SJE PROGRAM SCHEDULE

WASHINGTON, D.C. 2012

Grand Hyatt, Washington, 1000 H Street NW, Washington, D.C., USA 20001

January 5 - 8, 2012

REGISTER TODAY!

Thursday, 5th January 2012           

11:45am-1:15pm                     SJE Bioethics Group Steering Committee Meeting                   Farragut Square

1:30-6:30pm                             Bioethics Group of SJE: Selected Papers                                   Independence DE
                                                     Program Chair: Jonathan Cohen,
                                                                                   Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Cincinnati

1:30-2:30pm                Session 1: Dignity and End-of-Life in Jewish Bioethics

Presenter:  Leonard A. Sharzer, The Jewish Theological Seminary

Topic:  "Is the Goseis Dead?"

Abstract:

In rabbinic literature the term goseis is used to refer to an individual whose death is imminent. In modern times, it has become a halakhic paradigm in end-of-life decision making. 

I believe that in our era, the term should be applied only to those “actively dying,” a distinct and recognizable phase of the dying process. 

This paper will review the development of the concept of the goseis in rabbinic literature, analyze how this halakhic paradigm has been applied in modern responsa, and discuss whether it is an appropriate model for bioethical deliberations at the end of life.

Convener: Elliot Dorff, American Jewish University, Los Angeles

2:45-3:45pm                Session 2: The Self and Other in Jewish Bioethics

Presenter:  Y.M. Barilan, Tel Aviv University

Topic:  “Self discipline within intimate relationship with the Other: the law and the virtue in Jewish ethics"

Abstract:

Christianity has taught that the Jews had lived under the yoke of the Law; whereas Jesus liberated humankind from the Law and taught by example the ways of the Christian virtues. I challenge the binary division between “law" v. "virtue" oriented religious ethics. Surveying mainstream rabbinic rulings on critical moral questions such as euthanasia and abortion, arguing that Jewish law itself directs the person to follow their virtue and conscience. Interestingly, Catholic teachings on the very same moral issues are stringent and formulated in legal language.

Convener: David Teutsch, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Philadelphia

4:00-5:00pm                Session 3: The Narrative Dimension

Presenter:  William Cutter, The Kalsman Institute on Judaism & Health

Topic:  "What Do Classic Texts Really Contribute to Contemporary Discourse?”

Abstract:

Richard Lanham once proposed that most people tend to look "through" narratives towards some external value or some behavioral norm, while paying less attention to what happens when you look at a narrative. Process over product, in other words, was urged by the UCLA professor, along with many others who have become interested in narrative ethics and law and ethics. But narrative study, in spite of young scholars like Wimpfheimer, Kraemer, Aryeh Cohen and Zoloth, and the elders like Nussbaum, Booth, etc.,  remains an elusive and sometimes paradoxical way of looking at "doing ethics". My paper will challenge traditional Jewish ethicists, to be sure, to examine the ways in which they have used narrative; but it will also urge professional scholars of narrative to acknowledge the limits of the search for clarity in the sue of narrative to arrive at ethical decisions. Above all, I will provide an inventory of "what happens" when one reads a narrative, to help us enrich our search for what is the "right" in bioethical situations.

Convener: Jonathan Cohen, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Cincinnati

5:15-6:30pm                Session 4: Pain, Suffering, and Religious Meaning

Presenter:  Aryeh Ballaban, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, New York

Topic:  "Quality of Life, Pain Relief, and Presence of Mind: a Study of Nachum Ish Gamzu, Tractate Ta’anit 21a”

Abstract:

Judaism values the management and diminution of pain and considers it an integral part of the sacred obligation to heal. Yet, competing against this is the value of presence of mind, a component of one’s sense of humanity, mortality, and place in God’s world.

The hypothesis that informs this paper is that pain management and quality of life considerations reflect a struggle to balance and prioritize these competing Jewish values. My paper seeks to shed light on this balancing act. It does so by examining the narrative of and rabbinic commentary on the Talmudic character Nachum Ish Gamzu.

Presenter:  Corey Helfand, Peninsula Sinai Congregation, Foster City, CA

Topic:  "The Permissibility of Medicinal Marijuana in Jewish Law”

Abstract:

The use of marijuana, medicinal and recreational, raises numerous questions in Jewish tradition as well as for medical researchers. Jewish law does not overtly discuss the use of marijuana for the purpose of the alleviating pain and suffering. This paper focuses on the Jewish legal attitude toward the permissibility of using marijuana medicinally including: (1) The origins of marijuana, its side effects, and the way that marijuana is viewed in the 21^st century medical world. (2) The halakhic (Jewish legal) sources pertaining to using marijuana medicinally, precedent for herbal medicine, the requirement to care for oneself, and the halakhic sources pertaining to smoking in Jewish law. (3) A comparison between the use of drugs and alcohol: immediate and long term side effects. (4) Examination of pain management and quality of life.

Convener: Leonard Sharzer, The Jewish Theological Seminary, New York

7:00-9:00pm                             SJE Board Meeting                                                       Washington Boardroom

Friday, 6th January 2012

7:15-8:45am               Breakfast with an Author                               Constitution CDE

                               Buffet opens at 7:15; Discussion 7:45-8:45    (Pre-registration is required.) 

SJE Authors:

Mittleman, Alan, A Short History of Jewish Ethics (Wiley-Blackwell, 2011)

     Facilitator: Geoffrey Claussen, Elon University

Pava, Moses L., Jewish Ethics in a Post-Madoff World (Palgrave/MacMillan, 2011)

     Facilitator: Michael Barilan, Tel Aviv University

7:45am-8:45am                       Interfaith Breakfast                                         Latrobe

9:00-10:30am                           Plenary                                                               Constitution AB

Speaker:  Andrew Bacevich, Department of International Relations, Boston University

       Topic:  "The Sources of American Conduct"

       Abstract:

In his 1947 essay "The Sources of Soviet Conduct," the American diplomat George F. Kennan sought to describe the "political personality" of Soviet Power -- in essence explaining why the Soviet Union behaved as it did in the world. My presentation will attempt something similar for the United States today. Kennan found his explanation in "ideology and circumstances." My presentation will include those factors while adding several others, among them identity, culture, political economy, and inertia.

Respondent:   Robin Lovin, Southern Methodist University

Convener:     Lisa Cahill, Boston College

11:00am-12:30pm                  Concurrent Session I                                      Independence DE

Speaker:  Ezekiel Emanuel, University of Pennsylvania

Topic:  “Judaism and Bioethics—What is the Link?”

Respondents: Tom Beauchamp, Georgetown University

                            Elliot Dorff, American Jewish University

Convener: Aaron Mackler, Duquesne University

12:30-2:00pm                            Lunch                                                                 On your own

2:00-3:30pm                              Concurrent Session II                                    Independence DE

Topic:  "Recent Trends in Thinking about War: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Perspectives"

Panelists:      

     Lisa Cahill, Boston College (SCE)

     Reuven Firestone, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Los Angeles (SJE)

     Sohail Hashmi, Mount Holyoke College (SSME)

Abstract:

The focus of this panel will be recent developments in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim thinking about war. Each  panelist will identify salient issues related to this focus. The presentations will be followed by discussion among the panelists and with the audience.

Convener: John Kelsay, Florida State University

4:00-5:30pm                             Concurrent Session III                                   Independence HI

Presenter:  Julia Watts Belser, Missouri State University

Title:  “Suffering Rabbis and Other Animals: Theorizing the Connections between Animal Ethics, Worker
             Justice, Gender and Suffering in Bavli Baba Metsia 83b-85a”

Abstract:

This paper articulates Jewish feminist animal ethics in conversation with an extended passage from the Babylonian Talmud, Baba Metsia 83b-85a.  I show how the text parallels the suffering of animals, laborers, women, and rabbis, while also addressing worker exploitation, violence, and vulnerability.  The text concludes with the famous story of Rabbi Yehudah and the calf, a story often extracted from its context to support Jewish animal protection.   Yet, I suggest that the larger passage helps us theorize important interconnections—and I argue for a more integrated ethical approach to issues of animal suffering, gender violence, disability ethics, and worker exploitation.

 Respondent: Celia Deane-Drummond, University of Notre Dame

 Convener: Aaron Gross, University of San Diego

4:43pm                       Shabbat candle-lighting                                               On your own

5:45-6:45pm              SCE Presidential Address                                          Constitution AB

                                      SCE President:  Stanley Hauerwas, Duke Divinity School

                                      Topic: “Bearing Reality”

7:00-7:45pm               Kabbalat Shabbat Services                                        McPherson

                                       Followed by Kiddush and Hamotzi 

                                 (Please bring your own siddur.)

                                  All are welcome                                      

8:00-9:30pm                Shabbat Dinner                                                             Independence HI

                                        (Pre-registration required for dinner.)      

Saturday, 7th January 2012

7:15-8:45am               Breakfast with an Author                                             Constitution CDE

                              Buffet opens at 7:15; Discussion 7:45-8:45    (Pre-registration is required.) 

SJE Authors:

Faust, Halley S., Paul Menzel (Ed.), Prevention vs. Treatment: What's the Right Balance? (Oxford University Press and the American Public Health Association Press, 2011)

     Facilitator: Jonathan Crane, Emory University

Novick, Tzvi, What is Good, and What God Demands: Normative Structures in Tannaitic Judaism (Brill, 2010)

     Facilitator: Emily Filler, University of Virginia

Teutsch, David, A Guide to Jewish Practice: Everyday Living (RRC Press, 2011)

     Facilitator: Louis Newman, Carleton College

9:00-10:30am                           Plenary                                                              Constitution AB

Speaker:  Stephen Carter, Yale Law School

Topic:  “The Violence of Peace”

Respondents: Daniel Bell, Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary

                                  William Werpehowski, Villanova University

Convener:  M. Cathleen Kaveny, University of Notre Dame

10:45am-12:30pm                  Shabbat Service                                               Farragut Square                                            

                                                    Including discussion of Parashat Vayechi (Genesis 47:28 - 50:26)

                                                    (Please bring your own siddur.)                        

                                              Service is in Hebrew, All are welcome

12:30-2:00pm                          Shabbat Lunch (Pre-registration required.)          Franklin & McPherson

2:00-3:30pm                            Concurrent Session IV: War Ethics            Wilson/Roosevelt

Presenters:

1. Daniel H. Weiss, University of Cambridge

    Title:  “Individual Violence, Collective Violence, and Direct Divine Sanction in Classical

               Rabbinic Literature”

2. Noam Zohar, Bar Ilan University

     Title:  “Double Effect, Double Intention and Commanders' Responsibility: A Jewish

                 Perspective”

Abstract:

This session explores various ways in which Jewish tradition differentiates between legitimate and illegitimate types of killing.  Daniel Weiss’s paper focuses on classical rabbinic literature, arguing that the value of individual human life, alongside the Temple’s destruction and prophecy’s cessation, leads these texts to a sharp distinction between individual and collective forms of taking life, preserving the former while suspending the latter.  Noam Zohar’s paper applies Jewish textual sources to questions of contemporary warfare, arguing for the responsibility of armed forces to establish norms that protect individual noncombatant lives, even when such precautions might put combatants at greater risk.  Together, both papers point to distinctive and perhaps surprising relations between individual and collective in Jewish ethics.

Convener: Louis Newman, Carleton College

4:00-5:30pm                             Concurrent Session V                                    Constitution E

Presenter:  Ronit Irshai, Bar Ilan University

Title:  “Rape in Jewish Law”

 Abstract:

This paper, part of a larger study exploring the treatment of rape in Jewish law (halakhah), will focus on rabbinic readings of the biblical sources. How did the Talmud understand the crime of rape? Did the rabbis see rape only as a property offense? What distinguishes rape from seduction? What is the meaning of the Talmudic statement: “an act performed under compulsion may have terminated with her consent”? Can a husband rape his wife?  The paper will also consider modern halakhic approaches and a feminist critique that follows the path of Catharine MacKinnon, who identifies sexual vulnerability as a main instrument of patriarchal dominance.

Respondent: Kathryn Blanchard, Alma College

Convener: Judith Kay, University of Puget Sound

5:44pm                                     Havdallah                                                             On your own

8:00-9:30pm                            SJE Saturday Evening Session                      Independence G

Presenter:  Ryan Dulkin, Washington University in St. Louis

Title:  “The Exegetical Story as the Arena for Classical Jewish Ethics: The Case of Humanity’s Creation in
             Genesis Rabbah 8”

Abstract:

Classical rabbinic Judaism focuses on humanity’s creation in Genesis 1:26 as a key text upon which to play out a host of ethical dilemmas, including questions concerning human nature, the balance between strict justice and grace, between truth and love, and concerns for limits upon divine sovereignty. This paper analyzes a key cycle of exegetical stories in Genesis Rabbah 8, arguing that these texts favor notions of compassion and grace over truth and strict justice. This paper suggests that rabbinic sources favor the narrative over discursive forms of discourse when confronting fundamental problems of human nature and conduct.

Respondent: Julia Fleming, Creighton University

Convener: Laurie Zoloth, Northwestern University

Sunday, 8th January 2012

7:45-8:45am                           SJE Business Meeting                                      Renwick
                                                  Open to all SJE Members

9:00-10:30am                         SJE Plenary                                                         Constitution AB
                                                  In conjunction with SCE

Speaker:  Michael Walzer, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, NJ 

Topic:  "Conceptions of Peace in the Hebrew Bible"

Respondents: Daniel Statman, Haifa University

                 Glen Stassen, Fuller Theological Seminary

Convener: Jonathan Crane, Emory University

11:00am-12:30pm                  Concurrent Session VI                                    Cabin John/Arlington

Presenter:  Alexander Green, University of Toronto

Title:  “Between Maimonides and Spinoza: Constructing an Ethics of War and Peace in the Jewish Tradition”

Abstract:

My paper will explore the possibility of constructing a virtue ethics of war and peace in the Jewish tradition. While respecting important legal distinctions and principles, another means of discerning the limits of war and peace is to analyze the character trait of “courage” in the works of Maimonides and Spinoza and how it functions within their hermeneutical teaching on ethics. By attempting to grasp the Jewish view of war and peace through the virtue of courage one is able to comprehend it within the larger theoretical framework of the relationship of knowledge, the emotions and the goals of human life. 

Respondent: Geoffrey Claussen, Elon University

Convener: Moses Pava, Yeshiva University 

12:00-5:15pm                        Bioethics Symposium 

                                                 Seperate Registration Required (click the link above for Program and to Register)          

Topic: Biomedical Ethics: Traditional Jewish Values Across the Continuum of Life

Hosted By: Temple Shalom, 8401 Grubb Road, Chevy Chase, MD

Additional Information:

Interfaith Breakfast Information

REGISTER TODAY!

Last Updated 9/15/11