Sunday, May 17 | 11:00 AM Eastern Time | 18:00 Israel Time | Online via Zoom
We are delighted to welcome RABBI MICHA ODENHEIMER to A Tree with Roots for a timely class on Jewish hopes and dreams for a better future:
Messianism has been a driver of Jewish thought and history since the time of the prophets. But what is the Jewish messianic vision, or dream? Like much else in Judaism, the idea of a destined, perfected future has been expressed and articulated in numerous ways. This lecture will explore some of these, both ancient and contemporary, in an attempt to keep our community thinking about a renewed and united world even in chaotic and uncertain times.
MICHA ODENHEIMER is a rabbi, writer, journalist, social activist, and founder and director of Tevel b’Tzedek, an international social justice organization that addresses the complex challenges of global poverty.
Born in 1958 in Berkeley, California, Micha Odenheimer has been a writer, journalist, teacher, and social activist in Israel since making aliyah 31 years ago. Micha was awarded a BA in Religion from Yale University Cum Laude in 1980, and was ordained as a Rabbi by Rabbi Moshe Feinstein (of blessed memory) in 1984. Micha was also a close student of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach.
In 2007, Micha founded Tevel b’Tzedek, whose goal is to connect Israel and the Jewish people to the challenge of healing poverty and environmental destruction on a global level. In 1994 Micha founded the Israel Association for Ethiopian Jews, a watchdog and advocacy organization that aimed to change the way the Israeli government and other institutions absorbed Ethiopian Jews, particularly in the fields of education, housing and employment. (The organization changed its name to Association of Ethiopian Jews in 2016; Micha is still a board member.)
Micha’s life and interests include fields rarely seen in combination. He has reported from Ethiopia, Haiti, Somalia, Nepal, India, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh and Iraq, often during times of crisis. As a rabbi he has written dozens of essays on Torah and social justice and has reported on trends in Judaism and the Jewish world. Micha has a special interest in Jewish mysticism and Hasidism. He was a recipient of the Nefesh B’Nefesh BONEI ZION Prize for Global Impact for his role as Founding Director of Tevel B’Tzedek. He maintains: “As a society, it’s essential that we know not who has to lead us, but where we want to get to in accordance with our moral vision.”