The Jews have lived in Alsace since the early medieval period. However, the relationship of the Jews to Alsace underwent many changes as the region oscillated between French and German rule. In 1871, Alsace was conquered by the German and the Alsatian Jews were faced with the difficult decision of whether to switch their allegiance to the Germans. Initially, the Jews remained patriotic to the French. However, following the Dreyfus Affair in the 1890's where Alfred Dreyfus was criticized as a both a Jew and an Alsatian, the Jews began to express allegiance to the German cause. This lecture will explore the issue of these conflicting allegiances and their implication for the history of the Jews in Modern Europe.

Berlin 1920
The Jewish community of Berlin following World War I consisted of both German Jews and Eastern European Jews. Each of these communities played an important role in the development of the Jewish community during the short lived democratic Weimar Republic. This lecture will explore the importance of each of these communities and the both the friction and cooperation that existed among the Jews of Berlin during this period.

The Kol Nidrei service begins with a declaration permitting the "sinners" to participate in the Yom Kippur service. What is the origin of this declaration? How was it utilized throughout history? What is the definition of a "sinner" as it relates to Jewish prayer? What is the relevance of this declaration today? Do we attempt to include everyone in the service or are there certain types of people who areexcluded from the service?

The tradition to recite a special prayer to honor specific members of the community dates to the Geonic period over a thousand
years ago. This custom was expanded during the medieval period to pray for members of the community who were ill or found themselves in specific danger. The rabbis addressed this special prayer and its appropriateness to be recited during the service and on Shabbat. This lecture will explore the history of this Mi Sheberach le-Cholim.

Mourner's Kaddish has become the most emotionally charged prayer in the Jewish Liturgy. What is the history of Kaddish and how did it achieve this central place in the prayer service? We will explore the evolution of the Kaddish and the different customs that were practiced in specific communities. We will also see how Kaddish has been utilized in the State of Israel and during the Holocaust.

In the period following the destruction of the Second Temple, Jewish prayer began to take shape. The Daily Amidah was instituted and an additional bracha was added rejected the heretics. There is scholarly debate about whom this bracha refers which most suggestions centering around the early Christians who had broken away from Judaism. This lecture will explore this material and analyze how this bracha has been interpreted throughout the centuries.

Prayer and Women: Shelo Asani Ishah
The Talmud requires that men recite recite a daily blessing each day thanking God that they "were not created a woman". How has this brachah been understood throughout the centuries? How did women respond to this brachah and how did the rabbis react to the women's innovation?