Limmud Festival 2022

Limmud Festival 2022 – Tuesday 18:20

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A shtetl called Tel Aviv

Samuel Rosenberg 

Orange 10

In the early days of Tel Aviv, many hasidic rebbes established their 'courts' in the city. In this session we will learn about the hasidic history of the first Hebrew city. Shmuel Rosenberg was born into a hasidic family in Tel Aviv.

Calm is a body state: unwinding the body patterns of fear, anxiety and stress, using the Feldenkrais method

Emma Alter 

Red 7

Feldenkrais is a sensory-motor learning method, invaluable in reducing musculo-skeletal pain. It's used in both sports and arts to further refine top-level performance. This floor-based session uses gentle yet profound movements, breathwork and awareness to unwind physical tension, stress and anxiety, for a calmer you. Bring a mat/blanket.

Canine pioneer: the extraordinary life of Rudolphina Menzel

Susan Kahn 

Blue 34

A discussion of the life of Rudolphina Menzel (née Waltuch, 1891–1973), a Viennese-born, Jewish scientist whose pioneering research on canine psychology and behaviour shaped the ways dogs came to be trained, cared for and understood. Teaching Jews to like dogs and training dogs to serve Jews became Menzel’s unique kind of Zionist mission.

'Eshet Chayil' from scratch, a new setting by Judith Silver

Judith Silver 

Purple 31

Judith composed her 'Eshet Chayil' ('A woman of worth') in early 2020 as a commission for Kolot HaLev Choir in Maryland USA. It hasn't yet been performed live. We'll learn some of this substantial piece together, possibly recording some bits if they sound great! This session will suit music readers/experienced singers/quick learners best, though all are welcome.

 Eshet Hayil, J Silver.pdf

How to change your life – approaching forgiveness

Elie Jesner 

Red 2

We are often told how important it is to forgive people, but how realistic is that demand? Are there some things that are unforgivable, or individuals who do not deserve to be forgiven? And even if we are able to forgive others, why do we find it so difficult to forgive ourselves? Our reflection will use psychoanalytic and Jewish approaches.

 Forgiveness Source Sheet 2022 .pdf

In with the new: renewal in Jewish culture

Olga Lempert 

Red 4

We will examine the concept of renewal in Jewish culture - a fundamental element across the board, from religion to language and more - using the renewal process that the National Library of Israel (NLI) is undertaking, and its new building, as a metaphor. The illustrations shown in the session will be from the unique treasures held in the NLI's collections.

Jewish recipes for writing: on-the-page experiments about family, food and memory

Bess Welden 

Blue 33

Join playwright Bess Welden for an interactive creative-writing workshop. We’ll use the structure of recipes as a springboard into short writing activities that will help us explore our connections to Jewish food, our families and our memories about both. No previous writing experience necessary, just a willingness to get curious and playful.

The first rule of halakhic change...

Shaul Robinson 

Red 3

....is that we don't talk about halakhic change! We will examine something that was once seen as completely forbidden in Orthodox synagogues (indeed some yeshivas would retract the rabbinic ordination of rabbis who did this) but is now almost universally accepted. Which begs the questions - when, how and why does Jewish law change? And when does it not?

The Song of Songs – love in the time of tyranny: 3. A radical work (3 of 3)

Andrew Levy 

Yellow 21

In the final part of a three-part series, we will look at how radical the Song of Songs is – what it has to say about the relationship between the town and countryside, rich and poor, and men and women. Finally, we will ask ourselves if there's anything more we can say about the real hero of the Song of Songs – the person who wrote it.

 Andrew Levy Session 3 Limmud 2022.pdf

The international community and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (3 of 3)

Gershon Baskin  Samer Sinijlawi 

Red 1

The two-state solution was created by the United Nations. The international community is an active player in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Could the international community have a role to play in its resolution? What could and should the international community do to help the two parties resolve the conflict?

'Love your neighbour as yourself' (Leviticus 19:18) = 'Choose them an easy death' (Talmud)

Daniel Goldfarb 

Orange 11

Death was once an 'event' - it happened. Today it is a 'process' - often long, burdensome and painful for all involved. Recently some jurisdictions have legislated 'death with dignity' and 'assisted death' laws to make the end of life easier. We’ll look at stories and texts to see what the options may be and how Judaism views them.

What is the future for Jewish Barnet?

Andrew Gilbert  Ella Rose  Anne Clarke 

Orange 14

20% of Anglo-Jewry, and over 33% of London Jews, live in the borough of Barnet. Jews number more than 1 in 6 of its inhabitants, and a third of its councillors are Jewish. Now that Barnet has switched to Labour, what will that mean for housing, health, education, the climate emergency and cohesion?

'Stolpersteine' (stumbling stones): memorials to Europe’s murdered Jews

John Dunston 

Yellow 22

"To be remembered, that was all they wanted .... their names .... not to be forgotten" (Elie Wiesel). This illustrated talk explores the story of the Stolpersteine, the 'stumbling stones' now to be found all over Europe, outside the buildings where Jewish individuals and families once lived before being deported and murdered in the Holocaust.

A taste of the Queer Yeshiva

Hava Carvajal  Joanna Phillips 

Orange 12

Join us to study the Talmud, a beautiful and subversive text at the heart of traditional Judaism. Created by radicals who wanted to reinvent their religion, it teaches us how to think outside of binaries. Part of this session will be spent looking at Talmud in chevruta (study pairs). All levels of Hebrew, genders and sexualities welcome.

 Queer Yeshiva Limmud.docx

Judaism for Arabs

Elhanan Miller 

Red 5

Five years ago I founded People of the Book, an initiative geared at teaching Arabs about Jews and Judaism using viral videos disseminated on social media. What have been the successes and faux pas of this endeavour?

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