 STUDY SESSIONS
"Crises of Identity among 17th Century Amsterdam Jews: The Case of Barukh/Benedictus Spinoza" Dr. Benjamin Gampel
Benedictus Spinoza is probably one of the most famous heretics in Jewish history. Born Barukh in 1632, he was excommunicated on July 27, 1656 by the Jewish community in Amsterdam where he lived. In this session, we will follow the life and thought of Barukh/Benedictus within the social and religious contexts that nourished him. We will attempt to understand how and why Amsterdam Jews rejected him; and why today the Jewish community seeks ways of incorporating him and his ideas back into our notion of the Jewish community and of Judaism. Along the way we will learn much about the nature of identity within modern Jewish culture, how we treat individuals who return today to the Jewish fold, and what we do with the ideas they bring with them.
“Mitzvah or Magic? Debates over Amulets, Talismans, and Harnessing the Power of God” Dr. Jonathan Ray Jewish sacred texts often refer to mysticism as being the highest level of religious experience – the key to truly understanding God. Nonetheless, those same texts and many of their rabbinic interpreters warn against the use or even the study of mysticism for all but a select few. For most Jewish scholars, popular mysticism, including the use of amulets as a means of harnessing divine power, is little more than false magic. For many Jews, however, it has been a fundamental part of their religious practice. Join us as we explore the differing ways in which rabbis and lay people have approached the subject of mystical experience as a feature of daily Jewish life. "Zionism and its Critics: Past and Present"
Dr. Nancy Sinkoff
Modern Zionism emerged out of the experience of 19th-century European Jewry as one of many responses to the challenge of defining modern Jewish life, and later influenced Jewish life outside the European diaspora (i.e., in the United States) as well as in Ottoman Palestine. Within the Zionist camp there existed many disparate visions of what the new movement stood for and how it would address Jewish political insecurities and cultural problems. At the same time, there were many modern Jews who insisted that Jewish life could flourish in the Diaspora and others who rejected Zionism completely as a distortion of Jewish messianic hope. Together we will explore a range of Jewish sources on Zionism and grapple with what they mean for us today when Zionism’s goal of establishing a sovereign state for the Jews has been a resounding success, but one that is still faced with many challenges.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
“The Internal Contradictions of the Jewish Soul"
Professor Arnold M. Eisen, Chancellor of JTS
PROGRAM SCHEDULE
5:00 – 5:25 pm Registration and Welcome
5:30 – 6:20 pm Study Session I 6:20 – 7:00 pm Dinner 7:05 – 7:55 pm Study Session II
8:00 – 9:00 pm Keynote
9:00 pm Dessert
ASL interpretation is available upon request. If you require ASL interpretation, please contact Tani Schwartz-Herman ([email protected]) at least seven business days prior to the program so that we can arrange for an interpreter.
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