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Demystifying the CJLS: How Does the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards Work?
Wednesday, Feb. 16th at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Pamela Barmash
Description: The “Law Committee,” the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, gives guidance to the Conservative/Masorti movement globally and is one of the key institutions of the Conservative movement. We will discuss how it operates: How are its members, both rabbis and laypeople, appointed? How are the topics of teshuvot (responsa) selected? How do the CJLS members discuss drafts, and how do the CJLS rabbi/authors rewrite their drafts? What are the politics and spiritual and intellectual commitments that affect whether a paper is approved? Rabbi Pamela Barmash, the co-chair of the CJLS, will let us into the details of the process.
The End of Life
Wednesday, Feb. 23rd at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Elliot Dorff
Description: Does Conservative Judaism approve of assisted suicide/aid in dying? How do the theological, moral, and legal sources contribute to our understanding of these sensitive topics? And what can we learn from this conversation about dying to inspire us in our living?
When Do We Eat? Starting the Seder Early
Wednesday, Mar. 2nd at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Josh Heller
Description: While traditional sources speak of the Passover seder happening "at night," this was before time zones and daylight saving time, and for many families starting seder after dark presents practical challenges. Does it matter when you start or finish seder? What are the implications for other Jewish practices (like reading Megillah) that are supposed to happen after dark? Rabbi Heller will review key concepts and themes of his 2017 CJLS Teshuvah, and in addition to practical suggestions for your own seder, will give you the chance to think more deeply about how our tradition understands time itself.
A Kosher Bun in a Non-Jewish Oven: What is the Status of a Baby Birthed by a Gestational Carrier?
Wednesday, Mar. 9 at 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Teacher: Rabbi Judith Hauptman
Description: Now that IVF has become so successful, a new question has arisen: if a Jewish couple creates an embryo but needs a gestational carrier to bring the embryo to term, is the child considered Jewish at birth or does it need to immerse in a mikvah to convert to Judaism?