At Barkai, based in a Modi’in synagogue, rabbis will study seven hours every Monday, gaining 500 academic hours over the course of two years.

One of the exciting courses this semester is being run in conjunction with Machon Puah, the world experts on fertility issues and halakha. Rabbis will be learning about recent medical advances in the field and their halakhic implications. They will be studying in depth the Jewish law regarding all areas of fertility, female health issues and marital intimacy, with a particular emphasis on halakhic decision-making (pesika) that is maximally helpful while being sensitive to the feelings of barren couples, and taking into the account the tact and delicacy required.

Barkai Founder Rabbi Shlomo Sobol explains the importance of this course. “All rabbis learn the laws of family purity before their ordination, but when a couple approaches a young rabbi with real-life fertility problems, he may be completely unprepared. These sort of questions require that the rabbi be familiar with all the latest technologies available, know how they work and what the physical and emotional complications may be, what the associated halakhic issues are and where the halakha is most flexible. The communal rabbi needs to know how to discuss very personal and potentially embarrassing issues with the couple in such a way that they feel supported and understood – and of course, ultimately he wants to be able to help them solve their problem. I am extremely happy that we can offer this course because it will give Barkai rabbis the ability to truly help, on all levels, the infertile couples who turn to them.“

Another course of great interest is Community Building by Dr. Shai Ben-Yosef. Dr. Ben-Yosef is a business consultant who specializes in management issues and organizational structures. He lectures at both Tel Aviv University and Ben Gurion University. The course at Barkai concentrates on identifying the ways in which a specific community functions, learning how to work well with all its elements – from municipal committees to volunteer organizations – and how to develop and improve communities so that they best serve the needs of their members. Barkai Founder Rabbi David Fine explains, “Most rabbis come into a synagogue relatively unaware of all the elements that make up their immediate community, and how it operates within its wider surroundings. Our goal with this course is for a Barkai rabbi to be able to quickly understand the structure of the community in which he finds himself and become an active leader rather than a passive reactor to his surroundings. An incoming rabbi needs to not only understand the community structure but also know how to successfully initiate projects and activate the community for the greater good. In other words, we want our rabbis to have the tools they need to make significant improvements in their communities.”