Current courses by topic: Text and Thought

20 courses in 4 subcategories:

Biblical Interpretations (7 courses)

Add to cart Back to the Torah - The Book of Numbers: Communal Ideal of Israel

T106A-CCD Instructors: Cohen Starting: 10/07/2010 Location: Contra Costa Jewish Day School

This Fall, we focus on the Book of Numbers after completing our journey through Leviticus. In our study, we will learn a great deal about our ancestors “B’Midbar Sinai” – In the Sinai Wilderness. This ...

Add to cart Bible by the Bay

B500-TI Instructors: Freund Starting: 11/14/2010 Location: Temple Isaiah

Bible by the Bay brings the community together to discuss the Torah in ways that are relevant to life in the 21st century. Sunday, November 14 1:30 – 6 pm $15 pre-registration / $25 at ...

God's Others: Non-Israelites' Encounters With God in the Hebrew Bible — "Women of Valor"

T100-SI Instructors: Perlstein Starting: 10/12/2010 Location: Congregation Sherith Israel

We'll read stories of Hagar, Rahab, the Queen of Sheba and Ruth from the Tanakh plus commentary from the book God's Others, available for purchase at the first class. Books in softcover will be sold ...

Add to cart Kohelet (Ecclesiastes): Meditations on Meaning

T200-KE Instructors: Booth Starting: 10/28/2010 Location: Congregation Kol Emeth

Our lives are all too short and at times we feel as if our efforts are of no value. The author of Kohelet explores these questions of meaning, asking if there can ever be anything ...

Add to cart Midrash: Reading in Between the Lines of Torah

T200-CBE Instructors: Caine Starting: 10/13/2010 Location: Congregation Beth El

Midrash describes a wildly creative way of interpreting sacred text that is unique to Judaism. Midrash fills in the "gaps" in the Biblical text, re-imagines its stories, and elaborates the psychology of its characters. In ...

Add to cart Stories of the Torah You Did Not Learn as a Child

T200-CBS Instructors: Sunshine Starting: 10/12/2010 Location: Congregation B'nai Shalom

Do not miss this opportunity to study Torah in the traditional hevruta style! We will spend the first hour in the beit midrash (hall of study) delving into some of the most “spicy” Biblical stories ...

The Wisdom Books: Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: A Translation With Commentary

T250-JCL Instructors: Alter Starting: 10/19/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

Robert Alter’s translations of the Torah, the Psalms, and Samuel I and II have deepened the English reader’s encounter with the Hebrew Bible, offering tremendous insight into the Hebrew text and restoring the poetic voice ...

Classic Texts (8 courses)

"If Not Now, When?" The Legacy of the House of Hillel

T200-OMJ Instructors: Brodie Starting: 10/21/2010 Location: Osher Marin JCC

Using Joseph Telushkin's new biography of Hillel (due out September 2010) as the catalyst for text study and discussion, this series offers an in-depth exploration of the iconic religious leader whose approach to ethics and ...

Add to cart Bringing Buber Into Practice: An Experiential Journey Into I and Thou

P200-TS Instructors: Birnberg Starting: 10/13/2010 Location: Temple Sinai

This class will be experiential in nature, focusing on what Martin Buber has to teach us about having I-Thou relationships. We will learn from Buber, as if he were our Hassidic Rebbe, the practice of ...

Add to cart Exploring the Path of the Just

T200-NS Instructors: Newmark Starting: 10/07/2010 Location: Congregation Netivot Shalom

This class is designed to introduce students to the mussar (ethics) classic The Path of the Just. Written by the renegade Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzatto ('The Ramchal') and first published in the Netherlands in 1740, ...

God's Others: Non-Israelites' Encounters With God in the Hebrew Bible — "Women of Valor"

T100-SI Instructors: Perlstein Starting: 10/12/2010 Location: Congregation Sherith Israel

We'll read stories of Hagar, Rahab, the Queen of Sheba and Ruth from the Tanakh plus commentary from the book God's Others, available for purchase at the first class. Books in softcover will be sold ...

Add to cart Midrash: Reading in Between the Lines of Torah

T200-CBE Instructors: Caine Starting: 10/13/2010 Location: Congregation Beth El

Midrash describes a wildly creative way of interpreting sacred text that is unique to Judaism. Midrash fills in the "gaps" in the Biblical text, re-imagines its stories, and elaborates the psychology of its characters. In ...

Musar: Discovering More Joy in Our Daily Lives

P150-BE Instructors: Melamut Starting: 11/28/2010 Location: Congregation B'nai Emunah

We will begin with a brief introduction to the discipline of Musar, and then dive into the practice, reflection, and discussion of some of the values that can help guide our daily lives. These will ...

Add to cart Rambam's "Mishneh Torah"

T250-NS Instructors: Shaked Starting: 10/18/2010 Location: Congregation Netivot Shalom

"MiMoshe leMoshe, lo kam k'Moshe,"* says the famous quote about Rambam. In this course we will start with a short introduction of Rambam's life and philosophy followed by a study of selections of halakhot from ...

The Wisdom Books: Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: A Translation With Commentary

T250-JCL Instructors: Alter Starting: 10/19/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

Robert Alter’s translations of the Torah, the Psalms, and Samuel I and II have deepened the English reader’s encounter with the Hebrew Bible, offering tremendous insight into the Hebrew text and restoring the poetic voice ...

Contemporary Literature (4 courses)

Spiritual Journeys

P200-OMJ Instructors: Lattin Starting: 10/07/2010 Location: Osher Marin JCC

Join us for a panel featuring four authors discussing the paths they have taken - and the books they've written - regarding spirituality and a connection to the divine. The program will include Michael Krasny, ...

The Chosen Peoples: America, Israel and the Ordeals of Divine Election

H230-JCL Instructors: Gitlin Starting: 12/01/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

Gitlin and Leibovitz argue that what unites the United States and Israel as allies in a “special friendship” is less common strategic interests than the deep-seated belief that they were chosen by God. In Chosen ...

The New Yiddish Literature: How it Transformed Jewish Courtship, Marriage and Sex

T200-JCL Instructors: Seidman Starting: 10/14/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

How did modern Jewish literature modernize Jewish sexual practices, marital structures, and erotic experiences? Modernity brought with it a host of changes that included the transformations of gender roles and erotic practices, from arranged marriages ...

The Wisdom Books: Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: A Translation With Commentary

T250-JCL Instructors: Alter Starting: 10/19/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

Robert Alter’s translations of the Torah, the Psalms, and Samuel I and II have deepened the English reader’s encounter with the Hebrew Bible, offering tremendous insight into the Hebrew text and restoring the poetic voice ...

Modern Philosophy (1 course)

The Wisdom Books: Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes: A Translation With Commentary

T250-JCL Instructors: Alter Starting: 10/19/2010 Location: BJE Jewish Community Library

Robert Alter’s translations of the Torah, the Psalms, and Samuel I and II have deepened the English reader’s encounter with the Hebrew Bible, offering tremendous insight into the Hebrew text and restoring the poetic voice ...