In the fall of 2006, RRC introduced a distance-learning program. Our first offering was Our Ancestors' Search for God: The Many Faces of God in the Bible, taught by Tamar Kamionkowski, Ph.D., RRC's dean and chair of the Department of Biblical Civilization.

The second course, The Call to Leadership: Ancient Models, also was taught by Kamionkowski, in early 2007. The Call to Leadership: Ancient Models consisted of six sessions, each offered over a period of two weeks.

Watch the video below to learn more about The Call to Leadership: Ancient Models.

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In each session, participants viewed a multimedia lesson online and took part in discussion boards with fellow learners, a teaching assistant and the instructor. Short supplemental readings were assigned as well. Participants committed approximately two to three hours in total for each session. Text study was in English; however, Hebrew text also was provided.

The cost for the course was $75 for members of Jewish Reconstructionist Federation congregations and $150 for others. The course is now concluded.

Course Description — The Call to Leadership: Ancient Models

The writings of the biblical prophets are among the most inspiring, troubling and complex texts in the Bible. In this six-session course, we delved into the self-reflections of a number of prophets to better understand what compelled them to take on the challenging role of a prophet in Israel. We paid particular attention to the call narratives — the moment of God's call to a prophetic life — of Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. The course ran from February 11 to May 4, 2007.