Visiting the Sick: A Talmudic Exploration
Course Details
Visiting the sick is an important Jewish value. We learned this as children, and yet many of us still avoid the actual visit. Illness is complicated for both the one who is sick, and for the visitor. What do we say? How long do we stay? Where do we sit? What is the real purpose of the visit?
"Visiting the Sick" will explore a familiar topic from a uniquely Talmudic perspective and delve into the dynamic between visitor and visited. This course is designed for someone with some previous Talmud study experience, and also for those interested in exploring this important topic.
Dr. Rabbi Avital Hochstein is President of Hadar in Israel. Avital has done research and taught at many institutions, including the Shalom Hartman Institute, where she was a research fellow, and the Pardes Institute, where she was the Rosh Kollel. She is one of the founders of Shira Hadasha in Jerusalem. Along with Prof. Chana Safrai, she is the co-author of Women Out, Women In: The Place of Women in Midrash (Yediot Aharonot, 2018). Her PhD focuses on the 8th chapter of Tractate Sanhedrin and utilizes a literary read of halakhic material combining tools from gender studies. She received ordination from Rabbi Daniel Landes and from the Beit Midrash Le'Rabbanut Yisraelit.
