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bayit.bsky.social
Bayit: Building Jewish
@bayit.bsky.social
170 followers 41 following 140 posts
A Jewish innovation incubator and publisher of books, games, and other tools for building Jewish. Find us at yourbayit.org. Bluesky account run by velveteenrabbi.
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bayit.bsky.social
New for this #YomKippur: a retelling of the #Jonah story created for this year. yourbayit.org/jonah2025/
The first page of a Jonah script called My Children, featuring the narrator / God, Jonah, and Yūnus. Find the whole script at the link above. A woodcut of a whale in the sea. Text: "My Children / Jonah 5786 / 2025," and the Bayit logo
September 16, 2025 at 1:19 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Announcing the next book due from Bayit in 5786: Recover by Adam Green, chronicling the journey through atypical anorexia, structured around key moments in the Jewish year. yourbayit.org/recover/
Book launch from Bayit Publishing. Recover by Adam Green, forthcoming in 5786. Read about the book here: https://yourbayit.org/recover/
August 20, 2025 at 1:19 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Published four years ago today!

yourbayit.org/lightofpeace2/
In the Light of Peace: poems and meditations of a creative spiritual community. Edited by Leiah Bowden with Abby Bogomolny, Sally Churgel, and Rita Rappoport Rowan. Cover features a painting of a winged angel in many colors.
April 21, 2025 at 4:41 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Grab a copy of #ColorTheOmer / 49 days of beauty and reflection - a contemplative coloring book for the #Omer journey by @drshariellen.bsky.social and Steve Silbert. Only $13! shorturl.at/EsW91 or learn more at yourbayit.org/bayit-publis...
Five colorful crayons and the cover of "Color the Omer: 49 Days of Beauty and Reflection" by Steve Silbert and Shari Berkowitz. A yellow cloud says, "Get your copy now for a mere $13!" and contains a short URL
March 27, 2025 at 10:48 AM
bayit.bsky.social
Here's one of @trishaarlin3000.bsky.social 's gorgeous contributions to From The Depths, our new #Peach offering. Find the whole thing here: yourbayit.org/depths/
Bricks Without Straw This year Pharaoh has declared That we must make our bricks Without straw! That we must be happy Without truth That we must be poor Without healthcare That we must be gendered Without a say That we must be Black Without equity That we must be women Without choices That we must be old Without help That we must live Without housing That we must be prepared Without science That we must make war Without conscience That we must breathe Without air That we must be refugees Without asylum That we must be content Without democracy That we must obey Without question. Moses said to Pharaoh, Let my people go. And this year, what do you say? Say it now! Trisha Arlin (seen atop a blue and yellow Ukrainian flag, with a Bayit logo.) From a collection available here: https://yourbayit.org/depths/
March 18, 2025 at 12:14 AM
bayit.bsky.social
With #Purim approaching, #Pesach comes next... which means so does the #Omer! Grab a copy of #ColorTheOmer / 49 days of beauty and reflection - a contemplative coloring book by Shari Berkowitz and Steve Silbert. Only $13! shorturl.at/EsW91 or learn more at yourbayit.org/bayit-publis...
Color the Omer: 49 days of beauty and reflection - a contemplative coloring book by Shari Berkowitz and Steve Silbert. Get your copy now for a mere $13! https://shorturl.at/EsW91 or learn more at https://yourbayit.org/bayit-publishing/color-the-omer/
March 4, 2025 at 12:19 PM
bayit.bsky.social
New from Bayit: the next installment in our Amidah series, this time arising out of the Hoda'ah / Gratitude blessing.

Featuring work by @trishaarlin3000.bsky.social , @velveteenrabbi.bsky.social, Joanne Fink, R. Sonja Keren Pilz, Steve Silbert & R. David Zaslow.

yourbayit.org/hodaah/
Gratitude / Hoda'ah - Work inspired by the Hoda'ah blessing of the Amidah, from Bayit's liturgical arts working group 2025. Three images in panels alongside one another. Left: a chalk drawing of open hands reaching out, with lines and shapes behind them. Middle: an hourglass. Right: sunset (or sunrise) over the water with dark trees in the foreground.
February 14, 2025 at 12:34 PM
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Here's an offering from @velveteenrabbi.bsky.social from our latest collection -- liturgical poetry & art riffing off of the Avodah / R'tzeih blessing of the Shabbat Amidah. Find the whole thing here: yourbayit.org/avodah/
Return Near the end of my first week-long retreat of study and meditation, drunk on prayer and feeling little sparkles on my skin every place tefillin might someday go I said, "It's good to be on speaking terms with You again. I wish I didn't have to leave." I meant on Sunday, when I would trudge to my dusty car and return to the real world. And You said you're not leaving Me. I was always here. Or at least that's what I heard, standing suddenly stock-still in an August meadow of cornflowers and Queen Anne's lace. I held my tallit tight around me like an embrace and I wept. Your Presence was always here, but I -- I hadn't known. We plead to see Your return to Zion; we feel like You’re gone, but You’re always there. And You’re always here, even on days when the world feels upside-down and broken. When we take care of each other we make Your Presence real, each of us made in Your image when we let our light shine. Help me serve by remembering how to reveal the You that is always in this place wherever we are. R. Rachel Barenblat from a collection released by Bayit, find it at https://yourbayit.org/avodah/
January 10, 2025 at 11:59 AM
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Here's an offering from R. Sonja K. Pilz from our latest collection -- liturgical poetry & art riffing off of the Avodah / R'tzeih blessing of the Shabbat Amidah. Find the whole thing here: yourbayit.org/avodah/
In Your House In Your house, I try to walk carefully Among the plants and the especially the trees, Among the animals and the fossils, The invisible movements of mountains and molecules, The smells of thyme and sand dunes, And the tastes of olives and grain. In your house, I try to bless, Whomever I encounter, I am trying to listen to the myriad of messages Brought to me as my days increase, As I live in this palace You gifted to me. I feel shy and humbled, Often touched by despair, As I try to discern, Where to walk, What to say, What to buy, And how to travel my roads. I pray that you may see my efforts, Some of which I am sure are misplaced, To live my life rightfully and for the right purpose, Breathing in, Breathing out, An everlasting effort, To walk with care in Your house. Rabbi Sonja K. Pilz, PhD
January 9, 2025 at 12:07 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Here's one of R. David Zaslow's offerings from our latest collection -- liturgical poetry & art riffing off of the Avodah / R'tzeih blessing of the Shabbat Amidah. Find the whole thing here: yourbayit.org/avodah/
Avodah מַה־תִּצְעַק אֵלָי דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִסָּעוּ… Mah titzak aylie dabayr el b’nai Yisrael v’eesaru The Holy One said to Moses, “Why pray to Me? Tell the children of Israel, “go forward!’” Heschel marched with King and said “I felt my legs were praying.” He too learned what Moses learned – Legs that pray are words that work. It’s how we serve when at our best. Or else we toil enslaved by fear – our prayers are weighted down. As for me I choose my words in steps I take toward You I’ll come. And as I pray this Avodah may it be in joy I serve עִבְדוּ אֶת יהו’’ה בְּשִׂמְחָה Ivdu et Hashem b’simcha serving G-d in joy. Not a slave to grief or fear this time I walk my song – each step a note toward You. R. David Zaslow From the Avodah collection released by Bayit, available at https://yourbayit.org/avodah/
January 8, 2025 at 2:29 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Here's one of @trishaarlin3000.bsky.social's contributions to our collaborative offering on the themes of the Avodah blessing of the Amidah. Click through to see the whole thing (available both as downloadable PDF and as google slides suitable for sharing) yourbayit.org/avodah/
Accept My Prayers -- a poem by Trisha Arlin Ruach Ha Olam, Davening Avodah, Accept my prayers For work, worship, and service. It is work Each time we gather To find meaning in liturgy and The old official words Of patriarchy and violence, Slavery and war— So I rewrite in my head To tell the stories I hear underneath, Stories of theological doubt And social obligation... The whole poem is available here: https://yourbayit.org/avodah/
January 7, 2025 at 12:23 PM
bayit.bsky.social
As #Chanukah approaches, we hope the offerings of our Liturgical Arts Working Group will speak to you:

The Light Travels - yourbayit.org/hanukkah5783/
Rolling Darkness Into Light - yourbayit.org/chanukah5782/
"The Light Travels" - words appear over a blurred background of shadow and light. "Rolling Darkness into Light" -- the words appear in calligraphy alongside an enso circle that evokes the earth floating in space.
December 17, 2024 at 1:21 PM
bayit.bsky.social
#Chanukah is on its way and books make great gifts! Check out the parshanut, prayer, & poetry resources we've brought into the world so far: yourbayit.org/bayit-publis...
Visual Mahzor - art inspired by the Torah and haftarah readings for the Yamim Nora'im Life Lessons from Recently Dead Rabbis: Hassidut for the People by Rabbi Mark Asher Goodman. Daughters of Eve by Sally Wiener Grotta Blessing from Broken: A Spiritual Journey Through Torah by Judith Sarah Schmidt
December 12, 2024 at 11:59 AM
bayit.bsky.social
Words from @josephinerobertson.com about #BlessingFromBroken, Judith Schmidt's new book that explores Torah through the lenses of psychology, midrash, poetry, and dream. Click through to learn more & get your own copy: tinyurl.com/frombroken
"In the pages of Blessing from Broken, time is not linear and the wisdom of Torah leaps like an arrow from her heart to the reader's own." -- Rev. Josephine Robertson. Blessing from Broken by Judith Schmidt -- available now for $22 at tinyurl.com/frombroken Book cover features tumbled seaglass on the shore with the sun rising over the horizon.
October 29, 2024 at 11:32 AM
bayit.bsky.social
Rodger Kamenetz, author of The Jew in the Lotus, calls this volume "A precious gift of midrash, wisdom, autobiography, and poetry in a time of global trauma." Get your copy now for $22!
Blessing from Broken: new from Judith Sarah Schmidt and Bayit. Available for $22. yourbayit.org/blessing-from-broken/ The book's front cover features a beach strewn with seaglass and the sun rising over the distant horizon.
October 28, 2024 at 11:42 AM
bayit.bsky.social
Proofreading Judith Schmidt's amazing #BlessingFromBroken in the #sukkah. Stunning parshanut, poetry, and contemporary midrash through the lenses of psychology, dream, and 90 years of living. Coming soon to a bookseller near you -- as soon as we finish these final edits!
On a small table in a sukkah, we see an etrog, a lulav, and a printer's proof of a paperback book called "Blessing from Broken: A Spiritual Journey Through Torah" by Judith Sarah Schmidt. The cover image features tumbled sea glass on the shore. Coming soon from Bayit.
October 18, 2024 at 2:47 PM
bayit.bsky.social
We are SO EXCITED to announce that Bayit's Visual Mahzor, a curated collection of visual art in response to the Torah and Haftarah readings for the High Holidays / Days of Awe, is now available for $36! yourbayit.org/mahzor/ or grab a copy right away at a.co/d/5blxe9q
Thumbnails of 30 different artworks arising out of the Torah and Haftarah readings for the high holidays. "Bayit presents the Visual Mahzor Project" -- now available for $36.
September 5, 2024 at 12:37 AM
bayit.bsky.social
From R. Sonja Keren Pilz - one of the prayer-poems in our offering of contemporary kinnot / laments for #TishaBAv. Find the whole offering here: yourbayit.org/how/
Eikha How How and how Have we got here When could we have stopped What should we have done Was there an I in this We that could have known what to do Would it have mattered? How How and how Are we supposed to rebuild these walls and homes How and how Are we supposed to raise a people Unafraid, beautiful, And strong, And even stronger. Eikha How How and how Can we dance and laugh again In peace (Whatever that is). Can we play again together? How How and how Can we eat oranges and mangos And sing our babies to sleep. And cook dinners and establish companies, Teach our stories, And bury our dead together. How Tell me how Friend across the ocean and the sea Next to the river How can our children play together On these graves In the comforting shade of an eucalyptus tree? R. Sonja K. Pilz, PhD
August 6, 2024 at 11:54 AM
bayit.bsky.social
Amazing news -- we met our Kickstarter goal! YAY! Now announcing new backer possibilities, including a bulk order of 20 copies of the book, available only during the Kickstarter (e.g. between now and July 22). Click through to learn more:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/bay...
Just funded on kickstarter: Visual Mahzor! Now announcing new backer rewards including bulk orders, only available during the kickstarter.
July 9, 2024 at 5:31 PM
bayit.bsky.social
The deadline for submitting #art relating to the #Torah and #Haftarah readings for the #DaysOfAwe / #HighHolidays / #RoshHashanah and #YomKippur is May 15 - here's the RFP with details: docs.google.com/document/d/1...

Please share your art with us - we want to share it with the world!
Call for Submissions: We want your art! (Relating to the Torah and Haftarah readings for the Days of Awe.)
May 12, 2024 at 9:34 PM
bayit.bsky.social
New on Builders Blog: a video conversation between @sallywienergrotta.bsky.social, author of Daughters Of Eve, and Judith Sarah Schmidt, author of the forthcoming Blessing from Broken -- two very different books rooted in Torah, new this year from Bayit!
yourbayit.org/conversation/
A still from a youtube video - conversation between two authors.
March 7, 2024 at 12:24 AM
bayit.bsky.social
We are SO EXCITED to announce our newest book: @sallywienergrotta.bsky.social's Daughters of Eve, a collection of feminist Torah essays accompanied by workbook / discussion questions. It is AWESOME... and it is available now for $18. Click through to learn more: yourbayit.org/daughters-of...
New from Bayit: Daughters of Eve by Sally Wiener Grotta. $18, get your copy now! https://yourbayit.org/daughters-of-eve/ The book's cover image is a colorful riff on the Matisse painting of women dancing.
February 5, 2024 at 12:47 PM
bayit.bsky.social
Calling all Jewish artists! We’ve just opened a call for submissions: we’re seeking visual art arising out of the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur Torah and Haftarah readings for a forthcoming bound volume intended to open up those readings in new and meaningful ways. (1/)
Call for submissions: we want your art! (Relating to the Torah and Haftarah readings for the Days of Awe)
January 17, 2024 at 12:53 PM
bayit.bsky.social
New on Builders Blog: resources for Martin Luther King Weekend Shabbat, including an abbreviated Hashkivenu using his words and settings of I Have A Dream and Letter from Birmingham Jail in haftarah trope.
yourbayit.org/a-hashkivenu...
A Hashkivenu We ask you, God, in these days of emotional tension, when the problems of the world are gigantic in extent and chaotic in detail, to be with us in our going out and our coming in, in our rising up and in our lying down, in our moments of joy and in our moments of sorrow, until the day when there shall be no sunset and no dawn. Amen. – Rev. Martin Luther King z”l followed by the end of the evening Hashkivenu prayer
January 12, 2024 at 4:18 PM
bayit.bsky.social
If you've got a few bucks to spare for indie Jewish publishing, help us bring @sallywienergrotta.bsky.social's awesome #DaughtersOfEve to press!

We think the higher-level rewards are the coolest (bring Sally to your book group or writers' group via Zoom!) but we appreciate any and all support.
A kickstarter for Daughters of Eve, 12 essays exploring our lives through the stories of women of the Bible by Sally Wiener Grotta. Includes discussion and journaling prompts.
January 5, 2024 at 1:50 AM