It can be hard to find ways to express gratitude during this extremely challenging year. My Jewish Learning and our partners will show you how, through a week of classes and events about gratitude and the Jewish approach to Thanksgiving. Check out the list of amazing classes and events from My Jewish Learning and our partners, all focused on the theme of gratitude.
My Jewish Learning Programs
Thanksgiving and the Dust of Humanity: A Jewish Lens on an American Holy Day
Tuesday, November 24 at 1:30 p.m.
Rabbi Menachem Creditor examines the complicated story of Thanksgiving through a Jewish lens. Is Thanksgiving a story of bounty and gratitude expressed by formerly persecuted minorities? Is Thanksgiving the story of taking land from its native inhabitants, one formerly marginalized group marginalizing another? Join an exploration of Thanksgiving through Jewish eyes, as we translate our gratitude into a deepened commitment to provide others a reason to be thankful. Register here.
Tuesday, November 24 at 4:00 p.m. ET
Join My Jewish Learning for a special Kaddish minyan about gratitude. Rabbi Sari Laufer will offer a brief teaching and a group recitation of the Mourner’s Kaddish. Connect via Zoom here.
Partner Programs
Scroll, Sage, and Stage: Jacob’s Pain in an Age of Change: Notes from a Novelist & Commentator
The Straus Center at Yeshiva University
Monday, November 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET
The clash between an Anglo-Irish novelist and a Jewish-Polish commentator, both reacting to the pain of Jacob in the presence of an emperor, exhibits tension around how to interpret the biblical text, and offers a lesson for this Thanksgiving.
Pride and Privilege: How Do We Sensitively Navigate and Appreciate Having More Than Others?
Hadar
Tuesday, November 24 at 11:30 a.m. ET
One of the enduring truths about human society is that the pie of privilege is not equally distributed. In this class with Dena Weiss, we will explore some Torah-guided approaches to thinking about and navigating inequality sanely and sensitively.
Congregation Kol Ami
Tuesday, November 24 at 12:30 p.m. ET/ 9:30 a.m. PT
Join with Rabbi Denise L. Eger and Rabbi Max Chaiken of Congregation Kol Ami for a special edition of our weekly “Morning Music & Mindfulness” prayer experience! On this Day of Gratitude, we will use the words of our traditional morning prayers as a guide to start our day. Join live on their Facebook page.
The Rabbinical Assembly
Tuesday, November 24, 2:30 – 4:00 p.m. ET
Join the Rabbinical Assembly to share sweet niggunim (wordless melodies), calming meditations, and uplifting Torah on the theme of gratitude.
The Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning
Tuesday, November 24 at 2:30 p.m. ET
By changing the way you wake up in the morning, you can transform any area of your life. Explore Jewish practice through this “Taste of Melton” class, for how to wake up in gratitude – on the right side of the bed. Streamed live on Melton’s Facebook page.
Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale
Tuesday, November 24 at 3:00 p.m. ET
Gratitude is a virtue; we all have important work to do in cultivating a more grateful disposition. And – how do we think about relationships when gratitude is impossible, unwarranted, and even dangerous? Together we’ll explore a variety of ungrateful characters in the Bible to see gratitude for the complex and powerful thing it truly is. No registration required; simply join the Zoom session at class time.
Gratitude Through the Lens of the Ten Commandments
Lishmah: Daily Jewish Learning
Tuesday, November 24: Listen anytime
Join Noam Kornsgold, a rabbinical student at Jewish Theological Seminary of America, explores how we can learn to be gracious using the Ten Commandments. To listen to the class, available beginning Tuesday, November 23, download the Lishmah application.
Multi-Faith and Gratitude: How Do We Give Thanks?
America-Israel Friendship League
Wednesday, November 25 at 12:00 p.m. ET
The America-Israel Friendship League has assembled a panel of faith and community leaders to share how they have balanced the challenges of this year with expressions of gratitude and an attitude of giving thanks to those around them. The event will be streamed live to AIFL’s Facebook page.
Drisha and Atiq
Wednesday, November 25 at 4:00 p.m. ET
Join Drisha and Atiq: Jewish Maker Institute for an interactive Jewish learning and arts workshop. We’ll be using simple materials to us reflect on what we have to be grateful for. No background in art-making or Torah learning is necessary!
Scroll, Sage, and Stage: Debt and Gratitude in the Merchant of Venice
The Straus Center at Yeshiva University
Wednesday, November 25 at 7:30 p.m. ET
The name of the Hebrew Daniel only appears in the (in)famous courtroom scene in The Merchant of Venice. And yet, a close examination of Daniel’s presence in this climactic episode yields a deeper understanding of the play’s thematic exploration of debt and gratitude, while also offering reflections on the Hebrew Bible’s influence on one of the most impactful works of Western literature.
What Does it Mean to Be Grateful? A Self-Guided Learning Sheet
Sefaria: A Living Library of Jewish Texts Online
These texts present a Jewish journey towards understanding the different forces that cause us to offer thanks. When do you truly feel grateful? When do you have to remind yourself to feel grateful? When do you have to force yourself to feel grateful? Explore these questions and more on Sefaria’s sourcesheet.
Days of Gratitude: A Journey To Notice the Unnoticed
M²: The Institute for Experiential Education
Days of Gratitude is a 6-month journey to notice – and give gratitude for – the unnoticed blessings in our lives. Every month, you will receive a set of activities, prompts, and inspiration. The journey will culminate in a worldwide celebration of gratitude in May, leading up to Shavuot.
