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The Week Of Study At JTS

For twenty consecutive years, groups of three dozen committed Conservative Executive Directors have gathered each June for a five day course of intensive study at the world-renowned Jewish Theological Seminary of America. The week of study is sponsored jointly by NAASE, the Seminary and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

SCHEDULE THE DATE!   The Twentieth Anniversary Celebration!   June 13-17, 2010

The 2010 Theme

Work, Wealth and Worth: Money in Personal and Community Life

Download a PDF copy of the 2010 Week of Study Brochure

Program Details

This year’s NAASE Week of Study will feature in-depth learning with eminent teachers, Rabbi David Kraemer, Rabbis Neil Gillman, William Lebeau, David Hoffman and other leading scholars from the Jewish Theological Seminary and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

Few things are as complicated for modern human beings as our interaction with Money. At the simplest level it is our instrument of commerce, the mechanism by which we exchange goods and services. It is the expression of value. Money is the nexus of the employer-employee relationship: it relates to the worker’s duty to perform the work promised, and to the employer’s duty to pay a fair wage promptly.

But precisely because it is an expression of value it is intricately linked to virtually every facet of our lives. Money marks extrinsic value – but does it mark intrinsic value as well? What does our tradition teach us about navigating this tension? In the Torah we learn of bride-prices paid for a bride, and dowries paid to a groom, and of monetary compensation for personal injury. Is our economic value our full value? Is it our main value? Is it the value of our personhood? If not, how do we resist the enormous pressure to internalize our external value?

What is our “worth”? Is an athlete worth more than a teacher, or a merchant worth more than a farmer? Isn’t money status? How does our tradition equip us to understand these inequities? We should not covet – but is “being happy with what you have” allowing yourself to be victimized? How does having or lacking money make moral choices easier or harder? Beyond tzedakah, what is the duty of the wealthy person to the poor person?

Judaism is a religion expressed in community. What are the complications of money for the community? What if there isn’t enough money for the community’s needs? What is the relationship between money and social policy? Should we really tithe? Should the community accept tainted money – money acquired questionably but then donated for moral purposes?

Join us as we study with our Scholar-In-Residence, Professor David Kraemer, and other eminent scholars, examining the complicated role of Money in our lives and learning what Judaism teaches us about Money in the real world and the ideal world.

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If you were unable to join us for last year's Week of Study,
please be sure to plan on attending this year!

Past Weeks of Study

The annual study conference examines theory and practice, drawing on the work in the field done by executive directors, including discussions and explorations of how this work enriches and challenges executives in their own spiritual lives.

Personal Reviews

• 2009
• 2008
• 2007
• 2006
• 2005
• 2004
• 2002

Past Themes

Each year, carefully selected themes coordinate the study sessions for the week. Recent past years' themes have included:

2009 Eat and Be Holy: Food, Identity, and Social Responsibility in Jewish Tradition 2008 Spiritual Care and the Congregation 2007 Swords and Plowshares: The Ethics of War and Peace in Jewish Tradition 2006 Creating Kehillah Kedoshah, A Sacred Community: Bringing Jewish Values Into Our Daily Lives 2005 Love Your Neighbor: Jewish Guide to Intergroup and Interpersonal Relationships 2004 The Jewish Response to Illness, Pain and Death 2003 Prayer: Its Origins, History and Theology 2002 Insider or Outsider: The Jew and Community, Then and Now 2001 Chosenness and Ambivalence: Exploring the Mixed Blessing 2000 In The Image of God: Jewish Ethics at the Frontier

1999 The Intersection of American and Jewish Values: Authority Versus Autonomy in Jewish Life 1998 Sacred Land: How Jews Perceive Israel Throughout History 1997 Leadership and Self-Esteem: Conflict and Survival from Biblical Times to the Present 1996 Back To The Sources and Forward To The Future: Midrash and Our Lives Today 1995 The Search For Kedushah: Finding Personal and Communal Spirituality in our Synagogues 1994 The Synagogue: Its Role in the Community Historically, Theologically and Halachically 1993 The Jewish Life Cycle: How Jewish Tradition Sanctifies Life 1992 The Synagogue and the Community 1991 A Week of Study: A Professional Tradition Begins* * A program descriptor applied retroactively

Photos from Past Weeks of Study

Photographic highlights shown here and in NAASE publications are made possible through the tireless efforts of our photographic chronicler, David Rothenberg, FSA, ATz, to whom we express our thanks.

Shacharit in the Women's League Beit Midrash

Discussion and serious exploration begins in every corner of the Beit Midrash...

...and finds its way across the widespread campus... and beyond!