Jewish organizations spend a lot of time articulating values.

We put them on walls.
We include them in strategic plans.
We repeat them at board meetings and community gatherings.

But values aren’t taught through language alone.

They’re taught through systems.

Every system teaches something.

How meetings are run teaches what kind of voices matter.
How decisions are made teaches whether trust is real.
How time is allocated teaches what and who is truly valued.

Even when we don’t intend to teach anything at all something is taught.

This has been on my mind as I’ve been thinking about time, how sacred it is in Jewish life, and how easily it’s consumed in practice. Because time doesn’t disappear randomly.........

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