Our kids' fervent religiosity

So, our children went to a Chabad daycamp this summer. (Which is Orthodox, Jewish, and sort of fervent singing/dancing) We are NOT Orthodox Jews. However, it seemed like the best camp in the area, of the Jewish camps, and who is better qualified to be a camp counselor than a teen-aged girl with 12 siblings or so? Right? And half our Jewish preschool went there this summer, as our own preschool didn't have a summer session.

There's a lot of discussion of Moshiach, which means the messiah, at Chabad daycamp. Our kids have no flipping idea what Moshiach is. Mainstream Conservative and Reform Judaism don't so much feature dancing and singing about the Messiah coming on a regular basis.

Chispa was cheerfully chanting one of the songs, and then stopped to ask me, "Mom, what's Moshiach?" I told her it was the idea that a person would come, or a being, when the world was a peaceful happy harmonious place with no more wars or poverty or hungry children etc. She agreed that hadn't happened yet. I explained that Chabad people really want it to happen soon. Which is a nice idea. And I explained that Chabad types were really into it. She accepted that.

Changa, on the other hand, cheerfully explained to me that the pinwheel she'd acquired at a kids festival (which we attended on Shabbat, the Sabbath, no less), WAS the Moshiach. And she sang the songs to her pinwheel.

So as you can see, our children now have a deep grip on the mystical aspects of Chabad style Orthodox Judaism.

But they really like all the upbeat songs. Clearly, Chabad is doing a number of things correctly that we mainstream Jews are failing at, to energize the children and make it fun.

The camp asked for mitzvah notes, telling of when the children did good deeds at home, that got posted in each bunk. I can totally get behind that.

All hail the pinwheel.