Image: Quilt by Barbara Kadden RJE, z”l, Genesis 12:1: YHVH said to Abram, “Go forth from your native land and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” Photo by Ruth Adar.
Do you identify as Jewish, but feel like an outsider to Jewish community? Have you been assigned to take an “Intro” class? Would you like to explore Judaism as an adult, with adult topics and choices?
This summer I am teaching Part A of “Introduction to the Jewish Experience,” a class designed to equip students for full participation in Jewish community. No Hebrew is required, although students will acquire some basic Hebrew or Yiddish vocabulary they are likely to encounter in Jewish settings.
The full course consists of three terms of eight sessions each. The terms may be taken in any order. This summer we will be offering Jewish Holidays and Life Cycle. This term consists of a basic introduction to Jewish theology, the cycle of the Jewish year, and to the Jewish life cycle from cradle to grave.
I shall offer “Part B: Israel and Texts” in Fall 2020 and “Part C: Jewish Diversity: A Big Jewish World,” in Winter 2020.
The course includes:
- Welcome & Shabbat
- God, Covenant, Mitzvah
- Fall Holiday Cycle: High Holy Days, Sukkot, Simchat Torah
- Spring Holiday Cycle: Purim, Passover, Shavuot
- National Holidays: Chanukah, Tu B’Shevat, The Yoms, Tisha B’Av
- Death and Mourning in Jewish Communities
- Birth and Conversion – Welcoming New Jews
- Bar/Bat Mitzvah and Jewish Weddings
Classes will meet via Zoom on Sunday afternoons, Sunday, July 19, 2020 thru Sunday, September 6, 2020, 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM Pacific Time. For information about tuition (which is on a sliding scale) and registration, please visit the course page in the HAMAQOM | The Place online catalog.
