Talmud Levels I and II
We will study a tractate of the Babylonian Talmud. Level I will focus on acquiring a fundamental vocabulary of Aramaic words and Talmudic concepts and on understanding how the Talmud builds on earlier tannaitic texts. Level II will include an in depth study of gaonic and medieval commentaries on the Babylonian Talmud.
Level I: Sara Wolkenfeld
Level II: Joshua Schreier
Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Left-handed Assassins and Wild-haired Supermen: A Study of the Book of Judges
Who is the ideal leader of Israel – the military strategist, the wise judge, the heroic strongman? How can we ensure an orderly transfer of leadership? Do the people of Israel need a king? The Book of Shoftim (Judges) describes the tumultuous era between Joshua and the birth of the kingship. Assassinations, betrayals and seductions abound. What is the author of Shoftim's perspective on these events? We will study the Book of Shoftim, analyzing the implicit references to other biblical texts and considering the historical and literary significance of this important work.
Amy Newman
Monday, Wednesday, 1:00 – 2:45 p.m.

Rabbinics Elective I
Show Me the Money: Halakhic and Aggadic Perspectives on Using Money Responsibly
What does it mean to be a responsible consumer? How much do we need to know about how products are made before we choose to buy them? What kinds of halakhic guidelines exist for the treatment of workers? How much of our money should we give to tzedakah and to whom? These questions and more become especially critical in our generation, when the economy is globalized, and the ways we spend money affect people all over the world. We will study mainly halakhic, and also some aggadic texts, from the Tanakh and Talmud all the way to modern poskim, in an attempt to identify proper ways for Jews to use our money in today's economy.
Aryeh Bernstein
Tuesday, Thursday, 1:00 – 2:45 p.m.

Rabbinics Elective II
Philosophy of Halakha: Legal Breakdowns and Innovations
Can halakha be too rigid? What happens when a legal ruling will lead to a societal disaster? Should halakha evolve in relation to the community’s needs? Do Jews believe in jail? We will focus on these and other issues concerning how Rabbis have dealt with the issue of breakdowns within the halakhic system.
Ben Skydell
Tuesday, Thursday, 1:00 – 2:45 p.m.

Parashat HaShavua
We will study key themes in each week’s Torah portion and use midrash and other forms of biblical commentary to deepen our analysis.
David Silber
Friday, 1:00 – 2:45 p.m.

Halakha I and II: My Sister’s Keeper? Defining Our Responsibilities for the Actions of Others
The commandment not to place a stumbling block before a blind person (Leviticus 19:14) seems simple enough. Yet it is interpreted by our Sages as a broad statement of our responsibility for the spiritual well-being of others: we may not engage in behavior that will cause another person – Jew or non-Jew – to sin. We will study this important principle from its earliest appearances in the Talmud to a host of modern day applications: May one purchase an item in a store that doesn’t pay sales tax? May one give a fellow Jew directions to a non-kosher restaurant? In discussing these and other cases, we will consider the tension between feeling responsible for another’s spiritual well-being and respecting that person’s choices and privacy.
Level I: Daniel Reifman
Level II: Wendy Amsellem
Tuesday, Thursday, 3:15 – 5:00 p.m.

Night Seder: The Culture of the Beit Midrash: Anecdotes and Analysis
How much should a Torah scholar know of life outside the Beit Midrash (house of study)? How sharp may a scholar be in critiquing a colleague’s opinion? What kinds of behaviors can result in banishment from the Beit Midrash? Rabbinic literature is replete with stories about the Rabbis. We will study ten of these stories, analyzing their literary structure and gaining insight into the central concerns of ancient Beit Midrash culture.
David Goshen
Tuesday, Thursday, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.