Men’s Support Group

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FJMC Peer Support Groups for Men
Connected to the Jewish Community
(aka Brotherhood Circles)

We enter with dignity. We listen with humility.  We speak with care. We leave as brothers.

We meet weekly on Tuesdays from 12-1pm Eastern / 9-10am Pacific

FJMC Brotherhood Circles exist because men need places where they can be honest without being judged, supported without being fixed, and connected without having to perform. In Jewish tradition, community is not merely where we gather. It is where we help one another carry what life asks us to carry.

FJMC Brotherhood Circles are values-rooted spaces for men connected to Jewish life to speak honestly, listen deeply, and support one another with dignity. These gatherings are built around FJMC’s pillars of Friendship, Judaism, Mentorship, and Community.

They are meant to offer connection, reflection, and mutual support. They are not a substitute for therapy, medical care, legal advice, emergency support, or professional mental health treatment.

By joining an FJMC Brotherhood Circle,
each participant agrees to the following covenant

1. Every person enters with dignity.

Jewish value: B’tzelem Elohim — every person is created in the image of God. We treat every participant as a whole human being. Each person brings a life story, burdens, hopes, questions, and experiences that deserve respect. Participants agree to speak to and about one another with care. Insults, shaming, mocking, harassment, intimidation, or demeaning language are not welcome in the group.

2. What is shared here stays here

Jewish value: Shmirat HaLashon — guarding our speech. Confidentiality is essential to trust. Participants may speak about what they personally learned or felt in the group, but may not share another participant’s name, story, struggle, identity, or personal details outside the group. At the same time, confidentiality has limits. Facilitators may need to take appropriate action if there is concern about danger to self or others, abuse or neglect, serious safety concerns, or if disclosure is required by law. Because this is a group setting, FJMC asks every participant to honor confidentiality, but cannot absolutely guarantee the behavior of every person in attendance.

3. We listen before we respond

Jewish value: Shema — the sacred act of listening. Participants are asked to listen with patience and generosity. This is not a debate club, a therapy session, or a place to prove a point. It is a place to hear one another. Please speak from your own experience using “I” statements. Avoid telling another man what he “should” do unless he asks for advice.

4. We support; we do not diagnose, fix, or rescue

Jewish value: Anavah — humility. The group is a place for presence, not performance. No participant is expected to solve another person’s life. No participant should diagnose, analyze, pressure, or spiritually correct another participant. Helpful support may sound like: “I hear you,” “That sounds painful,” “I’ve felt something similar,” or “Thank you for trusting us with that.”

5. Difference is welcome; contempt is not

Jewish value: Machloket L’shem Shamayim — disagreement for the sake of Heaven. Men will come to the group with different backgrounds, politics, family structures, Jewish practices, identities, and life experiences. Respectful difference is allowed. Contempt is not. Participants agree not to use the group for political attacks, religious gatekeeping, culture-war arguments, or statements that demean people based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, denomination, nationality, or identity.

6. Everyone deserves room to speak

Jewish value: Tzimtzum — making space. Some men process by speaking. Others process by listening. Both are valid. Participants are encouraged to be mindful of how much space they take up. If you tend to speak often, leave room for others. If you tend to stay quiet, know that your voice is welcome when you are ready.

7. Boundaries protect the group

Jewish value: Kedushah — creating sacred boundaries. The group works best when participants honor appropriate boundaries. Please do not use the group to sell products, recruit clients, solicit donations, promote outside agendas, or pursue personal relationships in ways that could make others uncomfortable. Participants should not record, screenshot, photograph, livestream, or share the Zoom link or meeting access information without explicit permission from FJMC.

8. We show up responsibly

Jewish value: Arevut — mutual responsibility

Participants are asked to arrive on time when possible, join from a private setting, and participate in a way that supports the safety of the group. For online groups, please use your real name or a name known to the facilitators. Participants are encouraged to keep cameras on when possible, but FJMC recognizes that there may be valid reasons someone cannot do so.

9. This is support, not therapy or crisis care

Jewish value: Pikuach Nefesh — protecting life. FJMC Brotherhood Circles may include trained facilitators, clergy, educators, therapists, or mental health professionals. Their presence does not create a therapist-client, doctor-patient, attorney-client, or formal pastoral counseling relationship. The group does not provide diagnosis, treatment, individualized clinical care, legal guidance, custody advice, or emergency intervention.

If you are in immediate danger, thinking about harming yourself or someone else, or experiencing a crisis that requires urgent help, call 911, go to the nearest emergency room, or contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988 in the United States. 988 provides 24/7 support for mental health, suicide, and substance-use crises.

10. Facilitators may intervene to protect the group

Jewish value: Lo Ta’amod Al Dam Re’echa — do not stand idly by. Facilitators may redirect conversation, pause a participant, follow up privately, or remove someone from a session if needed to preserve safety, dignity, confidentiality, or the purpose of the group. Repeated violation of these guidelines may result in being asked not to return.

Participant Understanding

By joining an FJMC Peer Support Group, I understand and agree that:

• This group is for peer support, reflection, connection, and community.
• This group is not therapy, medical care, legal advice, or emergency support.
• I will honor confidentiality and protect the privacy of other participants.
• I will speak respectfully and listen generously.
• I will not record, screenshot, or share the meeting link without permission.
• I will seek professional or emergency help when my needs exceed what this group can provide.
• FJMC and its facilitators may take reasonable steps to protect the safety and integrity of the group.

We enter with dignity. We listen with humility.  We speak with care. We leave as brothers.

REGISTER ONCE – Use the same Zoom link for each session. There is no need to reregister.