Oxford University Chabad Society
SUMMER TERMCARD 2024
Welcome to Oxford University Chabad Society Summer Termcard '24! This term promises to be an exciting programme at the OU Chabad Society, offering a wide variety of high profile and stimulating events, including world renowned speakers, delicious Friday night Shabbat dinners and lunch weekly, stimulating classes, seminars and plenty of opportunities to meet other students and make new friends. Whether you’re looking for challenging discussions, classes in Judaism or a warm environment to hang out with friends, the Oxford University Chabad Society has something to offer everyone. Looking forward to meeting you over the coming term!
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Weekly
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Weekly Friday Night SHABBAT DINNER & LUNCH
Oxford Chabad is delighted to offer Jewish students and community weekly delicious Shabbat Dinners and Lunch every Shabbat throughout the year
Friday Night Shabbat dinner
Every Friday, Kabbalat Shabbat service at 7.30pm, Shabbat dinner at 8pm
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
Shabbat Lunch at 1.30pm
At Chabad House, 75 Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 1HR
All are welcome!
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Celebrate Passover @ Oxford Chabad
Click here for the full Passover programme, including communal Passover Seders, festival meals, and full meal plan throughout the holiday.
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Week 2
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Friday Night Shabbat Dinner
Warden of Rhodes House, Professor Elizabeth Kiss
Before taking up the Wardenship in 2018, Dr Elizabeth Kiss served for 12 years as president of Agnes Scott College, Georgia. In December 2017, the Chronicle of Higher Education named Elizabeth Kiss on its 2017 list of the most influential people in US higher education. From 1997 to 2006 Dr Kiss served as the founding director of Duke University’s Kenan Institute for Ethics, and has published on moral education, human rights, ethnic conflict and nationalism, feminist theory, and transitional justice. Dr Kiss received her BA in philosophy, magna cum laude, from Davidson College in North Carolina, where she became Davidson’s first female Rhodes Scholar, going on to receive a BPhil (at Balliol) and DPhil in philosophy from the University of Oxford. She has held many leadership roles in local and national organisations, including the Climate Leadership Network, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities and the Women’s College Coalition. She has always remained strongly connected with the Rhodes Community, having mentored Rhodes applicants for over 25 years and serving for 22 years on Rhodes selection committees, including six years as State Secretary in North Carolina.
Friday, 3 May, 7.30pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Week 3
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Yom Hashoah - Holocaust Memorial Day
Hungarian Holocaust Survivor John Dobai
John Dobai, 89, lived through World War Two as a child in Nazi-occupied Budapest, Hungary. In 1944, Germany invaded Hungary, quickly introduced harsh antisemitic policies and Mr. Dobai's father was sent to a forced labour camp. All Jewish people in Budapest were forced to live in ghettos, wear yellow stars of David on their clothes and could not go to school. As the Soviets neared the country, the Nazis and Hungarian fascists commenced a brutal campaign of killings against the 60,000 Jews living in the "international ghetto" of safehouses. Mr Dobai's grandparents were two of 45,000 Jewish people who were massacred by gunshot and drowning in the Danube river, and two aunts and a cousin, who was just 17, were also killed. He and his parents were saved when the Soviets took control of the city before the killings were complete.
Sunday 5 May, 7pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Week 4
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Oxford Jewish Heritage Visit
Osney Mill Marina
Visit a hidden Oxford Jewish heritage plaque commemorating the martyrdom of Haggai of Oxford in 1222
Guided by Tony Munsey
Inscription: 'Near this stone in Osney Abbey, Robert of Reading, otherwise Haggai of Oxford, suffered for his (Jewish) faith on Sunday 17 April 1222 AD, corresponding to 4 IYYAR 4982 AM'
Monday, 13 May, 2.30pm
Mill Street, Oxford OX2 OAN
Mincha afternoon service will be held.
All are welcome!
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Dr. Zohar Maor
'Franz Kafka and his new secret doctrine'
Dr. Zohar Maor is a senior lecturer at the department of history, Bar-Ilan University, and a visiting scholar at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. His main fields of interest are Central European intellectual history, German-Jewish intellectuals, secularization and interreligious study. His book A new Secret Doctrine: Spirituality, Creativity and Nationalism in the Prague Circle; in the beginning of the
Twentieth Century (Shazar Center, 2010, Hebrew), outlines the mystical orientation of Franz Kafka and his circle. He is currently working on a book on the theological concept of secularization in interwar Germany.
Wed, 15 May, 8pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
This lecture is part of the 'Demystifying Jewish mysticism' lecture series
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Week 5
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Jonathan Gabay
'Jewish Ethics and AI'
Jonathan Gabay is a respected figure in the world of communications, public relations and branding. Blending informed analysis of the tactics of political influence both ancient and modern he confronts the weaponization of AI and deep-fakes that don’t just disrupt but threaten democracy itself. Jonathan is known for his depth of understanding of human psychology and applying this knowledge to create powerful political brands and campaigns. Recently made a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Jonathan’s seventeen books have worked to reveal the hidden forces shaping our choices as consumers and citizens. In his 2015 book Soul Traders Jonathan explored the long history of political and commercial propaganda and manipulation. His latest work, due 2024, Digital Marketing and AI Psychology.
Tuesday, 21 May, 8pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Dr Marci Freedman
' Medieval Jewish Travel to the Holy Land'
Dr Marci Freedman is a Salo and Jeannette Baron Visiting Fellow, Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. A scholar of medieval Jewish travel literature, her current project, "Mapping Jewish Pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the Middle Ages" seeks to develop an interactive map and website to present this corpus of texts. Other publications include “Teaching Benjamin ofTudela’s Book of Travels in the Jewish Middle Ages” (2022) and “So Many Tall Tales: Constantijn L’Empereur’s Polemical Reading of Benjamin of Tudela’s Book of Travels” (2020).
Scholars have yet to fully uncover the breadth and complexities of medieval Jewish travel to the Holy Land. In part, this can be attributed to the fact that the corpus of medieval Jewish travel literature is a mixed bag of published excerpts, editions (not all critical), untranscribed and unpublished manuscripts. My research explores why Jews undertook journeys to the Holy Land, what sites were visited, and what acts or rituals (if any) were performed at these sites in an effort to understand how such journey’s fitted into individual Jews spiritual goals. In doing so, my aim is to draw greater attention to these texts and make them more accessible.
Wednesday, 22 May, 1pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Shabbat Dinner
President of Magdalen College, Oxford
Dinah Rose KC
Dinah Rose KC is a British barrister. She has been President of Magdalen College, Oxford since 2020. A member of Blackstone Chambers, she was named Barrister of the Year in The Lawyer Awards 2009. In 2016, she was appointed a Deputy Judge of the High Court.
Friday, 24 May, 7.30pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Week 6
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Oxford University Chabad Society is delighted to invite you to join us for the
11th Annual OXFORD JEWISH FAIR - Lag B'omer @ Broad Street
Sunday, 26 May, 12-5pm
* Formal opening by The Lord Mayor of Oxford - at 1pm
* London's Jewish Music Band 'SHIR' - Ivor Goldberg and Maurice Chernick - Klezmer, Israeli, Sephardi, Mizrahi, Ladino and Simcha music
* Oxford Musician Matthew Faulk - Yiddish Folk music
* Kosher Hot Food Stand
* Petting Farm
* Jewish Books and Art, including Oxford glass Judaica
* Jewish History of England Exhibition
* Kosher cooking - Pickle making and Challah Baking
* Kosher and Israeli wine tasting - sponsored by Kedem Europe and Mamou Family
* Scribal Art by expert scribe Arieh Freeman, including display of 17th c. Kaifeng and Pusey House Torah Scrolls
* Soft Archery
* Petting Farm
To volunteer at the fair or to sponsor a stall, please email: [email protected]
This event is supported by Oxford City Council, the Community Security trust (CST), Kedem Europe, Mamou Family, JTrails - the National Anglo-Jewish Heritage Trail, Oxford JSoc, Oxford Jewish Chaplaincy, Oxford Jewish Congregation, Kaifeng Glatt Kosher Chinese Restaurant, London, Aisenthal Judaica.
Looking forward to seeing you.
All welcome!
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Professor Ritchie Robertson
‘Kafka and Judaism’
Dr Meindert Peters
Dr. Peters is co-curator of Kafka: Making of an Icon, a major exhibition at the Weston Library in Oxford. He has research interests in literary modernism, German philosophy (especially Nietzsche, Heidegger, Benjamin), twentieth-century dance (especially Pina Bausch), and contemporary theories of embodied cognition. His first monograph-length project explored embodied responses in German modernist literature and thought, and the existential implications of the training and re-shaping of such responses. His current Leverhulme-funded project explores dance adaptations of European modernist literature and what they might tell us about the continuing relevance of modernist texts in the 21st century. He is series editor of Brill's Bodies & Abilities in Culture, Literature, and the Arts.
Dr. Naftali Loewenthal
University College London
Tues, 28 May, 8pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Week 7
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Professor Oded Yisraeli
‘Rabbi Moses Isserles as Kabbalist’
Oded Yisraeli is a professor at the Dept. of Jewish Thought, Ben Gurion University of the Negev. He was for 14 years the Rabbi of Kibbutz Migdal Oz and for many years taught Talmud and Jewish Thought in Yeshivot and colleges. His main research area is medieval and early modern Kabbalah. His last book is ‘Rabbi Mosses b. Nachman: An Intellectual Biography’, Magness Press 2022 (forthcoming in English by Stanford University Press).
Tuesday, 4th June, 8pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
This lecture is part of the 'Demystifying Jewish mysticism' lecture series
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Week 8
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We warmly invite you to celebrate the
FESTIVAL OF SHAVUOT
Shavuot Cheesecake and Blintzes Buffet, Tikkun Leyl Shavuot Lectures and Festival Dinner
Commemorating the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai around 3300 years ago
Tues, 11 June, 7pm
7pm Shavuot Cheesecake and Blintzes Buffet
8pm Tikkun Leyl Shavuot I
Prof. Martin Goodman
Dr. Ros Abramsky - 'The quality of mercy'
Rabbi Eli Brackman -
Dr. Peter Bergamin
Professor Josh Getzler
Prof. Zohar Maor
10pm Festival evening service and Shavuot dinner
11pm Tikkun Leyl Shavuot II
Dr. Liora Avnaim (Bar Ilan University)
Yoav Roll
Michael Kay
Nati Plavnik
Effi Dahlen
Late night study
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
If you wish to present a talk at the Tikkun Leyl Shavuot, please email: [email protected]
For more info about the holiday visit: www.oxfordchabad.org/
The evening is kindly sponsored by the Reich Family in honour of their daughter's Bat Mitzvah.
All are welcome!
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2nd Night Shavuot Festival Dinner
Wed, 12 June, 10.30pm
At Chabad House, 75 Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 1HR
All are welcome!
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Shavuot Festival Lunch
Tues and Wed, 11-12 May, 1.30pm
At Chabad House, 75 Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 1HR
All are welcome!
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Naomi Gryn
'The Tatooist of Auschwitz'
Naomi Gryn is a writer and filmmaker, born in New York, educated at the London School of Economics with a degree in Philosophy of Science. She has worked across the film and television industry, mostly in factual programmes, as a researcher, producer, director and executive producer. For several years, Naomi ran an independent production company, See More Productions. Other diversions have included playing a hairdresser in The Crying Game and working as the Middle East correspondent for an American cable station. The highlight, she considers, so far was undoubtedly Chasing Shadows, a documentary made for Channel 4 in 1989. On 18 January 2024, Naomi served as historical and Jewish cultural consultant, as part of the production of The Tattooist of Auschwitz.
Date to be confirmed.
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Prof. Karl E. Grözinger
'Franz Kafka and the Kabbalah'
Prof. Karl E. Grötzinger is a scholar of Judaism, Semitist and religious scholar. He was was born in 1942 in Stuttgart. After studies in Tübingen, Berlin, Heidelberg, Jerusalem and Frankfurt a.M. he obtained his doctorate in 1975 and his habilitation in Jewish Studies (Judaistik) in 1980. From 1985 to 1994 Karl E. Grözinger was professor of Jewish Studies in Frankfurt a.M. and from 1989 to 1991 Gründungs-Ordinarius of Jewish Studies in Lund, Sweden. Lastly he was Professor of Religious Studies and Jewish Studies at the Universität Potsdam and head of the staff of Jewish Studies from 1994-2007. Professor Grözinger is affiliated also with the University of Haifa, fellow of the Institute for Advanced Studies Jerusalem, as well as visiting professor in Chicago, Karkau and other places.
Date to be confirmed.
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Future events
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Shabbat Dinner
Master of Brasenose College, Oxford
John Bowers KC
'Downward Spiral: Collapsing Public Standards and How to Restore Them'
John Bowers QC is the Principal of Brasenose College, University of Oxford, and a leading human rights and employment lawyer. He sits as a Deputy High Court Judge. He is an approved counsel for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, and has written numerous books on human rights and employment law, including standard texts on whistleblowing and industrial action.
Friday, 1 Nov, 7.30pm
At the Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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CLASSES AND COURSES
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Sinai Scholars Course – ‘Think Jewish: Jewish Wisdom for Modern Life’
Explore the foundations of Judaism in 8 interactive sessions
Stipend offered by Sinai Scholars Society: $350 / £260
To apply: click here.
For more info, email [email protected]
The course covers the following topics: 1. Perspectives on Jewish Identity in the Modern World, 2. Foundational Elements of the Jewish Ethos, 3. Significance and Meaning of Jewish Observances, 4. An Oasis in Time: The Gift of Shabbat, 5. The Jewish secrets of Love and Marriage, 6. Jewish Ethics: Ancient System, Modern Applications, 7. An Overview of Jewish Mysticism, Kabbalah, and Chasidism, and 8. Forward Thinking: Examining Our Past to Forge Our Personal and Collective Future.
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Talmud Class
Join us to study subjects in Judaism's all-important 6th century legal work of the Talmud that shapes Jewish law and thought up until today.
Every Sunday, 7pm
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George Street, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
All are welcome!
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Lunch 'n' Learn
Join us for a weekly delicious Lunch & Learn on a variety of contemporary stimulating topics in ethics and philosophy.
Every Monday, 1pm
Brasenose College, LRVII
RSVP for lunch: [email protected]
All are welcome!
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Tanya class with Freidy
Monday, 6.30pm
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St
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Lunch & Learn at Brookes University
Every Wednesday, 12pm
The Forum
RSVP: [email protected]
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Parsha class
Join us for an in-depth study of the weekly Torah portion with Rabbi Eli via Zoom
Wednesdays, 7pm
All are welcome!
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End of Shabbat Ethics of the Fathers with Chana
Sat, 7pm
At Chabad House, 75 Cowley Road
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Hebrew for Beginners Course
For 6 consecutive weeks
Starting: Wednesday, 8 May, 5.30pm - for 5 consecutive Wednesdays
Taught by Netanel Plavnik
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
Course: £36 for the course / non students £40: send payment to Chabad of Oxford: www.oxfordchabad.org/donate
Booking: click here to fill out the booking form.
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The Tajtelbaum Jewish Study Hall
The Tajtelbaum Jewish Study Hall is open daily for you to study with a fully stocked Judaica library, wireless internet and FREE coffee and refreshments on offer.
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
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Oxford Kosher Cafe
Enjoy a full menu of delicious Kosher food, which is situated in our spacious lounge with internet wireless connection, Wii, Jewish newspaper and satellite TV, in addition to our well stocked and diverse Judaica library with over 2000 interesting titles. Drop by for soups, deluxe sandwiches, bagels, salads, schnitzel, soft drinks and a range of delicious pastries.
OPEN daily: 12pm-2pm
At Slager Jewish student centre, 61 George St, Oxford, OX1 2BQ
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Sign Up
If you or a friend would like to sign up to the Chabad Society, please email:
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Oxford University Chabad Society Committee 2023-4
JoJo Sugarman (University) - President, Jake Masters (St John's) - Secretary, Manya Patel (St Peter's) - Treasurer, Tali Borowick (St. Hugh's), Michael Levinson (St Edmund Hall), Hayden Goldberg (Oriel), Kyle Weintraub (Wolfson), Miriam Yakob (New), Maayan Radus (St Annes), Aviad Sadeh (Brookes Chabad Society President).
Senior Member: Prof. Nir Vulkan (Worcester)
To join the committee, email: [email protected].
Directors
Rabbi Eli & Freidy Brackman
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Looking forward to seeing you soon!
Www.oxfordchabad.org