An essential part of our vision for bringing different organizations together in our new home, and into our community, is a form of Avraham’s tent of old—we aim to be open on all sides with the goal of making it easy for each person to find their door, their way to join us, in the way that feels most appropriate or possible for them—whether they are looking for learning of many different kinds, an expansive and inclusive community, a place to immerse, to contribute or to create, or a place to explore ways to deepen their Jewish experiences.

May our many doors be wide open for all who wish to enter,

May the wonder and joys of discovery never cease within our walls,

May our community be strengthened by the uniqueness of each voice,

And may the "shekhinah," God's presence, continue to dwell in our midst.

— Dr. Susie Tanchel, Hebrew College Vice President

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More than six decades after they graduated from Hebrew College’s undergraduate program, alumni from Hebrew College’s Bachelor of Jewish Education program in 1964 returned to the classrooms of Hebrew College together, only this time on Zoom. “We are people who like to learn—and the notion of being back together and learning is a good feeling,” said Marsha Slotnick`64. After reconnecting with the College at the Centennial and with each other through reunions and impromptu get-togethers, these alumni bonded and learned together through a special course offering with Rabbi Dan Judson entitled, “A Genuinely Candid Conversation: A Brief History of Race and Judaism in America.”  

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Hebrew College shanah aleph (first-year) rabbinical student Sivan Piatigorsky-Roth has an idea of what he wants his life to look like in five years: “I want to be in the rabbinate,” a typical admission from a student in a rabbinical school, “and I want to be creating comics,” a less typical passion from an ordination student. These two lifepaths, though, show no signs of contradiction for Piatigorsky-Roth. "I know of artist rabbis and writer rabbis, so why not a comic book rabbi?”  

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As a spiritual practice for today, image-making connects us to something bigger and beyond the self—to the community of fellow travelers we were with when we created it, and to God, who permeates both the inherited words of text and the way those words moved through us on that particular day. The process of creating images through art-making is a powerful way of taking the Divine oneness that monotheism gifted us and opening ourselves as channels for the multitudinous ways that this singular Force shines uniquely through each of us and into the world. May it be so.

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