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What Our Students Say... “This summer has let me grow in a way that I never thought possible. I never went to day school…and I never had a chance to actually learn, lishma or otherwise, before. Giving me the opportunity to really think about the kind of Jew I want to be and I want to become has been an incredible experience. I am a Jew who wants to live a vibrant and engaged Jewish life, and I want to do the work necessary to make sure its there.” “Thank you for changing the trajectory of my life. Thank you so, so, much.” “What an honor to be here, and to be entrusted with perpetuating the exquisite vision of the institution.” “I have been profoundly changed by the sense of community I felt at the yeshiva, and by the deep mutual respect and investment in one another that I experienced at Hadar. I would really like to be part of communities like this in the future, and I hope to make steps to make my home communities some how reflect these values.” "I think I've realized that spirituality does not necessarily have to be at the expense of intellectualism. This kind of growth is not linear in the way that skills-building is, but I do feel like I've "progressed" on the journey to be able to balance the two of them." |
Summer 2013 Classes
Halakhah Seminar: Conversion Instructor: Ethan Tucker Mondays 2:15-6:00 pm We will learn the main section of the Shulhan Arukh devoted to the topic of giyur--conversion to Judaism. What are the ideal and non-negotiable aspects of conversion? How much of conversion is bodily and how much ideological? Are there any statutes of limitations on evaluating the validity of a conversion? The course will feature independent learning followed by classes designed to help students synthesize the material learned. This clase will focus on tracing the answers to the core questions above beginning with the earliest rabbinic sources and continuing through modern responsa. Emphasis will be placed on conducting effective halakhic research, identifying motivating factors for codifiers and how to best organize halakhic material in order to communicate it to others. For more information or to enroll, please contact Dena Weiss. Rabbinic Stories: An Advanced Introduction Instructors: David Goshen and Avital Campbell Hochstein Thursdays 2:15-6:00 pm In this class we'll investigate the world of the Rabbinic story. Using literary, psychological, and theological approaches, we'll study some very well-known Talmudic stories, and some largely unknown ones. We'll ask how stories function in Talmudic discourse in general, we'll see how Rabbis criticize themselves and their culture through stories, and we'll explore how theological questions and quandaries get played out through narrative. Although we'll make use of contemporary scholarship, our focus will be on close, careful readings of Talmudic narratives. For more information or to enroll, please contact Dena Weiss. Talmud 1: Introduction to Rabbinics in the Original Instructor: Jason Rubenstein M/Th/Th/F, 9:00-12:30 (6 credit course, non-credit tuition $2000*) This course is an introduction to the study of the founding document of Rabbinic Judaism, the Mishna, in the original Hebrew. It is intended for students with basic Hebrew language skills. Each unit of Mishna will be analyzed as a textual unit, with particular attention to the vocabulary, syntax, and conceptual universe of the text. For each unit, a comparison will be made with associated rabbinic material - Tosefta, midrash, or Talmud - to paint a fuller picture of rabbinic thought. Non-credit Tuition: $2,000. This class can be taken for 6 academic credits. Scholarships may be available for students or those in need of financial assistance. For more information or to apply, please contact Dena Weiss. Talmud 2: Structure of the Sugya/Talmud with Rashi Instructor: Yedidah Koren M/T/Th/F, 9:00-12:30 (6 credit course, non-credit tuition $2000*) This course is an introduction to the study of two canonical Rabbinic texts: the Mishna and the Babylonian Talmud, and is intended for students with strong Hebrew language skills but little experience with the study of Talmud. Each unit begins with close linguistic, literary, and conceptual analysis of a section from the Mishna, with an emphasis on both the concrete positions and open questions presented by the material. Analysis of the attendant Talmudic material will focus on extensive support in developing reading skills and will touch on more abstract conceptual and theological questions. Students completing this course will be able to independently parse and translate passages from the Mishna using dictionaries and other tools, follow the standard citation techniques in classical printings of Jewish texts, identify common conceptual and structural patterns of the Babylonian Talmud, and translate simple Talmudic passages with minimal assistance. Non-credit Tuition: $2,000. This class may be taken for 6 academic credits. Scholarships may be available for students or those in need of financial assistance. For more information or to apply, please contact Dena Weiss. Talmud 3: Talmud with Tosafot Instructor: Aviva Richman MTRF, 9:00-12:30 This course, intended for students comfortable with learning Talmud with Rashi, will build skills for comprehending the Talmud more thoroughly through the use of Tosafot. In addition to learning the Talmudic sugyot with care, we will focus on strategies for decoding Tosafot, gaining a basic understanding of their literary and legal project, and developing the use of Tosafot as a window into deeper issues in the text of the Talmud itself. By the end of the summer, as student in this class will be able to offer independent interpretations of the thematized conceptual and literary aspects of a given section of the Babylonian Talmud. Non-credit Tuition: $2,000. Scholarships may be available for students or those in need of financial assistance. This class can be taken for 6 academic credits. For more information click here. For more information or to apply, please contact Dena Weiss. Talmud 4: Talmud with Rishonim Instructor: Ethan Tucker M/T/ThF, 9:00-12:30, This course is an in-depth study of a section of the Babylonian Talmud and its commentators. Students learn the Talmudic passage in depth, with special attention to the difficulties and challenges present in the text. Medieval and modern commentators provide an additional level of analysis, as these authors pinpoint historical and literary disjunctures in the text. Manuscript evidence, parallels in rabbinic literature and scholarly literature on the passage are consulted extensively, as students aim to reconstruct the history of the Talmudic passage and to reflect on its later relevance in medieval and modern codes. Non-credit Tuition: $2,000. For more information or to apply, please contact Dena Weiss. This class can be taken for 6 academic credits. For more information click here. What it Means to Be Human: Doing Theology with Tanakh, Hazal, and Modern Jewish Thought Instructor: Shai Held Tuesday 2:30-4:30 pm This class will take on the big questions, including: What does it mean to be created in the image of God? What are human beings capable of achieving, and what are they not? What is the Torah's view of human nature? How much are human beings worth? What would a Jewish approach to self-worth and self-esteem look like? Just how far does the Torah go in valuing individual life and dignity? What is Judaism's approach to the human body? We'll approach these questions through extremely close and careful readings of Biblical, Rabbinic, medieval, and modern Jewish philosophical texts, with an especial focus on Genesis 1-11. Along the way, we'll learn how literary cues in traditional sources yield often stunning moral and theological insights. We'll discover new texts from thinkers like Rambam, R. Hasdai Crescas, R. Abraham Joshua Heschel, R. Joseph Soloveitchik, and R. Yitzhak Hutner, and uncover surprising new layers of meaning in text from Humash and Hazal. Tuition: $300. For more information or to enroll, please contact Dena Weiss. |
Evening Classes Explorations in Exodus Instructor: Shai Held Tuesdays 7:15-8:45 pm ($250*) In this series of evening classes, we'll read a familiar text with new eyes: Exodus 1-15 We'll bring a literary and theological lens to the text and explore such questions as: How do the books of Genesis and Exodus talk to each-other? Why are the heroes who get the Exodus rolling all women? What makes Moshe qualified to lead? Why does God need a human partner in the first place? What happened at the Burning Bush and what does it mean? What are the plagues about? What is the Bible's conception of freedom? And much more... |
