The sages of the Rabbinic period shaped the way the Jewish tradition looks at the Bible. Their manner of interpretation is known as midrash. This course seeks to provide the student with the tools: textual, historical, religious and literary to explore the rabbinic interpretation of Scripture. This will be accomplished through the examination of how the rabbinic sages interpreted key stories in the Bible. The text reading will be examined both in Hebrew and in English translation.

Rabbi Joseph Gikatilla wrote his classic 13th century Kabbalistic work, Sha'arei Orah (= Gates of Light), to open the gates of Kabbalistic wisdom to his students. Great masters over the centuries, such as Rabbi Isaac Luria (The "Ari") and the Vilna Gaon, included Sha'arei Orah in their students' core curriculum. Rabbi Gikatilla presents classic 13th century Kabbalistic symbolism, the foundation of almost all later Kabbalah and Hassidut, through a systematic methodology of interpreting the Bible. In this class, we'll seek to understand and internalize Kabbalistic symbolism, to learn how to read Kabbalistic texts, and to understand how they read the Bible. The class is appropriate for both beginners and more advanced students.

For many people, tefillah/prayer is a loaded word. It carries associations of stuffy rooms, incoherent words, and mindlessly sitting, standing and flipping through pages. But this is not what tefillah is meant to be. A look into the textual underpinnings of tefillah reveals an experiential, devotional practice that involves the mind, heart and body. And what's more, the instructions and very forms of tefillah are there to guide us in this daily practice of engaging with the Divine. This course will go back to the roots of tefillah. Through text study, guided practice and reflection we will explore the spiritual heart of tefillah. Topics covered include the meaning of "tefillah," kavannah (intention), body postures in prayer, and selected prayer texts.

Have you been leading T'fillah or reading Torah/Haftarah and felt "If only I could spend some serious, concentrated time on this, I could be great!" ? This hands-on, participatory course is for you! Improve your Hebrew diction, Nusach style and compositional repertoire.

Piyutim as an invitation to communal prayer. Join us for an uplifting journey through diverse Jewish liturgical traditions and learn the tunes of piyutim from communities all over the world! 6 musical meetings with paytanit and chazanit Yahala Lachmish.

This course will explore teshuvot (responsa literature) on contemporary topics of interest. We will explore teshuvot of both the Rabbinical Assembly law committee, the Israeli Law Committee as well as other prominent individual Poskim (halakhic decisors). Some of the issues we will examine: driving on Shabbat, the changing status of deaf people, conversion of minors, truth-telling, tattoos, kitniyot on Pesach, making coffee on Shabbat, and artificial insemination.

Biblical Mount Zion, Har HaMoriah, lies two kilometers East of the Conservative Yeshiva. Many of us who study there often pray at its foot. For thousands of years, from the Bible to Martin Buber, the Mountain of God's House has symbolized Judaism's message of global justice and spiritual transcendence. And its significance for Jews and Muslims has shaped the history and politics of Jerusalem. In this class, we will we seek to understand the Biblical roots of Zion, and to trace its meaning through Talmud and Kabbalah and then finally into the Zionist thought of modern Israel's founders. An important focus of the course will be how to read the variety of Jewish texts we will encounter and understand them in historical context.

The sages of the Rabbinic period shaped the way the Jewish tradition looks at the Bible. Their manner of interpretation is known as midrash. This course seeks to provide the student with the tools: textual, historical, religious and literary to explore the rabbinic interpretation of Scripture. This will be accomplished through the examination of how the rabbinic sages interpreted key stories in the Bible. The text reading will be examined both in Hebrew and in English translation.

Rabbi Joseph Gikatilla wrote his classic 13th century Kabbalistic work, Sha'arei Orah (= Gates of Light), to open the gates of Kabbalistic wisdom to his students. Great masters over the centuries, such as Rabbi Isaac Luria (The "Ari") and the Vilna Gaon, included Sha'arei Orah in their students' core curriculum. Rabbi Gikatilla presents classic 13th century Kabbalistic symbolism, the foundation of almost all later Kabbalah and Hassidut, through a systematic methodology of interpreting the Bible. In this class, we'll seek to understand and internalize Kabbalistic symbolism, to learn how to read Kabbalistic texts, and to understand how they read the Bible. The class is appropriate for both beginners and more advanced students.

For many people, tefillah/prayer is a loaded word. It carries associations of stuffy rooms, incoherent words, and mindlessly sitting, standing and flipping through pages. But this is not what tefillah is meant to be. A look into the textual underpinnings of tefillah reveals an experiential, devotional practice that involves the mind, heart and body. And what's more, the instructions and very forms of tefillah are there to guide us in this daily practice of engaging with the Divine. This course will go back to the roots of tefillah. Through text study, guided practice and reflection we will explore the spiritual heart of tefillah. Topics covered include the meaning of "tefillah," kavannah (intention), body postures in prayer, and selected prayer texts.

Have you been leading T'fillah or reading Torah/Haftarah and felt "If only I could spend some serious, concentrated time on this, I could be great!" ? This hands-on, participatory course is for you! Improve your Hebrew diction, Nusach style and compositional repertoire.

Piyutim as an invitation to communal prayer. Join us for an uplifting journey through diverse Jewish liturgical traditions and learn the tunes of piyutim from communities all over the world! 6 musical meetings with paytanit and chazanit Yahala Lachmish.

This course will explore teshuvot (responsa literature) on contemporary topics of interest. We will explore teshuvot of both the Rabbinical Assembly law committee, the Israeli Law Committee as well as other prominent individual Poskim (halakhic decisors). Some of the issues we will examine: driving on Shabbat, the changing status of deaf people, conversion of minors, truth-telling, tattoos, kitniyot on Pesach, making coffee on Shabbat, and artificial insemination.

Biblical Mount Zion, Har HaMoriah, lies two kilometers East of the Conservative Yeshiva. Many of us who study there often pray at its foot. For thousands of years, from the Bible to Martin Buber, the Mountain of God's House has symbolized Judaism's message of global justice and spiritual transcendence. And its significance for Jews and Muslims has shaped the history and politics of Jerusalem. In this class, we will we seek to understand the Biblical roots of Zion, and to trace its meaning through Talmud and Kabbalah and then finally into the Zionist thought of modern Israel's founders. An important focus of the course will be how to read the variety of Jewish texts we will encounter and understand them in historical context.

The issues facing Israeli society today are as complex and multi-faceted as the long history of this ancient land. During Crossroads, we will tackle issues of politics, religion, and social justice through a combination of text study, walking tours, and interfacing with key changemakers in Israel today. Come with a curious mind and, when needed, good walking shoes.

The issues facing Israeli society today are as complex and multi-faceted as the long history of this ancient land. During Crossroads, we will tackle issues of politics, religion, and social justice through a combination of text study, walking tours, and interfacing with key changemakers in Israel today. Come with a curious mind and, when needed, good walking shoes.

Have you been leading T'fillah or reading Torah/Haftarah and felt "If only I could spend some serious, concentrated time on this, I could be great!" ? This hands-on, participatory course is for you! Improve your Hebrew diction, Nusach style and compositional repertoire.

Piyutim as an invitation to communal prayer. Join us for an uplifting journey through diverse Jewish liturgical traditions and learn the tunes of piyutim from communities all over the world! 6 musical meetings with paytanit and chazanit Yahala Lachmish.

What do Jewish sources have to say about some of the most pressing issues facing patients and caregivers today. Among the issues we will discuss: personal autonomy; end of life issues; organ transplants and allocation of scarce medical resources; abortion and new reproductive technologies.

What is it that has moved the People Israel to seek God for more than three thousand years? What religious spirit awoke in ancient Israel that still lives on in us after so many generations? In this course, we will investigate these questions through the eyes of three modern thinkers: Rav Avraham Kook, Martin Buber and Rabbi Chaim Hirschensohn. We'll also explore their Biblical, Rabbinic and Kabbalistic sources.

In the decade leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem and the First Temple, the prophet Jeremiah sounded an increasingly desperate note. He provides us with an intense eyewitness account of the fragmented and conflicted Jerusalem of the time. This is his story.

What, when and Who is the Torah? Is She a text, an activity, a concept, a living being? Is the Torah eternal or does it have a history? The Zohar, one of the greatest expressions of Torah in all of Judaism, and the centerpiece of our mystical tradition, asks these and other questions and offers responses that are moving, illuminating, inspiring and troubling, all at once. Come learn!

Have you been leading T'fillah or reading Torah/Haftarah and felt "If only I could spend some serious, concentrated time on this, I could be great!" ? This hands-on, participatory course is for you! Improve your Hebrew diction, Nusach style and compositional repertoire.

Piyutim as an invitation to communal prayer. Join us for an uplifting journey through diverse Jewish liturgical traditions and learn the tunes of piyutim from communities all over the world! 6 musical meetings with paytanit and chazanit Yahala Lachmish.

What do Jewish sources have to say about some of the most pressing issues facing patients and caregivers today. Among the issues we will discuss: personal autonomy; end of life issues; organ transplants and allocation of scarce medical resources; abortion and new reproductive technologies.

What is it that has moved the People Israel to seek God for more than three thousand years? What religious spirit awoke in ancient Israel that still lives on in us after so many generations? In this course, we will investigate these questions through the eyes of three modern thinkers: Rav Avraham Kook, Martin Buber and Rabbi Chaim Hirschensohn. We'll also explore their Biblical, Rabbinic and Kabbalistic sources.

In the decade leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem and the First Temple, the prophet Jeremiah sounded an increasingly desperate note. He provides us with an intense eyewitness account of the fragmented and conflicted Jerusalem of the time. This is his story.

What, when and Who is the Torah? Is She a text, an activity, a concept, a living being? Is the Torah eternal or does it have a history? The Zohar, one of the greatest expressions of Torah in all of Judaism, and the centerpiece of our mystical tradition, asks these and other questions and offers responses that are moving, illuminating, inspiring and troubling, all at once. Come learn!