Network Guidelines
As we gather in community we will hold these Middot (values or character traits) in mind.
Intention - Kavanah - כונה
As when teaching, we will hold all of our interactions and sharings with our best and greatest intentions in mind. When sharing a post, asking a question, or commenting on our own teaching, we will ask ourselves: What is my intention with this sharing? What is my intention with this comment? We will interact with one another with our own personal intentions in mind, and with the greater intention of uplifting, elevating and strengthening one another so that our offerings on the whole are of benefit to our students, our communities, our world.
Honor - Kavod - כבוד
We will treat one another and others outside of this community with honor and respect. We will employ conscious awareness of the words we choose, and infuse all communications with the notion that we each are a manifestation and expression of divinity. The tones with which we speak to one another, and the light in which we hold one another’s sharings will be essential for us to create safety, trust and generativity in our community. Given that when we read and write words on a computer screen, the receiver of our messages cannot hear the tone we mean to convey, we will be especially mindful of our word choices when we share.
Humility - Anava - ענוה
Maimonides describes humility as taking up “the right amount of space.” We support one another to fully own, embody and express the unique gifts we have to bring forth as guides and teachers of this beloved work. At the same time, we acknowledge that we all have something to learn from one another. There will be times when it is best to speak up, other times when it is best to listen to what others have to say. When we gather, we will balance the amount of time we speak with the amount of time we listen with this trait in mind.
Order - Seder - סדר
When sharing resources or speaking, we will be mindful of organizing our thoughts so that we are clear and concise. Creating order in our questions, our resources, and our communications can be calming and grounding for the whole community. We can view this as a way to care for each other and care for ourselves.
Generosity - Nedivut - נדיבות
We enter this community with the intention to give and receive freely as we desire. We hold the view that there is shefa/ abundance of chochmah/ wisdom, binah/ understanding, and chesed/loving kindness available in the universe, and that while we each have some mastery and expertise in our teaching, we do not ‘own’ any particular wisdom. We are here to serve, share and spread the light of Torah to our world. Just as we gave from the heart when we made offerings to create the mishkan in the wilderness, we will share with a generous heart all that we desire to share with one another, and we will exercise personal discernment about what to share/not share.