Merkavat ha-Makhol:
Institute for Embodied Spirituality
With Simona Aronow, Latifa Berry Kropf, Rabbi Diane Elliot and Julie Leavitt
August 16 - 22, 2010
Have you longed to embody your spirituality? To explore the ways that Divinity pulses through every breath of your being? Do you want to be a more open channel through which shefa, the Divine flow of energy, may manifest on the earth? Do you seek to comprehend and to express through body, mind and spirit the deep structure of the Jewish prayer service, the Torah and other sacred Jewish teachings, the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, and your personal Divine connection?
If so, we welcome you! This class, designed to help you more fully and creatively embody Jewish spirituality, will serve as an introduction to a two-year training program, both for those who are and for who might wish to become Jewish movement facilitators. All levels of experience are welcomed.
Your inspired and passionate faculty, drawing on many years of combined experience in exploring Jewish prayer, music, text, history, and soul through the lenses of dance and movement, ritual, psychology, and the healing arts, will guide and empower you to grow the roots of your spiritual aliveness, watered by the well of your body’s wisdom.
Classes will include:
- experiences and tools to deepen your internal listening, including Authentic Movement and somatic meditation
- explorations of the Source and Ground of Being in each of the Kabbalistic Four Worlds (assiyah—doing; yetzirah—formation/feeling; b’riyah—creation/mind; atzilut—nearness to Spirit), with the body as your primary teacher
- nurturing and honoring of the unique, individual expressions of the Holy One of Blessing, as they come through you
- communal dance, both choreographed and free form
- techniques that can be taught/shared with others in order to lead them into their own kinesthetic spirit-bodies
Facilitators
Simona Aronow has been in private practice for over 30 years as a Dance/Movement Therapist, Movement Analyst and educator, body worker, teacher and supervisor. Raised orthodox, she integrates her traditional yeshiva background with the direct experience of somatic awareness and movement, to foster personal connection and meaning. Simona has taught through the National Havurah Summer Institute, Laban Institute of Movement, and Gesher Center for Spirituality Meditation and Healing, on whose Board of Directors she has also served since 2000. She has supervised students through Goucher College and Antioch University, and currently maintains a private practice in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her love for movement and somatic healing is inspiring.
Latifa Berry Kropf has been creating and leading sacred dance for 35 years. As a leader of her Renewal chavurah in Charlottesville VA, Latifa enriches Shabbat and holy day services and celebrations with dance and movement and weaves dance into life cycle events. She has published dance materials for both adults and children, has had the privilege of sharing sacred dance with many communities, and has been honored with the title of Eshet Hazon, Woman of Vision.
Rabbi Diane Elliot, spiritual teacher, dancer and somatic therapist, inspires her students to become clearer channels for Divine Light through awareness and movement practices, chant, and nuanced interpretations of Jewish sacred text. Her wise, loving presence creates a safe space for those who wish to explore spirituality individually and in community. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, she teaches workshops nationally, maintains a spiritual direction practice, and with her husband Rabbi Burt Jacobson, leads Jewish meditation retreats.
Julie Leavitt practices body-centered psychotherapy and spiritual direction in Newton, MA. She has taught Sacred Movement classes at Elat Chayyim and the Aleph Kallah and serves on the core faculty of the Lev Shomea spiritual direction program, teaching movement and body-centered knowing to spiritual directors-in-training. She has taught Movement and Healing classes at Lesley University for the past 22 years. In 2004, Julie’s community, B’nai Or of Boston, honored her with the title Eshet Hazon: Miyaledet Ruchanit, Woman of Vision: Spiritual Midwife.
Registration Information
The program fee for this class is $375. Fees are per person, and do not include the cost of Room and Board (below). We strive to make our programs affordable to everyone. For information about Financial Assistance, please see below.
Register for this retreat and participate in one of the following concurrent retreats for only $150 more:
Room and Board
Room and board includes housing, meals, evening activities, yoga, meditation and full use of our facility. All rooms are air-conditioned in the summer and heated in the winter. Adults fees apply to ages 18 and higher. Children's rates apply to ages 4 - 17. Rates are per person, and include all meals. For double or triple occupancy, you may either request a roommate, or be matched with one by our staff.
Economy Rooms: Daisy, Elm and Kaufman
Economy rooms have twin-sized beds and a shared bathroom in the hall.
| Economy Rooms |
Six
Nights |
| Triple Occupancy |
430 |
| Double Occupancy |
510 |
| Single Occupancy |
864 |
Standard Rooms: May, Scheuer, Pine, Cedar, Maple, Blue Heron
Our standard rooms have either a private bathroom or a shared bathroom with one other room. Most standard rooms have twin-sized beds; queen-sized beds may be available on a limited basis.
| Standard Rooms |
Six
Nights |
Triple Occupancy
with Private Bath |
660 |
Double Occupancy
with Shared Bath |
660 |
Double Occupancy
with Private Bath |
810 |
Single Occupancy
with Shared Bath |
1080 |
Single Occupancy
with Private Bath |
1320 |
Standard Plus Rooms: Weinberg
Our standard plus rooms have private bathrooms and queen-sized beds.
| Standard Plus Rooms |
Six
Nights |
| Double Occupancy |
900 |
| Single Occupancy |
1542 |
Camping
Campers supply their own tents and equipment and have access to bathrooms and showers. Camping fee includes all meals and snacks, use of the facility and its amenities, and participation in any open programming provided, such as meditation, yoga or non-holiday prayer.
| Camping Rates |
Six
Nights |
| Each Camper |
390 |
Commuter
The commuter fee includes all meals and snacks, use of the facility and its amenities, and participation in any open programming provided, such as such as meditation, yoga or non-holiday prayer.
| Commuter Rates |
Six
Nights |
| Each Commuter |
270 |
Children's Rates
There is no charge for infants and children ages 3 and under. Children ages 4 – 17 must share a room with at least one parent or guardian. Young adults ages 18 and above must pay the regular rates.
| Children's Rates |
Six
Nights |
| Each Child |
270 |
Financial Assistance
We strive to make our programs affordable to everyone. We provide limited financial aid of up to 50% off Room and Board fees. This financial support is only available for dormitory rooms with hall baths and economy rooms for couples and families. If you would like to request financial support, please complete the Application for Financial Aid. In your request, please consider that we have a limited pool of resources. We are committed to helping you in any we can, and we ask you to help us help others by limiting your request to your genuine need.
All requests must be received at least three weeks prior to the retreat.
Please note that we are not able to make any refunds in order to grant an aid request. If you choose to register prior to being awarded aid, and your remaining balance is less than the aid award, you will forfeit any award in excess of your outstanding balance.
Cancellation Policy
Payments made will be refunded in full (less a $50 processing fee) if you cancel more than 14 days prior to your arrival. If you cancel between 13 days and 72 hours prior to a retreat for which you have registered, a non-refundable credit (less a $50 processing fee) will be held for one year from the date of issue. This credit is non-transferable. No credit or refund is available if you cancel within 72 hours of a retreat or on the retreat arrival day, if you do not show up, or if you leave a retreat early for any reason.
Isabella Freedman reserves the right to cancel any program at any time. In the event of such cancellation, you will be given a complete refund.
Inclement Weather: Isabella Freedman reserves the right to cancel a retreat due to inclement weather if, in its judgment, it will be unable to operate safely. In the event of such a cancellation, a full refund will be made to all registrants. In the event that the retreat proceeds as scheduled, no refund or credit will be available.
Shuttle and Transportation Fees: A full transportation refund is available if you cancel a transportation reservation at least 3 days (72 hours) in advance. No refund is available if less than 3 days notice is given.
Training Institutes: If you are participating in a two-year training institute and you miss or cancel one of the weeklong retreat sessions, your room and board fee will be refunded according to the policy above, but the program fee for a missed or cancelled retreat session is still due. Withdrawal is permitted only after the first retreat session. If you withdraw from a training institute after the first retreat session, or if you are asked by faculty to leave the institute, you will receive a full refund on your program fee for any remaining pre-paid retreats.
Travel Insurance: We recommend you contact your travel agent to purchase travel insurance in the event that you need to cancel or change your travel plans.
Exceptions: Exceptions to these policies may be available in the event of severe weather emergencies or the death of a close family member. To request a non-transferable credit for one of these reasons, please submit a written request to registrar@isabellafreedman.org no more than three days after the start of the event.
