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Kashrut, the corps of mitzvot on how and what we eat, is inescapable in Jewish life.  It is simultaneously divisive, archaic, and central to Jewish identity and morality. Kashrut elevates our animal need for sustenance by connecting it with how we treat the animals that we eat. We will study Jewish sources across time about the theology, ethics, and sociology of meat-eating. Through these texts we will refine our ethical lens as we examine relevant topics in Masechet Hullin, the section of the Talmud dedicated to non-sacrificial slaughter.

Mixed-heritage Jews are the present and future of the Jewish community. Gentiles are inextricably woven into our communities and personal heritages. Does this trend represent enrichment or watering-down? In the past as today, Jews have been committed to maintaining our distinctiveness, even as we adopted ideas and practices from neighboring cultures. How have Jews created, transformed, and deconstructed the boundaries between others and ourselves? Is there any such thing as half-Jewish? In search of new ways of understanding mixed heritage, conversion, and interfaith families, we will study a wide range of traditional, contemporary, autobiographical, theoretical, and ethnographic texts. We will share personal reflections on mixed ethnicity, faith, culture, and lifestyle.

 “Sixty Years of Israeli Poetry Between War and Peace” examines the deepest recesses of the Israeli psyche. From the elation of the victory of 1948 and the founding of the state sprang hope for peace and the realization that more wars will have to be fought and terrorism will have to end. We will follow three generations of soul-searching agonized poets who grapple with personal existence and the state’s existence through joy, hardship and perseverance. During the eighties and nineties, poetry of protest and dissent expressed exhaustion and despair because of nonstop cycles of violence and opposition to west bank occupation. We hope to read from the works of A.Z.Greenberg, Amichai, Ravikovitz, Alterman, Rubner, Sivan and Gilead. Special attention will be paid to universal war symbols and the applications of biblical motifs to modern Israel. Note: A special booklet is being prepared for the course.

D'raw Yikra - and paint too. Some of us may think we "can't draw"; others may be more confident in our skills but still "stuck" in other ways. We'll free ourselves from these constraints, create a safe space for creative experimentation and use a range of texts - from the ancient prophets to classic Yiddish literature - as jumping-off points for visual exercises. There are no rules about form or content - the goal is to have fun, make a mess, and expand your definition of what is possible! 

What are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur all about? Is Rosh Hashanah simply a prelude to Yom Kippur, or does the beginning of a new year have a separate existence and meaning? Is Yom Kippur simply a time when we beat our breasts, atone for our sins, and hope for divine favor? And what are the spiritual implications of these questions? In this course we will explore, through study, discussion, and guided meditation, the themes of the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur liturgy, how their authors and later commentators understood these themes, and how these themes might be reflected in our own observance of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Our text will be the instructor’s brand new Machzor Eit Ratzon.  

Perhaps one of the most under-appreciated 20th century Jewish thinkers, R. Yitzhak Hutner served as the rosh yeshiva (dean) of Yeshivas Chayim Berlin. His sermons, artfully crafted in a style created in the classical Lithuanian yeshivot, consider such questions as the religious meaning of debate, different models of relationship, and the sacrality of human beings. We will study these sermons, appreciating not only their artistry, but also considering the possibly radical messages contained in such an unexpected place.  

Jewish poets are calling out to the universe: Listen up, universe! Listen up, Torah! Listen up, politicians! Join us for a series of poetry “laboratories,” where our instruments will be the written word and the collective neshama (soul) of the Jewish people. Using poetic techniques developed by our rabbinic and surrealist fore-folk, we will engage in: midrash (rabbinic story development), prayer composition, protest poetry, and the subverting of oppressive texts. Each laboratory will include a reading of poetic/Jewish source materials, individual and communal writing activities, and workshop. No previous poetic experience required, just a desire to pray with your pen!

Israel’s film industry is recognized as one of the best, most productive and diverse today. The country’s talented directors, producers and writers are leaders in the international cinema scene. Quite willing to turn the camera onto their own lives and society, these artists are free to express themselves without censorship or government limits. Using excerpts from contemporary Israeli films, we will explore the themes, issues and ideas in the focus of Israeli filmmakers today. We will also examine the question of whether or not there is a distinctly “Israeli style” in the country’s cinema and how that style might reflect realities of life in Israel today.  

We will learn several Israeli folk dances and weave movement lessons in between them to heighten our ability and enjoyment of dancing. The movement lessons will focus on Balance, Alignment, Strength and Body Mechanics. We will learn dances with the theme of freedom such as: D'ror Yikra, Manginat Ha D'ror, and At Cheruti. This class is intended for anyone who wants a greater appreciation of movement possibilities; movement freedom; and is for all ages - especially for those who have not danced in a while.

The Jewish concept of tzniut (modesty or humility) is most familiar to us as the basis for guidelines for modest dress, but it also concerns norms about appropriate behavior and boundaries. Tzniut is highly relevant to contemporary society—especially in an age when our culture increasingly represents both women and men in a highly sexualized manner and constantly blurs the boundaries between the public and the private. Are the laws of tzniut inherently oppressive? Is there room to engage authentically with the concept of modesty in a liberal context? We will study traditional and non-traditional texts and work together through them to create our own communal definitions of modesty.

 'R. Simeon ben Lakish said: The Torah given to Moses was written with black fire upon white fire…(JT, Shel. 6:1, 49d). How did the actual text of the Torah, the Black Fire, get to be the way it is today? The Talmud cites passages from scripture that don’t exist in our version; the sages acknowledge that they sometimes changed the text of the “original” Torah. We will explore the content and the physical text of the Torah, from both traditional and higher-critical perspectives. Content topics include the documentary hypothesis (J,E,P and D), “typos,” tikkun soferim (changes introduced by the sages), vocalization, cantillation and variant texts (e.g. the Samaritan and Karaite Torahs). We’ll look at the physical text and delve into the crowned Assyrian “font,” the significance of the many different kinds of blank spaces, the outsized or broken or upside-down letters, the strange dots. We’ll discuss: What is the spiritual meaning of all of these things to us?

What happens to freedom and community in the proliferation of technology and media? This course will begin with consideration of the simple (“plain”) living practiced within the “peace churches” of the Amish, Mennonites, Brethren and conservative Quakers. We will relate such Christian choices to those of both insular and integrated Jewish communities, especially in the decision-making context of musar (ethical discipline). Finally, we will listen to how “freedom calls” in the traditional observance of Shabbat, as we consider the individual and communal choices facing us as 21st century Jews. Come prepared to combine midrash (study, teaching) with ma’aseh (practical action).