Want to learn more about Israel?
Two educators, twenty opinions, thanks to Pluralistic Rabbinical Seminary + Darshan Yeshiva
Want to learn more about Israel, but don’t know where to start?
We’ve got you!
Our sister Pluralistic Rabbinical Seminary offers Darshan Yeshiva’s Darshan Training students (and conversion students) the opportunity for higher-level learning through the Community Bet Midrash.
Here’s how it works.
Join Darshan Yeshiva’s Darshan Training Program. You’ll receive every program on our website for one price. From there, you will receive a coupon code with access Pluralistic Rabbinical Seminary’s bet midrash — a series of curated electives made available to lay learners.
While there are countless history courses you can access, these two on Israel are the most timely, and are a deep contrast to one another.
Jewish-Muslim Relations and the Arab-Israeli Conflict with Dr. Sariel Birnbaum
The course will survey the relations between Islam and the Jews from the moment that Prophet Muhammad established that great religion.
We will then learn about the Arab-Israeli conflict’s evolution from the establishment of Zionism at the twilight of the Ottoman Empire and the turbulent times of the British Mandate.
Israel’s establishment in 1948 brought the conflict to the battlefields between Israel and its Arab neighboring countries until the Yom Kippur War in 1973, one of the world’s last great “inter-state” wars.
The unsolved Palestinian situation returned again and again to the headlines with terror incidents and usually unfruitful rounds of peace negotiation.
The course will also examine how Arab cinema presented the Jews and the Israelis.
Dr. Sariel Birnbaum received his PhD. in Contemporary Middle Eastern Studies from Hebrew University. He has written and published a book, "Back to the Past - Filmed history in Arab Cinema," through Magnes Press, Hebrew University, and published additional academic articles. Dr. Birnbaum teaches at UCLA, and previously taught at Binghamton SUNY and San-Diego State University. In addition to Hebrew, his mother language, Dr. Birnbaum worked as a translator from Arabic, and he reads and speaks French and German.
Navigating Israel Issues in the Diaspora with Michael Morgenthau
This course delves into the multifaceted aspects of Zionism, its historical roots, and its impact on contemporary society. Exploring the origins and types of Zionism, it also investigates its alignment with nationalism and the controversies surrounding it. Additionally, the course examines the divisions within Diaspora Jewry over Israel and the catalysts for conflicts, such as the Goldstone report. It addresses the Nakba's significance in Palestinian and Jewish memories, drawing lessons from historical events like Ishmael’s oranges and contemplating commemoration approaches. Furthermore, the course delves into understanding the intersections between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism, analyzing examples from the past and offering suggestions to tackle this intricate issue.
Michael Morgenthau is a community leader living in Toronto, Canada. He began wrestling with the Israeli-Diaspora relationship from an early age, growing up in the Jewish day school system. He has studied this relationship as part of his undergraduate and legal studies at universities in Canada, Europe, and Israel. Over the years, Michael has been a leader in a variety of Israel focused community organizations - from divergent cultural and political perspectives. Beyond Israel related advocacy, Michael is also a lay leader within the movement for Jewish renewal. When he is not volunteering within the Jewish community, Michael is mentoring future lawyers as the founder of a boutique LSAT tutoring company.