• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Congregation

Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Congregation

  • Home
  • Who We Are
    • Overview
    • Our History
    • Our Values and Vision
    • LGBTQ Inclusive
    • Our Board
    • Our Sacred Objects
    • About Reconstructionist Judaism
    • Jewish Ann Arbor
  • What We Do
    • Shabbat and Holidays
    • Learning
    • B’nei Mitzvah
    • Tikkun Olam
    • Join our Mailing List
    • In the (Washtenaw Jewish) News
  • Religious School
    • Beit Sefer (Religious School) Overview
    • Beit Sefer Staff
    • Enroll your child in Beit Sefer
  • Blog
  • Membership
    • Overview
    • Renew your membership
    • Thinking about joining?
    • Member Area
      • Overview
      • Get involved!
  • Calendar
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
You are here: Home / Community Learning / Introducing A Taste of Talmud: When Life Meets Prayer

Introducing A Taste of Talmud: When Life Meets Prayer

February 2, 2020 by Gillian Jackson

Perhaps even more than the Torah, the Talmud can be thought of as the quintessential Jewish text. Why? Because it’s full of everything that makes Jews Jewish: love of debate, intellectual curiosity, storytelling, humor, and the search for new meaning in inherited text and tradition.

The complete Talmud (in Aramaic) comprises over 2,700 pages of conversation, law, legend, and history. If you’ve never studied directly from a page of Talmud before, it can seem daunting. But AARC’s upcoming course ‘A Taste of Talmud: When Life Meets Prayer’ is here to help you get curious and comfortable through a 5-week immersion in Talmud text. 

We’ll be study directly from the Babylonian Talmud’s tractate Berachot, a rich conversation on the power of prayer, how and why we pray, and what happens when life meets prayer.

This course will take place on Sundays, 1:00-2:30 pm, beginning February 9, 2020. 

** Please note: The first session is an introduction and will be held in the Temple Beth Emeth library. The remaining 4 sessions will be at the Ann Arbor JCC.

Course Schedule: Sundays, 1-2:30 pm

February 9: The ABCs of Talmud Study: By the end of this introductory session, you can expect to be able to define and identify terms like Mishnah, Talmud, midrash, aggadah, masechet, sugya, daf, and gemara, as well as know how to navigate a page of Talmud. (TBE library)

Note: No meeting on February 16

February 23: Berachot Chapter 5: Who should be our model for prayer? Should we follow the model of a heartbroken wife? A repentant philanderer? Who is the ideal pray-er? And how does emotion influence prayer? (JCC)

March 1: Berachot Chapter 5 continued: How should we pray? Should we use our bodies in prayer? What if our bodies are praying ‘right’ but our minds are distracted? (JCC)

March 8: Berachot Chapter 9: What can we pray for? Can you ask God for something frivolous? Can you pray to avert harm? Do you have to pray even if you’re angry at God or frustrated at life?

March 15: Berachot Chapter 9 continued: Who do we pray for? Do we pray for ourselves? For our loved ones? For strangers? Can prayer ever be selfish or unwelcome?

Questions:

Q: Do I need to know Hebrew or Aramaic to participate?

A: No! We’ll be using the Steinsaltz English translation of the original Aramaic.

Q: What if I can’t make every session?

A: The learning will be cumulative, so while the ideal would be to attend every session, drop-ins are welcome.

Q: Do I need to bring any texts to class?

A: Just a notebook in case you want to write anything down. All texts will be provided.

Share this post

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Community Learning, Rabbi's Posts Tagged With: community learning, Rabbi Ora, talmud

Primary Sidebar

Join Our Mailing List

Sign up for our twice a week newsletter to get details on upcoming events and catch up on our latest news.

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Follow AARC

  • facebook
  • youtube

Upcoming Events

  • 10:30 am – 12:00 pm, February 11, 2023 – Second Saturday Shabbat Morning Service
  • 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm, February 24, 2023 – Fourth Friday Kabbalat Shabbat Service
  • 10:30 am – 12:00 pm, March 11, 2023 – Second Saturday Shabbat Morning Service
  • 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm, March 24, 2023 – Fourth Friday Kabbalat Shabbat Service
  • 10:30 am – 12:00 pm, April 8, 2023 – Second Saturday Shabbat Morning Service

Latest News

  • AARC as Ecosystem in Feb. 2023 WJN February 1, 2023
  • The Golem January 30, 2023
  • Mollie Meadow’s Dvar Torah: Shmot January 18, 2023
  • Isaac Meadow’s Dvar Torah: Shmot January 18, 2023
  • Reconstructing Judaism Movement Votes to Support Reparations to BIPOC Communities That Suffered Due To American Colonization January 12, 2023

Search

Tags

Adult Learning Bar mitzvah bat mitzvah Beit Sefer book club Challah community community learning covid-19 Elul food/land/justice Hanukkah high-holidays-2020 High Holidays High Holidays 2021 High Holidays 2022 Human rights immigrants interfaith jewish learning Michael Strassfeld Mimouna mitzvah new members Omer Passover Psalm 27 Psalms Purim Rabbi Alana Rabbi Debra Rappaport Rabbi Ora recipes Reconstructionism refugees Rosh Hashanah Shavuot Shmita Sukkot Sukkot Retreat Tikkun Olam Torah tu b'shevat Washtenaw Jewish News Yom Kippur

Categories

  • Articles/Ads
  • Beit Sefer (Religious School)
  • Books
  • Community Learning
  • Divrei Torah
  • Event writeups
  • Food
  • Mail Bag
  • Member Profiles
  • Poems and Blessings
  • Posts by Members
  • Rabbi's Posts
  • Reconstructionist Movement
  • Sacred Objects
  • Simchas
  • Tikkun Olam
  • Uncategorized
  • Upcoming Activities

Footer

Affiliated with

Register/Login

  • Log in
  • Register (for members only)

Copyright © 2023 Ann Arbor Reconstructionist Congregation