Dr. Nehemiah Polen Early Hasidic masters taught that prayer is an opportunity to focus on Divine unity and the dissolution of the ego. At the same time, they practiced intercessory prayer and petitionary prayer. Our session will explore how the two modalities of quietistic and activist prayer coexisted and influenced each other. We will look […]

Dr. Ruth Langer The infamous twelfth benediction of the weekday amidah apparently cursed Christians explicitly in its early medieval forms and implicitly in its high European medieval forms. Christians were aware of this and censored the text, most formally and widely from the 1550s on. This all day Beit Midrash session will examine the ways […]

 Dr. Aaron Panken Biblical and Rabbinic texts create a strong foundation for a longing for Zion that inspired later thinkers, including influencing many early Zionists as they crafted a Jewish national ideology. In this session, we will delve into a selection of core primary rabbinic sources that informed our people’s image of and connection with […]

Dr. Ruth Langer A continuation of the morning session. The infamous twelfth benediction of the weekday amidah apparently cursed Christians explicitly in its early medieval forms and implicitly in its high European medieval forms. Christians were aware of this and censored the text, most formally and widely from the 1550s on. This all day Beit […]

Dr. Aaron Panken Zionism faces numerous challenges in the contemporary American Reform context. Recent articles even claim that American rabbinical students are beginning to exhibit less connection to the Jewish State, let alone our lay leaders. Dual loyalties, dual states and dueling theologies are just a few of the many complications that confront those who […]

Dr. Nehemiah Polen The world of Hasidism is famous for its musically creative and emotionally powerful niggunim. This session will explore how this rich legacy of niggun assists in the formation of one’s inner self and the cultivation of one’s spiritual development. We will listen to and learn from niggunim and also study Hasidic texts […]