The series, designed by the Jewish Communal Leadership Program (JCLP) of the School of Social Work with support from The Covenant Foundation, and streamed nationally on the Internet, framed issues as varied and vital as food justice, environmentalism, politics, social consciousness and activism.

Communal Conversations, as the programs were collectively called, featured Rabbi Sharon Brous, leader of IKAR, the groundbreaking Jewish spiritual community in Los Angeles; Mik Moore, Chief Strategy Officer at Jewish Funds for Justice; and Nigel Savage, founder of Hazon, a prominent Jewish environmental organization.

“These are great Jewish leaders who are exploring new areas of vital possibilities for the Jewish community,” said Karla Goldman, JCLP Director and Sol Drachler Professor of Social Work. “Their perspectives allow us to push beyond the familiar lines within Jewish communal discussions. This is our objective.”

On a recent Wednesday evening, Rabbi Brous was doing just that, meeting with dozens of university and community members for a talk on “Innovation, Agitation, and Transformation in Jewish Life.”

She used biblical examples of, in her words – “holy chutzpah” – to provoke contemporary Jews and communal organizations to rethink Jewish identity and community and embrace a more expansive religious, social and political posture.

“The whole idea of breaking the expectation, of doing exactly what you are not supposed to do, redefining the course of what is and what ought to be in Jewish life … is what has driven the Jewish community over the course of thousands of years,” she said, citing her own experience as the daughter of non-observant Jews taking a unexpected path to rabbinical school and helping to build a socially active congregation.

“I want to argue that in some ways the deepest Jewish instinct is to actually work to agitate in the community, to try to honor and cultivate the part of us that is different from everyone else and that fights against the system instinctively and naturally because it is not only the way that we are true to ourselves and our calling in the world but it is also the best thing for the community.”

Her call for reimaging Jewish identity and engagement sparked conversation on everything from Israel and anti-Semitism, to biblical teachings and communal life among those in attendance.

“It’s important, at a critical time of transition in the Jewish community, to hear a variety of voices and explore what will work for people at different levels,” said Ann Arbor resident Bette Cotzin, who is on the Board of Trustees of the Union for Reform Judaism.

On another evening, Hazon’s Savage – widely credited for putting Jewish-inspired environmentalism on the map – was just as provocative, picking up on Brous’s call for social activism and engagement as he underscored the imperative of the Jewish food movement as a reflection of Jewish values, tradition and future.

“We cannot renew Jewish life without addressing a broad range of environmental challenges and we cannot as a planet reach a place of sustainability without the world’s faith traditions helping to chart a path from here to there and without the Jewish people playing a part in that process,” he said, adding that Jews have a “toolbox full of wisdom that the whole world can really use right now.”

Drilling down to issues as pressing as sustainability and food justice, he called on the community to fully embrace environmentalism and to lend the faith’s particular learnings and perspectives to alter present and future reality for the planet.

“If we want to use contemporary environmental issues to help strengthen Jewish life, that is legitimate in my view, but we will only have any impact if for ourselves we really start to get serious about what the challenges are and what the issues are, and how we can make a difference.”

Hazon has received Covenant Foundation grants to establish a Jewish food educator network, and to create an educational initiative to elevate family mealtime as a priority. IKAR has received a grant to establish a community service program in the Los Angeles area.

Moore, of Jewish Funds for Justice, has deftly harnessed the connection between social media, journalism and community organizing to push forth a Jewishly informed activism. Credited with media campaigns that have earned widespread attention for their creativity and punch, he spoke on “Talking the Talk, Walking the Walk: Jews, Race and the Great Schlep,” focusing on the Jewish place in electoral politics and relationships between the Jewish and African-American communities.

For JCLP students – there are six in the 2012 class – the series provided an intimate opportunity to meet with national leaders, create connections, and think about issues in new ways.

“This is an extremely appropriate way to learn and engage not only with those leaders offering new and exciting and transformative ideas and perspectives, but also with others who live in this community,” said Talya Gates-Monasch, a JCLP student from Northern California.

Fellow student Ariel Pearl-Jacobvitz, also from Northern California, added that at a time when Jewish community growth is dependent on a younger generation, the discussion of new ideas is critical.

“People want to be involved because they feel connected and excited and see the possibilities of new ways of engagement beyond obligation,” she said after hearing Rabbi Brous. “If you feel a part of the community, then you want to give back to it.”

Communal Conversations is an extension of similar public programming by the JCLP in recent years, including an event last year – “Food with a Conscience: Ethical and Jewish Perspectives on the Business of What We Eat” – featuring Ari Weinzweig, co-founder of Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, and Seth Goldman, president of Honest Tea. The program was co-sponsored by The Covenant Foundation.

“We are encouraging people to keep thinking about these important issues long after these programs end, to keep the communal conversations and challenging questions alive,” said Goldman. “It is exciting to create these circles of important conversation.”

The voices being brought to these and similar forums are critical to spur forward-looking, innovative thinking, said Harlene Winnick Appelman, executive director of The Covenant Foundation.

“All of these ideas are groundbreaking and dynamic,” she said. “To expose young people and others to expansive and evolving thought is critical for our community and our place in society.”

By H. Glenn Rosenkrantz, for The Covenant Foundation