(L-R): Simran Jeet Singh, Rabbi Ebn Leader, Dr. Celene Ibrahim, Dr. Judith Simmer-Brown, Rev. Rob Schenck

Rabbi Or Rose, Founding Director of the Miller Center for Interreligious Learning and Leadership, is editing a series of prayers and reflections published at Interfaith America (where he serves as a senior consultant). The series, "For a Time Such as This (Esther 4:14): Spiritual Practices to Ground and Center", is composed by clergy from a variety of faith traditions, and offers meaningful perspective on how to meet this moment with dignity, integrity, and compassion. Read them at the links below:

Praying for Peace—Inner & Outer by Rev. Dr. Rob Schenck

Compassionate Abiding: The Transformation of Anger by Dr. Judith Simmer-Brown

Prioritizing What Matters Most: Hukamnama Practice by Dr. Simran Jeet Singh

A Prayer Practice from Rabbi Ebn Leader

Contemplating the Quran — forthcoming from Dr. Celene Ibrahim

Beacons of Hope: Our Interreligious S/Heroes

Each month, we honor an individual or group whose commitments align with the bridge-building efforts of the Miller Center of Hebrew College. This April, Hebrew College Visiting Professor Rev. Rob Schenck honors Bishop Mariann Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. 

The Right Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, DC, burst onto the national scene this past January. During the customary post-inauguration prayer service held at the National Cathedral, Bishop Mariann humbly implored the newly seated second-term president, Donald Trump, to have mercy on those afraid of his intended policies, which could place them at risk. She named LGBTQ+ folks and immigrants in particular.

This was during intensive week at Hebrew College, and my phone started bursting with texts, emails, calls, and alerts about my friend of more than seven years. "Mariann," as I 

Bishop Mariann Budde

know her, has been a close colleague, conversation partner, and even confessor to me. Her husband, Paul, was the treasurer of my former institution, the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute, for all five years I led it. 

*Bishop Budde will be honored for her outstanding leadership efforts by Hebrew College at the 2025 Commencement Ceremony.

Join us on Thursday, May 8 at 7:00 pm to celebrate the release of Rabbi Or Rose’s new book My Legs Were Praying: A Biography of Abraham Joshua Heschel.. The event will take place at Hebrew College and on Zoom.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972) was a gifted Jewish theologian and scholar, as well as an impassioned social activist. His reputation has grown significantly since his death over fifty years ago. What can we learn from the unflagging efforts of this revered twentieth century figure today? How can we share key elements of his call for “moral grandeur and spiritual audacity” with younger people seeking to engage in spirituality grounded activism? What might Heschel have to say to the next generation?

Interested in learning more about Abraham Joshua Heschel with Rabbi Rose? Tamid of Hebrew College is offering an online course, "Moral Grandeur and Spiritual Audacity": Heschel's Legacy Today, a three session course taught by Rabbi Rose, 7-8:30pm Thursdays 5/15, 5/29, 6/5.

(L-R): 2024-5 Dignity Project Fellows at opening retreat last summer

Applications for the 2024-2025 Dignity Project cohort are now open! Please encourage outstanding high school students to apply here, or send your nominations to Liz at laeschlimann@hebrewcollege.edu

The Miller Center launched the Dignity Project to address the growing need to help teen leaders in our city navigate the diversity of American life during a time of widespread political and cultural polarization. Dignity Project's spiritual and ethical foundation is the ancient and enduring notion that every human being is of inestimable worth, and that a society thrives when people learn to honor each other’s similarities and differences.

(L-R): Rafi Ellenson, Neha Fayaz Sheikh, Rosys, Hayden Shaw speak at the BTI spring gathering

Last Friday, April 4, the Miller Center partnered with the Boston Theological Interreligious Consortium to host "Perspectives on Liberation Across Traditions", a gathering for divinity and seminary students from institutions across Greater Boston. Attendees gathered in the Boston College Theology and Ministry Library for a shared meal and interactive dialogue.

The Miller Center staff and advisory committee wish a happy upcoming Pesach and Easter, and recently concluded Eid, to all celebrants in our community and their loved ones. May this season renew our spirit.

Instructor: Rabbi Or Rose
Dates: 3 Thursdays, Spring 2025: 5/15, 5/29 & 6/5
Time:  7-8:30 p.m. EST
Course fee: $150, financial aid is available
Location: Zoom

In a famous telegram from 1963, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel called on religious and political leaders to exercise “moral grandeur & spiritual audacity.” The telegram was addressed to President John F. Kennedy and the context was the Civil Rights Movement. Since that time, Heschel’s legacy as an inspiring theologian and moral gadfly has grown tremendously. But what was the substance of his teachings? What Jewish and other sources did he draw on? How did he apply these teachings to the great social challenges of his day? Most importantly, what might we learn from Heschel’s extraordinary efforts as we attempt to participate in the healing of our world.

Instructor: Dr. Shari Lowin
Dates: 8 Thursdays, Spring 2025: 5/1, 5/8, 5/15, 5/22, 5/29, 6/5, 6/12 & 6/26
Time:  9:30-11:30 a.m. EST
Course fee: $400, financial aid is available
Location: Zoom

As brother religions vying for the same sacred history, Islam and Judaism trace the genesis of their spiritual and biological communities back to the very same founding parents. Yet Islam is not Judaism, Muslims are not Jews, and vice versa. Rather, the two traditions are, and understand themselves to be, distinct entities with distinct value systems. This course will compare the Jewish and Muslim accounts on a number of shared Biblical ancestors, as well the rabbinic and Islamic commentaries on these narratives. In so doing, we will investigate various matters of moral and ethical concern in Judaism and Islam and strive to understand the lessons imparted by each tradition.