The RRC Beit Midrash: Reconstructionist Judaism

Reconstructionist Judaism  

Sundays, 5–6:30 PM EDT | April 12, 19, 26 & May 3  

An overview of Reconstructionist history, thought, and practice, taught by scholars and leaders of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and Reconstructing Judaism.  

This four-session course guides you through the essential dimensions of Reconstructionist Jewish life:  

• April 12 — Introduction and History with Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D
• April 19 — Behaving with Rabbi Alex Weissman  
• April 26 — Believing with Rabbi William Plevan, Ph.D.
• May 3 — Belonging with Nora Chernov, Rabbinic Intern 

Meet the Instructors  

Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., RRC ’99, is the first woman rabbi to head a Jewish congregational union and a Jewish seminary, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., became president and CEO of Reconstructing Judaism in 2014. She has drawn on her training as a rabbi and historian to become the Reconstructionist movement’s leading voice in the public square.

Rabbi Alex Weissman, RRC ’17, serves as Director of Community Life and Mekhinah at RRC, where he teaches Mishnah, practical rabbinics, and Reconstructionism. He has previously served as Rabbi of Congregation Agudas Achim, Director of Organizing at T’ruah, and Senior Jewish Educator at Brown RISD Hillel.  

Rabbi  William Plevan, Ph.D. is Assistant Professor of Contemporary Jewish Thought at RRC, director of its Israel program, and the 2023–24 Democracy Fellow. He writes and teaches on contemporary Jewish theology, ethics, and political thought, and is currently at work on a book about the ideal of community in Martin Buber’s thought.  

 Nora Chernov (she/her) is a student at the Reconstructist Rabbinical College where she serves as the Advanced Intern for Community Life and assists in the RRC Beit Midrash. A passionate student and teacher of Jewish thought and text, Nora grew up at the Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore and attended Camp Havaya as both a camper and staff member.