Evening Classes
SUNDAY –
The Sacred Text
Rabbi Dr. Julian Ungar
7:30-8:30PM Jan 13-March 9
Can we find ways of opening texts rather than closing them off in posterity and sacredness? How do we go about a new type of reading, allowing texts to illuminate our lives and inform our struggles? We shall be studying texts that have been hallowed in Jewish legend in an effort to re-read and re-imagine them in a different key. We will then attempt to see how such oblique vision alters the perspective field of the text so that we, even this late into our history, might add our own post-modern voice to the canon. No Hebrew background is required. Bring an open mind!
MONDAY –
Mechanics of an Observant Lifestyle
Rachel Kohl Finegold
7:30-8:30PM Jan 14-March 5
Whether or not you were raised in an observant home, the day-to-day realities of observing halacha can often feel daunting or confusing. This will serve as a “how to” course grounded in the “why’s” of halachic observance. Topics include: heating food on Shabbat, Jewish wedding and funeral practices, prayer (in the synagogue and at home), and a hands-on Kashrut workshop in the home of Jill Fox and Joel Freimuth.
TUESDAY –
Community Scholar Lecture Series
Gary Shapiro: An Introduction to Rabbinic Psychology
7:30-9:00PM Feb 12, 19
Centuries before Freud, the rabbis of the Talmud and Midrash taught that powerful human desires shape our behavior—for good and for bad. The term yetzer, meaning “drive” or “inclination,” was used to describe these aspects of human nature. We will closely examine some Biblical and Rabbinic sources which analyze the human soul, and which suggest techniques for guiding those passions that influence ethical conduct.
Ilana Segal: Synagogue Architecture
7:30-8:30PM Feb 26
We will discuss the obscure origins of the synagogue, including the Galilean synagogue architecture and mosaics from Roman period, the wall paintings at Dura Europus, Medieval Spanish manuscripts that depict pre-expulsion synagogue scenes, Prague's Alt-neu Shul, the elaborate wooden synagogues and arks of Eastern Europe, the Moorish influence in 19th century synagogue architecture and some modernist synagogues from the Chicago area.
TUESDAY (cont’d) –
Judy Finkelstein-Taff: Hands-on Holidays
7:30-8:30 PM March 11
What can we as parents do to create family traditions around the holidays? What can we do for ages 5-15 so we include the whole family? You are invited to bring your ideas and past experiences and hear about new ways to bring meaning and joy to the upcoming Purim Holiday. Mishenichnas Adar Marbim b'simcha - let's explore Purim together!
WEDNESDAY –
Exploring the Siddur
Rabbi Asher Lopatin
7:30-8:30PM Jan 16, 23, 30, Feb 5
Do the words of the tefilot sometimes whiz by without giving you a chance to think? Join us for an in-depth look at some of our most common prayers.
Beginners Talmud
Rabbi Asher Lopatin
7:30-8:30PM Feb 13, 20, March 4, 11
Start Passover early this year! For those who have never studied Talmud before, here is a chance to learn about this popular holiday through the pages of the Talmud, Judaism’s most studied Rabbinic text.
THURSDAY –
Behind the Veil: A Mystical Glimpse into the Torah Portion
Rabbi Yehoshua Karsh
8:00-9:00PM Jan 17-March 13
(Class will meet at 7:30 PM on Feb 14)
Each week, explore a theme developed out of the weekly Torah portion. The classes are mystical, psychological, and experiential. No particular background is required, just curiosity and a sense of humor.
A Taste of Melton
Keith Kantor
Numerous ASBI members have taken a Melton course, and now it’s your turn! The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School – a project of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem – invites ASBI members to experience a “Taste of Melton” in two sessions:
February 14, 8:15-9:15PM at ASBI
(Revelation: Torah and Halacha)
February 21, 7:15-8:15PM at the Melton School at Anshe Emet
(Theology in Practice: Driving on Shabbat).
Advanced registration is required.
To register, please call (847) 410-3900
*As a founding member of Melton’s Lakeview Consortium, ASBI members are entitled to a special discount when they register
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