Rabbi Wolkoff is conducting a nine-part series on the topic of "Jewish Law" throughout the year. Each session takes place on a Wednesday evening at 8pm in the Beit Midrash. The classes are also webcasted live via BlogTalkRadio in case you can't be there in person.

In a word, halachah, (Jewish law) and our relationship to it, makes us who we are. Some of us are acutely aware of this. Others of us may not realize how the archetypal force of the divine is playing out in our lives. But, our tradition teaches that all of us, knowingly or unknowingly, are participants in the covenant.

The assumption that permeates all Jewish legal thinking is simple in description and endless in complexity: every aspect of mundane life is an opportunity for holiness. That is why, for example, we so often recite blessings with the words, “who has sanctified us by His commandments and commanded us to…”.

So Jewish law really matters. But how does it work? Who decides how it applies? How does a four thousand year old tradition address an ultramodern reality? All through the year, I’ll be discussing this topic in our adult education program. We will review responsa, that is, rabbinic essays, which address virtually everything under the sun.

And this is where you come in. We can’t tackle it all. I need your help deciding which topics we will be discussing this year. Once we decide, I’ll send out selected responsa to the whole congregation, so everyone will have a chance to review them. Please select from the list below and let us know which issues are of greatest interest for you. Remember: we will only have time to discuss a handful of them, so choose carefully from among the following:

(Click the desired show and
  use the slider to skip ahead.)

 

Name:
E-mail:
Comments:

 

For other various lectures and events, see the Adult Education Schedule.