OneTable and the Power of Community

There’s a power in gathering as a community for Shabbat. These days, people need Shabbat more than ever.

“Sometimes it feels like the only thing people can do is come together,” OneTable founding president and CEO Aliza Kline told the Journal. “Shabbat is this reminder [that] even once a week, we can and should come together, take a breath, check in on ourselves and check in on people we love.”

She adds, “And then turn the news back on afterward.”

OneTable, which is like an Airbnb for Shabbat, connects hosts with guests and vice versa. They also provide financial support and educational resources for hosts. Over the last week or so, OneTable has been stepping up their offerings.

“It’s not business as usual,” Kline said. “We are working hard to make sure that Jewish young adults have a safe place to gather together, to find community and to better understand what’s happening.“

OneTable began extending timelines for people to post and RSVP to dinners to Thursday at midnight, creating online spaces to gather for emotional support and educating their staff on current events and best practices. They have also enhanced their standard cybersecurity, added opportunities for those who want to hear from an Israel expert and shared where people can contribute to humanitarian efforts, as well as provided resources, such as Together at the Table, to ensure respectful, inclusive gatherings.

“We know that for some of our participants, OneTable is really their primary sense of connection to the Jewish community,” Kline said. “We’re really focusing on how to make sure that their table is a place where they can have safe and open conversation.”

More than 7,000 people signed up to participate in OneTable gatherings on October 13, more than ever before. Kline feels like this trend will continue.

“I think gathering now is so important,” LA host Mickey told the Journal. “It’s hard to describe the feeling, but when I went to the rally for Israel the other night I just felt this sense of love and kinship.”

Mickey continues, “There’s so much hate in the world and so much anti semitism, and by gathering together and proving we’re not scared it shows the world that we’re united. It’s important to mourn, but it’s also important to celebrate life together and take advantage of the time we have. Friday nights are always special to me but this one feels extra special.”

Even those who do not regularly participate in Shabbat activities, like LA host Jordy, are feeling the urge to connect with their Jewish community.

“I reached out to some friends to plan a Shabbat, when experiencing an overwhelming amount of devastation,” Jordy told the Journal. “In these moments of helplessness, it feels healing and powerful to practice Jewish tradition, even if it’s not something I typically do on a weekly basis, almost in a way to say we will persevere and make it through this. My Jewish pride feels stronger than it ever has before.”

LA host Tal says, “My fiancé and I decided to host Shabbat this week because that’s the essence of Judaism—community, gathering, home, being together, kodesh.”

Tal continues, “It was kind of instinctual, like no questions asked: a massacre happened, okay let’s organize a Shabbat dinner. And with Judaism and our fellow Jews being so barbarically attacked this week, what better way to overcome that and fight back than by participating in the essence of Judaism.”

Jews everywhere are responding to this trauma, whether or not they live in Israel.

‘[We’re all] thinking about how we fill our oxygen,” Kline said. “How do you make sure that you are actually breathing, so that you can be there for others?”

She adds, “We think that Shabbat for some can offer that sense of restoration, rebalancing, even if it’s temporary. so that people have the resilience to re-engage the rest of the week.”

To learn more or to sign up, go to OneTable.org.