Hebrew Seminary is a non-denominational

rabbinical school A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are stud ...

Ravenswood, Chicago Ravenswood is a neighborhood located on the North Side of the city of Chicago, Illinois. Lacking designation as one of Chicago's 77 well-defined community areas, it is mostly situated in the Lincoln Square community area, with the portion east ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

which trains both deaf and hearing students. Founded in 1992 by

Rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Douglas Goldhamer as the first Rabbinic school for the deaf, Hebrew Seminary's stated aim is to train individuals as rabbis and Jewish educators to serve all Jewish communities, including the deaf community. The school considers itself an inclusive and egalitarian community for the study and practice of Judaism, ordaining women, men, and openly

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

people. Hebrew Seminary's ordination program spans 5 years. The objective of this course according to the school is to teach students to be scholars, educators, and leaders, as well as spiritual guides "who can hear and share the voice of God with members of their communities".Hebrew Seminary
/ref> It encourages commitment to traditional scholarship, such as

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

and

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

, as well as the spiritual discipline of

Kabbalah Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "receiver"). The defin ...

with meditative practices, the incorporation of which is viewed as a distinctive aspect of the rabbinic curriculum. Graduation requires all students, whether hearing or deaf, to attain fluency in American Sign Language, completion of a thesis, and an exam.

References

{{coord, 42.0261, -87.7393, region:US-IL, display=title Jewish seminaries Jewish universities and colleges in the United States Jews and Judaism in Illinois Non-denominational Judaism Deaf universities and colleges in the United States Deaf culture in the United States

See also

References