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October 8, 2020 | 20 Tishrei 5781
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NEWS & VIEWS Blog Issue | Moadim l'simcha!
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From Challenge to Opportunity
We were hoping to start this academic year like most others—gathering Kol Arev, our Hebrew College chamber choir, to sing beautiful Jewish music. But, given that singing together in the same space is not possible during the pandemic, we had to shift gears—to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and start all over again, as the song goes. We had to get more creative.
With the support of Hebrew College’s leadership, in place of a "normal" Kol Arev season of rehearsing and performing, Hebrew College is celebrating Kol Arev’s 10th anniversary of making music by presenting a brand new two-semester online course called L’Chaim: Bringing A Yiddish Fiddler to Life! The course will be offered through Hebrew College's Me’ah Select, one of the College's community education programs, and will consist of eight 90-minute classes on Mondays from 4:30-6 p.m. starting Monday, October 19. The beauty of this collaboration with Me’ah Select is that anyone who wants to explore this rich subject—alongside Hebrew College students—is welcome!
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A Sukkot Meditation for 2020
By Erica Streit-Kaplan
Associate Director of Hebrew College Me’ah
Until this year, Sukkot always came too soon for me. Typically, after Elul, Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur, I am spent. From reconnecting with community members to searching for seats at services to hosting holiday meals to noshing at communal break fasts . . . well, even this extrovert needs a break!
However, since COVID-19 has disrupted our lives, everything—including my approach to Sukkot—is different. When I received an email asking for volunteers to build Congregation Dorshei Tzedek’s sukkah, it seemed like a fine thing to do on a Wednesday afternoon. And more, I realized I was really looking forward to the potential for unplanned social contact. Unlike most of my life now—with regularly scheduled calls, Zooms, and socially distanced visits—this was the chance to safely see members of my congregation in an unplanned, informal way.
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Praying for RainShemini Atzeret
By Rabbi Dan Berman `10
Rabbi at Temple Reyim, Newton, MA
Eight years ago I wrote a short d'var Torah for Shmini Atzeret. The topic was rain. Highlighting the theme that we're not quite as powerful as we think, which is at the center of Sukkot and Kohelet, I wrote, "when it rains, it rains, and when there’s sun, there’s sun, and, for the most part, there’s not a thing in the world we can do to change that." My wife, Sarah, an educator and advocate in sustainable energy at MIT, and my daughter, Elie, an environmental activist, have taught me a lot about the impact of the warming of the climate on our ecosystem. I know by now that we actually have immense power to influence our climate, including rain.
Questions of human power in relationship to the earth and water are at the center of ancient rabbinic texts on Sukkot. In the agrarian society in which our tradition emerged, religious ritual was connected to the cycles of the bounty of the earth. During this time of year, particularly for those finishing their summer harvest, trimming perennial plants, and waiting for the rain to moisten the soil and strengthen the roots in their fields, rain was at the center of their thoughts and prayers.
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Hebrew College's Open Circle Jewish Learning sponsored two online Sukkot community education events this week. On October 6, Dr. Rachel Greenblatt (above) led "Rivkah’s Simchas Torah Song: Women’s Celebration in Early Modern Europe," and on October 7, Rabbi Eric Gurvis taught "Light in the Dark: Mussar as a Spiritual Resource for Challenging Times." (Watch here)
There's still time to register for fall Open Circle Jewish Learning courses. View course offerings and register here.
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FALL ONLINE EVENTS
Jewish Law and Ethics: A Hackathon for the Age of COVID-19
T'ruah Web Series, co-sponsored by Hebrew College
October 13, 20, 27
Learn more & register
Elemental Breath in the Four Worlds:
A Workshop Centering Jews of Color
Hebrew College Breath Lab Full Moon Fall Series, Heshvan 5781
October 28 | 7-8:30 p.m.
Learn more & register
The Heidi Urich Annual Lecture on Jewish Genealogy
"Myth and History in the Recent Jewish Past"
Featuring Steven J. Zipperstein
November 15 | 1:30-4:00 p.m.
Learn more & register
LimmudBoston
Hebrew College, co-sponsor
November 15 | 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Learn more & register
Ta Sh'ma (Come & Hear) Ordination Programs Open House
November 16 | 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Learn more & register
Film Screening of "Children of the Inquisition"
Discussion with Director and Guests
November 22 | 2-3 p.m.
Learn more & register
Hebrew College Breath Lab Workshop: Kabbalah & The Body
Featuring Rabbi Daniel Klein, Hebrew College Dean of Students &
Yaakov Ginsberg-Schreck, Director of the Breath Lab and
Hebrew College rabbinical student
December 1 | 7-8:30 p.m.
Learn more & register
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Hebrew College's diverse educational and cultural programs invigorate Jewish life and bring Jewish values to bear on the critical issues of our time. We do it with your support! Please make your fully-deductible investment to empower our thriving community.
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