Crash Course in Jewish History

Connecting the Jews of Today with the Jews of Yesterday with Chicago Loop Synagogue and the National Jewish Outreach Program (NJOP)

Chicago Loop Synagogue will be presenting an exciting journey through 4,000 years of Jewish history to all members of our Jewish community. The five lecture Crash Course in Jewish History is an overview of the great events that have shaped the Jewish people throughout time. We are offering the course in an effort to inspire unaffiliated Jews to become more involved in Jewish life.

An estimated four million American Jews are not affiliated with any religious denomination or institution.  Many unaffiliated or marginally affiliated Jews perceive Judaism in a historical vacuum that centers around the Holocaust.  They are often unfamiliar with the great impact Jews have had on nearly every country in the world, nor do they recognize the names of the great Jewish heroes (Saadia Gaon, Don Isaac Abarbanel, Uriah Levy, etc.).

Without a connection to the past, many American Jews see no reason to look toward their Jewish future.  It is the hope of Chicago Loop Synagogue and NJOP, the national sponsor of the Crash Course in Jewish History, that this program will enable participants to develop an appreciation for their nation’s history and inspire them to become increasingly involved in Jewish life.

Each week of the five-week course, members of our community will discuss a different segment of Jewish history:

• Biblical Times with Abe Steinberg
• From a United Kingdom to Exile and Diaspora with Jerry Zoldan
• The Jewish Epicenter Moves West with Gary Wigoda
• Jews Enter and React to the Modern Era with Jay Collen
• Holocaust and Renewal with Morton Skidelsky

For more information about the Crash Course in Jewish History, please click here to RSVP or for more information, contact the Chicago Loop Synagogue office at (312) 346-7370 or email us at caryw@chiloopsyn.org.