Jewish Ideas to Change the World
Religion & Spirituality:Judaism
A virtual, five-part series presented by Professor Eitan P. Fishbane
About the event:
In what would become the legendary kabbalistic hilltop town of Tzfat in the 1500s—the birthplace of such timeless texts as Lekha Dodi and Yedid Nefesh; a location whose larger-than-life figures included such luminaries as Rabbi Yosef Karo, Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Rabbi Yitzhak Luria (the ARI), and many others— there unfolded one of the most remarkable chapters in the entire history of Judaism, and Jewish mysticism in particular. Through a variety of concerns, ideas, and genres of writing, the mystics of this time and place expressed a pronounced focus on the nature of the human self and spiritual psychology: its essence and character, its fundamental state of relationship to Divinity. In the sessions of this course, we will explore a range of these issues and modes of creativity as they appeared in sixteenth-century Tzfat. We will explore such major topics as Soul, Body, and Reincarnation (Gilgul); The Ethics and Piety of Self-Transformation (Kabbalistic Musar); Mystical Autobiography; Emotion, Feeling, and Mind. Please join us as we dive deeply into this fascinating and inspiring landscape of ideas, feelings, and spirituality!
About the Speaker:
Dr. Eitan Fishbane is a Professor of Jewish Thought at The Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS), where he has taught for 17 years. A 2015-2016 JTS Chancellor’s Fellow, Fishbane has served on the JTS Faculty Executive Committee; as a B.A. and M.A. Advisor in Jewish Thought; and on The Rabbinical School Council. He is a former Division Chair for Jewish Mysticism at the Association for Jewish Studies (AJS); current Chair of the Oxford Interfaith Forum on Mysticism; and Book Review Editor for Jewish Mysticism at The Marginalia Review of Books. He is the recipient of grants from The Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture and The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), as well as the Charles A. Ryskamp Fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS). Among Professor Fishbane’s published books are: The Art of Mystical Narrative: A Poetics of the Zohar (Oxford University Press, 2018); As Light Before Dawn: The Inner World of a Medieval Kabbalist (Stanford University Press, 2009); and, most recently, Embers of Pilgrimage (Panui Poetry Series, 2021). He is currently at work on several book projects, among them Shabbat in Ḥasidic Thought: Sacred Time and Mystical Consciousness; Self & Identity in Sixteenth-Century Kabbalah; and The Zohar as Mystical Poetry. In addition to these academic projects, Fishbane is working on a spiritual-theological commentary on the Torah cycle and the Jewish holidays, tentatively entitled, Written on the Heart: Meditations & Readings; and he is completing his second volume of original poetry, entitled, Soul Fragments. Fishbane received his Ph.D. and B.A., summa cum laude, from Brandeis University. Visit him at www.eitanfishbane.com.
Third-Party Peacemakers in Judaism: Text, Theory, and Practice (Book Talk) – Rabbi Dr. Daniel Roth
King David: Man of War and Politics, Man of God, Man of Contradictions. Based on a close reading of the Books of Samuel – Rabbi Dr. Jeremy Rosen
Interview: Aaron Lipkin, Ofra
The Tragedy of Heruta: The Madonna who Became a Whore – Gila Fine
Power of the Image: Photographic Thoughts on Torah Values – Shira Hecht-Koller
Messianism, Zionism, and Religious Radicalism: Spiritualties in Israel – Rabbi Menachem Creditor
Shmitta: From Biblical Narratives to Contemporary Perspectives – Dr. Rabbi Avital Hochstein
My Journey in Science and Engineering as a Torah Observant Jewish Woman – Dr. Rosa Krajmalnik-Brown
Devorah the Prophet: A Model of Leadership Irrespective of Gender – Rabbi Dina Najman
Finding God in Pain – Rabbi Morris Panitz
From Avoiding to Embracing: Rav Kook and the future of Shmita – Rabbi Yedidya Sinclair
To Be a Holy People, Jewish Tradition and Ethical Values – Rabbi Eugene Korn
Exciting Update: New Podcasts by Valley Beit Midrash!
Interview: Rabbi Dr. Art Green – The Relationship Between Spirituality and Ethics
Professor Jonathan Sarna – White Supremacy & Antisemitism: Lessons from the Capitol Attack
Interview: Rabbi Susan Silverman – The State of Liberal Judaism in Israel
Rabbi Joseph Telushkin – The Twenty-First Century: A Jewish Vision, One Day At A Time
Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller – The Biblical Plagues and OUR Plague: An Anthropocentric “Theology” and a Lesson for Our Times
Rabba Dr Lindsey Taylor-Guthartz – Suffering Servants: How to Deal with the Missionary at the Door
Dr. Alan Morinis and Dr. Beverly Spring – Living to Die and Dying to Live: Lessons from a Mussar Teacher & a Palliative Care Doctor
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