For six consecutive Mondays, beginning January 19, Rivky Slonim will lead a Jewish Learning Institute course exploring the real-life questions that Jews asked their sages across history. “Captivating Cases in Rabbinic Responsa” will discuss 30 true stories to offer students a window into the Jewish past. The classes will run from 7-8:30 pm; refreshments will be offered. The course fee is $99 (textbook included) or $175 per couple (includes one book). Early bird registration (before Monday, January 5) will offer a discount of $90 per person and $165 for couples. To sign up, register here or call Chabad at 607-797-0015. For answers to questions, e-mailrshea@Jewishbu.com.
“You can see the full spectrum of Jewish life imprinted in the responsa literature,” Slonim said. “Community disputes, agonizing personal choices precipitated by perennial antisemitism and questions as simple as, ‘Is my chicken kosher?’ Additionally, this course provides an insight into how rabbis composed answers to new and novel questions.”
The course, developed by the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, seeks to offer students a glimpse into how Jews have lived across the ages and the values they have held. It also seeks to clear away the confusion surrounding Jewish law, showing the thought processes the sages used – and still use – to answer the questions they were asked.
“Captivating Cases in Rabbinic Responsa” is approved as continuing legal education in many states.
“Jewish law has been anything but static,” says Steven F. Friedell, J.D., a professor of law at Rutgers University Law School. He says the course “provides insight into how rabbis have met challenges of a world beset by sometimes drastic changes in culture, science, politics, and economic circumstances” and shows how they “helped Jewish law retain its vital role in maintaining and strengthening the Jewish community.”
According to Suzanne Last Stone, J.D., professor of Jewish law and contemporary civilization at Yeshiva University, “Students will encounter fascinating examples of how the rabbinic authors of responsa, like their common-law counterparts, balanced rules and principles: the technical demands of the law with individual emotional need, societal change, and ethical concerns.”
Slonim invites all members of the Jewish community, and those beyond the community, to join. “The course was created with all in mind,” she says. “If you’ve never heard of rabbinic responsa before, or if you have been studying Talmud all of your life, you will find this course enriching.”
The Rohr Jewish Learning Institute is the adult education arm of Chabad-Lubavitch. JLI’s classes and programs are offered at over 1,600 locations in more than 900 communities worldwide.