Ratings and Reviews
John Talbot
The depth and breadth of knowledge kept me waiting for the next episode.
Scott Etkin
The lectures and reading were both engaging and covered the many differing aspects of Jewish life and handling of the biblical and extra-biblical texts.
Discovering Jewish Life: Then and Now
SB JS 201 3 Credits*
Course Instructor and Meeting Times:
Instructor: Elazar Brandt M.Div.
This course commences mid-October, 2022 and will finish mid-January 2023 and is planned to consist of three live sessions and 12 online lectures – each being two academic hours long. These lectures will be posted weekly to be viewed at the student’s leisure during that week. The three live online sessions are intended to summarize, allow for discussion with questions and answers, according to the schedule below.
| Session # | Date | Time |
| 1 | Monday, October 24th | 1900 - 2000 Israel Time |
| 2 | Monday, November 28th | 1900 - 2000 Israel Time |
| 3 | Monday, January 16th, 2023 | 1900 - 2000 Israel Time |
Short Course Description:
Discovering Jewish Life: Then and Now engages broadly across traditional Jewish literature – from the Torah to the modern period, emphasizing how the Jewish classics have shaped Jewish life, traditions and customs down to the present day. We will trace the historical roots of various Jewish life practices from their origins in the Torah and their journey through the centuries and diverse periods of Jewish literature.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
• Understand the structure of Jewish daily life, what Jewish people do, and why.
• Research the history of various Jewish beliefs and practices, to understand why laws and customs are practiced in their present forms.
• Navigate the wide range of classic Jewish literary works.
• Understand their relationship to one another, and to us.
• Recognize and describe the various types of literature, including Biblical interpretation (parshanut), law (halakhah), folklore (aggadah), Rabbinical handling of Scripture texts (midrash), mysticism, philosophy, and story.
• Be informed about how Jewish life is based upon Tanakh law and traditions and consider if or how this may relate to Jews and Christians today.
*Jerusalem Seminary (JS) courses are engagingly academic and taught by experts in their field living in Israel. While JS’ courses are not externally accredited, they can be taken for internal JS credit. Any internal JS credit will accrue and at a later time would hopefully, through articulation agreements and accreditation bodies, receive official accreditation; a process that JS has begun.
I liked the course because of the very competent and devoted instructor and the possibility to ask different questions and perspectives.