News Releases
JAN. 15, 2013 — It’s a common refrain of Jewish educators: How do we successfully engage our young students in the spiritual and religious aspects of Judaism?
The Shoolman Graduate School of Jewish Education at Hebrew College thinks it has at least one answer: Godly Play, an innovative educational method that introduces young children to the notion of God and spiritual wonder through storytelling, guided by the use of artifacts and symbolic objects.
Though Godly Play is not new — a version based in Christian theology was developed some three decades ago by lawyer and theologian Jerome Berryman — it has only recently been adapted for use in Jewish school settings.
Shoolman School Dean Michael Shire is among those who are persuaded of the program’s efficacy. Over the past year, he has demonstrated Godly Play to more...
The Rabbinical School of Hebrew College has received a three-year, $290,000 grant to greatly expand, enhance and integrate the school’s curriculum in chaplaincy, counseling and pastoral-care training.
The grant will allow the Rabbinical School to significantly enhance three core elements of its training program: Clinical Pastoral Education, an intensive 12-week summer program that gives students hands-on experience in caregiving; Ikvotecha, a monthly program that allows students to explore and nurture their spiritual lives by working closely with rabbis and therapists; and course work in pastoral counseling, life-cycle counseling and mourning and loss.
“Today’s rabbis are called upon to respond to individuals at some of the most difficult and intimate moments in their lives,” Rabbinical School Dean Sharon Cohen Anisfeld said. “No matter...
Hebrew College on Wednesday honored three outstanding civic leaders and two partner institutions for their ongoing work in advancing Jewish learning and leadership in Greater Boston and beyond.During the college’s annual spring celebration at Gann Academy in Waltham, Mass., President Daniel L. Lehmann conferred the following awards:
An honorary Doctor of Humane Letters to George Krupp (pictured), co-founder and senior partner at Berkshire Property Advisors and a member of the Hebrew College Board of Trustees. “George has been one of the great champions of Jewish education and arts,” Lehmann said. “His leadership and generosity have reshaped the landscape of Jewish learning in Greater Boston.”
The Hebrew College Award for Innovative Leadership in Jewish Pluralism to Lisa and Neil Wallack, philanthropic leaders on behalf of Jewish...
Rabbi Sidney Schwarz will speak at Hebrew College on Wednesday, May 1, about his new book, "Jewish Megatrends: Charting the Course of the American Jewish Future." The event begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Alumni Dining Hall. In anticipation of his appearance, Schwarz sat down with Rabbi Or Rose, director of Hebrew College's Center for Global Judaism and a contributor to the book, to discuss the highlights of his research and findings.
What motivated you to write this book?In 2000 I published my first book, "Finding a Spiritual Home: How a New Generation of Jews can Transform the American Synagogue" (Jewish Lights). In it I developed a new paradigm for the American synagogue based on studies I conducted of four synagogues from different denominations that were breaking new ground in attracting a generation of seekers that most American...
Best-selling author Anita Diamant will address the graduating class of 2013 at Hebrew College’s 88th morning commencement exercises June 2 at Congregation Mishkan Tefila in Chestnut Hill.
Diamant, who rose to national prominence with the publication of her first novel, “The Red Tent,” in 1997, will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters during the 10 a.m. ceremony. Honorary doctorates will also be awarded to business leader and philanthropist Morton L. Mandel, Hebrew College Provost Barry Mesch and, posthumously, to Rabbi David Hartman, the renowned Jewish philosopher who died in February at the age of 81.
Hebrew College will grant rabbinical and cantorial ordinations, master’s degrees, bachelor’s degrees and certificates to 67 students at morning exercises. During afternoon ceremonies, the college will award degrees to 66...
Hebrew College’s president and the dean and the rector of its Rabbinical School today were named to The Daily Beast’s list of America’s 50 most influential rabbis for 2013.President Daniel Lehmann, Dean Sharon Cohen Anisfeld and Rector Arthur Green were selected as a group at No. 14 on the list, which was compiled by a panel of executives at the online publication. This list comprises rabbinic leaders from across the denominational spectrum and includes pulpit rabbis, educators, organizational leaders, activists and scholars.Green, the Irving Brudnick Professor of Philosophy and Religion, has been named to the list every year since it was established, in 2007. Anisfeld appears for the third consecutive year, and Lehmann makes his debut in 2013.“We’re honored to be recognized and in the company of so many important American Jewish leaders...
A noted educator and author and a leading Boston businessman and real-estate developer were elected Tuesday to the Hebrew College Board of Trustees.Sara Lee, former director of the Rhea Hirsch School of Education at the Los Angeles campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and Gregory L. Stoller, president of the real-estate holding company Coolidge Plaza LLC, took their place on the board after a vote of the full body last night. Their election brings to 23 the number of Hebrew College trustees.
“These two extraordinarily accomplished individuals — Greg in the business world and academia, and Sara in the field of Jewish education — will be outstanding assets to the college during this critical period of growth and progress,” said Rabbi Daniel Lehmann, the school's president.
Board chair Susan Ain said she looked...
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