Following a successful launch of our ScholarStream program in 5781, we are excited to announce the full year of ScholarStream learning in 5782! Beginning in October and spanning all the way up to Shavuot, the Conservative Movement seminaries and institutions are partnering to offer eight series that will bring you face-to-face with the brightest and most engaging scholars our movement has to offer.
Scholarstream 5782 features three distinct arcs of learning that stand alone or flow into each other. Cultivating Our Relationships (series 1 & 2), Defining Our Sacred Spaces (series 3, 4, and 5), and Renewing Our Resilience (series 6, 7, and 8) will offer an exploration of who we are, where we are in relation to others, and how we move forward in this complicated world.
Individuals may register below. If you are part of a synagogue or organization interested in sponsoring ScholarStream, please click here.
We are pleased to announce full descriptions for our first series on Torah Relationships, which can also be found on our website here.
Biblical stories can inform our understanding of our own relationships. The life lessons of our ancestors influence our personal, communal, and world values.
God, Abraham and Isaac: Who is the ‘Hero’ of the Akeidah?
Wednesday, October 6 at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Dr. Alan Cooper, JTS
The story of the “binding of Isaac” (Akeidah) in Genesis 22 is a tale of problematic relationships, those among the characters as well as the reader’s relationship with a troubling and alienating story. How can God issue such a shocking and callous command to Abraham, a faithful follower? Why does Abraham comply without objection, in contrast to previous interactions with God? And why does Isaac remain passive and apparently acquiescent with his life at stake? Is there a hero in this story, in the sense of a character who is to be celebrated for his actions, and what are we supposed to learn from him? We will take up those questions in the light of both traditional and modern Jewish commentary.
Gendered Gaps: Remembering Sarah Where She is Most Erased
Wednesday, October 13 at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Liza Bernstein, Conservative Yeshiva
When we study the Akeidah, the binding of Isaac, we often focus on the dynamics between Abraham, Isaac, and God. We rarely ask: where was Sarah? In this session, we will use traditional sources and gender theory to open up questions of gender, community, and parenting. Through our questioning, we will remember Sarah's story and re-member Sarah, in all her complexities, as a full part of our tradition.
Loving Peace, One Person at a Time
Wednesday, October 20 at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Bradley Artson, Ziegler
We often think of the pursuit of peace as a task for nations, communities, and public figures. And it is all that. But the work of peace is also private and individual. In the person of Aaron, first High Priest and brother to Moses, the ancient sages imagine what an integrated approach to making peace might look like.
The Dysfunctional Families of Genesis: What They -- and Later Jewish Law -- Tell Us About How *Not* to Treat Our Parents, Siblings, and Children
Wednesday, October 27 at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Elliot Dorff, Ziegler
We have all read the stories of Genesis many times over and have interpreted them in sermons and lessons. The goal of this session is to examine them in the context of family ethics. What bad practices do they exemplify, and what does Jewish law tell us about how to form better family relationships and avoid family violence?
Stay tuned! Our descriptions for our second series on Ethics starting on November 2, 2021 is coming soon. Themes will include the ethical challenges of gossip and slander, moral dilemmas presented in various teachings, and the question of whether Halakha can ever be immoral.