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04/14/09
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Best wishes for a sweet Passover!
HUCNews will appear on April 7th and 14th during the Passover holiday.
News at HUC-JIR
HUC-JIR Alumni to be Awarded Honorary Doctorates
Rabbi David Ellenson, Ph.D., President of HUC-JIR, has announced the HUC-JIR alumni who will receive honorary doctorates this spring in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, and New York. HUC-JIR alumni will be awarded honorary Doctorates of Divinity, Music, Jewish Religious Education, and Jewish Communal Service, as well as the Founders' Medallion, in recognition of their 25 years of distinguished professional service.
Dr. Reuven Firestone, Expert on Muslim-Jewish Relations, to speak on "The Quran as Literature" at Notre Dame Conference
From April 19 to April 21, 2009, the University of Notre Dame will host "The Quran in Its Historical Context," a major international conference addressing the most recent theories, controversies, and discoveries in the field of Quranic Studies. Like the first Notre Dame Quran conference (2005), "The Quran in Its Historical Context" will be a unique forum for a discussion of the historical circumstances in which the Quran was formed, and of its relationship to earlier literature, notably the Bible. Firestone will respond to the question: "Is there a notion of "divine election" in the Quran?"
Life's Daily Blessings by Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky, C '81; DHL '85
Jewish Lights has just published a new collection of inspiring reflections, based on Jewish wisdom, entitled "Life's Daily Blessings" by Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky, Executive Director of the Jewish Outreach Institute. For each day of the year, an inspiring quote from a Jewish source and a personal reflection on it help readers focus on their spiritual lives. Using both the secular and Jewish calendar as a framework, this daily devotional helps the reader honor the special and holy events of the year as well as identify the sacred moments in everyday life. It draws on the wisdom of Jewish sources and teachings, and ancient and contemporary spiritual thinkers, to elevate the ordinary to the extraordinary every day of the year. www.jewishlights.com
Spotlight on HUC-JIR's Programs and
Research Resources
"Beyond Politics" Conference Hosted by Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement
"Beyond Politics" is hosted by the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement (CMJE), which works to promote dialogue, understanding and grassroots, congregational and academic partnerships. CMJE is a collaborative partnership between Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, the Omar Ibn Al Khattab Foundation and the University of Southern California's (USC) Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

For the event flyer, please click here.
HUC-JIR in the News
Study: Young Jews More Spiritual, Yet More Divided? - The Jewish Daily Forward
In a seeming departure from centuries-old traditions of American Jewish skepticism, interest in spirituality is markedly on the rise among Jewish young adults, according to a study released this month.
Rabbi Sheldon Zimmerman's interview on WLIU - The Jewish Center of the Hamptons
Rabbi Sheldon Zimmerman reflects on the meaning of Passover.
From Their Lips: Thanks, God, for Overdoing It - The New York Times
Karen Perolman, a fourth year rabbinical student at HUC-JIR/NY, was featured in the New Jersey local section of the New York Times with an Passover sermon that she gave at her student internship.
Area Families Celebrate Passover - Springfield News - Sun
Rachel Saphire, a rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, said family plays a major role in the celebration. "This is one of the holidays that brings families together the most," she said.
Counting the Omer - Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills
Count the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot with the Temple Emanuel RE-IMAGINE project, an 18-month initiative sponsored by Hebrew Union College, devoted to re-thinking and re-structuring the synagogue's religious school.
Upcoming Events at HUC-JIR
National Invitation to Graduation, Investiture, and Ordination
Rabbi David Ellenson, Ph.D., President of HUC-JIR, has announced the class of 2009, who will be ordained, invested, and graduated this spring in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, and New York. He said, "The Class of 2009 emerges from the College-Institute imbued with leadership skills, steeped in knowledge, strengthened by a commitment to service, and dedicated to bringing hope and healing to our troubled world. As they touch the lives of others through their sacred work as rabbis, cantors, educators, communal professionals, scholars, and pastoral care-givers throughout North America and around the world, they will be a source of inspiration and guidance." Rabbi Ellenson announced the Roger E. Joseph Prize, the 2009 Dr. Bernard Heller Prize, and recipients of the Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa. HUC-JIR alumni will be awarded honorary Doctorates of Divinity, Music, Jewish Religious Education, and Jewish Communal Service, as well as the Founders' Medallion, in recognition of their 25 years of distinguished professional service.
Founded in 1875, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the nation's oldest institution of higher Jewish education and the academic, spiritual, and professional development center of Reform Judaism. HUC-JIR educates men and women for service to American and world Jewry as rabbis, cantors, educators, and communal service professionals and offers graduate and post-graduate degree programs for scholars of all faiths. With campuses in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, New York, and Jerusalem, HUC-JIR's scholarly resources comprise renowned library, archive, and museum collections, the American Jewish Archives, biblical archaeology excavations, research centers and institutes, and academic publications. HUC-JIR invites the community to an array of cultural and educational programs that illuminate Jewish history, culture, and contemporary creativity, and foster interfaith and multi-ethnic understanding. Visit us at www.huc.edu.


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