Advanced Learning Institute - Jewish Collaborative of Orange County

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Advanced Learning Institute: Mondays 9:30-10:30 AM (Pacific)

ALI Archives

To view recordings of past ALI programs click here.

Current and upcoming classes

Looking for in-depth Jewish learning? Join our ongoing group of adult learners and engage with gifted Jewish scholars from around the country.

April 21, 28 and May 12, 2025 | Perspectives on Song of Songs in Sacred Literature with Rabbi David Lazar

May 19, 26 and June 2, 2025 | What Makes Someone a Jew? with Rabbi Daniel Levine

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We are a patron-supported organization. While no donation is required to participate in ALI, we rely on participant donations to sustain this program. All Collaborative programs are made possible through voluntary contributions. Every gift is greatly appreciated!

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Current, Upcoming and Recent Courses

Perspectives on Song of Songs in Sacred Literature with Rabbi David Lazar

Mondays - 9:30 am PT | 12:30 pm ET
April 21, 28 and May 12 2025

April 21 | Song of Songs in the Haggadah and Aggadah
April 28 | Christian-Jewish Dialogue Over Song of Songs
May 12 | R, Maybe Even X, Rated

Prayer and Polemic: Defending the Cantorial Profession in the 1700s with Cantor Matthew Austerklein

Monday, May 5, 2025
9:30 am PT | 12:30 pm ET

By the turn of the eighteenth century, a new paradigm for cantors had emerged among Ashkenazic Jews -- that of the musical professional. Yet this new model of cantor, with its use of choral assistants and expansive, modern musical repertoire, was staunchly opposed by rabbis and traditionalists who felt the culture slipping from their grasp. Based on his doctoral research, Cantor Matt Austerklein will guide us through these rancorous, humorous, and colorful debates about cantors which touch deeply on the cultural and religious questions of our own time

What Makes Someone a Jew? with Rabbi Daniel Levine

Mondays - 9:30 am PT | 12:30 am ET
May 19, 26 and June 2

This question in 2025 has deep personal and political consequences with roots in ancient Jewish debates. Rabbi Daniel will trace how ideas of Jewish identity have shifted across time - from biblical categories to the modern crises of belonging. We will explore why there has never been one clear answer to the question of Jewish identity and why the debate itself may be essential to Jewish continuity.

May 19 | “Jewishness” in Ancient Israel
May 26 | Antisemitism, Assimilation, and Jewish Identity
June 2 | The Contemporary Debate

Thu, May 1 2025 3 Iyyar 5785

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