Living in a Communal Home Participants live together in an apartment in West Jerusalem. The group is made up of between 6-10 people who share kitchen space, learning space, working space and space for relaxation. Most participants share bedrooms. We work to balance the many amazing elements of collective living with the importance of personal space and privacy. Like all things on Achvat Amim, norms are set through a process of intentional conversation. Responsibility is shared on household chores, grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning. We view communal living as one expression of tikkun adam, bettering one's self and one's community. Living together is one way in which we can radically care for each other throughout our time on Achvat Amim.
The space is your home, and also a community hub. It is yours to host meetings in, shabbat dinners, birthday celebrations, and enables you to be at the center of a thriving, politically active, community in Jerusalem. A Pluralistic Home Participants in Achvat Amim come from a wide variety of Jewish and non-Jewish backgrounds, communities, and contexts. House norms around ritual practice, observance, and public space are shaped through a group process in which every participant is encouraged to bring in their whole self and the full breadth of their identities. Through compassionate and creative conversation participants build a warm, inclusive, and mutually affirming home.
Explore Jerusalem You are going to be living in Jerusalem, a city full of complexity and diverse cultural life. You will go to cafes and bars and art exhibits. You will join learning circles, minyanim (communal prayer gathering), celebrations, and explore community. You will discover the connections and tensions between East and West Jerusalem, as well as the vast and very real meanings behind words such as conflict, occupation, peace, justice and self-determination. You will have meetings and go to work at your volunteer placement. You will learn all over the city and all over the country.
Being socially engaged was a part of my home – part of my upbringing – and I suppose it also influenced my participation in what I’ve now come to think of as the most troubling and important issue at hand: ending the Occupation. -Hagit Ofran
