiences built on trust. Shared Base experiences include intimate conversations in which Basers open themselves up to a high level of vulnerability and honesty, by actively sharing and contributing their own perspectives and life experiences.

A Base Rabbi’s Perspective A Baser’s Perspective "At Base, we do not own a monopoly “I started this journey with lots of questions, a on truth and ‘the’ Jewish way. Instead, stomach full of butterflies, and all the positivity in we invite Basers into our homes, the world. The minute I met Rabbi Leener and was humbly and vulnerably, and engage introduced to the Base family it was nothing but them on their own path of discovery open conversation and an enormous feeling of and learning. Still, we believe being welcomed, which was something I passionately in our practice and personally was worried about (being a newcomer traditions. We invite students to to the Jewish faith). Every single person I've met explore the Jewish calendar through has gone out of their way to make me feel radical hospitality, to tap into the comfortable, in genuine and real ways. That's the wellsprings of Jewish thought, to difference - everyone befriends everyone, we're all engage in acts of love (gmilut hasadim) on equal playing fields when it comes to learning in service of our local community." more, and it's clear to see that everyone has - Rabbi Avram Mlotek, Base MNHTN respect for one another. A bigger reason why I and Base Mashgiach Ruchani/Director think Base separates itself from the pack - I feel like of Spiritual Life my voice is always heard. When I ask a question, there are 473829427 different answers (in a good way). When I express my opinion, it is heard. And the same is true for EVERYONE, which is one of the most inspiring aspects of Base.”

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Relationships and Community Building Base builds Jewish community through four types of A Base Rabbi’s Perspective interactions: "One thing I've learned from both my For a Baser to experience community, they should years as a public and private experience four modes of interaction that together classroom teacher, as well as a Jewish educator, is that the most develop shared experiences built on a feeling of trust. effective learning experiences have multiple entry points for participants. 1. One-on-one meetings with the Rabbi and the Everyone has different backgrounds, Rabbi’s Partner prior knowledge, passions and 2. Small groups with an emphasis on intimate triggers - and offering multiple discussion. These structured intimate social pathways into the world of Jewish interactions are critical for generating the Base = community and learning is a critical Home dynamic. component of ensuring that multiple 3. Informal interactions with the Base Rabbi or voices, perspectives, needs, and aspirations are reflected in the Rabbi’s partner and between Basers themselves opportunities for engagement that 4. Larger social gatherings or events that generate a Base provides. I often think of my sense of being part of a larger entity. work in architectural terms - my job is to design the stadium with as many One-on-one meetings and small group discussions arches and gateways leading into the provide the sense of structured intimacy that drives the arena as possible, so that everyone feeling that Base = my Jewish Home. Informal can gather together from whatever conversation and large events are vital for the feeling direction they happen to already be facing." that the intimate-structured interactions are part of a - Dimitry Ekshtut, rabbi-in-training, larger communal life. Based in HRLM

Community Built on Relationships and Shared Experiences Built on Trust

A Baser’s Perspective “Base has the ideal balance of a social element with substance. The programs are substantive yet they are fun, social, people don't take themselves too seriously, and it's the most down to earth, approachable group I've encountered in NY over the last 4 years. Within 6 months of moving here and trying out a lot of different groups, this clearly shifted to the top and became a mainstay. I appreciate that there is diversity in programming, so insights.basemovement.org 24

there's learning sessions, shabbat meals, holiday events etc. The leaders of this organization are also unlike any other I've encountered. SO approachable and warm and relatable. Most other organizations either have newly graduated 22-25 year olds who do not seem worldly or wise, or leaders who are late 30s, 40s, 50s, who seem so out of touch with the young professional community.

Programming Pillars

Base’s Core Programming Pillars - The four modes of A Base Co-Founder’s perspective interaction (one-on-one conversations, small groups, informal conversation and large events) appear in various “Over 2,000 years ago, the sages combinations in each of Base’s four core programming taught that the world stands on acts pillars: of love, Torah learning, and Shabbat — the Base recipe for success is ● Shabbat and Jewish holidays simply renewing ancient Jewish ● Jewish Learning wisdom for the 21st century.” ● Service learning ● Pastoral care - Rabbi Jonathan Leener, co- founder and Rabbi of Base BKLYN

Learning Opportunities

● Chevruta learning with Rabbi or Rabbi’s partner A Baser’s Perspective ● Drop in classes - open classes to anyone to register and join, could be a parsha class, or a challah “Base offers such an incredible baking (with learning component), around a holiday range of experiences and ● Cohort-based experiences programs. From attending ○ Groups that meet on a regular basis their great retreat, having Rav ○ People apply to join, show interest and Ezra invite us over for shabbat commitment. dinner, attending LEARN and ○ Example: Five sessions on shofar; classes LEADS through Base, going to around HoneyMoon Israel, for example a an 'alternative' religious high cohort for new young dads (HoneyMoon holiday ceremony--everything Israel Men); a six-part series on Sefardi about it is home. It's so Jewish Texts and Traditions; creating a wonderful to have a Jewish

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Jewish life together, a cohort for couples; landing place and to make so classes for conversation candidates. many connections. It's rare to ● Embedded learning during social occasions, for have the comfort of being in example at Shabbat meals. someone's home while ● Jewish service. For example at Miami Base a group connecting with other trained to be scuba divers in order to volunteer to strangers who ultimately repair the reef, framed around Jewish value of become friends. It's been an service. In Manhattan, text study and kavana, while exceptional place to be myself cooking meals for the homeless. and find meaningful ● In development - Empowering Basers to give back connection.” to the community ○ To lead cohort groups in areas of interest to them. ○ Hosting each other for Shabbat dinners, including a learning component

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From the 2020 Survey of Basers In which of the following Base activities have you participated at any point since last summer (2019)? Check all that apply. (N=458)

%

Attended a Shabbat meal 76%

Attended a Jewish holiday experience 58%

Jewish learning 62%

Went to a social event 50%

Met with a rabbi or partner one-on-one 39%

Participated in a small group discussion 36%

A program co-sponsored by Base and another group 38%

Took part in a service project or activity 20%

Heard a guest speaker 23%

Attended a social justice event 14%

Pedagogy

Context informs learning: Home, neighborhood, community, friendship frames and informs the learning activity producing an experience that is not formal or institutional, but rather intensely personal.

Pedagogical Strategy: Enabling people to cross the physical and mental threshold ● Inviting people into the experience so that they will feel comfortable. ● Pulling them into deep professional lead conversations. ● Focusing a discussion, whether over a Friday night dinner, during a service learning activity or in a formal class.

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● Discussion focuses on a central question that each person engages on - each person answers questions, or introduces themselves on some big question/answers so everyone is heard. ● Relationship building while learning - the social experience is as important as the intellectual experience.

A Baser’s Perspective “I believe the relationships that I have built with Rabbi Megan and Paige is what makes Base so special and meaningful. I know that they work with a ton of young professionals, but I also know that no matter what, they will always have time for me. I know that I can go to them with any issue and feel comfortable talking to them about whatever is going on in my life. Additionally, I participated in the first LEARN series and absolutely loved it. I was able to learn and study Torah in a way that made sense to me and with other peers. Base is special because they make sure to make everyone feel comfortable no matter what their Jewish identity is or whether they have participated in programs before.”

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Teacher as Model

The Base Rabbis and their partners are selected due to their personal charisma and identification with the values and way of life with which many young Jewish adults identify.

A Base co-founder’s Perspective "At Base, we strive “ldaber kilshono,” “to speak in their language,” as The Piaseczno Rebbe wrote. We do this naturally because it is our language as well: we are the millennial rabbis our generation seeks: rooted in tradition, open to the world and unafraid of a damning question. Instagram becomes but another kli, a vessel in which to share our rabbis’ Torah with the world."

"Our rabbis are pastors, teachers of Torah, social justice activists, writers, musicians, artists. We believe that what you love will set other people on fire." - Rabbi Avram Mlotek, Base co-founder and Mashgiach Ruchani/Director of Spiritual Life

Basers’ Perspectives “Rabbi Hayley is magic. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I have never felt so welcomed and supported in my faith.”

“Base is a beautiful and accepting place. I love the understanding and open mindedness that comes with the community. I have not heard of many other Jewish places that have a rabbi who wears a rainbow kippah. I love it!”

“I love that the Rabbi is so warm and welcoming, that he is full of Jewish knowledge but does not disparage any type of Jews or any branch of Judaism. I love that he encourages Jewish learning and community but is not trying to convert anyone to one particular brand of judaism. Base is a welcoming place full of new potential friends and learning experiences.”

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The Role of Ritual

Basers’ Perspectives Home Focus “The home based, small group, and meaningful Religious traditions and rituals are learning aspects of Base are a what make it special to part of the Base home environment. me. I tend to connect better to Jewish practices that As the Baser quoted side right are home-based rather than primarily synagogue states, Jewish practice at Base is based. As a young person without many Jewish focused on home life, as opposed to friends where I live, Base provides that needed space synagogue life. Prayer and blessings for me. The intimacy of small group learning and occur in the context of Friday night dinners and holiday celebrations. Shabbat meals makes it easier to form real, Basers seeking a prayer focused meaningful connections, both with Base community complement their Base Rabbis/partners and other Basers. While other involvement by going to a organizations, like Chabad, also offer home-based neighborhood synagogue. learning, I have had a hard time connecting to the less egalitarian Judaism in those spaces. The fact that Base has an egalitarian model and is home/community based is very unique and something I have not encountered outside of a college setting before.”

Positive Exposure and Spiritual Guidance

The educational goal is to provide “Base was my first true connection to Jewish positive exposure to home and community and identity. Prior to finding the Base family focused religious ritual, community, I had no personal rabbinic connection or including rabbnic guidance for life spiritual guidance. Since forming a relationship with cycle ceremonies. Avram and Yael, I now have someone I can look to for the Jewish life cycle moments of my life to come, Prayer, ritual and ceremony is and knowing that I have a Jewish leader to help me inclusive, egalitarian, creative, and make future adult choices has allowed me to commit meaningful. The Base homes to building and maintaining a Jewish life.” practice a “Halachic egalitarianism,” where everyone observes basic kashrut and keeps Shabbat in the home.

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VII. A Supportive Organizational Culture

Base practices an organizational culture that reflects the values it seeks to impart to Basers. To that end, the national staff (2.5 FTE) seeks to create a supportive space for the Base chevreh to collectively celebrate successes, grapple with challenges, and support one another’s personal and spiritual growth. Grounded in learning Torah together, the Base teams engage in debate and inquiry, highlighting the diversity of opinion that often exists. The result is that the Base teams themselves practice the values they teach, so that a Baser will enter into any Base home and recognize “the Base vibe,” even when the specifics of the experience differ from Base to Base. As Base matures as an organization, it is codifying what it has learned about building community successfully, resulting in The Base Playbook, an evolving document intended to convey the Base culture and ethos to new partners and teams, while allowing for continual evolution and renewal. Its national office provides additional support to local Base teams, including a license and support for a custom Salesforce CRM database; microgrants for wellness and professional development; annual program evaluation and data analysis from an external evaluator; and in pre-COVID times, convening the teams in-person for the Annual Base Summit. This focus on the personal, spiritual, and professional development of each Base staff member is an intentional choice that mitigates the challenges that come with mixing family and professional life.

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VIII. What’s Next?

We are indebted to Hillel International for the support it has provided incubating and developing Base into what it is today. Hillel’s Office of Innovation (OOI) began in 2014 with the mandate to build a laboratory of new ideas and initiatives for young Jews, some of which would be integrated into the fabric of how Hillel serves its college students, and others of which would spin out and become their own projects serving the broader Jewish world. Hillel views this “spin-out” as a success, one that enables it to benefit from the learnings and insights gained from Base’s first six years, as well as enable Base to focus on growth in the young adult, non-student demographic. Base is now a strategic priority within Moishe House, one of the most well-known Jewish organizations whose sole demographic is post-college young adults. This means that we have an even larger and broader platform for Base with our target population, new opportunities to grow, and a chance to learn from the operational and scaling expertise of our new colleagues. On a practical level, this means that the professional staff responsible for overseeing the broader Base Movement and supporting the teams will now be employees of Moishe House. Each Base site will continue to partner with local organizations and will be funded primarily by local dollars. We see this transition as an opportunity to fuel Base’s growth into new urban markets in the United States (most likely Moishe Houses’ “hub cities” which have 3+ residential Moishe Houses), transforming it from a six-year-old startup to an initiative that is more fundamentally embedded in the fabric of how young adults experience Jewish community across the country and how they experience Jewish leadership. Our team is intact, excited, and ready to get to work with our new colleagues. If you are interested in learning more about what's next or becoming a part of our new chapter, please get in contact with us.

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