Jews and Land Study Group - Season 2

The Jews and Land Study Group is a weekly online gathering to explore a people’s-level history of Jews in relationship to land--from the creation myths of the Torah to the times of sovereignty in ancient Israel, from the diasporas to immigrant farmers in the US. Together we’ll explore books, articles, and other resources on these topics. We’ll learn how we can engage with historical and religious texts in a participatory way, uncovering what stories lie at the grassroots of the past and the truths that endure today. 

As a study group, we will all be participating in the learning and facilitation, and everyone will get an opportunity to shape our discussions through engaging in a popular education model of collective learning. Our hope is to share the knowledge we individually bring to the group, expand into places of interest and mystery, and uncover a level of history that does justice to people who have lived before, who live now, and who will be here when we become the history.

This study group is the second of a four part series, whose goal is to aid us in understanding contemporary Jewish American life through a shared examination of our relationship as Jews to land throughout our history. This Season 2 group is for those that participated in the first set of sessions (Season 1) and will be focusing on roughly the first 500 years of diaspora spanning various locations and communities. 

This course will run on Tuesdays 7:30-9pm EST over the course of 5 weeks (3/14, 3/21,3/28, 4/4, and 4/18)

The cost of the program will be a sliding scale of $27 - $72 for all six sessions and space is limited to 15 participants.

If the cost is prohibitive to your participation please reach out to liel@jewishfarmernetwork.org, we would love to have you and have scholarships available!

About your facilitator:  Shoshana Mackay (she/her) is a beekeeper, compostodian, farmer, and educator. She farmed in Northern & Southern California, Wisconsin, and Oregon before finding her current home in Western NC. She also does live honeybee removal/rescues and teaches workshops on composting, gardening, canning, and queer Judaism. She’s passionate about exploring the nuance and complexity too often left out of our histories while also telling their stories in a way that feels accessible and relevant.

Guest Facilitator Hadar Cohen is an Arab Jewish multi-media artist, healer and educator based in Los Angeles. She is the founder of Malchut, a mystical school teaching direct experience of God through heart centered spiritual traditions. Hadar is a Jewish mystic who works to build decolonial frameworks for worshiping God. She is an artist weaving the spiritual with the political and her artistic mediums include performance, movement, writing, weaving, sound and ritual.