By COLlive reporter
Q: What inspired you to create the Soul Parenting course?
Rabbi Taub: I wish I could say it was inspiration. Someone told me to do it. During the Corona lockdown in March 2020, my friend dear friend Rabbi Levi Shemtov from Friendship Circle in Michigan came to me with the idea. He and his wife Bassie were the driving force behind creating the curriculum and getting the first groups of parents to test the course so we could get it ready to launch to the public. After we had the finished course, it was immediately clear to all of us how powerful of a tool we had. We saw right away how transformative the effect was on all of those first groups of parents.
Q: What makes the Soul Parenting course different from other parenting workshops?
Rabbi Taub: To be perfectly honest, I don’t exactly know because I have never taken another parenting course so I cannot compare. Although from what I have been told by people who took my course who have taken many other parenting courses as well, what is special about my course is that rather than focusing on tips and tricks that may or may not work at different ages or under different situations, my course focuses on the big picture. It’s all about the spiritual principles of parenting. Once you grasp these big ideas, then you can apply them to any parenting situation. It becomes rather intuitive.
Q: The course is six weeks. Are these recordings or live?
Rabbi Taub: I wish it were pre-recorded! But no, the sessions in the Soul Parenting course are all conducted live. That is very important to me. It allows for real-time interaction and personalized feedback, which is crucial for addressing specific parental concerns and fostering a community atmosphere. Participants also have the opportunity to engage directly with me in between sessions. We have an online forum where people post questions and I answer. Students get a lot of direct access to me. Which is also why I don’t offer this course very often. It’s extremely time-consuming. But this is the way that I have had success so I don’t want to change it.
Q: Why are there separate classes for men and women? Do they learn the same thing?
Rabbi Taub: First of all, modesty. It’s just more respectful to keep it separate and it allows for me freedom of discussion. But I also like them to be separate because I can tweak the style a little bit for each group. It’s the exact same material. If two spouses take the course they can both discuss it together and they will see that 90% of what I say is the same to both groups. I mean, there’s a student handout. You can look and see that we cover the exact same material. But the style of presentation may be slightly different and of course the live discussions are different.
Q: What challenges do parents commonly face that your course addresses?
Rabbi Taub: Many parents come to the course feeling overwhelmed by daily stress and conflicts within the family. That seems to be the most common. Baruch Hashem, most people who take the course tell me that their home is much calmer after the course.
Q: What age children is this geared toward?
Rabbi Taub: As I mentioned, we focus on spiritual principles. These are ideas that are true at all times and under all conditions. It’s hard to explain to someone who hasn’t taken the course, but if you take the course it becomes obvious how parents of children of all ages can use these ideas. I have had parents take the course whose oldest was in diapers and I have had many people take the course whose youngest children were already married. Some of the greatest satisfaction I have had is with healing relationships between parents and older children.
Q: What advice would you give to someone considering this course but unsure if it’s right for them?
Rabbi Taub: I would say don’t force it. This is a course that you have to do when it’s the right time for you. The course is about deep spiritual growth, so it’s not something that you can be forced into.
Q: What about if only one parent takes the course?
Rabbi Taub: That’s fine. I’d say half the people who take the course don’t have a spouse taking it. If the course works, then your spouse will see your success. I have had that happen many times. The spouse who didn’t want to take the course takes it a year later after seeing the parenting successes of the spouse who did take the course.
Q: How do participants continue to benefit after completing the Soul Parenting course?
Rabbi Taub: Great question! We’ve set up a supportive community where past participants can continue to share experiences and advice. We meet online monthly. It’s only for graduates of the course.
Q: Any final thoughts you’d like to share with our readers?
Rabbi Taub: Parenting is everything. The deeper I go into this subject the more I see it over and over again. The single greatest gift you can give your children is a deep connection to you. It’s the key to everything. I wish more parents knew that.
For those interested in joining the next group or learning more, visit soulwords.org/parenting to find all the details and registration information.
