Teaneck—Several months ago, Rabbi Joel Pitkowsky and Dr. Elaine Shizgal Cohen, Chair of Adult Education, of Congregation Beth Sholom were discussing ways to strengthen the relationships between different segments of the Jewish community. “Since Congregation Rinat Yisrael is right around the corner, they are a natural partner,” said Rabbi Pitkowsky. “We thought that we could study together, as diverse communities, because Torah study is a value that both shuls value greatly.”
Dr. Shizgal Cohen approached David Jacobowitz, Co-Chair of Adult Education at Rinat Yisrael, and the Pre-Pesach Beit Midrash was born. Mr. Jacobowitz, who has worked for many decades to bring the community closer together, thought that it was the perfect time to build bridges. “Our hearts are all oriented in the same direction. Why not do things together? What could be better than a group of committed Jews being friendly and learning Torah together?”
Dr. Shizgal Cohen went on to say, “This is a good thing for our two communities. We really are neighbors and we have many members who belong to both synagogues. We share many characteristics, one of which is that we both view ourselves as learning communities.”
“There was no resistance to the idea at Rinat,” Rabbi Pitkowsky told JLNJ. “In fact, they seemed just as excited as we were to come together to hear and learn different perspectives on the texts.”
“Rabbi Adler was solidly behind our efforts from the beginning,” Jacobowitz said.
Rabbi Yosef Adler summed the program up this way, “Our two shuls have come together in the past when we had a film festival and other programs. But this time, we decided it was time for some more serious interaction—text-based learning. It is my hope that people will come away with a respect for each other’s perspectives and that they come away enlightened.”
The theme for the event will be Confronting Our Enemies: “Pour Out Your Wrath” or “Do Not Abhor the Egyptian”?
Jacobowitz explained what triggered the topic. “Since Pesach is only a few short months away, the subject matter is of particular interest. The Hagaddah implores God to ‘pour out His wrath’ while the Torah says, ‘Don’t hate the Egyptian.’ We are trying to figure out how to navigate between those two seemingly conflictual perspectives.”
Dr. Ari Mermelstein, Professor of Bible at Yeshiva University, will speak first, framing the event and providing some direction and guidelines. Then, the participants will break out into small groups of four to six people for chevruta-style learning. The participants will read the texts and then try to analyze them together, word by word and line by line. Each group will have a facilitator who will keep participants focused. At the end of the program, Rabbi Adler and Rabbi Pitkowsky will each share his perspective on the material.
The small groups will be organized into Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced Intermediate, and Advanced categories. All texts will be available with English and Hebrew translations.
The Beit Hamidrash will be held from 4:00 to 6:00 pm on Shabbat afternoon, March 14 at Rinat Yisrael on West Englewood Avenue in Teaneck. It is open to the public and reservations are required through this link: tinyurl.com/March14BeitMidrash.
By Debby Biskin Flancbaum
