JUNE 29 • 2023 | 25

A

ccording to a survey 
by the Pew Research 
Center, only half of 
American Jews (52%) can 
read Hebrew. To fill this gap 
in Jewish education, the Rohr 
Jewish Learning Institute 
(JLI) has developed Read It in 
Hebrew, an innovative Hebrew 
reading course. 
With interactive flashcards 
and its own app for remote 
learning, Read It in Hebrew 
uses the latest technology to 
combine timeless learning 
methods with contemporary 
psychology for a course guar-
anteed to be effective in only 
five sessions.

Read it in Hebrew 
was piloted in just five 
communities in 2016. Since 
then, it’s been taught at 
more than 600 
locations across 
North America, 
enabling more than 
6,000 people to 
read Hebrew — and 
interest is building. 
In Salt Lake City, 
Utah, a city with a 
relatively small Jewish 
community, the 
course has run three 
times to increasingly large 
classes. The instructor, Rabbi 
Avremi Zippel, also teaches it 

to Birthright participants as 
a follow-up for their trips to 
Israel and online to people 
in four time zones. In Stony 
Brook, New York, 
more than 40 students 
enrolled as soon as 
the flyers went out. 
Rabbi Shalom Ber 
Cohen, Stony Brook JLI 
instructor, is delighted 
to announce a rerun of 
the course soon. 
“The popularity of 
Read It in Hebrew 
suggests that it meets 
a deeply felt need,” said Rabbi 
Menachem Caytak of Chabad 
Jewish Center of Troy. “Many 

feel lost in synagogue simply 
because they don’t know how 
to read Hebrew. Learning to 
read Hebrew strengthens one’s 
connection to Judaism and the 
Jewish people in a powerful 
way.” 
Read It in Hebrew appeals 
to people at all levels of Jewish 
education, including those 
without any prior experience 
in Jewish learning as well 
as those for whom it is a 
fun refresher course. With 
flashcards depicting the letters 
alongside catchy mnemonics, 
Read It in Hebrew feels like a 
game of concentration. And 
students also get a glimpse 
of the profound depth of the 
Hebrew language, including 
brief Talmudic and Kabbalistic 
explanations of the letters. 
Enrollment is open to the 
public, and attendees need not 
be affiliated with a synagogue, 
temple or other house of 
worship.
The Hebrew reading course 
will begin Wednesday, July 
5, from 7-8:30 p.m. and 
continue for five consecutive 
Wednesdays at the Chabad 
Jewish Center of Troy, located 
at 3306 Auburn Road in 
Auburn Hills. Cost is $50 and 
includes flashcards and the 
app.
Interested students may 
call (248) 873-5851 or visit 
jewishtroy.com/hebrew for 
registration and for other 
course-related information. 

Five-Week Hebrew Reading 
Course Coming to Troy Chabad

JN STAFF

Rabbi Menachem 
Caytak

 

CANTOR SAMUEL
GREENBAUM 
— Certified Mohel —

855ABoy@gmail.com

Office: (248) 547-7970

Answering all of your anesthetic 
& aftercare needs.

(248) 417-5632 

Skill, Sensitivity and Tradition 
come together to create your special Bris.

