Limmud Bay Area 2016: Full Schedule

PLEASE NOTE: All sessions, no matter the size of the box they are in, are 70 minutes long. Last minute schedule changes may be needed.

3:00pm PDT

With a Great Love: Hesed Meditation

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We will learn the practice of offering loving blessings to others and of opening our hearts to receive the love offered by others and by the Holy One. We will read a few texts about this practice from Hasidic rebbes.

Presenter

Jacob Staub

Rabbi Jacob Staub is Professor of Jewish Philosophy and Spirituality at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia. At RRC, he co-founded in 1998 and still directs the Program in Jewish Spiritual Direction. This past year, he co-founded and co-directs Bekhol Levavkha... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 3:00pm - 4:10pm PDT
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Religion & Philosophy, Spirituality-Meditation

4:30pm PDT

A Reading from 'Forty Years in the Wilderness: My Journey to Authentic Living'

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In Yiscah's own words, “The story I want to tell is the story of a man, facing his truth, embracing the woman she was always meant to be and returning to her faith and home with wholeness and authenticity.” Yiscah’s story is important for everyone to hear and will inspire and empower others who face seemingly insurmountable obstacles to wholeness in their lives. Yiscah will share her story and excerpts from her book, followed by a Q&A period. At the conclusion, books will be available for sale and signing.

Presenter

Yiscah Smith

Yiscah Smith is a spiritual activist, Jewish educator and mentor. Her life has been an inspiring and courageous journey of the joy and struggles with her spirituality, gender identity and commitment to living a life of authenticity. She recently published her memoir: Forty Years in... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 4:30pm - 5:40pm PDT
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Social & Life Experience, LGBTQ, Spirituality-Meditation

6:45pm PDT

Poetry at Twilight: Jake Marmer's Performance

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Jake Marmer is a poet and performer. Walking the line between poetry and music, improvisation and composition, written and performed word, Jake dips into the wells of Jewish mythology, riffing, rethinking classic and marginalized Jewish tropes on poetry's turf. His work was hailed as a “soulful narrative line in counterpoint to … language-drunk abstractions” (The Jewish Week), “experience of mystic pleasures … freshly contemporary” (Shofar), & a “thought provoking debut” (All About Jazz).

Presenter

Jake Marmer

Jake Marmer is a poet, performer and educator. His first record, Hermeneutic Stomp (Blue Thread Music, 2013), featuring jazz-klez luminaries Frank London, Greg Wall, Eyal Maoz, and Uri Sharlin, brings together diverse poetic traditions, jazz and klezmer. It was hailed as a “soulful... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 6:45pm - 7:30pm PDT
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Arts & Culture, Poetry

9:20pm PDT

Elijah: Fierce Prophet, Time Traveler, Harbinger of the Messiah, Folksy Hero

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From Biblical zealot to the ever-helpful folk hero, Elijah has captured the imagination of Jews throughout our history. How is it that Elijah appears in so many different guises? What is it about Elijah that Jews around the world and throughout the generations have felt so connected to his character and story? How is it that so many people feel a direct connection to Elijah? Have you ever had an Elijah moment? And, what's the deal with opening the door on Pesach? In this session, we will look at source texts that illuminate the various roles Elijah plays in our tradition.

Presenter

Abra Greenspan

Abra Greenspan has been engaged in Jewish learning in the Bay Area for a long time! She has taught in a variety of settings including camps, synagogue schools, Hillel, Kevah classes and Limmud. She was the Director of Youth Education at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco for 12... Read More →

Friday June 24, 2016 9:20pm - 10:30pm PDT
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Religion & Philosophy, Text

9:15am PDT

On the Map / Off the Map

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The many maps of Israel and the stories they tell. An exploration of narratives, point of views and commentary through reading and decoding maps.

Presenter

Vavi Toran

As the Israel Education and Arts & Culture Specialist at Jewish LearningWorks, Vavi fashions educational strategies and programs focusing on the integration of the arts in Jewish settings that have since become a model locally and nationally. Vavi believes that TEXT, which most Jewish... Read More →

Saturday June 25, 2016 9:15am - 11:00am PDT
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History & Politics, Art, Israel-Middle East

2:00pm PDT

Actually It Does Matter Who Wrote the Torah

Some claim that it does not matter who wrote the Torah, what's important is what it says. I beg to differ. Come hear what Eliezer Berkovits (liberal orthodox), Harold Schulweis (conservative-reconstructionist), Louis Jacobs (conservative) and Tamar Ross (feminist orthodox) have to say on this issue and see how authorship affects what kind of Jew I am and how I practice.

Presenter

David Levin-Kruss

Rabbi David Levin-Kruss sees himself as a bridge between Jewish tradition and those wanting to connect to that tradition. He directs special programs and is on the faculty of the Pardes Institute in Jerusalem as well as teaching and helping to organize the Silicon Valley Beit Midrash... Read More →

Saturday June 25, 2016 2:00pm - 3:10pm PDT
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Religion & Philosophy, Text

3:30pm PDT

The Evolution and Bio-Mechanics of Standing Balance, A Spiritual Journey

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This workshop will explore the intersection between the uniquely human practice of standing upright on two feet and the role this plays in the Jewish practice of “standing before God” to facilitate prayer. After a brief look at the evolution from quadruped to bipedal gait and the accompanying mechanics of the human foot and spine, we will explore the proprioceptive dynamics of standing, walking and balancing to reveal the small, but hugely significant journey between the heel and the forefoot, a journey that not only allows us to “stand before God”, but brings us into a constant relational state of mind. We will discuss the fascinating emphasis on standing during prayer, a ritual that expresses the essence of what it means to be a human being balancing on those “ridiculously tiny platforms”, our feet.

Presenter

Deborah Marcus

Deborah Marcus’ 30-year career as a movement professional has spanned the performing arts as a dancer and choreographer in SF and NYC where she danced with the Avodah Dance Ensemble and toured with her own intergenerational movement theater company, Marcus Dance Theater. Transitioning... Read More →

Saturday June 25, 2016 3:30pm - 4:40pm PDT
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Social & Life Experience, Movement-Pilates-Yoga

5:00pm PDT

A Jewish Perspective on Coping with Profound Stress

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We all face periods of prolonged, intense stress such as during bereavement, caregiving, marital problems, or parenting challenges. Contrary to what used to be believed, positive emotions play an important role throughout these periods of stress. In this talk, I will describe the purposes served by positive emotions and how we generate them. I will give special attention to the contributions of Jewish beliefs, values, and customs in sustaining well-being in the midst of stress. The session will include ample time for discussion and Q/A.

Presenter

Susan Folkman

Susan received her PhD from UC Berkeley in 1979 and spent the next thirty years first at Berkeley and then at UCSF learning how people get through periods of sustained, intense stress. Her articles on stress and coping are among the most widely cited in the field. Susan retired from... Read More →

Saturday June 25, 2016 5:00pm - 6:10pm PDT
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Social & Life Experience

7:50pm PDT

The Legal Status of the Waters of the Middle East: Who is Stealing Whose Water?

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Mark Twain once remarked: "Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fightin’ over.“ This session will present fascinating issues related to this most important life-sustaining resource, with a focus on the Middle East. Are the Middle East "water wars" metaphoric or real? We will look at where and how much water is there? Who owns or has the legal rights to the waters when different states are involved? Is the situation in the Middle East unique? Are there solutions to the water predicament? Come and learn.

Presenter

Dani Renan

Dani Renan is an attorney and environmental hydorgeologist/geochemist. He served in Nachal, the IDF, and studied history at Hebrew University, where he also worked as a tour guide and medic for the overseas programs. Water science, engineering, and water policy have intersected most... Read More →

Saturday June 25, 2016 7:50pm - 9:00pm PDT
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History & Politics, Israel-Middle East

9:30am PDT

Torah Trope on One Foot

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Learn everything you need to know to be able to chant from the Torah scroll. Then practice, practice, practice.

Presenter

David Gaskill

Dovid HaSandlar is an apprentice Maggid and B'nai Mitzvah tutor, and was once a well known sandal maker. He is still in the business of molding souls.

Sunday June 26, 2016 9:30am - 10:40am PDT
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Religion & Philosophy, Prayer & Ritual

1:20pm PDT

Sacred Chant Healing Circles

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Participants will learn the practice and art of Sacred Hebrew Chant as a way to support those in need of healing, including themselves. I will teach Sacred Phrases taken from Torah, Psalms & other texts with simple melodies that become a meditation, creating a bond between the people in the circle & beyond. Participants may take home a CD of chants & a brochure that describes Temple Isaiah's Healing Circles Project as a model that they might use in their own communities.

Presenter

Jeanette Gross

Jeanette Gross is Chant Leader at Temple Isaiah in Lafayette, CA. Having studied with Rabbi Shefa Gold since July 1996, she is a graduate of Rabbi Gold's Kol Zimra Chant Leadership Training Program. Jeanette has been teaching monthly sessions of Sacred Chant in Lafayette since 1998... Read More →

Sunday June 26, 2016 1:20pm - 2:30pm PDT
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Social & Life Experience, Spirituality-Meditation

2:50pm PDT

The Spiritual Journey to Authentic Living

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We will explore sections from “The Quest for Authenticity: The Thought of Reb Simhah Bunim” (of Preshischa, d.1827), by Michael Rosen, Urim Publications, 2008. “The emphasis was not on trying to understand God, but on trying to understand oneself. It was clear to Reb Simhah Bunim that one could not stand with any sense of integrity before the Divine Presence unless one first had some clarity of who one really was.”

Presenter

Yiscah Smith

Sunday June 26, 2016 2:50pm - 4:00pm PDT
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Religion & Philosophy, Spirituality-Meditation, Text