Women’s History Month Series: “Women with Wisdom for our Body, Mind, and Spirit”
Late February-March
In honor of Women’s History month and Purim we are excited to be offering a women’s lecture series starting off a little early with our Scholar in Residence: Ilana Kurshan. Come learn from a series of women in our community and the community at large. Everyone is invited. Scholar in Residence|

Ilana Kurshan | 9:30 am – 11:00 | Zoom
Ilana is an American-Israeli Author living in Jerusalem. Best known for her memoir, If All the Seas Were Ink, of Talmud study amidst life as a single woman, a married woman, and a mother,

Feb 13 | If All the Seas Were Ink
How can learning Torah help us recover from heartbreak and fall in love again? This class will chronicle a personal journey through divorce, Aliyah, dating, marriage, pregnancy and motherhood – against the backdrop of daily Talmud study. (book talk)

Feb 27 | Juliet’s Balcony
The Temple in the Rabbinic Imagination | What if Juliet’s parents had destroyed her balcony so that she could no longer have late-night trysts with her beloved Romeo? Drawing on Talmudic and poetic sources alike, this class will examine the impact of the destruction of the Temple on our understanding of trauma, nostalgia, romance, and longing – in ancient times and today. 

March 6 | Forgetting the Torah We Learn
Jewish tradition places great emphasis on Torah study, but what is the point of learning when we inevitably forget so much? Through a close reading of sources from the Talmud, midrash, poetry, and fiction, this class will examine the practice of studying Torah – why we do it, why we keep at it, and why even at those moments when it seems most futile, we may be engaging with Torah on the deepest level.

Body | Dr. Adele Schneider | March 3 | 8:00 PM
Dr. Adele Schneider is a clinical geneticist in Philadelphia and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area. She received her medical degree from University of the Witwatersrand and has been in practice for more than 20 years.

Mind | Lori Cooper | March 10 | 8:00 PM
Lori T. Cooper has been the director of The Mikveh at Temple Beth Hillel-Beth El in Wynnewood, PA since it opened in 2002. She serves as a guide and facilitator, creating rituals and helping to provide an inclusive, gender neutral and safe space for all.
Spirit | Moriah Hazani |March 24 | 8:00 PM
“Moriah is a native of Israel, an ordained rabbi and a student of Midrash and Biblical interpretation which she studied and received a master’s degree in from the University of Pennsylvania. Moriah joined Golden Slipper Gems in 2016 and enjoys researching new and interesting topics to bring to her audiences that teach older adults about new subjects expanding their horizons.”