In addition to speaking at services and storytelling events, I offer a variety of programs for Jewish and interfaith events, including courses for study conducted by conference call.

Topics

I have particular expertise – and a decided love for! – these topics, which I can present in a variety of modalities:

Settings

I bring my love for all things Jewish wherever I travel. I am equally comfortable working with small, intimate groups and large community events. I have a love and talent for Shabbatons – extended weekend engagements to allow groups to delve more deeply into the world of Spirit, adorned with stories and joy.

Courses

I teach courses on the following topics, which can be conducted in person or via conference call. Send me email to receive updates about upcoming telephonic courses, or to arrange for a study session in your area.

Inner Judaism and Christianity

Every religion has its outer forms: the practices, rituals, laws and customs that help distinguish it from other religions. And, at its inmost point, each religion shares a common center: the One unnamed Eternal Source of Life. Between this shared center and the diversity of outer forms is the "inner" religion: that mysterious realm of spirituality in which one encounters the shape of the One, still colored by the outer form, but drawn to the inner singularity. In isolation, this inner realm can be difficult to describe. It is only when we allow ourselves to encounter and engage with another religion that we can distinguish the shape, the strengths and weaknesses, of the traditions we have held as our own.

Father Bill Redfield of Trinity Episcopal Church and I will engage with each other - and the participants in this series - in a six-week program designed to wrestle ourselves into a deeper spiritual encounter with God. Drawing from our own interpretations of our individual religious traditions, we will engage each other in key topics, encouraging attendees to embrace the spiritual of their own traditions, whatever they may be, through a genuine encounter with "the other."

We will explore these topics: God, Scripture, Prayer, Personhood / Soul, Forgiveness, Love and Compassion.

This series has been indefinitely postponed, but it is our intent to offer it at some point in the future. Please send me an email if you would like to be notified of its rescheduling.

Foundations of Judaism

If you need to strengthen your foundations in Jewish knowledge and Jewish practice and spirituality, this is your chance this summer.

In four bi-weekly sessions, we'll learn about all the different parts of Torah– Chumash, Tanach, Mishnah, Talmud, Aggadah, Midrash, Musar, Hasidism, Kabbalah: learning what the names mean and what they are. Not enough? We'll encounter the basic teachings about kashrut, Shabbat, holidays, prayer, Torah study, tzedaka, and different mitzvot and rituals. Not only that, but we'll cover spirituality: G!d, love of neighbor, mysticism, and so on; everything juicy.

It might seem chutzpadik to offer to cover the meaning of life in a single two-hour session! Or any of the other weeks’ topics, for that matter... And it would be, if I was trying to give more than a solid taste of each. But what you’ll find in each session is the opportunity to explore, savor, and get a sense of what each of the topics is about from a uniquely Jewish perspective. Think of it as walking into a wonderful bakery, and getting the chance to inhale the aromas, and take a sample from several of the best goods.

Of course, the bakery will stay open for those who want to taste more deeply...

Swimming in the Sea of Torah

If you’re new to studying Jewish scriptures in a Jewish manner, this is your chance to begin with three two-hour conference calls. We learn about basic texts: Torah, Talmud, Midrash and Aggadah, as well as other key texts and commentaries. The course involves guided group study, focusing on themes of God, spirituality, ethics, and community. Conference calls are two hours each at a time convenient to students. The approach is serious but easygoing and is nondenominational; everyone is welcome. No Hebrew is required for the course, which has proved valuable for Jews who would like to begin or advance their Jewish studies as well as for non-Jews who would like to learn more about Judaism and Jewish study.

Stories in Judaism

Would you like to learn more about stories in Judaism? The different kinds we tell, and the different reasons we tell them? Would you like to learn some of these stories, or at least hear them told? Would you like the chance to learn how to tell a story well? Enroll in this special four-session experience, and that’s exactly what you’ll get! Just bring an open heart and an open mind.

In this course, we sample the different types and sources of stories in Judaism. Each session is spiced with stories, as well as "tricks of the trade" for telling spiritual stories well.

The sessions explore the use of story within and beyond Torah, as both a teaching device and a historical tool. We examine stories and the roles they play in the Talmud and midrashic literature, hasidic tales – particularly those of the Baal Shem Tov – and modern stories of spirituality and mysticism.