Rabbi Joshua Cahan, rabbi of Kehillat Shalom since 2005, received his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He taught high school rabbinics and worked as a hospital chaplain in the New York area before returning to JTS this Fall to pursue his doctorate in Talmud. He has also taught courses in Talmud and prayer in other settings around New York. 

For the past 7 summers, Rabbi Cahan has directed the Beit Midrash Program at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, which has offered interested campers an intensive Talmud study experience. The program has grown from 25 students its first summer to over 70 participants, including a number of KS teens. He also runs the Northwoods Kollel, a full-time Jewish studies institute for undergraduates at the camp, and developed Jewish singing programs that now attract almost 200 campers and staff every week.

Rabbi Cahan grew up outside of Washington, DC, where he studied at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School and was active in USY. He received his B.A. in philosophy from Yale University, focusing on contemporary ethical theory, where he also founded Magevet, Yale’s Jewish a cappella singing group (now in its 14^th year!!!). After college, he worked as an educational resource worker in Yekaterinburg, Russia for the Joint Distribution Committee before spending time studying at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem. He has also spent time studying at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and Yeshivat Hamivtar in Efrat, Israel.

While his academic focus is in Jewish law, Rabbi Cahan’s interest in Jewish studies are wide-ranging. Feel free to bring up topics in Bible, philosophy, Jewish history, prayer, or whatever else is on your mind. Anything he can’t answer on one foot he is happy to research. He is also an accomplished baal tefillah (prayer leader) and loves sharing his melodies with anyone who will listen (or whomever he can corner J).

Dear Kehillat Shalom members,

At the beginning of the summer I spoke on Shabbat about the importance of building up basic Jewish literacy, especially in the form of becoming familiar with the basics of Jewish literature and discourse. At that time I recommended several books that I thought every member should have on their shelves.

I have made an arrangement with the Jewish Publication Society to made a group purchase of these books at the prices listed below. The prices are 40% less than the list price, plus $2-3 per book to cover shipping, etc. This list has 2 pieces: The first 4 are books I strongly encourage EVERY family to own (some of you, I am sure, already have the first). The other two are really wonderful and accessible introductions to Midrash and Talmud which I recommend to anyone interested in a broader entry into Jewish learning.

Please join us in this project. Part of what will help us to grow as a community is to build up a shared vocabulary of Jewish texts and Jewish ideas, of which these books can be a key building block. Contact Morris or myself with questions, or just order below using Paypal by  Tuesday December 26, 2006