Global Day of Jewish Learning

Beginning in 2010 in part to celebrate the completion of the Steinsaltz Talmud, the Aleph Society and Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, z”l created The Global Day of Jewish Learning event.  It has been continued in his honor since his death by Limmud.  Akin to the feeling of knowing that Jews around the world are saying the same Shema as us, the Global Day of Jewish Learning encourages Jews to encounter Jewish ideas and texts around the same study theme.  This year’s study theme is “One People,” and will explore the connections that bind Jews together in common memory and destiny.  As a registered community, Temple Israel’s religious school will be participating in this event, and our adult learners also have access to the materials.  If you are interested in joining us on November 17^th, 2024 at Temple to delve into one of the four text studies below, please contact me (educator@tidayton.org) and I will be glad to have printed copies available that morning for you to study on your own or with a friend. 

1. Connectedness (Rabba Shani Gross and Deborah Barer): 

Our lives often take unexpected turns—some anticipated, others not. Our Jewish tradition acknowledges that these transitional moments, whether it’s losing a loved one, starting a family, finding a partner, or going through a divorce, are times that need recognition and reflection. Although these experiences can feel isolating, they also hold the potential to bring us closer together. 

Through the texts below, we will explore how life changes and challenging moments can be deeply isolating, yet also offer opportunities for connection if we have the courage to seek it. 

2. Covenant and Connection (Rabbi Daniel Levitt): 

In the Torah, the idea of a covenant is used in various places as indicator of God’s relationship with and expectations of those included in the covenant. Through studying the related texts, we can develop insight into the unifying nature of our shared responsibilities as members of a covenant. 

In this unit we will look at the texts related to God’s covenant with Noah, Abraham, and all the Jewish People. 

3. Mindfulness (Alexandra Corwin): 

When learners are comfortable enough bringing all parts of their identities to text study, new Jewish wisdom can flow, nourishing ourselves and those around us. With this intention, we created this Jewish learning on meditation rooted in reflecting on ancestral wisdom, identity, community, and empowerment. 

Wisdom flows when we can bring elements of our core Jewish texts into everyday life. The Kitzur Shulchan Arukh is a summary, of sorts, of the Shulchan Arukh (compiled by Rabbi Yosef Karo in 1563). The Shulchan Arukh, or “set table,” is a set/code of Jewish laws that serves as a foundation of the rules we follow (or choose not to follow) today. The summary version, written by Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried, is more concise and accessible than the full multi-volume version. 

In the following pages, we will reflect on mindfulness practice and examine mindfulness through a Jewish lens based upon the teachings of the Kitzur Shulchan Arukh. With that learning in hand, we will reflect and discuss how we can integrate elements of mindfulness into our daily practice, in order to ground us in connection with Jews around the globe. 

4. Harnessing Collective Memory (Bruce Spierer): 

Tisha B’Av recalls a moment of existential crisis in Jewish history when our people were exiled, their homes destroyed, and the existence of future generations was uncertain. Every year, Tisha B’Av is an act of collective remembering which reminds us that we never fully let go of our deepest dislocations. But it also carries a radical message: that when we can visit our fear and our grief, it opens us up into greater empathy, curiosity, and joy. Ultimately, it creates the possibility for us to chart a course toward a new future. 

Now, modern Jews and all people face another existential crisis – climate disruption. Whether we’ve lived through wildfires and flooding, or seen them on the news, we know that the climate crisis is coming, and indeed, it is already here. What can Tisha B’Av teach us about this moment? This source sheet will explore some of the deep wisdom of Tisha B’Av to meet, live through, and build a future during the climate crisis as it unfolds.