The founder of a secular yeshivah in Israel is to officially open a cross-communal Jewish education centre started by an Orthodox rabbi in Cambridge.
Ruth Calderon, who has promoted the study of classical Jewish texts for all Israelis and is also a Yesh Latid MK, will lecture at the Cambridge Lehrhaus on Sunday.
The centre was launched by Rabbi Reuven Leigh, who is rabbi of the Cambridge Traditional Jewish Congregation and the local Chabad House.
“Having been in Cambridge for 11 years, I came to the realisation that there are large amounts of people in Cambridge who are genuinely interested in Jewish learning,” Rabbi Leigh said.
“They want to explore Jewish studies without being ready to make a religious commitment that would enable them to go to a yeshivah or seminary. We have premises in the centre of town in the busiest street which gives us exposure to everyone walking past.”
The Lehrhaus, which means “teaching house”, is named after the institution opened by the German-Jewish thinker Franz Rosenzweig in Frankfurt in the early 20th century.
Around 60 people have been coming weekly to study biblical history, rabbinics, Talmud or modern Jewish thought since courses began at the Cambridge Lehrhaus last autumn.
Rabbi Leigh said its advisory board represented a cross-section of Cambridge academia and speakers had come from across the board.
“They don’t come as Orthodox or Reform. It is non-denominational and has cross-communal support. Everyone is welcome,” he said.
“We want to take the best of the academy and the best of the yeshivah, put it together and have somewhere in between.”
