Judaism and Jewish Thought
Introduction to Judaism
Do you want to learn more about Judaism to better understand your or your partner’s Jewish heritage? Do you have questions about faith and family? Are you curious about conversion to Judaism? This is a 30-week course designed for non-Jews who wish to have a greater understanding of Judaism and for Jews who seek a deeper connection with their heritage. Topics include ethics, theology, the Sabbath and holidays, prayer, dietary laws, life cycle events, the Jewish people and Israel. For non-Jewish participants, this course can serve as preparation for conversion to Judaism. Whether you are single, interdating, intermarried, curious about converting or you are Jewish and you want to learn more about Judaism, this is the class for you.
Recordings of 30 1.5 hour sessions: $450/$18 each
Maimonides: The Renaissance Man of the Jewish People
Our tradition teaches that "From Moses to Moses, there was none like Moses". This course explores the background, historical context, and some of the halakhic and philosophical works of the Rambam, Maimonides, Moses ben Maimon. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig
Martin Buber was born in Vienna in 1878, and was a utopian Zionist. He is best-known for his book I and Thou, which focuses on the way people relate to the world. For Buber, our relationship with the Divine, and as much as possible with each other, should be I-Thou rather than I-It relationships. Although often referred to as an existentialist, Buber rejected this characterization. Franz Rosenzweig was born in 1886 in Kassel, Germany. He tried to create a “total renewal of thinking” through an innovative synthesis of philosophy and theology he named the “new thinking.” Rosenzweig considered revelation to be a call from the Absolute. His account of dialogue presented the interpersonal relation between “I” and “You” as both constitutive of selfhood and as yielding redemptive communal consequences. This course explores the thought of Buber and Rosenzweig independently and in relationship with each other. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Abraham Joshua Heschel: Philosopher and Man of Action
Abraham Joshua Heschel was a widely read Jewish theologian whose most influential works include Man is Not Alone; God in Search of Man; The Sabbath; and The Prophets. Heschel explores the ways that Judaism allows us to encounter the ineffable, along with the radical amazement people feel when experiencing the presence of the Divine. Heschel was also one of the great champions of the Black Civil Rights movement; after marching to Selma with Martin Luther King, he said, “When I marched in Selma, my feet were praying.” No prior knowledge needed.
Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan: Judaism as a Civilization
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan, the father of Reconstructionist Judaism, was deeply influenced by the burgeoning field of sociology and its view that civilization is characterized by language, culture, literature, art, ethics, social organization, symbols, and customs – as well as by beliefs and practices. Kaplan’s Judaism as a Civilization, written in 1935, stood out as a revolutionary work that became the foundation of the new Reconstructionist movement. Kaplan taught that Judaism must be “reconstructed” so that it would remain ever-changing, evolving to meet the needs of Jews in the New World. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The Ethics of Spinoza: God, Good, and the Natural World
Baruch Spinoza, a Jewish Dutch philosopher, is considered one of the great rationalists of 17th century philosophy. Born in Amsterdam in 1632 Spinoza was trained as a Talmudist, but his views soon took unconventional directions. At the age of 24, he was excommunicated by a rabbinical court. Spinoza’s chief work, Ethics, openly expresses none of the love of nature that one might expect from someone who identified God with nature. Spinoza's starting point is not nature or the cosmos, but a theoretical definition of God. Spinoza believed that everything that exists is God, but he did not hold the converse view that God is no more than the sum of what exists. His ethics were closely linked to his view of "God or nature" as everything, with the highest good being knowledge of God. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The Afterlife in the Jewish Imagination
Jewish literature, including the Bible, Apocrypha, rabbinic literature, Midrash, medieval philosophy, Kabbalah, and Hasidic literature describe many different Jewish imaginings of the fate of the soul following the death of the body. This course explores Jewish ideas of heaven and hell, Olam Ha-Ba (The World to Come), Paradise, resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul, divine judgment before and after death, reincarnation and more. Selections from Rabbi Neil Gillman’s, z”l, work on the subject, "The Death of Death: Resurrection and Immortality in Jewish Thought," will be explored together with traditional Jewish texts on the afterlife. Students will need a copy of Rabbi Gillman's book; additional materials will be provided by the instructor. This course consists of 8 2-hour sessions. Cost: $150
Oh God: Sex and the Jews - Divine Gift or Forbidden Fruit?
Jewish views of sex and sexuality have unfolded over millennia in wildly diverse ways. Is sex a mitzvah? A temptation to be overcome? A reflection of Divine activity between God and the Shekhina? Only for procreation or something to be enjoyed? As in many other areas of Jewish thought, there is not only one Jewish view of sex and sexuality. This course will explore literary selections of Jewish thought and expression from the Talmud through Kabbalah and more as they unfold throughout our history and in varying communities. Materials will be provided by the instructor. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
God, Gender Identity, and Sexual Ethics in Contemporary Judaism
This course explores ideas of Divine and human gender as expressed in Kabbalah and other Jewish literature, issues of sexual ethics, gender identity, sexual orientation in contemporary Judaism, LGBTQ challenges to traditional Judaism, and responses to these challenges in contemporary streams of Judaism. Materials will be provided by the instructor. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Future Tense:
Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the 21st Century; A Vision for Jews and Judaism in the Global Culture
This book, written by Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, z”l, calls us to awareness that "we are in danger of forgetting what Judaism’s place is within the global project of humankind." The Jewish people must recommit ourselves to our foundational purpose: to the task of creating a just world in which the divine presence can dwell among us all. Without compromising Jewish faith, Jews must stand alongside their friends—Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and secular humanist—in defense of freedom against those who desecrate life. This course explores Rabbi Sacks’ powerful message of tikkun olam—using Judaism as a blueprint for repairing an imperfect world. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The New American Judaism
American Judaism has been buffeted by massive social upheavals in recent decades. It has witnessed a decline in the number of participants over the past forty years; many who remain active struggle to reconcile their hallowed traditions with new perspectives―from feminism and the LGBTQ movement to “do-it-yourself religion” and personally defined spirituality. Jack Wertheimer sets out to discover how Jews of various orientations practice their religion in this radically altered landscape. Which observances still resonate, and which ones have been given new meaning? What options are available for seekers or those dissatisfied with conventional forms of Judaism? And how are synagogues responding? The majority of American Jews still identify with their faith but often practice it on their own terms. Gender barriers are loosening within religiously traditional communities, while some of the most progressive sectors are re-appropriating long-discarded practices. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Jewish History
Jewish Wandering, Jewish Wondering
The Jewish People wandered long before we were even called Jews. This course explores our early diaspora and the creation of diverse Jewish communities, beginning with the destruction of the first Temple in 586 BCE and the Judah-ite exile to Babylonia, through our return to Judah and Jerusalem in the early Persian period, the Jews of Elephantine, the Cyrus Cylinder, the Letter of Aristeas, the Maccabean Revolt and more. We will explore this history through maps, through the lens of Judah-ite/Jewish communities of the Diaspora, and literature, including traditional and apocryphal Jewish literature, the work of the Jewish historian Josephus Flavius, and the Jewish philosopher Philo. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Philo and Josephus: Living Jewish in a Non-Jewish World
Ancient Jews struggled to live Jewishly in a non-Jewish world. This course explores 2 important voices of the 1st CE. Philo of Alexandria was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived from 20 BCE–50 CE in Alexandria. He tried to reconcile the Hebrew Bible with Greek philosophy, to show Jews that many Hellenistic ideas are actually taught in our Bible, and to show others that Judaism is an intellectually respectable and profound faith. We will also examine the work of Josephus, a Jewish aristocrat born into a priestly family who also lived in the 1st century, and who led the Jewish forces against Rome in Galilee. Captured by Rome, Josephus was an important historian of ancient Judaism. His book "The Jewish War", on which we will focus, tells the story of ancient Israel and early Judaism from the early second century BCE, and continues through the siege at Masada. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Introduction to Judaism
Do you want to learn more about Judaism to better understand your or your partner’s Jewish heritage? Do you have questions about faith and family? Are you curious about conversion to Judaism? This is a 30-week course designed for non-Jews who wish to have a greater understanding of Judaism and for Jews who seek a deeper connection with their heritage. Topics include ethics, theology, the Sabbath and holidays, prayer, dietary laws, life cycle events, the Jewish people and Israel. For non-Jewish participants, this course can serve as preparation for conversion to Judaism. Whether you are single, interdating, intermarried, curious about converting or you are Jewish and you want to learn more about Judaism, this is the class for you.
Recordings of 30 1.5 hour sessions: $450/$18 each
Maimonides: The Renaissance Man of the Jewish People
Our tradition teaches that "From Moses to Moses, there was none like Moses". This course explores the background, historical context, and some of the halakhic and philosophical works of the Rambam, Maimonides, Moses ben Maimon. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig
Martin Buber was born in Vienna in 1878, and was a utopian Zionist. He is best-known for his book I and Thou, which focuses on the way people relate to the world. For Buber, our relationship with the Divine, and as much as possible with each other, should be I-Thou rather than I-It relationships. Although often referred to as an existentialist, Buber rejected this characterization. Franz Rosenzweig was born in 1886 in Kassel, Germany. He tried to create a “total renewal of thinking” through an innovative synthesis of philosophy and theology he named the “new thinking.” Rosenzweig considered revelation to be a call from the Absolute. His account of dialogue presented the interpersonal relation between “I” and “You” as both constitutive of selfhood and as yielding redemptive communal consequences. This course explores the thought of Buber and Rosenzweig independently and in relationship with each other. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Abraham Joshua Heschel: Philosopher and Man of Action
Abraham Joshua Heschel was a widely read Jewish theologian whose most influential works include Man is Not Alone; God in Search of Man; The Sabbath; and The Prophets. Heschel explores the ways that Judaism allows us to encounter the ineffable, along with the radical amazement people feel when experiencing the presence of the Divine. Heschel was also one of the great champions of the Black Civil Rights movement; after marching to Selma with Martin Luther King, he said, “When I marched in Selma, my feet were praying.” No prior knowledge needed.
Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan: Judaism as a Civilization
Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan, the father of Reconstructionist Judaism, was deeply influenced by the burgeoning field of sociology and its view that civilization is characterized by language, culture, literature, art, ethics, social organization, symbols, and customs – as well as by beliefs and practices. Kaplan’s Judaism as a Civilization, written in 1935, stood out as a revolutionary work that became the foundation of the new Reconstructionist movement. Kaplan taught that Judaism must be “reconstructed” so that it would remain ever-changing, evolving to meet the needs of Jews in the New World. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The Ethics of Spinoza: God, Good, and the Natural World
Baruch Spinoza, a Jewish Dutch philosopher, is considered one of the great rationalists of 17th century philosophy. Born in Amsterdam in 1632 Spinoza was trained as a Talmudist, but his views soon took unconventional directions. At the age of 24, he was excommunicated by a rabbinical court. Spinoza’s chief work, Ethics, openly expresses none of the love of nature that one might expect from someone who identified God with nature. Spinoza's starting point is not nature or the cosmos, but a theoretical definition of God. Spinoza believed that everything that exists is God, but he did not hold the converse view that God is no more than the sum of what exists. His ethics were closely linked to his view of "God or nature" as everything, with the highest good being knowledge of God. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The Afterlife in the Jewish Imagination
Jewish literature, including the Bible, Apocrypha, rabbinic literature, Midrash, medieval philosophy, Kabbalah, and Hasidic literature describe many different Jewish imaginings of the fate of the soul following the death of the body. This course explores Jewish ideas of heaven and hell, Olam Ha-Ba (The World to Come), Paradise, resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul, divine judgment before and after death, reincarnation and more. Selections from Rabbi Neil Gillman’s, z”l, work on the subject, "The Death of Death: Resurrection and Immortality in Jewish Thought," will be explored together with traditional Jewish texts on the afterlife. Students will need a copy of Rabbi Gillman's book; additional materials will be provided by the instructor. This course consists of 8 2-hour sessions. Cost: $150
Oh God: Sex and the Jews - Divine Gift or Forbidden Fruit?
Jewish views of sex and sexuality have unfolded over millennia in wildly diverse ways. Is sex a mitzvah? A temptation to be overcome? A reflection of Divine activity between God and the Shekhina? Only for procreation or something to be enjoyed? As in many other areas of Jewish thought, there is not only one Jewish view of sex and sexuality. This course will explore literary selections of Jewish thought and expression from the Talmud through Kabbalah and more as they unfold throughout our history and in varying communities. Materials will be provided by the instructor. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
God, Gender Identity, and Sexual Ethics in Contemporary Judaism
This course explores ideas of Divine and human gender as expressed in Kabbalah and other Jewish literature, issues of sexual ethics, gender identity, sexual orientation in contemporary Judaism, LGBTQ challenges to traditional Judaism, and responses to these challenges in contemporary streams of Judaism. Materials will be provided by the instructor. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Future Tense:
Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the 21st Century; A Vision for Jews and Judaism in the Global Culture
This book, written by Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, z”l, calls us to awareness that "we are in danger of forgetting what Judaism’s place is within the global project of humankind." The Jewish people must recommit ourselves to our foundational purpose: to the task of creating a just world in which the divine presence can dwell among us all. Without compromising Jewish faith, Jews must stand alongside their friends—Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and secular humanist—in defense of freedom against those who desecrate life. This course explores Rabbi Sacks’ powerful message of tikkun olam—using Judaism as a blueprint for repairing an imperfect world. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
The New American Judaism
American Judaism has been buffeted by massive social upheavals in recent decades. It has witnessed a decline in the number of participants over the past forty years; many who remain active struggle to reconcile their hallowed traditions with new perspectives―from feminism and the LGBTQ movement to “do-it-yourself religion” and personally defined spirituality. Jack Wertheimer sets out to discover how Jews of various orientations practice their religion in this radically altered landscape. Which observances still resonate, and which ones have been given new meaning? What options are available for seekers or those dissatisfied with conventional forms of Judaism? And how are synagogues responding? The majority of American Jews still identify with their faith but often practice it on their own terms. Gender barriers are loosening within religiously traditional communities, while some of the most progressive sectors are re-appropriating long-discarded practices. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Jewish History
Jewish Wandering, Jewish Wondering
The Jewish People wandered long before we were even called Jews. This course explores our early diaspora and the creation of diverse Jewish communities, beginning with the destruction of the first Temple in 586 BCE and the Judah-ite exile to Babylonia, through our return to Judah and Jerusalem in the early Persian period, the Jews of Elephantine, the Cyrus Cylinder, the Letter of Aristeas, the Maccabean Revolt and more. We will explore this history through maps, through the lens of Judah-ite/Jewish communities of the Diaspora, and literature, including traditional and apocryphal Jewish literature, the work of the Jewish historian Josephus Flavius, and the Jewish philosopher Philo. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180
Philo and Josephus: Living Jewish in a Non-Jewish World
Ancient Jews struggled to live Jewishly in a non-Jewish world. This course explores 2 important voices of the 1st CE. Philo of Alexandria was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived from 20 BCE–50 CE in Alexandria. He tried to reconcile the Hebrew Bible with Greek philosophy, to show Jews that many Hellenistic ideas are actually taught in our Bible, and to show others that Judaism is an intellectually respectable and profound faith. We will also examine the work of Josephus, a Jewish aristocrat born into a priestly family who also lived in the 1st century, and who led the Jewish forces against Rome in Galilee. Captured by Rome, Josephus was an important historian of ancient Judaism. His book "The Jewish War", on which we will focus, tells the story of ancient Israel and early Judaism from the early second century BCE, and continues through the siege at Masada. No prior knowledge needed. Recordings of 10 2-hour class sessions with instruction and discussion: $180