Course Title: Jewish Narratives in Pop Culture: Winter Spring Edition ( 6 sessions-2 hybrid and 4 online only)
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning
Instructor: Elisha Gechter
Day and Time: Mondays, 8:00-9:30 p.m. ET; *hybrid sessions, 7:30-9:00 p.m ET.
Dates: 2/12, *2/26; 3/4, 3/18, 3/25, *4/1 2024 (6 sessions)
Location: Online via Zoom; hybrid in-person at Lehrhaus, Somerville, MA
Fee: $150 Financial scholarships available
Back by popular demand! Join this course to unpack specific episodes from television series featuring Jewish characters and/or themes, and discuss the ways that Jews show up in pop culture today. We will examine the narratives being raised and interrogate in which ways they are stereotypical or perhaps inclusive and expansive. Between sessions participants will watch 30–50-minute episodes of shows including Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Weeds, Shtisel and more. Come ready to discuss and reflect on examples of overtly Jewish shows and characters, as well as ones that are more subtle, or creative. You’ll be with an eclectic group to consider how the stories and people portrayed land with you, and why representation matters. While this is a continuation of a fall 2023 course, all are welcome – no prior participation required.
Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning classes are for learners of all backgrounds.
Canadian and other registrants from outside the US: please email Cindy Bernstein to complete your registration. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Course Title: Advanced Mussar Study/Practice Group Spring 2024
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning: Mindfulness
Instructor: Rabbi Marcia Plumb (Read bio)
Dates: March 6, 13, 20, 27; April 3, 10, 17; May 1, 2024 (May 8-makeup session if needed)
Day and Time: Wednesdays, 5:00-6:30 p.m. Eastern Time
Partner: Temple Shir Tikvah Winchester
Location: Online via Zoom
Fee: $320 * Temple Shir Tikvah members, $284 (TST register here)
Partial scholarships available
Join Rabbi Marcia Plumb to delve into texts from Jewish tradition and contemporary sources, with particular focus on the study of Mussar. Explore the middot (“soul traits”) of Mussar through ongoing textual study, reflection, journaling, and kabbalot (small mindfulness exercises). The class engages with these texts in full group session, and in small breakout groups. Some of the essential questions we will delve into are: how do we understand the selected middot? How do we engage with the middot and each other to enhance our personal spiritual growth, our daily behavior, and the alignment between the two? How can each of us contribute to the growth of others in the group, and bring our learning to repair the world?
Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning classes are for learners of all backgrounds.
Canadian and other registrants from outside of the US: please email Cindy Bernstein to complete your registration. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Course Title: Honor Your Father and Mother: Fulfilling the Mitzvah with Our Aging Parents
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning: Parenting and Grandparenting
Instructor: Deborah Anstandig
Dates: February 11, 25; March 3, 17, 2024 (4 sessions)
Day and Time: Sundays, 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Location: Online via Zoom
Fee: $100 Financial Scholarships are available
Many of us have experienced the challenges and opportunities of supporting aging and ailing family members. The opportunity to care for our elders, especially our parents, can be a unique privilege, but also creates considerable challenges for both parent and child. In this course, we’ll encounter a variety of sources that explore the limitations and qualifications of the mitzvah to honor one’s parents. This poignant topic is open to people of all ages–regardless of whether you are currently supporting an aging parent.
Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning classes are for learners of all backgrounds.
Canadian and other registrants from outside the US: please email Cindy Bernstein to complete your registration. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Course Title: The Fragility of Democracy: The Rise of Nazism and its Lessons for Today’s Jewish Community
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning: Social Action
Instructor: Jan Darsa
Partner Organizations: Shirat Hayam, Swampscott, MA
Day and time: Tuesdays, 7:30-9:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Dates: April 2, 9, 30; May 7, 14, 28; June 4, 18, 2024 (8 sessions)
Location: Online via Zoom
Fee: $200 Financial assistance is available.
How does a democratic society evolve into a dictatorship? What are the choices individuals make that enable this to happen? How does a thriving and socially integrated Jewish community become the target of vicious antisemitism, lulled into a fall sense of security that “it could never happen here?” In this course we will explore how it was possible that people who were thought to be the moral barometers of society, e.g. doctors, lawyers, and judges became enablers and participants in dictatorship and genocide? Just how did the Nazis build such a large and devoted following, and how was propaganda used to create allegiance and promote hatred?
The factors of politics and of human behavior that allowed Germany to transform itself from a democracy into a dictatorship will be examined. By looking at decisions people made during the rise and the subsequent takeover of power by the Nazis, we will explore this period of history and how the responsibility for sustaining a democracy and standing up against hate belongs to both its leaders and citizens. How can we work to prevent something like this from occurring again, and not succumb to the belief that “it could never happen here?”
Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning classes are for learners of all backgrounds.
*Canadian and other registrants from outside of the US: please email Cindy Bernstein to complete your registration. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Title: Mussar for a Meaningful Life
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning: Texts and Traditions
Instructor: Laila Goodman (see bio)
Day and Time: Sundays 10-11:30 a.m. Eastern Time
Fall 2023 Session Dates: October 15, 29, November 19, December 17, 2023; January 21, 2024 (5 sessions)
Winter Spring 2024 Session Dates: February 11, March 17, april 14, May 19, June 16, 2024 (5 sessions)
Location: Online via Zoom
Fee: $200 Financial scholarships available
Come explore the ancient, Jewish practice of Mussar. Tapping into Jewish wisdom about character development, we will learn about how to notice your behaviors and how to take small steps to work toward wholeness. This is a course that touches heart and head. Come discover your “soul curriculum,” a peek into a path that can help you to tap into your holiness.
Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning classes are for learners of all backgrounds.
Canadian and other registrants from outside of the US: please email Cindy Bernstein to complete your registration. We apologize for the inconvenience.
“I think that Laila is a superb teacher/leader. Her warmth, great sense of humor, and openness about sharing some of her own positive and negative experiences with Mussar study is hugely encouraging and seems to support honest reflection and sharing for the group as a whole.“ – Sara Stotzer, participant in Laila Goodman’s Fall 2022 Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning Course,
Mussar for a Meaningful Life.
Course Title: Parenting Through a Jewish Lens TBS Needham
Program: Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning: Parenting and Grandparenting
Instructor: Rabbi Mona Strick
Dates: March 17: April 7; May 5, June 9, 2024 (4 sessions)
Day and Time: Sundays, 4:00-5:30 p.m.
Location: In-person, Temple Beth Shalom, Needham, MA
Fee: $100 Financial scholarship available
Join a group of fellow parents of young children to discuss topics that matter to you as a parent; reflect on the joys and challenges of raising kids today; and find support, encouragement, and connection. This Hebrew College designed curriculum helps parents discover the many ways in which Jewish sources of wisdom can inform their choices. Specific topics will include: Towards Joyful Parenting, Infusing Our Lives with Meaning, Shabbat: A time to Recharge and Reconnect, Finding Peace in Our Homes. On-site babysitting with pizza is included with registration.
Parenting Through a Jewish Lens is now part of Hebrew College Open Circle Jewish Learning and is for learners of all backgrounds.
