In conjunction with Unity Day and in memory of Naftali Frenkel, Gilad Shaar and Eyal Yifrach, we will be holding a videoconference call with Rabbi Shai Held (bio below), to enable our alumni, fellows and members, from Israel to California and beyond, to come together online in the spirit of the day. The session will be 36 minutes long, so even the busiest people in our network can deepen their learning. The call will be facilitated by Angie Atkins, Director, Wexner Heritage Alumni, and is open to all of our constituents.
Unity Day’s purpose is to earmark one day to consider consciously deriving strength from our wholeness, our uniting across labels, across compartments, and across communities. Unity of the Jewish people depends upon a daily, practiced, behavioral investment. Together, we are stronger than what divides us.
Wednesday, June 1st, 2016
9:00 AM PT – 12:00 PM ET – 19:00 Israel time
Rabbi Shai Held
“Being Present and Becoming like God: Love, Kindness and the Heart of Judaism”
Please click here to RSVP and receive dial-in instructions.
Tech and RSVP Information:
We will be using a videoconference technology platform called Zoom, which is similar to Skype. Zoom is free and harmless to download, and allows us to see and hear each other so that we can have deep conversations in real time across the globe. To participate fully, you will need to be at a computer, iPad or smartphone with internet, a camera, mic and speakers. If you don’t have a camera or mic at your computer, you can still “zoom in” and just listen. You can also dial in from a phone as you would for a regular conference call. To register and receive dial-in information and texts, please email Aliza Storchan. As registration is limited to 100 participants per session, please only register if you are certain to attend.
Rabbi Shai Held, a Wexner Graduate Fellowship alum (Class 7), is a renowned theologian, scholar and educator. Shai is Co-Founder, Dean and Chair in Jewish Thought at Mechon Hadar, where he also directs the Center for Jewish Leadership and Ideas. Previously, he served for six years as Scholar-in-Residence at Kehilat Hadar in New York City, and taught both theology and Halakha at the Jewish Theological Seminary. He also served as Director of Education at Harvard Hillel. A 2011 recipient of the prestigious Covenant Award for excellence in Jewish education, Shai has been named multiple times to Newsweek’s list of the 50 most influential rabbis in America. Shai also holds a doctorate in religion from Harvard. His first book, Abraham Joshua Heschel: The Call of Transcendence, was published by Indiana University Press in 2013; his next book, The Heart of Torah, a collection of essays on the Torah in two volumes, is due out next year.
