Torah l’shmah, sacred study for its own sake, for the sheer joy of learning, is a mitzvah, and especially worthy when it deepens thinking and broadens community. Such was the pleasure I recently had when I attended a conference at The Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education, at Brandeis University. The conference theme was “Teaching Rabbinic Literature: Bridging Scholarship and Pedagogy.”
There were more than 250 participants, including academics, rabbis, and educators who teach in universities, rabbinic seminaries, adult education programs, and religious and day schools. Leading scholars and educators delivered papers; all were accorded great respect, as was the audience. The rabbinic literature under discussion was primarily from the Talmudic period, circa 200–500 CE.
Among other issues, different orientations, or lenses, were presented for teaching Talmud. They included, for example, developing students’ interpretive skills or ethical values, or students’ understanding of the Talmud’s literary qualities, relevance to modern times, historical context, cultural context, or halachic (legal) concerns. Many teachers spoke of integrating several orientations, though one, such as ethical values, may provide the primary lens.
For me, there were many benefits of attending the conference. I met and spoke with scholars whom I’d previously known only through books. My understanding of the principles of Talmudic discourse was deepened. I gained a new appreciation for the pedagogical concerns of academics and I even got some great ideas for teaching preschoolers! But what was most wonderful was the collegiality and respect that was extended to everyone, and the universal enthusiasm for teaching.
It’s good to explore beyond one’s neighborhood, one’s comfort zone; it opens the door to meeting other seekers, colleagues who may become partners in the quest to pass Torah on to the next generation.
