Scholar in Residence 2025

February 14-15, 2025

Each year, Brith Shalom welcomes thought leaders and cultural ambassadors from around the globe. February 14-15, 2025, the shul hosts Dr. Dean Bell for a weekend of meaningful, spiritual conversation.

Friday, February 14, 6:15 PM (time approx.)  during services
In person at Brith Shalom and on YouTube
D’var Torah: “The Lessons and Limits of Leadership in Jewish Texts”

Friday, February 14 at 7:30 PM (time approx.), after services 
Dinner and talk in person
"Resilience in an Age of Polarization”
Everywhere we turn we seem to face crisis and polarization. In a complex and ever-accelerating world how can we navigate the challenges of today and the future? Resilience has become a popular concept to help us address these challenges. And yet the typical understanding of resilience as a return to some status quo is illusory since everything is always changing. Instead, we must cultivate a more nuanced resilience that allows us to learn and grow through disruption. In this session, Dean Bell shares some lessons drawn from his research related to systems thinking, ecology, ethics, and Jewish Studies.
RSVP here for Dinner:  (by February 7)
Dinner cost $36.00 per person. 
Babysitting available (registration required)

Saturday, February 15 at 9:30 AM, during services
In person at Brith Shalom and on YouTube
D’var Torah: “What is a Covenant?”
A covenant is a special relationship that creates obligations and responsibilities but also allows for creativity, growth, and connection. How has the notion of covenant been understood and discussed in Jewish thought? What lessons might it have for our relationships and life today?
In person at Brith Shalom and on YouTube

Saturday, February 15, following Kiddush Lunch
In person at Brith Shalom and on YouTube
“Tradition in Jewish Tradition”
Tradition is often seen as a core component of Jewish life, thinking, and practice. But what is tradition from a Jewish perspective? Is tradition about maintaining specific ways of thinking and behaving or does it provide opportunities to change and evolve? In this session, we consider new approaches to tradition within and beyond Judaism to examine ways that tradition can be used to ground us in community and allow us to explore new ways to engage with the world around us.

About Dr. Bell:

Dean P. Bell (PhD, University of California, Berkeley) is the 9th President and CEO of Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership in Chicago. In addition, Dr. Bell holds a Spertus Institute faculty appointment as Professor of History. He has served on the faculty at DePaul University, Northwestern University, Hebrew Theological College, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the University of California, Berkeley. A leading voice for the advancement of Jewish higher education, Dr. Bell has served as President of the Midwest Jewish Studies Association and has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Association for Jewish Studies. He is a widely published author in the areas of Medieval and Early Modern Jewish history. Bell is the author or editor of more than a dozen books and monographs, including: Interreligious Resilience: Interreligious Leadership for a Pluralistic World (Bloomsbury, 2022, with Michael S. Hogue); Plague in the Early Modern World: A Documentary History (Routledge, 2019); Jews in the Early Modern World (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2008); editor of The Routledge Handbook of Jewish History and Historiography (Routledge, 2018); and co-editor with Keren Eva Fraiman of The Routledge Handbook of Judaism in the 21st Century.