Ze Kollel - Join us for a 2000 year-old conversation

Where can you find in depth Jewish study in the Netherlands? At Ze Kollel!

Ze Kollel 

You are the next phase of a 2000 year conversation, and we want your voice included in the text.

Ze Kollel aims to be both open and deep, inclusive and dedicated. Participants of all genders and Jewish backgrounds commit to one day a week of intensive Bible and Talmud study. In addition, participants will be able to propose independent study paths and take part in diverse, comprehensive seminars with guest lecturers from around the globe. Ze Kollel is also a laboratory for exploring the notion of Jewish learning and teaching. All members of Ze Kollel will be offered opportunities to teach and to develop their skills as potential Jewish educators and leaders.

Ze Kollel aims to be a place of personal and spiritual growth with the text as our guide and our fellow students as our companions. Our name is both a nod to traditional Kollel environments which are often exclusive to men, while also being a transliterated form of the Hebrew words that mean, “It includes.” We are traditional, we are rooted, and whoever you are, we need your voice.

Ze Kollel is a commitment. The cohort meets every Monday from 9:15 until 13:00. To explore what it might mean to become part of the cohort, reach out to us!

Apply now for the fall semester

Ze Kollel’s fall 2024 semester will run from September 2nd to December 16th,, 2024. Ze Kollel meets from 9:15 – 13:00 CET every Monday except the 21st of October (Chol HaMo’ed Sukkot) for a total of 15 sessions. 

Ze Kollel takes place online on Zoom, with participants joining from all over Europe. Each session consists of a 75-minute parasha study in coordination with the weekly Torah cycle, followed by 2.5 hours of Talmud learning. Ze Kollel participants have the opportunity to lead their own parasha session, contribute Divrei Torah on social media, and write their own original commentary on the text. Participants work closely with mentors to produce teaching, writing, and creative expression that they are proud of!

This semester, we will be delving into the last chapter of Tractate Moed Katan: ‘little festival’. This eleventh tractate in Seder (order) Moed, presents the laws of the intermediary days of the festivals of Sukkot and Pesach – a liminal time between the holy and the mundane. We will focus on the last chapter of this tractate discussing avelut: the laws of bereavement. What does the Jewish tradition teach us on how to face loss? What do we do, what don’t we do, and why?

Ze Kollel registration 

Spaces are limited, and applications close July 31st. We look forward to receiving your application. Apply here!

Ze Kollel is now a course of Paideia folkhögskola in partnership with Hillel Deutschland and Oy Vey Amsterdam.