Adult Education Courses

Exciting new course in the Fall, 2013

Exploring Jewish Identity:
History and Traditions of Mizrachi, Sephardi, and Ashkenazi Cultures

As Jewish families become increasingly multi-cultural, how do we understand the complexities of American Jewish identity? How do we define our own identity or offer our children a meaningful sense of communal selfhood? This course offers a starting point for a community conversation about assimilation, race, class, and cultural heritage. We will explore three primary Jewish cultural journeys: Mizrachi, Sephardi, and Ashkenazi. Through engaging with the history and traditions of these three cultures, we will also deconstruct these categories, as we consider the diversity of Jewish communities in the United States and around the world.

7 Selected Sunday Sessions, beginning October 6.

Join us for Coffee and Bagels at 10:30am. Class at 10:45am - 12:15pm.

Advance Registration Required. REGISTER HERE.

Schedule: Oct. 6, Oct. 20th, Nov. 3rd, Nov. 17th, Nov. 24th, Dec. 8th, Dec 15th. 

We are very excited to have a number of expert instructors on these topics:

Prof. Jonathan Decter: Professor of Sephardic Studies at Brandeis University (2 Sessions on Mizrachi Culture)

Prof. Gloria Ascher: Co-Director of Judaic Studies at Tufts University (2 Sessions on Sephardi Culture)

Reb Moshe Waldoks: Rabbi at Temple Beth Zion, PhD in Jewish Intellectual History (2 Sessions on Ashkenazi Culture)

Mitchell Silver: Senior Lecterer in Philosophy at UMASS Boston and Tufts University (1 Session on the Idea and Politics of American Jewish Identity)

 

See flyer here.

Our adult education programming is geared toward exploring the meaning of Jewish history, ritual, and thought from a secular perspective. Courses are taught by highly qualified and stimulating guest instructors.

There are usually two courses each year, one in the fall and one in the spring. The number of sessions ranges from four to six, and tuition varies. Pre-registration is required. At least once every two years we offer a basic Jewish literacy course for new members.

Whether you are Jewish or non-Jewish, and whatever your level of Jewish knowledge, we invite you to learn, question and challenge your thinking.

Past courses include:

  • U.S. Labor Post-WWII: From Reds Under the Bed to the War on Public Sector Workers
  • History of the Jewish Left
  • Jewish Literacy 101
  • Zionism and the Roads not Taken
  • Islam 101
  • From Religion to Nation: The Evolution of Modern Jewish Identity