East Bay Jewish Film Festival presents (in partnership with New Lehrhaus) presents:

David Grossman: Documentary Film and Discussion

In partnership with Urban Adamah

It is not unusual for a Jew of color to be asked, “How did you get to be Jewish?” Quite simply the question stems from their appearance - “You don’t look Jewish.”

Nourish your body, calm your mind, and nurture your soul, through embodied Jewish devotion.

Amos Oz is Israel’s best-known writer and a champion of peace with the Palestinians in a two-state solution, as a prominent member of Peace Now (Shalom Achshav) and a public intellectual. His work - a body of 40 books - has been translated to 45 languages and made into several films, including Natalie Portman’s A Tale of Love and Darkness. Among the many honors and awards he garnered are the Isr... Read more

In partnership wit Cong. Chevra Thilim, San Francisco

From its very beginning, Judaism has been an evolving spiritual tradition shaped, in part, by contact with other cultures and belief systems, and designed to meet the spiritual needs of the Jewish communities of the time. While some Jews find a spiritual home in the different Jewish denominations, so many others are yearning for a Jewish spirituality that will speak to their hearts, minds, and souls and will reflect the psychological, spiritual, and political understandings of our time.

Drop-In Book Club: People Love Dead Jews by Dara Horn (VIRTUAL)

In partnership with the Jewish Community Library

Drought, famine, established powers on the edge of collapse, mass migrations from failed states to other countries: you may be thinking of the Middle East in 2022. Try 1180 BCE! 

We will examine how Israeli men are portrayed in such popular Israeli TV series as Fauda, Shtisel, and When Heroes Fly, and explore how these portrayals could serve as a lens through which we explore Israeli society and the Zionist endeavor more broadly. 

Genesis 24 is a classic tale about finding a wife and also a revealing presentation of the protocols and practices that lead to marriage in the ancient Near East. Isaac has just lost his mother Sarah and his father, Abraham, must begin the process of building the next generation, sending his trusty servant to find a wife for Isaac in the land of the clan’s origin. Our class will travel with him, beginning with a rich visual overview of the lifeways of Patriarchs and Matriarchs in the Biblical period. Then we will read and translate the Hebrew text, drawing on the insights of both modern scholarship and ancient commentators. Students will also receive extensive notes to assist with translation.

This course will complete our study of basic prayerbook Hebrew using the text Prayerbook Hebrew the Easy Way, then begin to introduce the more complex verb patterns of classical Biblical Hebrew and the irregular verb system, while building Hebrew vocabulary. Students will start translating passages from the Hebrew Bible and learn to use Hebrew research references. Text will be provided free of charge by the instructor.