In this class, we will step into the first ten Psalms, and then steep ourselves in them. Some are very familiar, others we tend to skip over, but each speaks to aspects of our human experience in ways that can support our work and help those we serve. This class will be highly participatory, with the expectation that after the first two sessions which will overview these ten psalms, each student will select ONE Psalm to analyze in depth and then share their insights with others. Analyses may include commentaries, historical notes, alternative translations, meditation hints and/or mussar teachings.
We will meet by Google Hangouts for a series of five weeks, on Sundays. I will arrange to meet individually a week before class formally starts to fine tune the technology with each participant.
Instructor: Rabbi Min Kantrowitz (2004) is the Director of Shutafim:New Mexico Jewish Community Connections, a Jewish Federation of New Mexico program. Shutafim assists small, isolated Jewish communities across the state through a strategy of empowerment, teaching and support of lay leaders. She provides grief counseling and pastoral care for the Jewish Care Program of the Jewish Community Center of Albuquerque, serves the Taos Jewish Center, teaches regularly for Road Scholar/Elderhostel, and has an active private teaching and spiritual support practice. She served as Director of the Jewish Community Chaplaincy Program of Jewish Family Service of New Mexico for almost 9 years. She is the author of Counting the Omer: A Kabbalistic Meditation Guide, which provides readers with a guided path through the 49 days of Counting the Omer, according to the traditional pairings of the Sephirot. She is a member of the prestigious Rabbis Without Borders Program of CLAL.
RabbiMinKantrowitz@gmail.com.