Jewish Diasporism(s): Approaches to Nation, Home, and Responsibility
with Andy Kahn and Alissa Wise
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When
Tuesdays - 8 Weeks
4:00 - 5:30 pm ET/1:00 - 2:30 pm PT
Starts March 18, 2025
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An eight-session course that delves into the diverse ways Jewish thought has grappled with concepts of belonging, identity, and collective obligation across time and space. Co-taught by Rabbi Andy Kahn and Rabbi Alissa Wise, the course begins with an introduction that surveys key terms and frameworks, drawing on ancient and contemporary thinkers to explore conceptions of diaspora and exile. Participants will explore their own approaches while engaging with foundational texts and ideas that have shaped Jewish understandings of nationhood and diaspora. The curriculum journeys through pivotal eras in Jewish intellectual history, from biblical and prophetic texts to rabbinic sugyas and medieval commentaries. We will examine modern and contemporary movements and thought, including the Jewish Labor Bund, multi-racial democratic Jewish solidarity, multi-rootedness, and Reform Jewish theology. The course culminates in a siyyum, synthesizing the diverse perspectives and insights gained, fostering a deeper understanding of how Jews have—and must continue to—navigate the tension between dispersion, home, and ethical responsibility as we build vibrant Jewish communities that nourish, not dominate, where we live.
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This class will be recorded and available to enrolled students to watch later.
Cost
This course is available at a sliding scale cost of $359 (the true cost), $299 or $239. If you can afford the full price, we hope you will choose that option, which allows us to continue to offer lower rates and scholarships to those who otherwise would not be able to access this learning because of financial barriers.
If you need financial aid beyond the sliding scale, please fill out this simple form, and we will get right back to you.
with Andy Kahn and Alissa Wise
—
When
Tuesdays - 8 Weeks
4:00 - 5:30 pm ET/1:00 - 2:30 pm PT
Starts March 18, 2025
—
An eight-session course that delves into the diverse ways Jewish thought has grappled with concepts of belonging, identity, and collective obligation across time and space. Co-taught by Rabbi Andy Kahn and Rabbi Alissa Wise, the course begins with an introduction that surveys key terms and frameworks, drawing on ancient and contemporary thinkers to explore conceptions of diaspora and exile. Participants will explore their own approaches while engaging with foundational texts and ideas that have shaped Jewish understandings of nationhood and diaspora. The curriculum journeys through pivotal eras in Jewish intellectual history, from biblical and prophetic texts to rabbinic sugyas and medieval commentaries. We will examine modern and contemporary movements and thought, including the Jewish Labor Bund, multi-racial democratic Jewish solidarity, multi-rootedness, and Reform Jewish theology. The course culminates in a siyyum, synthesizing the diverse perspectives and insights gained, fostering a deeper understanding of how Jews have—and must continue to—navigate the tension between dispersion, home, and ethical responsibility as we build vibrant Jewish communities that nourish, not dominate, where we live.
—
This class will be recorded and available to enrolled students to watch later.
Cost
This course is available at a sliding scale cost of $359 (the true cost), $299 or $239. If you can afford the full price, we hope you will choose that option, which allows us to continue to offer lower rates and scholarships to those who otherwise would not be able to access this learning because of financial barriers.
If you need financial aid beyond the sliding scale, please fill out this simple form, and we will get right back to you.
with Andy Kahn and Alissa Wise
—
When
Tuesdays - 8 Weeks
4:00 - 5:30 pm ET/1:00 - 2:30 pm PT
Starts March 18, 2025
—
An eight-session course that delves into the diverse ways Jewish thought has grappled with concepts of belonging, identity, and collective obligation across time and space. Co-taught by Rabbi Andy Kahn and Rabbi Alissa Wise, the course begins with an introduction that surveys key terms and frameworks, drawing on ancient and contemporary thinkers to explore conceptions of diaspora and exile. Participants will explore their own approaches while engaging with foundational texts and ideas that have shaped Jewish understandings of nationhood and diaspora. The curriculum journeys through pivotal eras in Jewish intellectual history, from biblical and prophetic texts to rabbinic sugyas and medieval commentaries. We will examine modern and contemporary movements and thought, including the Jewish Labor Bund, multi-racial democratic Jewish solidarity, multi-rootedness, and Reform Jewish theology. The course culminates in a siyyum, synthesizing the diverse perspectives and insights gained, fostering a deeper understanding of how Jews have—and must continue to—navigate the tension between dispersion, home, and ethical responsibility as we build vibrant Jewish communities that nourish, not dominate, where we live.
—
This class will be recorded and available to enrolled students to watch later.
Cost
This course is available at a sliding scale cost of $359 (the true cost), $299 or $239. If you can afford the full price, we hope you will choose that option, which allows us to continue to offer lower rates and scholarships to those who otherwise would not be able to access this learning because of financial barriers.
If you need financial aid beyond the sliding scale, please fill out this simple form, and we will get right back to you.
Meet Andy & Alissa
Andy Kahn (he/him) grew up in Tacoma, Washington, and began his journey to the rabbinate (unbeknownst to himself) while majoring in religious studies at Kenyon College in Ohio, where he also spent a year studying at Ben Gurion University in Beer Sheva and Hebrew University in Jerusalem. They continued their studies with an MA in Religion and Modernity at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, and an MA in Hebrew Bible from the Jewish Theological Seminary in Manhattan. He received rabbinic ordination in 2018 after five years of study at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. After ordination, they served as associate rabbi at Congregation Emanu-El of the City of New York until 2023, then served as the associate director of Yachad and adult education at Congregation Beth Elohim in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and now serves as the Executive Director of The American Council for Judaism. His edited volume The Sacred Earth: Jewish Perspectives on our Planet, was published in June 2023 by CCAR Press. Rabbi Andy's rabbinate is driven by the desire to make Judaism accessible and meaningful to people of all backgrounds and viewpoints, and to carry forward the traditional evolution of Jewish practice as our world continues rapidly changing.
Alissa Wise (she/her) is a rabbi, community organizer, educator, organizational consultant, and ritual leader with over two decades of movement-building experience. She is the Lead Organizer of Rabbis for Ceasefire which she founded in October 2023. She is co-author of Solidarity is the Political Version of Love: Lessons from Jewish Anti-Zionist Organizing (Haymarket, 2024). Alissa was interim Co-Executive Director at Jewish Voice for Peace, where she also served as National Organizer, Co-Director of Organizing, and Co-Deputy Director. Prior to joining the JVP staff in 2011. She has served as the Education Director at Jews for Racial & Economic Justice (JFREJ) where she created the Grace Paley Organizing Fellowship, Program Director at Ma’yan, a former project at the JCC of Manhattan, chaplain at Planned Parenthood. She became a rabbi in 2009 at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC).
