Courses
HEBREW SEMINARY SPRING SEMESTER 2026 COURSES
February 9, 2026 – June 12, 2026
No classes February 16; March 2-3; April 1-10; and May 25. All classes meet online.
Classes are open to rabbinic, pararabbinic, and auditing students.
(All class times are listed in Central Time)
MONDAYS
Hebrew for Mixed Levels
Rabbi Shari Chen
10:00 AM – 11:30 AM CT
Life Cycle Officiation
Rabbi Shari Chen
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
Hebrew Taught in American Sign Language
Pararabbi Sari Daybook
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CT
TUESDAYS
Modern Jewish History
Rabbi Jonah Rank
9:00 AM – 10:30 AM CT
Kehillah & Tefillah
Rabbi Jonah Rank
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
Israel, Palestine, & Zionism
Rabbi Dr. Allan Kensky
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CT
WEDNESDAYS
Bikkur Cholim
Rabbi Dr. Joseph Ozarowski
9:00 AM – 10:30 AM CT
Biblical Commentary
Rabbi Steven Bob
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
THURSDAYS
Sugyot for the Public Rabbinate
Rabbi Daniel Vaisrub
12:30 PM – 2:00 PM CT
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Hebrew for Mixed Levels
Rabbi Shari Chen
Mondays 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM CT
In this course we will continue to explore and learn key concepts in Biblical Hebrew. For our textbooks, we will use Menahem Mansoor, Hebrew Step by Step, Volumes I & II.
Life Cycle Officiation
Rabbi Shari Chen
Mondays 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
In this class we will learn how to conduct Jewish life cycle events, from welcoming a child into the covenant and officiating at b’nai mitzvoth celebrations, marriages, and funerals. Participants will learn about our traditions and how to work with families to counsel, prepare, and conduct various life cycle events.
Hebrew Taught in American Sign Language
Pararabbi Sari Daybook
Mondays 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CT
A beginning Hebrew course taught for native signers of American Sign Language.
Modern Jewish History
Rabbi Jonah Rank
Tuesdays 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM CT
A survey of major turning points in Jewish history from the 1600s through our time, this course will cover cultural achievements and hardships that affected Jewish communities in a diverse array of geographic regions. The course will offer both glimpses into the trends of smaller jewish populations (in South America, Africa, the Diasporic Middle East, and Asia) as well as deeper dives into the narratives of the most populous sectors of modern Jewish history, namely Western and Eastern Europe, the United States, and the Land (and eventually State) of Israel.
Kehillah & Tefillah
Rabbi Jonah Rank
Tuesdays 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
“Kehillah & Tefillah” (“Community and Prayer”) is a course dedicated to increasing students’ exposure to emerging and important trends and changemakers in the Jewish world. Inasmuch as the course focuses both on the community of those learning how to serve the Jewish community and the spiritual nourishment of emerging Jewish leaders, the final half hour (“Tefillah”) of each session will be dedicated to implementing a spiritual practice. In the first hour (“Kehillah), such topics to be addressed by guest teachers include pressing issues within the Jewish community, such as rising antisemitism, the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the diversity of Jewish identities. Other topics to be covered in the course include the experiences of Jews of color, LGBTQ+ Jews, and Jews with varying hearing statuses and disabilities; as well as interfaith dialogue, mental health, and creative and entrepreneurial approaches to Jewish outreach.
Israel, Palestine, & Zionism
Rabbi Dr. Allan Kensky
Tuesdays 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM CT
Our course will offer an in-depth dive into the history of Zionism, from the Biluim and Theodore Herzl to the Gaza war. We will study the history of the Arab-Israel conflict as understood in both Jewish/Israeli and Arab/Palestinian narratives. We will reflect on the significance of Israel in Judaism and for Jews throughout the world today and will have nuanced discussions on the various proposals for a future resolution of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Through reading, respectful discussion, and journaling, we will work to deepen our own understanding of and relationship with Zionism, contemporary Israel and the Palestinian people.
Bikkur Cholim
Rabbi Dr. Joseph Ozarowski
Wednesdays 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM CT
The classic Hebrew term bikkur cholim (“visiting the sick”) has been greatly expanded in the world of COVID-19, the Internet, social media, and all that goes on in the 21st century. Our course will together study many classic Torah texts of bikkur cholim. We will look at their application in the worlds of professional chaplaincy, mental and behavioral health, spirituality and much more, examining issues such as end of life, grief and loss, addiction and recovery, moral injury, and Jewish medical ethics. Besides the source texts, we will be including other contemporary readings including some of the instructor’s own published material as well as cases and stories from his extensive clinical experience.
Biblical Commentary
Rabbi Steven Bob
Wednesdays 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM CT
This course will introduce students to the interpretive tradition of the Jewish people. We will begin with the classic Midrashim from late antiquity. We will then meet the major medieval commentators; Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Kimchi and Abrabanel. In the final weeks of the course, we will explore contemporary commentaries written in our own time. By participating in this course, students will gain a mastery of highlights of Jewish Bible commentaries and develop the skills to continue to explore these texts on their own.
Sugyot for the Public Rabbinate
Rabbi Daniel Vaisrub
Thursdays 12:30 PM – 2:00 PM CT
An exploration of key passages from the Talmud that can be applied to any form of public rabbinate. We will explore these passages in their original language and translate together.