Dr. Beatrice Lawrence Addresses Issues of Prophecy at Annual Shabbaton in Southern California

Dr. Beatrice W. Lawrence, Assistant Professor of Bible at HUC-JIR, was the keynote speaker at the Annual Shabbaton of Congregation B'nai Tzedek in Fountain Valley, CA. This year’s topic was “Prophecy” and Dr. Lawrence provided a look at the biblical prophets, how they communicated with God, what their lives were like, and the variety of tasks they performed.

Sessions included “Who Was a Prophet?,” “Madmen, Oracles, & Ecstatics: The Former Prophets,” “Luncheon with the Scholar,” and “The Classical Prophets: The Power of the Word.”

Dr. Lawrence received her B.A. in Religion from Carleton College and her M.A. in Jewish Studies from Emory University. She recently completed a Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible and Jewish Hermeneutics from Emory with a dissertation titled “Jethro and Jewish Identity: Identity-Negotiation in Jewish Biblical Interpretation.” Her interests in biblical interpretation include gender, myth, and the role of non-Israelites in the development of Israelite consciousness and religion.

Founded in 1875, Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion is the nation’s oldest institution of higher Jewish education and the academic, spiritual, and professional leadership development center of Reform Judaism. HUC-JIR educates men and women for service to American and world Jewry as rabbis, cantors, educators, and nonprofit management professionals, and offers graduate programs to scholars and clergy of all faiths. With centers of learning in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, Los Angeles, and New York, HUC-JIR’s scholarly resources comprise the renowned Klau Library, The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, research institutes and centers, and academic publications. In partnership with the Union for Reform Judaism and the Central Conference of American Rabbis, HUC-JIR sustains the Reform Movement’s congregations and professional and lay leaders. HUC-JIR’s campuses invite the community to cultural and educational programs illuminating Jewish history, identity, art, and archaeology, and fostering interfaith and multiethnic understanding.