Jewish Life & Learning

Because You Were Strangers in Egypt: Loving Strangers and Neighbors in Jewish Tradition

Name: Because You Were Strangers in Egypt: Loving Strangers and Neighbors in Jewish Tradition
Start: 2026-03-16T19:00:00-04:00
End: 2026-03-16T20:30:00-04:00
Location: Edlavitch DCJCC

Adults (18+)

Date : Monday, Mar 16

Time : 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Location : Edlavitch DCJCC
1529 Sixteenth Street, NW, Washington, DC

Over and over, the Torah commands “you shall love the stranger because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” In this three-part series, we will use a diversity of perspectives to explore how Jews have thought about this commandment throughout our history.

Over and over, the Torah commands “you shall love the stranger because you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” In this timely three-part series, we will explore how Jews have thought about loving the other in text and practice. We will use a diversity of perspectives from across Jewish history to spark lively conversation about ways we might find meaning in these timeless instructions in a today full of turmoil.

This series is open to folks of all Jewish learning backgrounds. Texts will be provided in the original and in translation, and light snacks will be served.

This class meets on Monday evenings, March 16-30 at the Edlavitch DCJCC. The cost ($45) covers all 3 sessions; you are welcome to join even if you cannot join every session!

If you have any questions, or if cost is a barrier in any way, please reach out to Rabbi Atara at acohen@edcjcc.org.

About the Instructor: Rabbi Atara Cohen serves as the Director of Jewish Life and Learning at the EDCJCC in Washington DC, where she cultivates innovative and diverse communities around Jewish values and practice. Rabbi Atara has a Bachelor of Arts in Religion from Princeton University and was granted Orthodox ordination by Yeshivat Maharat. She brings several years of experience fostering pluralistic Jewish communities in New York City, including serving as part of the Congregation Beit Simchat Torah clergy team, teaching Judaics at Heschel Middle School, and leading Base Manhattan. Trained in traditional Yeshiva contexts, Atara is dedicated to translating the complexity of tradition into approachable content for manifold contexts with extensive experience teaching and writing curricula for students of all ages and backgrounds. She lives in Washington, DC with her spouse and a growing number of not-yet-dead houseplants.

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Because You Were Strangers in Egypt: Loving Strangers and Neighbors in Jewish Tradition

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