The story of the Kibbutz Holiday Institute
Contents of the Archives (by subject)
Key Staff Members of the Kibbutz Holidays Institute
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The story of the Kibbutz Holiday Institute
Contents of the Archives (by subject)
Key Staff Members of the Kibbutz Holidays Institute
Back
to Main Page
For three generations the kibbutz movement has been a vanguard of cultural activity in the Jewish State. Members of these unique communities have generally been lacking in traditional Jewish education but nevertheless have always sought to create new avenues of Jewish expression. Over the years, kibbutz communities have created secular “liturgy” for celebration of Jewish holidays and festivals that have combined traditional Jewish elements with Zionist and agricultural themes.
Since the 1940’s, Aryeh Ben-Gurion, a founder of Kibbutz Beit Hashitta and nephew of Israel’s first prime minister, collected any and all materials on Jewish holidays that he could get hold of. These have accumulated into a treasured collection of holiday materials and original concepts that have been tried and proven, using kibbutz communities as their testing ground.
What started as one man’s private archive has in recent years evolved into the Kibbutz Institute for Festivals and Holidays, which has expanded its activities beyond the boundaries of the Kibbutz Movement. Our educational materials, books, tapes, videos and other publications on holidays and the cycle of Jewish life are now used by many secular and traditional educators as well as community leaders. The Institute has published holiday pamphlets in foreign languages for use by the Israel Ministry of Aliyah and Absorption. The Institute is frequently commissioned by schools, teachers’ groups, and the Education Division of the Israel Defense Forces to operate one-day seminars about Jewish festivals and to offer fresh approaches to holiday celebration.
BackA unique aspect of the Institute is its staff. Though most are members of various kibbutzim, they nevertheless form a heterogeneous unit of varying talents and ideologies, with different approaches to Jewish sources and traditions. Indeed, the pluralism of the staff has served as a nucleus of activity, attracting religious and lay leaders from different strains of Israeli society. Examples are: Azaryah Alon, a founder of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel; Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun, a central thinker of religious Zionism; and Muki Tzur, a leading ideologue of the Kibbutz Movement. The paid staff includes three full-time employees, and several part-time workers, including researchers, lecturers, editors, and educational programmers. A few retirees from Beit Hashitta volunteer their time to the daily operation of the archive section.
Several organizations in Israel today are operating outreach programs
for the unaffiliated, in answer to the growing thirst for knowledge on
Judaism. Indeed, we maintain a close relationship with many other organizations
and institutes whose orientation is pluralistic and tolerant. Nevertheless,
we are the only institute that focuses specifically on festivals and holidays.
Developing original and relevant paths to Jewish identity may well be the
next great frontier of an eternally evolving Israeli society
Holidays play a central and even crucial role in cultural expression and values development. Whether originating in the ancient and Biblical or as a commemoration of the events of recent generations, the celebration of festivals is the celebration of life. Therefore, it is our philosophy to develop holiday celebrations that expand to include a broad tapestry of various elements woven together. We strive to blend the historical components with the agricultural, the traditional with the Zionistic, and the liturgical with modern prose and music.
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Contents of the Archives (by subject)
1. Rosh Hashana
2. Yom Kippur
3. Sukkot
4. Chanuka
5. Tu B’shvat
6. Purim
7. Pesach (including one of
Israel’s largest Haggada collections)
8. Yom Hashoah
9. Memorial Day
10. Yom Ha’atzmaut
11. Lag Ba’omer
12. Yom Yerushalayim
13. Shavuot
14. Tisha Ba’av
15. Tu Ba’av
16. Shabbat
17. Opening of the school year
18. Bar/Bat Mitzvah
19. Youth Movements
20. Marriage
21. Anniversary
22. Aging
23. Death and Mourning
24. Kibbutz culture
25. Mother’s day
26. Personalities
27. Poetry and Song
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Binyamin
Yogev (Bouja)
Mirik
Gerzy
Be’eri
Zimmerman
Azaryah
Alon
Mordy
Stein
BackBinyamin Yogev (Bouja) – Born and raised in Jerusalem, Bouja settled in Kibbutz Beit-Ha’emek after several years of activity in various Zionist youth movements. He earned a B.A. in Judaic Studies at the Oranim College of the Kibbutz Movement. For many years he directed the Holidays Committee of the Kibbutz Federation at the seminar in Ramat Ef’al. He also taught Jewish Studies at Oranim. In 1992 he was called upon to join Aryeh Ben-Gurion in the remodeling of the holiday archive at Kibbutz Beit-Hashitta. Since the demise of Aryeh (z”l), Bouja has served as the executive director of the Kibbutz Holidays Institute.
BackMirik Gerzy – Part of the second generation of Kibbutz Beit-Hashitta, she now raises a family of her own there. Did her B.A. in Bible at the Oranim Seminar, and M.A. in Judaic Studies and Talmud at the Jerusalem branch of the Jewish Theological Seminary where she is now completing her doctorate in Talmud. Teaches Bible at the Oholo Teachers College. She has written and edited many of the Institute’s publications.
BackBe’eri Zimmerman – Scion to a family of Rabbinic scholars, Be’eri moved as an adult to Kibbutz Giv’at Chaim (Ichud). In addition to many years as a teacher and educator in the United Kibbutz Movement, he is a prolific writer of prose and poetry. He was editor-in-chief of “Shdemot”, an intellectual quarterly of the Kibbutz Federation.
BackAzaryah Alon – A founder of Kibbutz Beit-Hashitta, his interest in the history of the land of Israel, its archaeology, flora and fauna, brought him to establish the Israel Society for the Protection of Nature. This octogenarian still leads nature hikes, has published several books and travel guides, and for decades has hosted a weekly program on Israel radio. His activities at the Institute include lectures, s Kibbutz Movement, at Ma’aleh Gilboa. Has a B.A. in History from Queens College in N.Y., an M.A. in Jewish History from Tel-Aviv U., and presently a doctoral student at Haifa University. Mordy runs the various adult studies programs at the Institute.
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