LBC LEHRHAUS: JEWISH STUDIES

Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen

TORAH: WHY BOTHER?

Live online free talk

Sunday 5.00-6.30 pm UK time 

Date: 15 October 2023

 

 

The talk will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

Please note: These talks will be recorded and available to the public on our website for future use, and by signing up, you are giving your consent.

You can register for this talk now using the button below. Zoom link will be sent a couple of days before the talk.

Register

Talk description: 

When there is so much in the Torah that is violent, misogynistic and seemingly out of touch with our values, why continue to study the Torah?  When we struggle to find our own voices in this ancient text why persist in holding it aloft, kissing it and parading it around our synagogues?

In this talk we’ll explore where the authority of the Torah and its words lies.  Using the Psalms as a guide we’ll chart our way forward – through outwardly objectionable verses towards a more inclusive, liberative reading.  Through this exploration we will explore why feminist biblical scholarship is so necessary and why this Rabbi believes Torah study needs to be at the heart of all we do as a community.

Biography: 

From October 2023 Rabbi Robyn will be studying for a PhD in Rabbinic Leadership and Biblical Studies with the University of Leeds under a AHRC scholarship.  Since her undergraduate degree in Theology and Religious Studies at Newnham College, Cambridge, Robyn worked as a Human Rights lawyer and then began training for the rabbinate at Leo Baeck College.  Upon ordination she worked as Manchester’s first female rabbi at Manchester Reform Synagogue, for a number of years.  Robyn is currently co-chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors in the UK.  Robyn regularly appears in UK media,  is a Pause for Thought contributor and her work has been published in various books and journal.  Robyn is interested in creating safe, anti-oppressive, relational, textured, activist communities built by individuals who are enabled to step into their own power and collectively organise for a more just world.

Testimonials:

Dear Rabbi Robyn. Thank you so much for your ‘Wandering Jews’ course. I found the course as enjoyable as it was stimulating and mind broadening.  It was a great achievement to combine scholarship and rigorous enquiry with fun and joy as you did.  My knowledge and understanding of The Torah both written and oral were enhanced and my appreciation of  their relevance to ideas of time, space, society and action developed.

I learnt much about the Biblical and Rabbinic texts studied and how they are relevant to contemporary thought. Rabbi Robyn succeeded in combining effective teaching and control of the learning process with openness of mind, fun and a sense of joy.

I found the teacher had such a lovely approachable style it was a joy in lockdown to log in and really got the class interacting with each other to delve further into the discussion topics. Was pleased the weekly reading was sent after the class for the following week each week – made it easy to digest.

We will be using ZOOM  for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Fred Morgan

IS “TIKKUN OLAM” JEWISH?

Live online free talk

Sunday 9.00-10.30 am UK time ( 8.00-9.30 pm AEDT)

Date: 29 October 2023

 

 

The talk will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

Please note: These talks will be recorded and available to the public on our website for future use, and by signing up, you are giving your consent.

You can register for this talk now using the button below. Zoom link will be sent a couple of days before the talk.

Register

Talk description: 

In this 90-minute session we’ll discuss how the concept of tikkun olam came to be so central for Jewish communities – especially progressive communities – world-wide, what the fourfold history of the phrase teaches us, and what’s at stake in the debate over whether the notion of tikkun olam as it’s used today expresses authentic Jewish values.  Along the way we’ll consider what tikkun olam consists of and why some Jews consider it problematic for Judaism.  Whatever your views, I hope you’ll have a more nuanced understanding of tikkun olam by the end of the session.  Everyone is welcome to join us!

Biography: 

Fred Morgan taught Religious Studies with specialisation in the religions of India at the University of Bristol before entering LBC for rabbinic studies.  After receiving s’mikhah from the College in 1984, he served at North West Surrey Synagogue for 13 years. His association with the College continued through this period, teaching courses in midrash and in contemporary Jewish thought to both rabbinic and MA students, and filling various academic and administrative roles.  In 1997 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the College.  (He was made Hon Fellow of LBC for a second time in 2009, to mark his 25 years in the rabbinate.)

In the same year Rabbi Morgan took up the post of Senior Rabbi at Temple Beth Israel in Melbourne, Australia.  During his tenure at TBI he twice served as Chair of the Assembly of Rabbis in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.  Over the years he has spent extended periods working with progressive communities in Budapest, Perth, Wellington and Singapore, as well as briefer periods with other communities across Australia and Asia.

In 2013 Rabbi Morgan was appointed Emeritus Rabbi at TBI, and he was also awarded Membership in the Order of Australia for his services to the Jewish community and to interfaith relations.  Subsequently he served as Professorial Fellow at the Australian Catholic University, and as Rabbinic Advisor to the Union for Progressive Judaism in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.  He has also taught for the Melton Adult Jewish Learning program for several years, and he has recently begun teaching by Zoom for the University of the Third Age.

For the past 12 years Rabbi Morgan has led Jewish-themed tours to destinations around the globe, including several tours to Central and Eastern European destinations, India, Morocco, the Balkans, South America, the Silk Road in Central Asia and outback Australia. His tour to the Caucasus has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He is married to Sue and they have three children and three grandchildren.

Testimonials:

‘‘I really enjoyed Rabbi Morgan’s great knowledge and accessibility in class. Joining the class in Melbourne, I enjoyed the comments of the English and European participants. I wish the course had lasted a couple more weeks. We covered a lot of ground in 4 weeks – would have been good to have had more time for more discussion. I hope Rabbi Morgan will run more courses with Lehrhaus. I thought Zoom was very successful for this course in joining people on different continents and in different countries. It all worked very smoothly and easily and I am a complete technophobe.”

”Rabbi Fred’s course was fantastic.  He is so encouraging and inclusive. Thanks to Lehrhaus for the course and I am interested in future courses with Rabbi Fred.”

”It was interesting and thought provoking. Rabbi Morgan’s classes are always very enjoyable.”

”This was a wonderful class and I would happily do another class with Rabbi Morgan!”

We will be using ZOOM  for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Professor Jonathan Magonet

DAVID BECOMES KING

8-week live online course

Tuesday 7.30-9.00 pm UK time

Dates: 

10, 17, 24, 31 October,
7, 14, 21, 28 November 2023

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

Special promotional price for this 8-week course is £96.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course description: 

The Book of Samuel is one of the masterpieces of world literature. While the overall story can be read and appreciated in translation, the full richness and subtleties of the narrative deserve spending time with the Hebrew text. This year we will continue our reading using the insights of rabbinic tradition and modern literary approaches to the text. Newcomers will quickly catch up on what has been covered before and together we will explore the unfolding drama of David’s rise to power.

Biography: 

Rabbi Professor Jonathan David Magonet is a British Jewish theologian, former Vice-President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism, and a biblical scholar. He is highly active in Christian-Jewish dialogue, and in dialogue between Jews and Muslims. For twenty years he was the Principal, now retired, of Leo Baeck College, the first liberal Jewish seminary for all of Europe created after World War II. He lectures regularly on Bible at the College, in Germany and Japan and is the editor of the College’s journal European Judaism. He is part of the team creating new editions of the prayer books of the Movement for Reform Judaism.

Testimonials:

”The professor’s whole demeanour was very friendly and inclusive (I am a Christian), and I really liked his fascinating insights about the literary aspects of the text studied. Although I have studied it before I learned a good deal that was new to me, especially points that are not easy to detect in translation. Although it was a continuation of an existing class, over time I felt able to contribute and I feel I was listened to and my thoughts considered with respect.”

”Rabbi Magonet’s delightful, inclusive manner and his creative interpretation of the material. His outstanding and original scholarship. The arc of the story and connections with other parts of the Tenach.”

”The critical analysis of the text and the multiple connections to other biblical passages and other historical material. This provides a deep contextual view of the story itself and its relevance in historical and local perspective. Also, the convivial atmosphere of the presentation and the discussions.
Rabbi Jonathan is quite approachable and I have learned much from the lectures, the materials provided but equally from his responses to my questions.”

”The story of an experienced and superb lecturer thanks to whom I am starting to understand some important aspects of the biblical story. Rabbi Magonet is an excellent narrator, ready to communicate with the participants and to develop a dialogue.”

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

This course will be taught by a variety of LBC faculty teachers

This course will be taught by a variety of LBC faculty teachers.

8-week live online course

Tuesday  11.15am – 12.45 pm UK time

Dates: please see below

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

The price for this 8-week course is £120.

For the students who continue this class the discounted price is £80 (please tick the discount box on the registration page).

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course description: 

Each teacher’s session will be confirmed later.

We will be using ZOOM  for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Dr Simon Holloway

WHILE THE WORLD BURNS: THE SECRET ARCHIVE OF THE WARSAW GHETTO

4-week live online MORNING course

Sunday 9.00-10.30 am UK time  (15,22 October – 7.00-8.30 pm AEDT, 5,12 November – 8.00-9.30 pm AEST). 

Dates: 

15, 22 October

5, 12 November 2023

 

Leo Baeck College is delighted to be working in partnership with the Melbourne Holocaust Museum, which will be hosting this 4 week online course. This will be delivered by Dr Simon Holloway, Manager of Adult Education and Academic Engagement at the museum.

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

For students affiliated to Progressive Jewish communities in Australia the price of this course is £48. Please check the discount box on the registration page.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description:

From the sealing of the Warsaw Ghetto in late 1940 until its final liquidation in early 1943, a small team of dedicated researchers hastily compiled information that might service future generations wanting to know about life at this unimaginable time. The materials that they gathered were to become the largest and most varied of all of the ghetto archives, and would have a profound impact on how people understand the nature and development of the Holocaust. In this four week course, we will look at the means by which this secret archive was created, will consider the lives and personalities of those who contributed to it, and will gain a deeper appreciation as to its enduring significance today.

Biography: 

Dr Simon Holloway is the Head of Education at the Melbourne Holocaust Museum, where he is presiding over the development of new education programs for school students, professionals and the general public. Simon holds a PhD in Classical Hebrew and Biblical Studies from the University of Sydney, where he served for six years as a sessional academic, and a Masters in Ancient History. Before moving to Melbourne, Simon also spent six years as an Education Officer at the Sydney Jewish Museum, delivering seminars on Nazi racial hygiene, Jewish resistance and the history of the Holocaust. At present, Simon spends much of his free time studying the Talmud. His current research involves the identification of references to biblical and rabbinic literature in diaries and letters produced during the Holocaust.

Testimonials:

Thank you so much for your series of absorbing lectures on the Sages. I shall look forward to studying the pdf’s at my leisure. I hope that you will do another course for LBC.

Brilliant course!
Lucid, masterful use of slides to take us through complicated material without losing our way. Always felt safe in his hands, never confused. And he built the stories up and linked them together so that they came alive. And once I had the context, the method of interpretation, of reading the texts he chose, opened for me. I feel confident now that I will be able to crack other material I have in my library which has resisted me for years.
I would take any other course he offered.

I am enjoying your course immensely. It puts together bits and pieces, some of which I had known previously, into a comprehensive whole that I find very satisfying. And your careful preparation and masterful use of slides has left me feeling honoured and valued.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Janet Berenson

CAN JEWS BE BUDDHISTS? DISCOVERING COMMON GROUND

4-week live online course

Wednesday 7.00-8.00 pm UK time 

Dates:

11,18 October

1,8 November 2023

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

 

The price for this 4-week course is £40.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description:

Why are there so many BuJus (or JuBus)?  How can people identify both as Jewish and Buddhist?  Together we will explore some of the principles and practices within Buddhism to see how these two belief systems and world views both overlap and differ.  No previous knowledge or experience required but always welcome.

Biography: 

Janet Berenson began her journey in Philadelphia, where she was raised and educated at the University of Pennsylvania and Gratz College, studying literature, folklore and anthropology at Penn and qualifying as a Jewish educator in parallel at Gratz.

Janet worked within the Reform Jewish community within the Centre for Jewish Education,  initially in children’s supplementary Jewish education. From there she moved to become a Community Development worker for the Movement for Reform Judaism and a Consultant in Family and Teenage Education for the Leo Baeck College. She is also a Senior Examiner in Religious Studies for one of the national Examination Boards.

In 2001 she wrote Kabbalah Decoder under her then name of Janet Berenson-Perkins, which has been translated into several languages and is considered to be an excellent and accessible introduction to the principles of Kabbalah. As well as being a published poet, Janet is also featured as a speaker in a dvd about relationships, Love Talk, released in January 2009.  Janet began teaching adults for the WEA in 2010, exploring literature, women’s studies, and philosophy.  In parallel with her professional life as teacher and trainer, she was writing and publishing poetry and short stories.

Janet is now an independent consultant, trainer, inspirational speaker and teacher enjoying semi-retirement.  She nurtures her soul with her continuing study and teaching of literature, creative writing, meditation and mysticism.

Currently Janet is working on a collection of short stories, entitled 23 Pairs, exploring the impact of genetic characteristics on all aspects of life.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Dr Chani Smith

INTRODUCTION TO THE ZOHAR

4-week live online course

Wednesday 7.30-9.00 pm UK time 

Dates:

1, 8, 15, 22 November 2023

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

 

 

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Please note: this course will be taught in the spring semester in the morning. Please go to:

https://lbc.ac.uk/lehrhaus-jewish-studies/#course-17671

Course Description:

The Zohar is a compilation of kabbalistic writings, written mostly at the end of the 13^th century and beginning of the 14^th century. It is canonised as ‘The Holy Zohar’ and continues to inspire and arouse the spirits of all who yearn for a connection with the Torah and the divine. Written in Aramaic in a dense symbolic and coded language, it is not ‘user friendly’, and an introduction to its special style and content is needed when encountering this awe-inspiring literature.  In these four sessions we’ll introduce some of the central doctrines of kabbalah, such as the ein-sof and the sfirot, and read a selection of texts from the Zohar where we’ll travel with the Shekhina, Rabbi Shim’on Bar Yohai, an ancient ass-rider, a rose and more.

Biography: 

Chani Smith (PhD) teaches cantillation at LBC. She studied Kabbalah and musicology at the Hebrew University and wrote a book “Tuning the Soul” about music as a spiritual process in the teachings of R. Nachman of Bratzlav. Currently she researches biblical commentary based on the cantillation accents. Chani is a flautist and composer.

Testimonials:

I loved learning about Jewish Mysticism and its history, I was fascinated by the Sefirot and I enjoyed learning about Rav Luria. The way Dr Smith connected Rabbi Nachman’s stories to sources from the Tanakh and Kabbala was wonderful!

Chani is a wonderful teacher and put so much into each session. Please pass on my admiration and thanks!

Excellent content, and absolutely fabulous teacher. She had a great methodology which enabled me to actually start learning and better understanding what I consider to be something very difficult! I loved every single minute of it.

There was lots to enjoy.  Obviously the core of the course and learning the leyning. However, Chani included lots of other information – history, references to the Talmud, Zohar and other anecdotes/footnotes, which helped contextualise our learning. Chani’s delivery and enthusiasm are deeply appreciated.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen

DIFFICULT WOMEN OR INSPIRATIONAL PROPHETS

4-week live online MORNING course

Thursday 9.00-10.30 am UK time (8.00-9.30 pm AEDT).

Dates:

23, 30 November

7, 14 December 2023

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

For students affiliated to Progressive Jewish communities in Australia the price of this course is £48. Please check the discount box on the registration page.

Please note: this course will be taught in the spring semester in the evening. Please go to:

https://lbc.ac.uk/lehrhaus-jewish-studies/#course-17639

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description:

Rabbi Jill Hammer wrote, ‘Women prophets are particularly troublesome’.  In this four-part course we will meet some of the most difficult women in the Tanach and seek to redeem their reputations. We’ll look for the most marginal and maligned women who were not even recognised as prophets by our own tradition.  We’ll explore the nature of a prophet and the power created in bringing these women together in our readings and see how our study can lead to change in our Jewish world and beyond.

Biography: 

From October 2023 Rabbi Robyn will be studying for a PhD in Rabbinic Leadership and Biblical Studies with the University of Leeds under a AHRC scholarship.  Since her undergraduate degree in Theology and Religious Studies at Newnham College, Cambridge, Robyn worked as a Human Rights lawyer and then began training for the rabbinate at Leo Baeck College.  Upon ordination she worked as Manchester’s first female rabbi at Manchester Reform Synagogue, for a number of years.  Robyn is currently co-chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors in the UK.  Robyn regularly appears in UK media,  is a Pause for Thought contributor and her work has been published in various books and journal.  Robyn is interested in creating safe, anti-oppressive, relational, textured, activist communities built by individuals who are enabled to step into their own power and collectively organise for a more just world.

Testimonials:

Dear Rabbi Robyn. Thank you so much for your ‘Wandering Jews’ course. I found the course as enjoyable as it was stimulating and mind broadening.  It was a great achievement to combine scholarship and rigorous enquiry with fun and joy as you did.  My knowledge and understanding of The Torah both written and oral were enhanced and my appreciation of  their relevance to ideas of time, space, society and action developed.

I learnt much about the Biblical and Rabbinic texts studied and how they are relevant to contemporary thought. Rabbi Robyn succeeded in combining effective teaching and control of the learning process with openness of mind, fun and a sense of joy.

I found the teacher had such a lovely approachable style it was a joy in lockdown to log in and really got the class interacting with each other to delve further into the discussion topics. Was pleased the weekly reading was sent after the class for the following week each week – made it easy to digest.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Professor Melissa Raphael

WOMEN IN MODERN JEWISH PHILOSOPHY, HISTORY AND ART

4-week live online course

Monday 7.30-9.00 pm UK time

Dates: 

6, 13, 20, 27 November 2023

 

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

 

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description: 

This course will open with a comparison of the two biblical accounts of the creation of men and women and will ask how the second, more culturally prevalent account, might have shaped our ideas about the role and nature of women in Judaism and beyond it.

The second session will go on to explore how Jewish feminist understandings of the full humanity of women both affirm and protest key modern Jewish philosophers’ account of the feminine.

The historical focus of the course will be, in the third session, Jewish women’s experiences during Holocaust, and will include discussion of historiographical claims that their biology and gender placed them in ‘double jeopardy’.

Turning, finally, to Jewish women’s art, the course will close with an introduction to the work of four key artists – Joan Semmel, Helène Aylon, Liliane Lijn, and Laurie Simmons – suggesting that in their different ways they have all undertaken the quintessentially Jewish task of breaking false or idolatrous images of women and God.

Biography: 

As well as teaching at Leo Baeck College in the areas of modern Jewish thought and Jewish responses to evil and suffering, Melissa Raphael is Professor Emerita (Jewish Theology) at the University of Gloucestershire and an Associate Lecturer at the University of Chichester. She has been the Sherman Lecturer in Jewish Studies at the University of Manchester; the Hussey Lecturer in the Church and the Arts at the University of Oxford, and the British Government’s Foreign Office delegate to the International Task Force on Holocaust Remembrance and Research.
Professor Raphael is the author of numerous articles and books. Her books include Thealogy and Embodiment: The Post-Patriarchal Reconstruction of Female Sacrality (Sheffield Academic Press, 1996); Rudolf Otto and the Concept of Holiness (Oxford University Press, 1997); The Female Face of God in Auschwitz: A Jewish Feminist Theology of the Holocaust (Routledge, 2003); Judaism and the Visual Image: A Jewish Theology of Art (Continuum, 2009), and Religion, Feminism and Idoloclasm: Being and Becoming in the Women’s Liberation Movement (Routledge, 2019). Melissa is an occasional columnist for The Jewish Chronicle.

Testimonials:

”Melissa’s way of teaching and her point of view, and the ability to watch the recording. I didn’t always want to speak when participants were encouraged to, and there was no problem with that. I appreciated that I could switch between attending live or watch the recording.”

”The intellectual challenge of dealing with some complex concepts. Hearing other participants’ points of view and opinions. Professor Raphael’s teaching style and her facilitation skills.”

”Very engaging and interesting teaching, presented in a way that could be understood by many levels
The materials provided by Melissa before the course were also very helpful/interesting.”

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Dr Renée Reitsma-Jurman

JACOB TAUBES: MESSIANISM, MAYHEM AND APOCALYPSE

4-week online course

Wednesday 7.00-8.30 pm UK time

Dates: 

15, 22, 29 November
6 December 2023

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment before the start of the course.

Course description: 

In this course we will look at the life and works of Jacob Taubes, a 20th Century Rabbi, philosopher, and theologian. A prolific teacher, he only wrote one book, his doctoral dissertation Occidental Eschatology. Two further collections of his work were published: The Political Theology of Paul, based on lectures, and From Cult to Culture, containing short pieces he wrote. We will read most of The Political Theology of Paul as well as excerpts from the other two works, and look at themes of apocalypse, Christianity, and philosophy of history. His life was as interesting as his thought: he developed an obsession with Gershon Scholem, who considered Taubes to be the embodiment of moral evil. Can we seperate the man, as he was in his private life, from his intellectual thought?

Biography: 

Dr. Renée Reitsma-Jurman is a philosopher and librarian living in London with her wife Rabbi Emily Reitsma-Jurman. She wrote her PhD thesis on Nietzsche and sin, and is also interested in philosophy of music and the philosophy of disability. She is passionate about helping people discover lesser known thinkers, and hopes to encourage intellectual curiosity.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen

TEXTS OF TERROR: WHAT DO WE DO WITH OUR MOST VIOLENT TEXTS?

4-week live online course

Monday 7.00-8.30 pm UK time 

Dates:

20, 27 November

4, 11 December 2023

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

Special promotional price for this 4-week course is £30.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Please note: this course will be taught in the spring semester in the morning time. Please go to:

https://lbc.ac.uk/lehrhaus-jewish-studies/#course-17636

Course Description:

Together, and gently, we will study the most violent, abusive and extreme texts in our canon and ask the question, where do we go from here? The biblical scholar Carleen Mandolfo wrote that ‘biblical words have the power to muster armies’.  With texts that carry so much power and potential for harm how do we, instead of casting them aside or ignoring them, find their liberative potential.

Biography: 

From October 2023 Rabbi Robyn will be studying for a PhD in Rabbinic Leadership and Biblical Studies with the University of Leeds under a AHRC scholarship.  Since her undergraduate degree in Theology and Religious Studies at Newnham College, Cambridge, Robyn worked as a Human Rights lawyer and then began training for the rabbinate at Leo Baeck College.  Upon ordination she worked as Manchester’s first female rabbi at Manchester Reform Synagogue, for a number of years.  Robyn is currently co-chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors in the UK.  Robyn regularly appears in UK media,  is a Pause for Thought contributor and her work has been published in various books and journal.  Robyn is interested in creating safe, anti-oppressive, relational, textured, activist communities built by individuals who are enabled to step into their own power and collectively organise for a more just world.

Testimonials:

Dear Rabbi Robyn. Thank you so much for your ‘Wandering Jews’ course. I found the course as enjoyable as it was stimulating and mind broadening.  It was a great achievement to combine scholarship and rigorous enquiry with fun and joy as you did.  My knowledge and understanding of The Torah both written and oral were enhanced and my appreciation of  their relevance to ideas of time, space, society and action developed.

I learnt much about the Biblical and Rabbinic texts studied and how they are relevant to contemporary thought. Rabbi Robyn succeeded in combining effective teaching and control of the learning process with openness of mind, fun and a sense of joy.

I found the teacher had such a lovely approachable style it was a joy in lockdown to log in and really got the class interacting with each other to delve further into the discussion topics. Was pleased the weekly reading was sent after the class for the following week each week – made it easy to digest.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen

DIFFICULT WOMEN OR INSPIRATIONAL PROPHETS

4-week live online course

Tuesday 7.00-8.30 pm UK time 

Dates:

5, 12, 19, 26 March 2024

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course

Course Description:

Rabbi Jill Hammer wrote, ‘Women prophets are particularly troublesome’.  In this four-part course we will meet some of the most difficult women in the Tanach and seek to redeem their reputations. We’ll look for the most marginal and maligned women who were not even recognised as prophets by our own tradition.  We’ll explore the nature of a prophet and the power created in bringing these women together in our readings and see how our study can lead to change in our Jewish world and beyond.

Biography: 

From October 2023 Rabbi Robyn will be studying for a PhD in Rabbinic Leadership and Biblical Studies with the University of Leeds under a AHRC scholarship.  Since her undergraduate degree in Theology and Religious Studies at Newnham College, Cambridge, Robyn worked as a Human Rights lawyer and then began training for the rabbinate at Leo Baeck College.  Upon ordination she worked as Manchester’s first female rabbi at Manchester Reform Synagogue, for a number of years.  Robyn is currently co-chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors in the UK.  Robyn regularly appears in UK media,  is a Pause for Thought contributor and her work has been published in various books and journal.  Robyn is interested in creating safe, anti-oppressive, relational, textured, activist communities built by individuals who are enabled to step into their own power and collectively organise for a more just world.

Testimonials:

Dear Rabbi Robyn. Thank you so much for your ‘Wandering Jews’ course. I found the course as enjoyable as it was stimulating and mind broadening.  It was a great achievement to combine scholarship and rigorous enquiry with fun and joy as you did.  My knowledge and understanding of The Torah both written and oral were enhanced and my appreciation of  their relevance to ideas of time, space, society and action developed.

I learnt much about the Biblical and Rabbinic texts studied and how they are relevant to contemporary thought. Rabbi Robyn succeeded in combining effective teaching and control of the learning process with openness of mind, fun and a sense of joy.

I found the teacher had such a lovely approachable style it was a joy in lockdown to log in and really got the class interacting with each other to delve further into the discussion topics. Was pleased the weekly reading was sent after the class for the following week each week – made it easy to digest.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Dr Chani Smith

INTRODUCTION TO THE ZOHAR

4-week live online MORNING course

10.00-11.30am UK time (8.00-9.30pm AEDT; 7.00-8.30AEST))

Dates: to be confirmed (April – June 2024)

 

 

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

 

 

The price for this 4-week course is £60.

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description:

The Zohar is a compilation of kabbalistic writings, written mostly at the end of the 13^th century and beginning of the 14^th century. It is canonised as ‘The Holy Zohar’ and continues to inspire and arouse the spirits of all who yearn for a connection with the Torah and the divine. Written in Aramaic in a dense symbolic and coded language, it is not ‘user friendly’, and an introduction to its special style and content is needed when encountering this awe-inspiring literature.  In these four sessions we’ll introduce some of the central doctrines of kabbalah, such as the ein-sof and the sfirot, and read a selection of texts from the Zohar where we’ll travel with the Shekhina, Rabbi Shim’on Bar Yohai, an ancient ass-rider, a rose and more.

Biography: 

Chani Smith (PhD) teaches cantillation at LBC. She studied Kabbalah and musicology at the Hebrew University and wrote a book “Tuning the Soul” about music as a spiritual process in the teachings of R. Nachman of Bratzlav. Currently she researches biblical commentary based on the cantillation accents. Chani is a flautist and composer.

Testimonials:

I loved learning about Jewish Mysticism and its history, I was fascinated by the Sefirot and I enjoyed learning about Rav Luria. The way Dr Smith connected Rabbi Nachman’s stories to sources from the Tanakh and Kabbala was wonderful!

Chani is a wonderful teacher and put so much into each session. Please pass on my admiration and thanks!

Excellent content, and absolutely fabulous teacher. She had a great methodology which enabled me to actually start learning and better understanding what I consider to be something very difficult! I loved every single minute of it.

There was lots to enjoy.  Obviously the core of the course and learning the leyning. However, Chani included lots of other information – history, references to the Talmud, Zohar and other anecdotes/footnotes, which helped contextualise our learning. Chani’s delivery and enthusiasm are deeply appreciated.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.

Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen

TEXTS OF TERROR: WHAT DO WE DO WITH OUR MOST VIOLENT TEXTS?

4-week live online course

Thursday 9.00-10.30 pm UK time 

Dates:

7, 14, 21, 28 March 2024

All sessions will be recorded and available to participants for 7 days after the class.

 

Special promotional price for this 4-week course is £30.

Register and Pay

You can pre-book your place by emailing lehrhaus@lbc.ac.uk and you will be asked for payment about two weeks before the start of the course.

Course Description:

Together, and gently, we will study the most violent, abusive and extreme texts in our canon and ask the question, where do we go from here? The biblical scholar Carleen Mandolfo wrote that ‘biblical words have the power to muster armies’.  With texts that carry so much power and potential for harm how do we, instead of casting them aside or ignoring them, find their liberative potential.

Biography: 

From October 2023 Rabbi Robyn will be studying for a PhD in Rabbinic Leadership and Biblical Studies with the University of Leeds under a AHRC scholarship.  Since her undergraduate degree in Theology and Religious Studies at Newnham College, Cambridge, Robyn worked as a Human Rights lawyer and then began training for the rabbinate at Leo Baeck College.  Upon ordination she worked as Manchester’s first female rabbi at Manchester Reform Synagogue, for a number of years.  Robyn is currently co-chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors in the UK.  Robyn regularly appears in UK media,  is a Pause for Thought contributor and her work has been published in various books and journal.  Robyn is interested in creating safe, anti-oppressive, relational, textured, activist communities built by individuals who are enabled to step into their own power and collectively organise for a more just world.

Testimonials:

Dear Rabbi Robyn. Thank you so much for your ‘Wandering Jews’ course. I found the course as enjoyable as it was stimulating and mind broadening.  It was a great achievement to combine scholarship and rigorous enquiry with fun and joy as you did.  My knowledge and understanding of The Torah both written and oral were enhanced and my appreciation of  their relevance to ideas of time, space, society and action developed.

I learnt much about the Biblical and Rabbinic texts studied and how they are relevant to contemporary thought. Rabbi Robyn succeeded in combining effective teaching and control of the learning process with openness of mind, fun and a sense of joy.

I found the teacher had such a lovely approachable style it was a joy in lockdown to log in and really got the class interacting with each other to delve further into the discussion topics. Was pleased the weekly reading was sent after the class for the following week each week – made it easy to digest.

We will be using ZOOM for all sessions. Here are some steps to take before the start of the course in order to ensure maximum connectivity and experience. To get you started with Zoom, please click on the link below for some basic information:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-How-Do-I-Join-A-Meeting-

Please test your connection to Zoom here.