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Accessible Learning

Head of Conservative Yeshiva in Israel
touts classes available to all online.

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Louis Finkelman | Contributing Writer

D

r. Joshua Kulp, a founder
all collected when the Temple did
and head of the Conservative not exist. It has extensive discussion
Yeshiva in Jerusalem, recently of criminal law; but when later rab-
returned to Michigan to serve as visit-
bis had power to enforce criminal
ing scholar at Congregation Shaarey
law, they did not actually follow the
Zedek as part of an extended speaking Talmud’s procedures.
tour.
We see the discussion dif-
A native of southern New
ferently if we appreciate what
Jersey, Kulp graduated from
the teachers meant. Passages
the University of Michigan
in Tractate Ketubot discussing
and went on to earn his
marital finances seem (appro-
Ph.D. at Bar-Ilan University
priately) medieval to a modern
in Israel.
reader; Kulp notes that the rab-
Kulp eagerly discusses
bis devote care to protecting the
the many opportunities for
weaker party.
Rabbi Joshua
students in America and
Kulp co-authored two books,
Kulp
elsewhere to benefit from
both based on his work at
the Conservative Yeshiva
the yeshivah. During his first
through its Shiurim Online Beit
decade there, each year he would teach
Midrash.
the 10th chapter of Talmud Pesahim,
Students who take part in his online on how to run a Passover seder. Each
Mishnah-a-day project complete the
spring, his students would ask for
entire Mishnah in 12 years. In teaching copies of his notes. Eventually, his
the online course, Kulp completed an
own teacher, Rabbi David Golinkin,
English language commentary on the
suggested combining those notes with
entire Mishnah from 2001-2013.
Golinkin’s own annotated collection of
Teaching online, he doesn’t get to
historical Haggadah illustrations and
meet his students in person. During
turning them into a book. Published
this trip, Kulp met for the first time a
as The Schechter Haggadah in 2008,
student who has faithfully studied with the book gives readers insight into the
him for more than a decade.
history of the seder. Parts of the seder
In 2013, Kulp began another online
go back to antiquity, others have short
yeshivah project, Daf Shevui (“Weekly
histories. In Temple times, participants
Page”), inviting students to study the
ate a vegetable early in the seder; but
Babylonian Talmud with him one page Kulp could find no source for the idea
at time, which will take about 50 years that the salt water dip symbolizes tears
to finish the entire Talmud.
earlier than the 1930s.
In the near future, the Conservative
In addition to teaching Talmud,
Yeshiva plans to roll out interactive
Kulp has followed developments in the
Skype classes, enabling students to
academic study of Talmud. University
meet virtually with their teachers and
researchers who separate historical
fellow students around the world in
layers of Talmudic text or examine the
real time.
Persian milieu of the rabbis, publish
Another initiative: On your next trip in obscure journals and in technical
to Israel, you can spend a week study-
language. Together with Jason Rogoff,
ing at the Conservative Yeshiva.
Kulp wrote Reconstructing the Talmud,
Kulp believes that taking history
aimed at making Talmud accessible to
into account when studying Jewish
ordinary readers.
texts goes hand-in-hand with gaining
Some readers say “this is the book
spiritual depth. For example, he notes, they wish they had when they were in
a large percentage of the discussions
yeshivah.” Other readers have found
in the Talmud take place on a theoreti- the book helpful as they begin their
cal plane. The Talmud has extensive
study of the Babylonian Talmud.
discussion of the rules for sacrifices,
Kulp lives in Modiin, Israel, with his
nearly all collected after we had ceased wife and four children. As a hobby, he
to bring sacrifices. It discusses rules
has competed in Ironman competi-
for behavior in the Temple, nearly
tions.

*

36 April 21 • 2016

