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This past weekend, the BWC community celebrated the b'nai mitzvah of our Zayin class. The Shule graduates each shared a personal reflection about their Jewish identity, and what being a member of this community means to them. Our secular collective ceremony marks an important transition, moving from childhood to adulthood, and from BWC's Sunday School to our general membership.
 As part of remarks I shared at the ceremony, I asked some of the Sunday School teachers what they wanted their students to learn in Shule. One teacher said that Shule teaches its participants how to be a good person, how to be a good Jew, and how to be yourself. In short, she said, the point of Shule is to teach you how to be a mensch. In Yiddish, mensch literally means "a person, a human being." But colloquially it means much more than that. Arthur Naiman writes, "To call someone a mensch is, in a certain way, the highest compliment you can pay them. It means they're mature, compassionate, decent, loving - everything a human being should be."
Mirah, the 5th grade teacher, told me that she wants students to learn that if they organize together and speak their truth, they can change the world. She shows them models of menschen who stood up for what they believed in, with the hope that they will take inspiration from those stories.
This class has certainly taken that inspiration and put it into action. For their annual 5th grade protest two years ago, this class led a picket line outside Wendy's in solidarity with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers. This past year, our Zayin students led the charge petitioning BWC to adopt a gender-neutral name, delivering a statement to the Board and speaking at a community gathering of over 50 members.
By embodying the lessons of this Shule, and teaching the rest of us how to use those lessons, this class has reminded us to be mature, compassionate, decent, and loving, and fierce.
I am so pleased to welcome the next generation of BWC members into our community, and to publicly congratulate them on, not becoming, but continuing to be mature, compassionate, decent, and loving menschen.
In community,
 Riva Pearson
BWC Board Co-President
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This Month @ BWC...
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1762 Beacon St. Goodbye Party
Saturday, June 15, 6:30 - 8:30pm @ BWC
Join the BWC Board of Directors and Shabes Committee for a Havdalah ritual and dinner to say farewell to our beloved building at 1762 Beacon St. Learn more.
Yiddish vinkls, or conversation groups, provide an opportunity to sharpen your Yiddish skills in a comfortable and informal setting. Drop in anytime! All generations and levels welcome. Learn more.
"My Goat is On The Roof": A New Concert by Polina Shepherd
Wednesday, June 19, 7:30pm @ Third Life Studio, 33 Union Square, Somerville
This new, multi-lingual, multi-cultural, and multi-faceted weave of songs will take you on a deep emotional journey. Sponsored by the BWC Yiddish Committee, My Goat is On the Roof is about beauty in the heart surrounded by madness in the world, a mixture of original, classical, and folk songs mainly in Yiddish and Russian, including a few world premieres. Learn more.
Yiddish Reading Group
Friday, June 21, 10:00 - 11:30am, @ BWC
The Yiddish reading group that meets at Boston Workers' Circle is inviting new members. We are reading a novella by Masha Rolnikayte, "On a rekht tsu leben" ("Without a right to live"), which is based on her experiences during WWII in Vilna. Learn more.
Young Adult Summer Havdalah
Saturday, June 22, 4:00 - 8:00 pm @ Carson Beach
It's time to kick off the BWC Young Adult Summer Shabes Series! Each month, we will be coming together at different locations for a Shabes or Havdalah ritual and potluck. This is a chance to connect with other young adults, share a meal, and have fun! Learn more.
Mussar for Secular Activists Course
Tuesday, June 25, 7:00 - 9:00 pm @ member home in Jamaica Plain
In collaboration with the Inside Out Wisdom and Action (IOWA) Project, BWC is excited to host a mussar class for secular activists this summer that seeks to explore the integration of Jewish spirituality into our justice work. Learn more.
BWC @ World Fellowship Center, NH
July 12 - 14 @ White Mountains, New Hampshire
For many years, Boston Workmen's Circle members and friends have used this weekend to get to know each other better, as we hike and bike in the White Mountains, swim and boat on beautiful Whitton Pond, read, shmooze, and relax on the lawn or in the lodge, and just enjoy the beautiful surroundings. Learn more.
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Goodbye, 1762 Beacon Street!
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Please join the BWC Board of Directors and Shabes Committee on Saturday, June 15th from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. for a Havdalah ritual to say farewell to our beloved building of 1762 Beacon St.
This building has meant so much to so many of us over the years, and we want to give our community the chance to come together in this space one final time to say thank you and goodbye.
We are collecting memories and goodbyes of the building to take to our new home. Please use this form to share any sentiments you want to express, stories you'd like to share, about the building. Some of these will be featured at the Havdalah service Please arrive at 6:30 p.m. for mingling and memory sharing. The ritual will start at 7:00 p.m, with potluck dinner to follow.
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We're Hiring: Communications Manager
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BWC is seeking a highly creative and self-motivated individual for the position of Communications Manager to expand and implement BWC's Communication Strategy.
This position is responsible for carrying out multi-platform messaging and communications tactics to: connect with and build our membership, promote our programs and organizing campaigns, support fundraising appeals, and increase BWC's visibility and impact.
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Mussar for Secular Activists - Summer Course
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In collaboration with the Inside Out Wisdom and Action (IOWA) Project, BWC is excited to host a mussar class this Summer that seeks to explore the integration of Jewish spirituality into our justice work to support them in becoming more sustainable, powerful, and transformative. Mussar is an ancient Jewish practice of spiritual and ethical reflection, development, and meditation.
Course Dates: 6/25, 7/2, 7/10, 8/6. All sessions are 7-9pm.
Course Location: Member home in Jamaica Plain
Registration Cost: $60 - $120 (includes all 4 sessions)
Instructor: Rabbi Alex Weissman
To facilitate active discussion and because of space constraints, this course is limited to 15 participants and is only open to BWC members.
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BWC @ World Fellowship Center July 12-14
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BWC's annual weekend at World Fellowship Center in NH is July 12-14th, 2019! For many years, Boston Workmen's Circle members and friends have used this weekend to get to know each other better, as we hike and bike in the White Mountains, swim and boat on beautiful Whitton Pond, read, shmooze, and relax on the lawn or in the lodge, and just enjoy the beautiful surroundings.
World Fellowship is a progressive vacation retreat center located on 455 acres in the splendor of the NH White Mountains - as their website says, "where social justice meets nature."
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Community News
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Boston Workmen's Circle is sustained by our members. If you believe in keeping secular progressive Jewish tradition alive and thriving for generations to come, please join us! Find out about BWC membership or sign up now! Get More Plugged In @ BWC
Interested in joining a committee? We've got something for everyone with Yiddish, Shabes, Ritual, Adult Ed, Acting for Racial and Economic Justice, Middle East Working Group, Jewish-Muslim Solidarity, Aging in Community, Shule, Young Adults, and Caring. Email Maddy to learn more about our diverse committees!
Support Boston Workmen's Circle
Our work is made possible by the generous support of people like you.
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