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The Torah’s Prescription for Healing
May 2, 2025 By Alan Cooper | Commentary | Metzora | Tazria
Given the discomfort, discomfiture, and uncertainty that even mild skin eruptions can cause us nowadays, it should come as no surprise that they were a source of anxiety in ancient times. In this week’s parashah, that anxiety finds expression amidst an array of concerns about the human body and its functions. The purity laws in Leviticus 11 through 15, which digress from the narrative flow of the book,[i] are concerned with diet (chapter 11), reproduction (chapter 12), and bodily integrity (chapters 13 to 15, including property as an extension of the person).
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Israel at a Crossroads – Expanding the Conversation
Apr 28, 2025
This series builds on the discussions from JTS’s Israel at the Crossroads convening, bringing JTS alumni into conversation about the evolving challenges of Israeli identity, culture, and collective resilience. Through explorations of art, spirituality, and national memory, we will consider how Israeli society navigates questions of belonging, pluralism, and meaning in this complex moment. By engaging voices from across disciplines, Expanding the Conversation seeks to illuminate the ways individuals and communities are shaping Israel’s cultural and spiritual landscape today.
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The ‘Art’ of Zionist Thought and Israeli Identity
Apr 28, 2025 By Matthew Berkowitz | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Yom Hazikaron-Yom Ha'atzma'ut
In this session, we explored classical works of pre-State and Israeli art that reflect the ethos of the Zionist vision. Visual art and the artists behind these creations were in animated conversation with classical and modern Zionist voices. We reflected on the extent to which the material artistic culture of Israel reflects and engages compelling spiritual and national visions of Zionism and a State for the Jews, in light of current events and the ways artists and cultural institutions are responding to this moment
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Six Takes on a Leader’s Attributes
Apr 25, 2025 By Walter Herzberg | Commentary | Shemini
Identifying the textual problem: commentators have noticed that the phrase “draw near unto the altar” seems superfluous. If Aaron is being commanded to “perform the service of the sin offering,” is it not obvious that he will need to approach the altar? This textual issue will serve as the basis for our consideration of the attributes of a leader based on our examination of the comments of the traditional Jewish commentaries.
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The Bones We Carry
Apr 18, 2025 By Abigail Uhrman | Commentary | Pesah
Consider the scene: after over 200 years of slavery, the Israelites, at long last, are preparing to depart. They are frantically gathering their belongings—gold, silver, all their earthly possessions—and scrambling to prepare food for their journey. In this urgent rush, Moses, rather than attending to the needs of the people and their immediate concerns, embarks on a singular mission: to retrieve the bones of Joseph, fulfilling a centuries-old promise. It begs the question: Why, in the midst of these epic events, does the Torah highlight this seemingly minor detail? What is the significance of Moses’s dedication to this task, his resolute commitment to honoring a promise made generations ago?
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Can We Sanctify Incivility?
Apr 11, 2025 By Gordon Tucker | Commentary | Shabbat Hagadol | Tzav
Parashat Tzav opens with instructions for the olah, the offering (primarily the twice-daily sacrifice) that is entirely burnt on the altar. The ninth chapter of the talmudic tractate Zevahim, notes that the word olah, which means “ascending,” can be understood both as denoting an ascent to heaven from earth, and equally, an ascent up the ramp of the altar to the place from which it is offered. The double meaning gave rise to a principle that is articulated in the opening mishnah of that ninth chapter. But some background is necessary before citing that principle.
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Who is Liable?
Apr 4, 2025 By Alan Cooper | Commentary | Vayikra
The opening parashah of Leviticus comprises regulations for the performance of sacrifices. Of these, the most complicated are the hattat and the asham offerings, discussed in chapters 4 and 5. As James Watts observes in the best English-language commentary to appear since Milgrom’s,[1] these chapters have been “the subject of an especially contentious history of interpretation.” The reason is the ambiguity of the biblical text, with its conjoining of “sin” and “guilt,” and the absence of a clear distinction between actual (objective) guilt and (subjective) guilty feelings.
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JTS MFA in Writing: The Power of Storytelling
Mar 31, 2025
Acclaimed Israeli author Etgar Keret, the director of the JTS MFA in Writing, shared his passion for storytelling in this session of our series, “What’s Next: New Ways of Engaging with Jewish Text” He spoke with Lisa Springer, Dean of the Division of Lifelong and Professional Studies (DLPS) and Associate Provost for Continuing and Digital Learning.
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The Give and Take of Strength
Mar 28, 2025 By Eliezer B. Diamond | Commentary | Pekudei | Shabbat Hahodesh
Rituals of closure are common in both the secular and religious realms. An example of the first is the sounding of retreat and the lowering of the flag marking the end of the official duty day on military installations. An instance of the second is the siyyum, a liturgical ritual and festive meal that is occasioned by […]
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Who Shall Cross: A Talmudic Reimagining of the Passover Narrative
Mar 24, 2025 By Jan Uhrbach | Public Event video | Pesah
In preparation for your seder, Rabbi Jan Uhrbach, Director of the Block / Kolker Center for Spiritual Arts, led a thought-provoking session, exploring a Talmudic story that reflects key themes of Passover, raising profound questions about free will, obligation, and inclusion. How do we determine our purpose? Who are our fellow travelers, and what do we owe them? This discussion offers new insights to bring to your Passover table.
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Sacred Gifts and the Holiness of Diversity
Mar 21, 2025 By Rabbi Ayelet Cohen | Commentary | Shabbat Parah | Vayak-hel
Parashat Vayak-hel demands that we notice the details, recounting with exquisite specificity the ornamentation and beautification of the Miskhan and the sacred vestments. Among all of the parshiyot detailing the construction of the Mishkan, Vayak-hel is particularly notable in lifting up the sacred contributions of women and of the artists and artisans. It also expands […]
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From Online Auction to JTS Special Collections: How Two Historic Bibles Were Reunited in the JTS Library
Mar 17, 2025 By David Zev Moster | Public Event video | Video Lecture
This summer, for his 40th birthday, David Moster purchased a rare set of books from the 1800s. The chain of events that followed led to the JTS Library temporarily welcoming a rare and valuable 13th Century Tanakh manuscript into its collection. In this session, you learn about the fascinating backstory of this manuscript and the thrilling story of its reunification. We explore how the study of manuscripts and the scribes who created them can help you think about your own translation and interpretation of the Tanakh.
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The Day Is Short, but Our Story Is Long
Mar 14, 2025 By Yael Landman | Commentary | Ki Tissa | Purim
Within the book of Exodus, certain details link the golden calf story with the account of revelation at Sinai. Mount Sinai is the site of the Israelites forming a covenant with God, but it is also the site of them violating that covenant. It’s where God tells Moses to go up and receive the stone tablets, and where Moses carries down those tablets before he witnesses the Israelites partying and hurls the tablets to the ground. The word kol (which we might translate “sound,” “noise,” or “thunder”) recurs in the context of God’s revelation, only to recur in the account of the golden calf with respect to the Israelites’ ill-advised festivities. In these ways, the golden calf story is inextricably connected to the initial moment of revelation and lawgiving at Sinai, even as it threatens to destroy that covenantal foundation.
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Anina Dassa – Senior Sermon (’25)
Mar 12, 2025 By JTS Senior Sermon | Commentary | Senior Sermon | Ki Tissa
Ki Tissa
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The Masks of Doubt: Exploring Purim, Uncertainty, and the Hidden Divine
Mar 10, 2025 By Rabbi David Ingber | Public Event video | Video Lecture | Purim
Purim is a celebration of uncertainty—a holiday that invites us to embrace the hidden, the paradoxical, and the unknown. Join Romemu’s Rabbi David Ingber for a deep dive into the mystical themes of Purim, where doubt becomes a gateway to faith and masks reveal more profound truths. Together, we explore how the story of Purim reflects the concealment of the Divine, the role of chance and chaos in our lives, and the profound spiritual lessons that arise when we step into the space of not knowing. Discover how Purim challenges us to find meaning and connection amid mystery.
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Remembering Who We Are
Mar 7, 2025 By Gordon Tucker | Commentary | Shabbat Zakhor
The coming Shabbat is designated as Shabbat Zakhor. The word is quite prevalent in Jewish literature and thought, and its basic meaning is generally translated by the words “memory,” “remembrance,” or “memorial.” And as a people we seem always to be remembering, and exhorting others to remember. It’s at the core of what we believe to be essential in Jewish education. As Isaac Bashevis Singer once remarked: “Jews suffer from many diseases, but amnesia is not one of them.
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“Youth Shall See Visions”: Engaging the Next Generation of JTS Learners and Doers
Mar 3, 2025
In this past year, JTS launched two national fellowship programs for teens: Ruchot (in partnership with the Rabbinical Assembly, Adas Israel Congregation, USY, USCJ, and Ramah), which engages them in community organizing and social action, and the Emerging Leaders Fellowship, a student-led research program that introduces high school students to academic Jewish Studies. Both programs are inviting young Jews to establish their own connections to Jewish life and tradition.
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JTS Rabbinic Convocation 2025
Mar 3, 2025
JTS bestowed honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees at a convocation ceremony recognizing rabbis for their achievements over many years of distinguished service.
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The Golden Crown of Parenting
Feb 28, 2025 By Lilly Kaufman | Commentary | Shabbat Shekalim | Terumah
These are architectural details of the Ark of the Covenant, the central element of the Holy of Holies, where the tablets of the Ten Commandments will be held and carried. The Ark has a covering of gold, inside and out, and a crown of gold. Four gold rings are attached to it, two to each side wall, and through these rings poles of acacia wood are inserted, which remain in place, even when the Ark is at rest. To what may this Ark be compared? To parents. How so?
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Don’t Be the Terumah
Feb 21, 2025 By Stephanie Ruskay | Commentary | Mishpatim
Last week JTS, The Rabbinical Assembly, United Synagogue Youth, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, Camp Ramah, the Jewish Youth Climate Movement Powered by Adamah, and Congregation Adas Israel in Washington, DC, launched Ruchot, the first ever advocacy and lobbying training for Conservative Movement teens. We gathered as an erev rav (mixed multitude) of 36 teens from 11 states (and one Canadian), 7 rabbinical students, 6 rabbis, three youth director staff, and an Israeli shaliah.
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