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BTI Consortium | Last Updated November 14 - 9:00AM
Hebrew College
School
Hebrew College
INT510-1
From Diversity to Pluralism: Religious Leadership in an Interreligious Age (Section 1)
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
SP25
We live in one of the most religiously diverse societies in the history of humankind. How can we cultivate an ethos of dignified engagement both within our communities of practice and across religious traditions? What are the ethical underpinnings - values and dispositions - that support such an effort? What theological resources might we draw on for this sacred work? What are some historical and contemporary models of individual and communal engagement that we can learn from as we develop our intra/interreligious leadership capacities?
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Or Rose
JTERM
JTERM
Grades
Audit
Credits
0
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Events & classes during week of January 21-January 24
School
Hebrew College
INT600
Introduction to Islam for Jewish Leaders
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
SP25
In this intensive course students will explore key concepts, practices, and historical events from the Islamic tradition. Special attention will be given to the interaction of Jews and Muslims, past and present. We will also explore specific challenges and opportunities facing contemporary Muslims in the United States. The course will be taught by Imam Taymullah Abdur Rahman, who has served as imam for Harvard University, the Massachusetts Department of Correction, and Northeastern University. The course will include presentations by religious and cultural figures and a morning at a local mosque. At the end of this intensive course students will:
- Gain a broad-based understanding of the traditional beliefs and practices of Islam
- Understand the differences in the many iterations and offshoots of Islam around the globe
- Learn about the role that Jews play both in the Quran as well as in the historical narra-tive(s) of Islam
- Explore the experiences, priorities, and challenges of contemporary Muslims in the United States
Professor
Class Day & Time
Omer Bajwa
JTERM
JTERM
Grades
Audit
Credits
0
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
N
School
Hebrew College
BIB501
Core Text - Torah 1: Bereshit 2
BTI Category
Semester
Scripture & Biblical Studies
SP25
The Jacob Saga and Joseph and His Brothers. Colorful coats, dreams and near fratricide, famine, exile, and reconciliation mark the dramatic narrative of Jacob & Wives & Sons (and daughter) in the last half of Bereshit. This course will engage in a careful reading of the biblical text, drawing on medieval commentators and midrash, as well as modern literary responses, from Israeli poetry to Thomas Mann's great novel, Joseph and His Brothers. In addition to honing our text skills, we will consider various themes such as the problem of continuity/discontinuity (toledot), dreams and their interpretation, deception and recognition, and teshuvah, as well as the consequences of long-abiding family secrets and shame.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Dr. Rachel Adelman
TF - see note
See notes
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Tuesdays, 2:30 - 4:00 pm and Fridays, 11:30 am - 1:00 pm, February 3rd to May 9th; Non-Hebrew College students may take this class only with permission from the instructor.
School
Hebrew College
CTL609
Nusah Improvisation for Tefillah Leaders
BTI Category
Semester
Judaic Studies
SP25
The essence of nusah is improvisation l'Shem Shamayim. The texts of our prayers are codified in the siddur, but the kavanah, the meaning we breathe into these words is through song. In this class, students with a foundational knowledge of Ashkenazi Shabbat nusah will learn modal improvisation, primarily by ear, so we may truly sing to God a new (modally-informed) song.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Jessica Kate Meyer
W
3:00 to 5:00 pm
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Wednesdays, February 3rd to May 9th; This class is suited to experienced daveners and students with a musical background and a working knowledge of Ashkenazi Shabbat nusah and liturgy.
School
Hebrew College
HBW511
Foundations of Biblical Hebrew 2
BTI Category
Semester
Languages
SP25
This course is an intensive introduction to Biblical Hebrew. A basic familiarity with Hebrew is presumed, _including a working knowledge of the major Binyanim. Working in _coordination with the course "Introduction to Reading Tanakh", grammatical concepts will be applied to the decoding _of texts studied in that course. Texts studied may include midrash, rabbinical commentary, and modern Hebrew songs, thereby affording students guidance and practice in reading such texts. _
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Navah Levine
MRF
9:15 - 10:45 am
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, February 3rd to May 9th
School
Hebrew College
RAB517
Introduction to Mishnah 2
BTI Category
Semester
Preaching, Liturgy, & Ritual
SP25
This course is a continuation of RAB514, Introduction to Mishnah and Jewish Practice Seminar 1. It is an intensive introduction to the form and content of the Mishnah, the first code of rabbinic law. Students will gain familiarity with classical rabbinic syntax, rhetoric, ritual, theology, building a foundation for further study of rabbinic literature. In addition, this course will help students to cultivate a relationship to the Mishnah as a guide to grounding, innovating and evolving Jewish practice today.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Matthew Hass
MW
See notes
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
3
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
Y
Notes
Mondays 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm & Wednesdays 11:45 am - 1:15 pm, February 3rd to May 9th; Prerequisite: RAB514 or permission from the instructor
School
Hebrew College
INT510-2
From Diversity to Pluralism: Religious Leadership in an Interreligious Age (Section 2)
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
SP25
We live in one of the most religiously diverse societies in the history of humankind. How can we cultivate an ethos of dignified engagement both within our communities of practice and across religious traditions? What are the ethical underpinnings - values and dispositions - that support such an effort? What theological resources might we draw on for this sacred work? What are some historical and contemporary models of individual and communal engagement that we can learn from as we develop our intra/interreligious leadership capacities?
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Or Rose
JTERM
JTERM
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Events & classes during week of January 21-January 24 w/academic reuirements due by end of May
School
Hebrew College
PHI147
Introduction to Buddhism for Jewish Leaders
BTI Category
Semester
Interreligious Learning
SP25
This course introduces the foundations of Buddhism in India, integrating doctrinal and meditative traditions while tracing their development through the three vehicles (yanas) throughout Asia. Topics include ethics and wisdom, emptiness and compassion, and the inherent wakefulness of all beings. Special attention will be given to Tibetan Buddhism, which has resonated with Judaism on such a fundamental level, including an introduction to the deity traditions of Tibet. The course will include a map of American Buddhist communities and a discussion of Jewish-Buddhist dialogue, double-belonging, and secular mindfulness. The week will close with a visit to a Boston Buddhist meditation center.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Dr. Judith Simmer-Brown and Dr. Amelia Hall
JTERM
JTERM
Grades
Audit
Credits
0
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
N
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Events & classes during week of January 21-January 24 w/academic reuirements due by end of May
School
Hebrew College
BIB508
"But where is the Sheep for the Sacrifice?" The Binding of Isaac in Modern Israeli Literature
BTI Category
Semester
Scripture & Biblical Studies
SP25
The motif of Isaac's Binding (the 'Aqedah, Genesis 22) has become a prism in Israeli Literature for exploring the tensions between collective identity and existential yearning, sacrifice and secularization, religious zealotry and maternal love. We will discuss this motif through the poetry of Yehuda Amichai (among others), the short stories and memoir of Amos Oz (among others), modern feminist midrash from Dirshuni, and selections from David Grossman's novel, To the End of the Land. Topics include: secularism vs. religious tradition; gender and ethnicity; and Palestinian Arab and Jewish-Israeli relations. Alongside primary literary sources in translation we will read a number of critical texts about Israeli culture and society.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Dr. Rachel Adelman
R
4:15 - 5:45 pm
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Thursdays, February 3rd to May 9th; *Hebrew language would be an advantage but not required. All texts will be available in translation.
School
Hebrew College
EDU850
Foundations of Jewish Education
BTI Category
Semester
Judaic Studies
SP25
Jewish Education is a practical art that has a theoretical base with application to practice. It has roots in Western industrial schooling as well as traditional pedagogies of teaching and learning in rabbinic antiquity. Recent innovation has drawn upon social, emotional and spiritual modes of learning to redefine Jewish Education for the 21st century. Jewish Education is a vast field including all kinds of schooling, camping, experiential and wilderness learning as well as college campus and adult and community learning. Students will be introduced to relevant theories and key pedagogical methods in the field of Jewish education so that they become familiar with the discourse of the field and can be skilled, innovative and knowledgeable about Jewish teaching and learning. The course incorporates the ways in which ordination students will utilize educational frameworks and approaches in their specific clergy roles.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Dr. Michael Shire
M
2:30 to 4:00 pm
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Mondays, February 3rd to May 9th
School
Hebrew College
LGY591
Siddur
BTI Category
Semester
Preaching, Liturgy, & Ritual
SP25
Transform words of liturgy into words of prayer. We will focus our attention on the weekday Shacharit service because it offers a foundation for understanding many other Jewish tefillah liturgies and because it is the primary tefillah experience we will engage in together at Hebrew College. We will spend some time on liturgical variations for Shabbat and holidays. We will use Nusah Ashkenaz as our base text because it is the most common liturgy used in North America, though we will note some moments of liturgical variation with Nusah Sefard.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Jessica Kate Meyer
T
2:30 - 4:00 pm
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
N
Notes
Tuesdays, February 3rd to May 9th
School
Hebrew College
RAB518
Hilkhot Tefillah
BTI Category
Semester
Preaching, Liturgy, & Ritual
SP25
This course will introduce students to primary halachic texts relating to tefillah in terms of personal practice and prayer leadership. We will study both Ashkenazi and Sephardic sources that explore the traditional obligations one has as a Jew and as a leader with regard to tefillah. What are the daily obligations? What are the required characteristics of a shaliach tzibbur? What are the rules surrounding the reading of Torah to the community? We will begin to think about all of these questions as we experiment with practice and look around our school and our local communities to see how tefillah is lived in our surrounding environment.
Professor
Class Day & Time
Rabbi Allan Lehmann
R
11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Grades
PF or Audit
Credits
2
Online?
N
Professor Approval Req'd?
Y
Prerequisites?
Y
Notes
Thursdays, February 3rd to May 9th; Requires Hebrew 6 or above
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