The Jewish Experience
Sept. 1, 2021
Dear Members of the Brandeis Community,
Today, as we prepare to welcome the beginning of the Jewish New Year, I am delighted to announce the launch of the Jewish Experience, Brandeis' new website and multimedia platform dedicated to exploring Jewish history, culture, and traditions. It features exciting faculty research, alumni profiles, and thoughtful examinations of questions of identity and community relevant to Jews — or anyone interested in Jewish issues.
On the site right now, you will find reflections on the High Holidays from our alumni in the rabbinate, an analysis of the Rosh Hashanah Amidah by one of the world's leading scholars of Hebrew liturgy, and a very funny piece on apologies and Yom Kippur by a former Last Week Tonight with John Oliver writer.
Brandeis is distinct from all other colleges and universities. Envisioned as a "gift from the Jewish community to higher education," it was founded as a symbol of freedom and opportunity to all academically-qualified individuals, no matter their background. At a time when Jews were prevented from attending the leading colleges and universities in the United States, the vision that underpinned our founding was radical. Engaging and honoring this founding ethos is an integral part of the Framework for the Future. As part of this endeavor, the Jewish Experience seeks to illuminate the great wealth of scholarship and knowledge about Jewish issues and Judaism — in all its diversity and richness — on campus and beyond.
The Jewish Experience is a vital resource to anyone interested in engaging the most pressing issues facing Jews today, and I look forward to keeping up with it as it becomes an important destination for research and scholarship on Jewish identity and community. I invite you to join me — and the conversation — by subscribing to its newsletter.
Sincerely,
Ron Liebowitz