Learning Torah from the Talmud’s Greatest Gentiles
Apr 12, 2021 By Rachel Rosenthal | Public Event video | Video Lecture
The Talmud, in Sanhedrin, says that it is forbidden for non-Jews to learn Torah. However, throughout rabbinic literature, the rabbis frequently imagine themselves engaging in dialogue about religious issues with non-Jews, be they kings or merchants. Why do the rabbis use these gentiles as repositories of Jewish wisdom and questions, and what might that tell us about how they understand their relationship to the larger world?
Read MoreLooking Back at Jews and the Civil Rights Movement
Apr 5, 2021
The story of how Jews were key allies to African Americans in the Civil Rights Movement is well known. But when historical narratives become conventional wisdom, it can lead to stagnation. Now, many are asking when it comes to Black-Jewish relations, where do we go from here? In this session, led by Dr. Jason Schulman, we will look back at the story of Jews and the Civil Rights Movement to explore some new directions for the study of the field and new bases for honest dialogue.
Read MoreFreedom for Whom?
Mar 22, 2021 By Eliezer B. Diamond | Public Event video | Video Lecture
First and foremost, the traditional Haggadah celebrates our liberation from Egypt. At the same time, it reflects our experience of oppression over the course of many centuries. It is therefore a plea to be redeemed anew that reflects and potentially re-enforces an adversarial relationship with the non-Jewish world. In our own time the Jews of the United States and Israel enjoy unprecedented freedom. How do we honor the voice of tradition while also including the modern voices seeking liberation for all?
Read MoreFacing the Other: Moral Dilemmas in Israeli Literature
Mar 1, 2021 By Barbara Mann | Public Event video | Video Lecture
Lyric poetry, with its unique voice and vivid imagery, offers a brief but intense opportunity to enter into the intimate space of another. Through texts by canonical Israeli authors (Dan Pagis, Yehuda Amichai, and Dalia Ravikovitch), we will trace a series of poetic encounters between Self and Other: survivor and perpetrator; mother and child; victim and hero; Jew and Palestinian.
Read MoreReading the Resisting Woman as “Other”
Feb 22, 2021 By Shira D. Epstein | Public Event video | Video Lecture
Who has the right to anger? When is defiance cast as positive in our texts and when is it silenced? We will explore the Vashti narrative through the lens of power dynamics, status shifts, performing of gendered emotions, and as an example of reading the resisting woman as “Other.”
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Different But Equal?
The Paradox of Chosenness
Feb 8, 2021 By Alan Cooper | Public Event video | Video Lecture
Jewish conceptions of chosenness or election—rooted especially in the language of Exodus 19:5-6—traditionally were hierarchical, often asserting Jewish superiority over others. Such notions run afoul of modern ideas about social justice, typically anchored in egalitarian values that would have been alien to pre-modern authors. Is it possible to uphold a version of Jewish “difference” that is simultaneously non-hierarchical yet answerable to traditional sources?
Read MoreOther Gods: What the Bible Thinks about Other Nations’ Deities
Feb 1, 2021 By Benjamin D. Sommer | Public Event video | Video Lecture
The Bible frequently instructs the nation Israel not to worship “other gods” (אלהים אחרים). But the Bible never actually states that these other gods do not exist. Praying to other gods would be an act of disloyalty for an Israelite, but not an absurdity—there are apparently other gods who would hear the prayers in question. In fact, the Bible regards it as perfectly appropriate for other nations to worship them, because the “other gods” are simply the gods of other nations. In this session, we will examine the biblical attitude toward these other gods and what their existence implies about other religions. We will see, paradoxically, that the Bible remains monotheistic, even though it acknowledges the existence of many deities.
Read MoreSome Unexpected Stories About Women in the Talmud
Jan 25, 2021 By Judith Hauptman | Public Event video | Video Lecture
Although most Talmudic anecdotes feature men, some feature wives, mothers, and daughters of rabbis. These women learned Jewish law, and even, on occasion, helped formulate it. Join Dr. Judith Hauptman to study several of these short episodes and explore their significance, both historically and through the present day.
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