Prayer Playground
A few years ago I was the youth director of a big Masorti (Conservative) synagogue in London. My task was firstly to run youth services on Shabbat for a handful of teenagers and maybe encourage a few more to come along. I tried a traditional service but success was limited - most of the young people I was working with just weren't that interested and could probably have got the same thing from sitting upstairs in the adult service, minus perhaps some of the extra participation in running things themselves. I changed things around after a couple months, when I realized something more creative, playful and embodied was where my own passion lay. And this was key - I could only inspire others if I was myself inspired. The approach we took then was much more experiential. We took the services to the synagogue's gym, giving us more space, crash pads, and a different kind of atmosphere. We used chant and choreographed the prayers to movement. And most significantly, I led the
