In perhaps no other religious tradition does Law hold more central place than it does in Judaism. In their founding code, The Mishnah, the rabbis mapped out a system of laws that are meant to regulate nearly every sphere of human life. Yet of out 63 tractates there is one - Avot - that does […]
A wonderful sugya in Bavli Shabbat (54b-55a) takes up the question of what to do when one sees people misbehaving, whether they are government officials or neighbors, whether they are breaking religious or civil law. Via anecdotes and midrashim, a very demanding moral principle emerges. ABOUT THIS SPEAKER: Rabbi Judith Hauptman is the E. Billi […]
***REGISTRATION CLOSED. WALK UPS WELCOME!*** Within the last few decades, medical technological developments have changed the landscape for what is possible for medical treatments. The theoretical bioethical and halakhic discussions surrounding human cloning and embryo research are becoming a reality. As a result, further advancements in organ transplantation, infertility and genetic engineering, to name […]
***REGISTRATION CLOSED. WALK UPS WELCOME!*** What should modern Jewish politics look like? To what extent should Jews seek to promote the well-being of the diverse societies they inhabit, and to what extent should Jews devote their attention to securing Jewish communal survival? Can an engagement with Jewish texts and practices form individuals into engaged […]
***EVENT POSTPONED DUE TO ILLNESS*** This class will look at the history of vaccinations in the Jewish religious community and analyze the Jewish ethical principles that surround the topic. We will focus on responsibility for one's self, one's inner circle, one's community, and the global community at large, as well as the concept […]
**REGISTRATION CLOSED. WALK UPS WELCOME!** From the midst of assimilation and even thoughts of converting to Christianity, Franz Rosenzweig (1886-1929) affirmed Jewish religious practice and Torah-study as addressing an individual’s most urgent existential questions ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Paul Mendes-Flohr is Professor Emeritus of Modern Jewish Thought at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is […]
Rabbi Sharon Cohen Anisfeld Sharon Cohen Anisfeld has been Dean of the Rabbinical School since 2006. Prior to assuming this position, she served as an adjunct faculty member and then dean of students at the school. After graduating from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1990, Cohen subsequently spent 15 years working in pluralistic settings as […]
Professor Aaron Gross This lively survey of Jewish animal ethics will consider passages from the Tanakh, rabbinic writings, modern Jewish thought, and the remarkable contributions contemporary Jews have made to secular animal ethics from Isaac Bashevis Singer to Jacques Derrida. All Hebrew texts will include English translation–accessible for all levels and a complimentary take-home guide […]
