Click here to view this message in a browser window.

May 1, 2025

In Focus: JTS and Israel

THE 39TH WORLD ZIONIST CONGRESS ELECTION: VOTE THROUGH MAY 4

You have just a few days left to vote in the World Zionist Congress Election. A vote for the Conservative/Masorti Movement stands for pluralism, commitment to democracy, and rejection of extremism.

Vote now →

MEGILLAT HA'ATZMAUT AT THE KOTEL 2025

In honor of Yom Ha’atzma’ut, watch the Megillat Ha'atzmaut reading event from the Egalitarian Kotel, where JTS proudly joined the World Zionist Organization along with many organizations, rabbis, public figures, and community leaders.

Watch now →

ISRAELI CULTURE: ART, ARTIFACTS, AND TEXTS FOR A SHARED FUTURE

Recording now available! In the second session of our recent convening Israel at a Crossroads, James S. Snyder, Raquel Ukeles, and moderator Juliana Ochs Dweck tackled the topic of museums and libraries in times of crisis.

Watch now →

THE "ART" OF ZIONIST THOUGHT AND ISRAELI IDENTITY

In the kick-off session of our new webinar series, Israel at a Crossroads—Expanding the Conversation, Rabbi Matt Berkowitz explored art that defined Israeli identity and highlighted the shifts in the last century.

Watch now →

Faculty News

JTS APPOINTS INAUGURAL RIFKIND CHAIR IN JEWISH HISTORY

Dr. Sandra Fox will bring her academic experience and wide-ranging research interests to her teaching and will guide JTS students through a deep exploration of the modern Jewish experience.

Read now →

BENJAMIN D. SOMMER SELECTED FOR PRESTIGIOUS NATIONAL HUMANITIES CENTER FELLOWSHIP

Professor Benjamin D. Sommer, one of 32 fellows selected, will spend the 2025–26 academic year working at the National Humanities Center on his research project.

Read now →

THE JEWISH ARCHIVAL SURVEY IN UKRAINE RECEIVES ADDITIONAL FUNDING

Led by Dr. David Fishman, JTS, and Senior Editor Alexander Ivanov, JAS is dedicated to locating, preserving, describing, and making accessible thousands of archival collections in Ukraine that contain valuable materials on Jewish history and culture.

Read now →

DR. DAVID KRAEMER PUBLISHES NEW BOOK

In his new book Embracing Exile: The Case for Jewish Diaspora, Dr. David Kraemer seeks to provide a “fuller picture” of issues related to Jewish identity, place, and home.

Read now in Jerusalem Post →

131st Commencement Exercises and Tekes Hasmakhah: Ceremony of Rabbinic and Cantorial Ordination

ONLINE | THURSDAY, MAY 22, 10:30 A.M. ET (COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES) AND 3:30 P.M. ET (ORDINATION CEREMONY)

Join us for our livestream ceremony and celebrate our soon-to-be JTS graduates and newly ordained rabbis and cantors.

Learn with JTS

MFA IN CREATIVE WRITING: A VISION FOR STORYTELLING

ONLINE | SUNDAY, MAY 4, 2:30 P.M. ET

This Sunday, MFA in Creative Writing Program Director Etgar Keret and Founding Creative Advisor Jonathan Safran Foer will discuss the art of contemporary storytelling and their vision for JTS’s groundbreaking new MFA in Creative Writing.

Learn more and register →

ISRAELI SOCIETY: BETWEEN COHESION AND FRAGMENTATION

ONLINE | MONDAY, MAY 5, 1:00–2:00 P.M. ET

Delve into the deep divisions within Israeli society—over religion, security, economics, and more—with Kekst Graduate School alum Dr. Elan Ezrachi.

Learn more →

LEO BAECK ON REPENTANCE AND FORGIVENESS BEFORE AND AFTER THE HOLOCAUST

JTS | MONDAY, MAY 5, 6:30 P.M.

Professor George Y. Kohler, Bar Ilan University, will deliver a keynote lecture for "Conceptions and Theories of Forgiveness in Jewish Thought," an academic conference at JTS.

Learn more and register →

COME MY BRIDE: AN ARTISTS' BEIT MIDRASH BY RABBINICAL STUDENT ANINA DASSA

JTS | MONDAY, MAY 5, 7:30–9:00 P.M.

Join senior Rabbinical School student Anina Dassa for a deep dive into Lecha Dodi, where we’ll go beyond traditional beit midrash learning by incorporating art to deepen our connection with this beloved poem.

Learn more →

TANAKH 360

JTS | CLASSES BEGIN JULY 7

This summer, study the Hebrew Bible from multiple perspectives. Each day focuses on a unique approach—Biblical Scholarship, Rabbinics, Medieval Commentary, and Jewish Thought.

Learn more →

Apply to the MA in Spiritual Care and Counseling

STUDY ONLINE OR IN-PERSON

Still accepting applications for fall 2025! JTS’s MA in Spiritual Care and Counseling welcomes people who feel called upon to bring healing to a troubled world by becoming a spiritual care professional.

APPLY NOW

News

SH’MA KOLEINU: A JOINT MESSAGE FROM JEWS OF COLUMBIA ACROSS THE IDEOLOGICAL SPECTRUM

Along with other Jewish students from Columbia University and Barnard College, several of our List College students authored and signed this op-ed in a powerful act of conscience and community.