LimmudFest NY 2020: Full Schedule

5:15pm EST

Kabbalat Shabbat and Ma’ariv: Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

Connect your heart, mind, and soul to the traditional liturgy. Note: No amplification or musical instruments will be used in this service and seating is separated by gender.

Friday February 14, 2020 5:15pm - 6:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

8:30pm EST

From Kilayim to CRISPR: Jewish Concerns with Gene Editing

We are living through what many consider to be the most significant scientific revolution of all—greater than the industrial revolution, the atomic age, the information age. The ability to make precise edits to the genome that are heritable signals a fundamental shift in the role of humanity from creature to creator. The CRISPR/Cas9 (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) system dramatizes the change since it becomes so inexpensive and accessible. What do Jewish sources have to say about the modification of the genome? Is the model of forbidden mixing of species (kilayim) relevant? Can distinctions be sustained between human and non-human editing, therapeutic and enhancement treatments?

Presenters

Daniel Nevins

Dean, The Jewish Theological Seminary

Daniel Nevins is the Pearl Resnick Dean of the JTS Rabbinical School. He also serves as dean of the Division of Religious Leadership, which includes the H.L. Miller Cantorial School, the Center for Pastoral Education, and the Block-Kolker Center for Spiritual Arts. Rabbi Nevins was... Read More →

Friday February 14, 2020 8:30pm - 9:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity Text & Thought

9:45pm EST

Jews’ Line is it Anyway? An Improv / Jewish Values Mash-up

What's so Jewish about basic improv comedy? When you've been exiled from as many countries as Jews have, adapting to our environment is a key skill: we take whatever resources we have and we improvise! This informal, participatory, creativity-generating workshop introduces the basics of improvisational comedy within a Jewish community context - suitable for Jews and Judeophiles of all ages, and no comedy experience required. Fun icebreaker with light educational component.

Presenters

Esther Kustanowitz

Esther D. Kustanowitz is a writer, editor and consultant. She is a regular contributor at the Los Angeles Jewish Journal and at J.: The Jewish Weekly of Northern California. She co-hosts The Bagel Report, a podcast about Jews and entertainment, and is a casual scholar of #TVGoneJewy... Read More →

Friday February 14, 2020 9:45pm - 10:45pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Arts & Performance

8:45am EST

Shabbat Morning Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This participatory service will feature separate seating for men and women and is led by men. The liturgy will be in Hebrew and singing will be lively! Note: No amplification or musical instruments will be used in this service.

Saturday February 15, 2020 8:45am - 11:15am EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

12:00pm EST

The Challenges of Pluralism and Religious Freedom in Israel

The State of Israel defines itself as a Jewish and Democratic state. What does that mean? What is the role of halachah in the state? What are the fundamental conflicts in Israel regarding conversion, marriage, burial, and religious freedom? Is there, or should there be, separation between state and religion?

Presenters

Ariel Picard

Shalom Hartman Institute of North America

Ariel Picard is Director of the Kogod Research Center for Contemporary Jewish Thought. He has a Ph.D. in philosophy from Bar-Ilan University and conducts research in contemporary Jewish law. He was ordained as a rabbi by the Israeli Chief Rabbinate and has served as the rabbi of Kibbutz... Read More →

Saturday February 15, 2020 12:00pm - 1:00pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Israel

1:15pm EST

Wise Aging

It's never too early to start aging wisely! Come join us to learn more about tools and practices that can help you transform any fear, dread or denial of the unknown into hope, curiosity and wisdom. Based on the best-selling book by Rabbi Rachel Cowan z’l and Dr. Linda Thal, discover how the “third chapter” of your life can become a time filled with meaning, grace and courage.

Presenters

Susie Kessler

Former coordinator of the National Center for Jewish Healing, Susie Kessler brings knowledge of spiritual support and Jewish wisdom to all of her program areas. Her passion is helping people grow and heal from the inside out by uncovering and exploring their spiritual journey as well... Read More →

Saturday February 15, 2020 1:15pm - 2:15pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity

2:15pm EST

Mincha: Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This afternoon service will feature the traditional Hebrew liturgy with male leadership. Note: there will be separate-gender seating.

Saturday February 15, 2020 2:15pm - 2:45pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

2:45pm EST

Learning to Talk About God Today: A Rational Quest for a Mystical Reality

This discussion constitutes a personal effort at articulating a meaningful notion of God that is spiritually fulfilling and at the same time intellectually uncompromising. The search ranges across the Jewish tradition from the fundamentals of Biblical monotheism to Maimonides’ rationalism and onto Hasidic mysticism. The result is a contemporary notion of God that is both inspiring and humbling.

Presenters

Chaim Seidler-Feller

Chaim Seidler-Feller spent over forty years working with students and faculty as the Executive Director of the Yitzhak Rabin Hillel Center for Jewish Life at UCLA. He is currently Director Emeritus. He was ordained at Yeshiva University where he completed a Masters in Rabbinic Literature... Read More →

Saturday February 15, 2020 2:45pm - 3:45pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Spirituality & Theology

4:00pm EST

Why Jews Intermarry: Notes on a Transgressive Subject

A conversation about what we see in one another, how we feel about what we see and how these mutual perceptions of male and female drive us to look outside the Jewish community for love and relationships. We will also consider the external pressures and tropes on and about Jews common today which subliminally urge Jews to abandon traditional commitments to in-marriage. Utilizing conflict analysis, especially as it applies to ongoing subtle stereotyping and narratives about Jews, can promote greater insight and help us to develop a contemporary strategy for persuasively discussing the value of in marriage.

Presenters

Doreen Seidler-Feller

Doreen Seidler-Feller earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the Ohio State University. She serves as Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA where she teaches courses in systems-based healthcare and in human sexuality and sex... Read More →

Saturday February 15, 2020 4:00pm - 5:00pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity

5:15pm EST

The Earth is the Lord’s: Jewish Perspectives on Environmental Protection

The cluster of ecological challenges of our times raise questions about our obligations as Jews to protect the species around us, and toward future generations. Rabbi Nevins has written a series of prayers about the environment for Mahzor and Siddur Lev Shalem, and will discuss the role of prayer and religious practice in motivating communities to become better stewards of the planet.

Presenters

Daniel Nevins

Dean, The Jewish Theological Seminary

Saturday February 15, 2020 5:15pm - 6:15pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Text & Thought

6:15pm EST

Ma’ariv: Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This evening service will feature the traditional Hebrew liturgy with male leadership. Note: there will be separate-gender seating.

Saturday February 15, 2020 6:15pm - 6:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

8:00am EST

Morning Mechitza Shacharit Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This participatory service will feature separate seating for men and women and is led by men. The liturgy will be in Hebrew.

Sunday February 16, 2020 8:00am - 8:45am EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

9:00am EST

We're Gonna be Royals: Jewish Queens in History

There's no better time to celebrate your inner queen then in the upcoming Jewish month of Adar, when we read about heroic queens on Purim. In this session, we'll talk about the Jewish queens of the past, present, and future. Vashtis and Esthers are welcome.

Presenters

Orly Michaeli

By day, Orly Michaeli helps bring to life thousands of teachers’ dreams by leveraging partnerships with cutting-edge companies and foundations. At DonorsChoose.org, she works with clients to meet their business goals while providing the next generation of students with new libraries... Read More →

Sunday February 16, 2020 9:00am - 10:00am EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Feminism History

10:15am EST

Tricky Matters: The Negotiation of Female and Male Sexual Desire in College and Beyond

Since 2016, it has become clear that sex education in America still naively focuses almost exclusively on anatomical, medical and preventive aspects and hardly ever on the ethical and emotional facets of a sexual relationship. Mired in political and religious debate, standard sex eduction abandons young women and men to borrow and develop narratives from friends and digital sources, including porn sites. Notable too in the US is the absence of comprehensive sex education by parents in regard to the desirable aims and management of desire.
To the extent that stubbornly persistent gender dynamics and sexual scripts thus prevail, women's desire remains elusive, if not hidden, and men's desire triumphs in a feral way. The impact of this ongoing drama, which has it's roots in part, in Freud's famous question about what women want, will be explored in this workshop.

Presenters

Doreen Seidler-Feller

Sunday February 16, 2020 10:15am - 11:15am EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity

11:30am EST

If They Won’t Give Us Seats, We’ll Build Our Own Table

Before attacking Jerusalem, the leader of the Romans allowed Yochanan Ben Zakai to ask for anything he'd like. Instead of saving the Temple, Ben Zakai requested Yavneh, so he could build a Sanhedrin council of male sages. They'd reshape Judaism into the practices we follow today. But, what would Judaism be like now if women had been at that table? In this women-only session, join us for interactive learning and a brainstorm — we'll put ourselves in the Sanhedrin's place and think of how we'd redefine our religious practice. *This session is open to all who identify as women in any way that's important to them.

Presenters

Orly Michaeli

Sunday February 16, 2020 11:30am - 12:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Feminism

12:45pm EST

Mincha: Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This afternoon service will feature the traditional Hebrew liturgy with male leadership. Note: there will be separate-gender seating.

Sunday February 16, 2020 12:45pm - 1:00pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

1:00pm EST

Nineveh: Poetry Reading with Q+A

Zohar Atkins will read from his poetry collection and field questions on the role of (Jewish) poetry in a technological society.

Presenters

Zohar Atkins

Rabbi Dr. Zohar Atkins is the Founder and Director of Etz Hasadeh, A Center for Existential Torah. He is a faculty member of the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America and a Fellow at Hillel's Office of Innovation. He is the author of a book of poems, Nineveh (Carcanet, 2019... Read More →

Sunday February 16, 2020 1:00pm - 2:00pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Arts & Performance

2:15pm EST

Talmud for Poets

Talmud can be approached logically, historically, and legalistically, but it can also be studied as a work of poetry, an attempt in language to reveal the unsayable. In this survey, we'll examine familiar and unfamiliar texts through a poetic lens. We will ask not what the the text commands us to do, but what it provokes us to ponder.

Presenters

Zohar Atkins

Sunday February 16, 2020 2:15pm - 3:15pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Text & Thought Arts & Performance

3:30pm EST

Staying in a State of T'Shuvah: A Response to the Opioid Epidemic

This second session on living T’Shuvah will be an immersive experience in how to prepare to do T’Shuvah prior to Yom Kippur and how to stay in a state of T’Shuvah weekly and daily.

Presenters

Mark Borovitz

Officially ordained in 2000 at the University of Judaism with a Master’s in Rabbinic Literature, Rabbi Mark Borovitz combined his knowledge of Torah and street smarts to shape his calling: helping recovering addicts find their way in the world. After being released from prison in... Read More →

Sunday February 16, 2020 3:30pm - 4:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity

5:00pm EST

Once Upon a Time in...Jewish Solidarity

This session will take a look at some passages in Mordecai Kaplan's famous 'Judaism as a Civilization.' We will consider how Kaplan thinks about what Jews do and don't share in common with other minority communities in the United States. In particular, we will look at these passages in the current context of resurgent anti-Semitism.

Presenters

Judah Isseroff

Judah is a PhD candidate in Religion, Ethics, and Politics at Princeton University. He is writing a dissertation on Jewish theological themes in the writings of Hannah Arendt.

Sunday February 16, 2020 5:00pm - 6:00pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

History Text & Thought

6:15pm EST

Bridges, Barriers and the Bris: Brit Milah vs. the Evolving Definitions of Jewishness

As Jewish life continues to grow within the North American context, we are faced with the increasingly important question of how to engage the changing definitions of Jewish identity. As we follow the controversy and saga that ensued from the 1860’s New Orleans Jewish community, we will combine halachic sources and field experience from the Mohel profession to explore the boundaries and pathways in which halacha can provide visibility and inclusion to members of the Jewish community without traditional halachic status.

Presenters

Eliezer Lawrence

Rabbi Eliezer Lawrence is a popular NYC-area Mohel, Jewish educator and Hebrew language specialist who has taught in university, Jewish day school, yeshiva and adult educational settings. He studied at Yeshivat Ma’ale Gilboa in Israel and was granted rabbinic ordination from its... Read More →

Sunday February 16, 2020 6:15pm - 7:15pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Culture & Identity History

7:15pm EST

Ma’ariv: Mechitza Service (separate seating; male leadership)

This evening service will feature the traditional Hebrew liturgy with male leadership. Note: there will be separate-gender seating.

Sunday February 16, 2020 7:15pm - 7:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Services & Ritual

9:00am EST

Uncovering Nakedness: Does Gender Really Matter?

What is nakedness? In the Talmud it is associated with a woman's hair, voice, and thigh. However, in today's modern society, many discussions around women's bodies in Judaism feel misogynistic and irrelevant. In the first half of this session, we will focus on the differences between men and women in rabbinic Judaism as manifested in both familial and communal space. We will focus on the different Jewish responses to feminism including prayer services and ordination and how transgender people will potentially force the whole binary system to undergone significant change. In the second half of this intensive, we will continue to use Jewish texts to understand the origin of traditional practices around dress, singing and hair covering and whether any of them can be integrated in a contemporary discourse of gender relations.

Presenters

Nechama Goldman Barash

The Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies

Nechama Goldman Barash navigates the space between feminism and Orthodoxy by studying and teaching rabbinic texts previously barred to women. She lives in Israel where she teaches at the Pardes Beit Midrash and participates in interfaith work. She is writing a book dealing with matters... Read More →

Monday February 17, 2020 9:00am - 12:30pm EST
Presentation Room (Atrium)

Text & Thought