Elul Learning: Disagreeing Agreeably

Elul Learning - Disagreeing Agreeably?

This Elul, we're looking - through three different angles - at living with diverse opinions.  

The disagreeing community: On the many faces of machloket (in person at FRS)
Wednesday 03 September 2025, 7.30pm
Recent times have seen no shortage of machloket or disagreement. People within the same community hold very different opinions and it has become more difficult to negotiate these differences. In this session we will consider some Talmudic as well as some contemporary sources on disagreement. We will ask what machloket is, and what machloket l’sheim shamayim (a disagreement in the name of heaven) and why we should, or should not, engage in a machloket.  
with Rabbi Dr Hannah Altorf

Agreeing to Disagree? (in person at FRS)
Wednesday 10 September 2025, 7.30pm
As we move towards a period of reflection on where we have failed to live up to our better selves, how do we do this within a fractured Jewish world?
A facilitated discussion with Rabbi Howard Cooper

Ethical Communication in the Digital Age (on Zoom)
Monday 15 September 2025, 7.30pm
What does it mean to speak ethically in an age dominated by social media? The world of the internet can bring a lot of good, but it can also cause serious harm. Social media can be a place for friendship and deep connection. Still, it can also be a space where voices of truth, falsehood, and everything in between coexist and divide us. Jewish tradition, deeply rooted in the sanctity of words, can become a moral compass and help us navigate our confusing new world.
with Rabbi Igor Zinkov