Kavod is multi-ethnic, multi-racial community led by young Jews in Greater Boston, committed to each other and to building a liberated world for all people. We live out our values through vibrant Jewish ritual, transformative social justice organizing, and collective responsibility.

 

Kavod was founded in 2005 by Rabbi Margie Klein Ronkin, and was named for a verse in Pirkei Avot: "Who receives honor/Kavod? The one who treats all beings with Kavod." (Pirkei Avot 4:1). Since then, our community has grown from a group of friends organizing together to a community of hundreds connected through ritual and social justice work. 

 

Our community currently includes approximately 130 dues-paying members, with many more participating through open events. In addition, each year, we elect a leadership body to support the community and our work.

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We host a network of teams, caucuses, and affinity group spaces devoted to organizing campaigns, political education work, and the relational work of supporting each other’s communal needs. We organize in partnership with and support campaigns led by grassroots organizations across Greater Boston, such as the Boston Ujima Project, City Life/Vida Urbana, the Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network (BJIAN) and the Muslim Justice League. 

 

To sustain this work, Kavod offers spiritual nourishment through extensive Jewish ritual. We host twice-monthly Shabbats and rituals for significant Jewish holidays throughout the year. These rituals deepen our relationships to one another, to our collective Jewish tradition, and to the justice work we do internally and with communities beyond our own.

 

While in the past, Kavod has operated out of a physical house (first in Brookline, then in Jamaica Plain), we currently host events in a variety of locations throughout Boston and virtually.