KA CC Archive June 2024

I have not always been a great camper, but I have always loved summer camp.  I grew up at a JCC summer camp, and I loved all of the fun we had.  I loved all of the silly songs we sang in the morning and the wildly creative activities that we had during the day.  I learned so much about Israel and Jewish values and teamwork and kindness.  It wasn’t just about having fun.  As I became a counselor, I loved having responsibility and making the summer an amazing experience for the kids, but also still having fun myself.  I loved learning big life lessons in a safe environment.  As I moved to work at Camp Ramah in different roles, I realized how much work goes into planning for two short months of camp.  

I also realized that the work that I did at Ramah was unlike the work I did anywhere else.  

When I stepped into my role as a rabbi-in-residence at Camp Ramah Darom, I realized how true this was and how important it is both for camp and for myself.  

As a rabbi-in-residence, I teach classes for campers of all ages and for staff.  I tutor kids who are becoming b’nai mitzvah, and I help kids who are reading Torah at camp and want to learn how to lead various services over the summer.  I sit with campers and staff who need some extra guidance, whether it is in their bunk, with friends, or generally in life.  I make connections with future leaders in the Jewish community - identifying and recruiting future rabbinical and cantorial students and those who would make great Jewish educators in general.  

One of the most well-known Torah portions we read during the summer is read this Shabbat.  It is Parshat Shlach Lecha, the story of the spies.  The parshah begins with Moshe sending 12 spies, one from each tribe, into the land of Cana’an to bring back an accounting of the land. The spies return with a discouraging report.Two spies report back with a positive message, but the negativity of the other ten reports instills so much fear into the nation that they decide against making the journey into the promised land after all. This infuriates God, who then decrees that anyone who went out from Egypt at age 20 or older will not be allowed to enter the land of Cana’an. This generation will purposefully die out so that a new generation, unfettered by the destructive mindset of their predecessors, can start anew. As the Torah details the creation of a nation that is fierce and fit, God notices that they are also struggling with preserving the sacred downtime that is Shabbat.
 

This idea of rest is so serious that we hear the story of a wood gatherer who gathers wood on Shabbat and is dealt a harsh punishment by God; the Torah declares the consequence for this infraction is death. While such a punishment may sound disproportionately severe to our ears, it certainly furthers the notion that making time to stop, rest, and rejuvenate is essential to living.