By Eric Nusbaum, Assistant Editor, JTNews
Seattleites will tell you things happen a little bit differently in West Seattle — the neighborhood is certainly part of the city’s fabric, but also has an independent vibe. So it’s no surprise that when the Union for Reform Judaism was considering applicants for its $5,000 incubator grants, the proposal from West Seattle’s Kol HaNeshamah distinguished itself.
“This was the only project of its kind that was looking to set up a liberal yeshiva,” said Stephanie Fink, outreach specialist with the URJ and grant project leader. It was the only proposal to involve serious in-depth Jewish text study for any members of the congregation, let alone two different demographics.”
The proposal that won Kol HaNeshamah the grant was for what the congregation is calling a progressive yeshiva. That means offering classes in a format reminiscent of chevruta, the traditional approach to Jewish learning that involves partners and a lot of discussion. The yeshiva welcomes post B’nai Mitzvah students and adult learners.
Rabbi Zari Weiss says she’s excited to introduce chevruta to a Reform congregation that may not be accustomed to the learning style. But she also wants her congregants — and potential students — to know that this is not a traditional yeshiva.
“It’s not Chassidic guys, it’s men and women intellectually and emotionally engaged with different kinds of texts,” she said, “but kind of using a similar process of study: We’re looking at texts word by word, phrase by phrase, line by line. It leads us to other kinds of sources and resources.”
The other major difference from a traditional yeshiva environment is “we’re trying to employ progressive values,” Weiss added.
Two initial curricula of the yeshiva began in January: A visions track, which is more broadly focused on the Jewish community, and an Israel track. The visions class meets every two weeks and the Israel class once a month. Both require a dedicated time commitment. No dropping in and dropping out, Weiss said.
There is also an online component to the progressive yeshiva, so students can continue their discussion between classes. This allows for the yeshiva to be not just a once-in-a-while activity, but a fixture in the lives of the students. Donations are suggested, but no students are turned away for lack of money. Weiss hopes the URJ grant will soon allow them to expand the course to a third track, and continue to offer it to all members of the community, regardless of their financial situation.
One Kol HaNeshamah member participating in the visions track is Jeff Merriman-Cohen, who, unlike many Reform-affiliated Jews, came from an Orthodox background. He spent two years after high school studying at an Orthodox yeshiva. Merriman-Cohen said the progressive yeshiva courses feel extremely familiar.
“The differences so far have been the material,” he said. “Instead of studying Talmud as a primary document or text, we’re using the Reform Responsa for discussion points. The Reform Responsa is actually formatted similarly to the Talmud: A question is presented and a group of people provide answers, then there’s a whole discussion.”
The discussion then moves from the text on the page, to the mouths and ears of the students, and if Rabbi Weiss has her way, to the actions of the broader community. She believes the progressive yeshiva can open up dialogue, enabling people to deal with challenging topics.
“I think it has a lot of far-reaching implications for any community, for how we can work together to address issues,” Weiss said.
So far, the yeshiva’s students have worked well together. While emotions may occasionally run high, as can happen when discussing morality, and as the debate-oriented chevruta learning style might lead to, students have kept their heads.
“No fistfights as of yet,” said Merriman-Cohen. “What we’re hoping for is that there will be very healthy debate, if people feel comfortable being able to say, ‘Thank you, I appreciate your position, but I’m having a totally different idea.’”
For more information about Kol HaNeshamah’s Progressive Yeshiva, visit www.kol-haneshamah.org or call 206-935-1590.