Shabbaton Outline: The Torah's Unchanging Values

NCSYers will learn that the Torah's values are everlasting, and that in many cases, modern research is just catching up to ancient Torah wisdom.


Goal/Theme

NCSYers will learn that the Torah's values are everlasting, and that in many cases, modern research is just catching up to ancient Torah wisdom. Every one of us is a link in the chain of mesorah reaching back all the way to Har Sinai. It's up to us to pass on the Torah's wisdom to the next generation.


Schedule

Click here to download the schedule from this Shabbaton.


Set Up

Place signs around the building with quotes and stories to bolster the theme and pique their interest.


Trigger Video Introducing the Theme

Play the video entitled "Why I Am a Jew" created by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks.


Skit

Act out a brief skit to introduce the theme. (Do you have ideas of a relevant skit that can be used in this Shabbaton? If so, please email it to firstr@ncsy.org.)


Friday Night Learning Session:
The Torah's Unchanging Values

Goal of the Session: NCSYers will learn that our values are everlasting, and that in many cases, modern research is just catching up to ancient Torah wisdom.

Introduce the session with the following trigger questions:

  1. We live in a unique time in history when the morals and values of our world are changing incredibly quickly. But should it be that morals can change? If there is something you believe in, what are the circumstances in which our morals should change?
  2. If morals are subject to change, who is the right person to make such a change? The President? The head of the UN? The Rabbi of your shul? What about you? Can you decide if something is “good” or “bad” on your own?
  3. What are actions that are “good” for me versus those that are not?

Continue with the following points:

  1. Of course, if morals were completely subjective, then so is the permissibility of murder. And theft. And everything else. Of course, we all believe that these are areas that require standards. In fact, if the world embraced the ideas that morals are completely subjective, life as we know it would be drastically different.
  2. Most people have a strong sense of morality. Today, you are going to have an amazing opportunity to see the timeless morality of Torah values. In the rich and meaningful history of the Jewish people, the Torah that God gave thousands of years ago is just as alive today as the day when we received the Torah.

Tell over a story that highlights this message. Then send NCSYers to their sessions.

In small groups, advisors learn the session entitled: The Torah's Unchanging Values with their NCSYers.

(Click here to see a sample email that you can send to your advisors in advance of the Shabbaton, to help them prepare for giving over this session.)


Activity

  1. All of the names of our Mesorah, going all the way back to Har Sinai.
  2. Each NCSYer will have a card that says their historical person’s name, their generation/year and where they lived.
  3. The first person will hold the end of a very long chain as they read their historical person. They will pass the end of the chain to the next person after they finish their name.
  4. Punchline is that they are the current link in the chain. What will they decide for the future? How will they pass on the tradition to the next generation.
  5. Speak about the details of writing a sefer Torah and the need for such detail in our Mesorah. This is no different. How will we promote our tradition and pass it on to the next generation.

Ebbing

During ebbing, tell over a story that highlights the value of following the Torah - following a life that was heavily impacted by having halachah.