8:45-11:15 am Talmud. 11:45-1:15 pm Jewish Thought

Transcription

1 8:45-11:15 am Talmud Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Introductory: Above, Below and Side to Side, Mike Feuer Intermediate: Worship of the Heart (Tractate Brachot), Jeffrey Saks Advanced: Lost and Found (Tractate Bava Metzia), Wendy Amsallem 11:45-1:15 pm Jewish Thought Philosophy of Maimonides: The Story of Jewish Law, Mike Feuer Holocaust and Homeland : Theological Challenges of the 20th Century, Marc Rosenberg Spiritual Teachings on Authentic Living (Hassidut), Yiscah Smith Mincha (Optional Mehitza / Egal) L U N C H 2:30-5 pm Bible/Tanakh (Sun,Mon,Wed, Thurs) Introductory: Wanderings (Bamidbar), David Debow Intermediate: The Rise and Fall of King Saul, Nechama Goldman Barash Tue 9 Av / 1 Aug FULL DAY: Special 9 Av Program Wanderings, David Debow The Rise and Fall of King Saul, Nechama Goldman Barash Advanced: Abraham and Sarah: The Original Hebrew Tue 16 Av / 8 Aug Abraham and Sarah, Martin Lockshin Immigrants, Martin Lockshin AFTERNOON: 2:30 pm Herodion Trip

2 Course Descriptions Above, Below and Side to Side (Introductory) Rabbi Mike Feuer The Mishna is more than just a code of law, it is a framework for a full Jewish life. In this class we will explore selections from several tractates of the Mishna. Our goal is to seek out the models of relationship which the Mishna offers, between G-d and humanity and between people as well. Worship of the Heart (Intermediate) Rabbi Jeffrey Saks Tractate (Masechet) Berachot abounds with questions about the roots, method, and meaning of Jewish prayer. We will examine various sugyot (topics) in the 4 th and 5 th chapters including: Intent (Kavvana), worship in the synagogue vs. the Temple, parameters of holy time, etc., and we will encounter one of the Talmud s greatest aggadic passages of all. We will do this and more while also developing skills in Talmud reading and analysis. Lost and Found (Advanced) Wendy Amsallem Walking down Emek Refaim you find a box of cupcakes. Further on you see a red baseball cap on a bench. And then, at the next corner, you encounter a puppy wandering on its own. What are your responsibilities? Must you take these items home and care for them? Do you have to go door to door seeking the true owners? Can you keep them for yourself? We will study the second chapter of Masechet Bava Metzia which discusses the expectations of those who have lost items and the obligations of those who find them. Philosophy of Maimonides: The Story of Jewish Law Rabbi Mike Feuer In the Torah, law and narrative are two inseparable elements. This pattern continues through the great works of rabbinic literature - Midrash, Mishna and Talmud. However, it is often missed that even the legal codes of the Middle Ages subtly maintain this relationship. This class will explore selections from Maimonides' great legal work, the Mishne Torah, in an attempt to trace its narrative thread and to ask why law needs a story. Holocaust and Homeland: Theological Challenges of the 20 th Century Marc Rosenberg The horror and tragedy of the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel were two critical events that altered the Jewish world in unprecedented ways and continues to shape much of the discourse today on Jewish Identity. This course will look at how Jewish thinkers viewed and reacted to the national and theological challenges and questions raised by the Holocaust. With an exploration into visions of Zionism and approaches towards renewed Statehood, we will gain a wider understanding of the questions that we continue to ask today. Spiritual Teachings on Authentic Living (Hassidut) Yiscah Smith Spiritual teachings on authentic living through the lens of three masters: Rav Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Rav Kalonymous Kalman Shapira and Rav Avraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook. Wanderings (Book of Bamidbar) (Introductory) Rabbi David Debow A sensitive textual treatment of the Bamidbar (Numbers) narratives. Through close readings of the text (all presented in English) and

3 associated readings, we will explore the spiritual, psychological and social transformations that inform the Jewish people s desert wanderings from infancy to early maturation. Sources will include the biblical text, midrashic accounts, early Hassidic and modern commentary. The Rise and Fall of King Saul (Intermediate) Nechama Goldman Barash In the First Book of Samuel, the Israelites - some 300 years after entering the Promised Land - make a request: they want a king to rule over them, like all the other nations. This seems like a reasonable and even mature aspiration, but for one not insignificant thing: according to the Torah, God is the only king the Israelites should ever want or serve. At the time, God sees the wisdom in granting them their wish, and assigns them Saul the Benjaminite as leader. But does God really mean for this venture to go well? Indeed, does Judaism believe in human kingship as an ideal at all? In this course we will explore these and other questions via a close reading of the saga of Saul: Israel's first king. Abraham and Sarah: The Original Hebrew Immigrants (Advanced) Prof. Rabbi Martin Lockshin A close reading of the stories of Abraham and Sarah in Genesis using the traditional Jewish commentators, with a particular focus on the moral issues arising from these stories.

4 Faculty Biographies Wendy Amsellem is a faculty member at Drisha Institute and at Yeshivat Maharat. She is a graduate of the Drisha Scholars Circle and she has a BA in History and Literature from Harvard University. Wendy studied at Pardes in and is delighted to be coming back! Rabbi David Debow is the founding director of Midreshet Emunah v Omanut, a unique Seminary in Jerusalem specializing in Torah education and the Arts. He and his family spent time in Cleveland at the Mizrahi School, while he served in various capacities including High School Principal. He holds an MA in Educational Administration from Ursuline College and a BA in Physics from Yeshiva University. He learned at Yeshivat Har Etzion and served in the IDF. He currently resides in Alon Shvut with his wife, a noted author Dr. Yocheved Debow and their lovely family. Rabbi Mike Feuer is a Pardes faculty member. He has learned Torah in a number of Jerusalem area institutions, including Yeshivat HaMivtar, the Mir Yeshiva and Sulam Yaakov Bet Midrash. He received his semikhah from Sulam Yaakov, where he now spends all his time when not engaged with his wonderful wife and five children. His vision of Torah aspires to rigorous analysis and a passionate love of poetry and approaches learning as a process of mutual self-development. His particular loves in Torah are the Early Prophets, the Maharal and the Bet Yosef. Nechama Goldman-Barash is a graduate of Stern College and the Advanced Talmud Institute at Matan, a three-year intensive program for Talmud study. She holds a MA in Talmud from Bar-Ilan University, teaches at Pardes, Midreshet Lindenbaum and Matan. Nechama is a Yoetzet Halakha a certified expert on Jewish Law related to Nidda and sexuality. Rabbi Zvi Hirschfield teaches Talmud, Halakha and Jewish Thought at Pardes. In addition, Zvi is a faculty member of the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators and has been training and mentoring Jewish Educators for over ten years in Tefilah in educational settings, critical issues in modern Jewish thought, and Israel education. Zvi holds a B.A. in History from Columbia University and did graduate work at Harvard University in Medieval and Modern Jewish Thought. He studied at Yeshivat Har Etzion in Israel and has rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. He was the director of Judaica at the JCC of Cleveland and an instructor at the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies for many years. He also serves as a curriculum writer and is involved in staff training for the Nesiya Institute. His wife, Dina, is a faculty member of the Hebrew University School of Public Health, and they have four children. Rabbi Martin Lockshin taught Jewish Studies for 38 years at York University in Toronto where he has the title of University Professor Emeritus. He is the author of six books and dozens of articles on the Bible and Bible commentaries. He retired and moved to Israel two years ago and has taught since at Pardes and other Israeli institutions. Marc Rosenberg works at Nefesh B'Nefesh a non-profit organization that is revitalizing Aliyah from North America and the UK. He is a Pardes alum, holds an MA in Jewish education and has taught for several

5 summers on the Pardes Summer Program. Originally from Cherry Hill, NJ, Marc lives in Jerusalem with his awesome wife and 5 children. Rabbi Jeffrey Saks is the founding Director of ATID The Academy for Torah Initiatives and Directions in Jewish Education, in Jerusalem, and its WebYeshiva.org program. An associate editor of the journal Tradition, Rabbi Saks authored Spiritualizing Halakhic Education (Mandel Foundation) and edited Wisdom From All My Teachers: Challenges and Initiatives in Contemporary Torah Education (Urim) and To Mourn a Child (Ktav). Rabbi Saks is the Series Editor of the S.Y. Agnon Library from the Toby Press and Director of Reasearch at the Agnon House in Jerusalem. He has taught at the Yeshiva University High School for Girls and Yeshivat HaMivtar in Efrat. He is a graduate of Yeshiva University (BA, MA, Semikha) and participated in the Jerusalem Fellows program for senior Jewish educators at the Mandel Institute Yiscah Smith teaches at Pardes. She is a Jewish educator, spiritual activist and published author who addresses the spiritual dimension of Torah and authentic living. Yiscah employs her own story of the joys and struggles with her own spirituality, gender identity and commitment to authentic living. As one who transitioned from a Chabad man to an observant woman, she presents topics in an accessible and vivid style, from both a personal and a text-based perspective. Yiscah recently published her memoir, Forty Years in the Wilderness: My Journey to Authentic Living. She lives in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Nachlaot