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Snowballing Interest in Jewish Learning around the Country The snowballing interest in Jewish learning among “secular” Israelis can be gauged in many ways. One is by looking at the media. Ha-Aretz, a major daily newspaper, recently completed an extensive series of articles on what reporter Yair Sheleg dubbed “the fourth stream” in Judaism, the involvement of secular Jews in Jewish ritual and learning, and secular oriented practice. The media also highlighted a milestone in the burgeoning enterprise of secular Jewish learning: the inauguration of Israel’s first secular yeshiva. With its main goal being tikkun olam, activities include not only Jewish studies and an emphasis on Jewish social justice, but also community involvement and Jewish social action projects. Sponsored by Bina, it is starting off with 150 young adults. When fully operational it will encompass over 500 students including post high school aged youth in a five-year track (with full I.D.F. army service); college-aged students (with possible accreditation); young adults in work-study frameworks; Jewish college graduates from abroad who will come for a year of study & community service; and young adults in the community through various holiday celebrations, study sessions, lectures and more. These and other developments will be spotlighted in future newsletters. Another measure of success is the mushrooming of batei midrash, study groups, and learning communities – groups of people who get together on a regular basis throughout the year to study and discuss Jewish texts with the help of a facilitator, instructor, or lecturer. Whether they are attached to a local institution or congregation, or sponsored by a national organization, when their focus is Jewish pluralism they have one thing in common: open and egalitarian dialogue and joint study of Jewish sources.
Looking at Panim’s Portal to Jewish Pluralism in Israel A glace at the Panim web site and its calendar of events shows just how many of the organizations and communities involved in Jewish renaissance run batei midrash, study groups, learning communities, as well as courses throughout the year. More information is just a click away. The examples here are just a sampler of what is being offered, all around the country.
A click on one link brings “surfers” to the beit midrash at Alma College for the study of Hebrew culture. Like others around the country, it held an open session “A New Year – New Beginnings,” before Rosh HaShanah, a chance for potential participants to whet their appetites for learning throughout the year. Among the plethora of offerings for the academic year is the Seminar HaKibbutzim’s joint learning experience that fosters discourse between religious and secular. Another link leads to an invitation to join Bina’s weekly study group on the Torah portion, which is open to the public and free of charge. It takes place every Thursday in the Shapira Community Center in one of Tel Aviv’s poorer neighborhoods and features guest lecturers.
In addition to a variety of batei midrash for specific groups, the Yaacov Herzog Center for Jewish Studies, located in the south of the country, runs a yearlong study and field trip program called “Hiking with the Bible.” The Center, which serves as a platform for observant and secular Jewish dialogue, also sponsors “The Days Pass, A Year Goes By”, a weekly journey along the paths of the Jewish-Israeli calendar with speakers including rabbis, authors, members of the academic community, and journalists.
Elul, an organization established in 1989 to address the schism between religious and secular Israelis, sponsors over 20 study communities from Ma’alot in the north to Beersheba in the south. Encompassing women and men from a wide range of social, cultural, and religious backgrounds, each study community meets once a week. They also hold several “open evenings” throughout the year for the general public that feature popular speakers and study sessions.
The Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism (the Reform Movement in Israel) also runs several batei midrash around the country in their congregations and in major centers. For example, the Gevanim beit midrash in Tel Aviv is running a series on Hasidism in the fall, followed by another on “Ethics, Physics, and the Legal and Judicial Systems in Light of Kabbalah.” Like the other organizations, the IMPJ’s batei midrash open their doors to anyone who wants to learn more about the “Jewish bookshelf.”
Among its other outreach activities, Meitar, the College of Judaism as Culture, is running, for the second year in a row, a beit midrash in Kfar Sava in conjunction with the municipality. This year the topic is “The Family as Reflected in Jewish Culture” and the texts will be taken from the weekly Torah portion. The sessions will combine lectures and study in pairs (Hevrutot), and incorporate the Bible, psychology, literature, and art.
To rephrase Elul’s message, it is the hope of these and other institutions that the various study groups and batei midrash will generate dialogue around Jewish sources, strengthen Jewish culture within the community at large, and create a common language and Jewish solidarity, even when division exists.
This handful of examples, gleaned from Panim’s web site, provides only a thumbnail sketch of what is available around the country. With the completion of renovations, the site will become an even more effective portal for these and other initiatives.
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