Join us for this year’s Robbins Collection Annual Lecture in Jewish Law, Thought and Identity on Tuesday, February 4, from 5:30 to 7:30pm.
Rabbi Shalom delves into the history, customs, and law of the Beta Israel, codifying the ancient cultural heritage of Ethiopian Jewry for the first time and contrasting it with Orthodox rabbinic law. Navigating tensions between religion and culture, he offers suggestions for honoring Beta Israel tradition while fully participating in the greater Jewish community.
Rabbi Shalom will be joined by Anthropologist Don Seeman, a scholar of Ethiopian Jewry and Professor of Religion and Jewish Studies at Emory University.
Rabbi Sharon Shalom is a scholar of Ethiopian Jewish law, culture, and practice, and a rabbi in the Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel. His book entitled From Sinai to Ethiopia: The Halakhic And Conceptual World of Ethiopian Jewry, explores Ethiopian Jewish traditions in the context of modern Israel and rabbinic Judaism. He teaches at Bar-Ilan University and he is now the Director of a new Center on Ethiopian Jewry at Ono Academic College. He serves as the Rabbi of the “Kdoshei Israel” community in Kiryat Gat.
The Lecture will be held in room 105.