The Jewish Federation of Omaha is thrilled to announce Tapestry: A Celebration of Jewish Learning 2026, featuring Dr. Erica Brown as our scholar-in-residence.
Dr. Brown serves as the Vice Provost for Values and Leadership at Yeshiva University and is the founding director of its Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks–Herenstein Center for Values and Leadership. She is one of today’s most influential voices in Jewish education, known for her ability to weave together timeless Jewish wisdom, ethical leadership, and spiritual reflection in ways that speak powerfully to modern life.
A prolific writer, Dr. Brown is the author or co-author of 15 books on leadership, spirituality, and the Hebrew Bible, including Esther: Power, Fate and Fragility in Exile which is a National Jewish Book Award finalist, and her latest work, Kohelet and the Search for Meaning. She also hosts the daily podcast “Take Your Soul to Work”, offering brief reflections on character, purpose, and leadership.
Her writings have appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Tablet, and The Jewish Review of Books, and she has received numerous honors for her contributions to Jewish learning, including the Covenant Award for Excellence in Jewish Education.
Dr. Erica Brown will visit Omaha in two installments: April 28–30 and May 31–June 7, 2026 where she will lead a variety of programs across synagogues, schools, universities, and community organizations. Each event will offer an opportunity to explore meaningful ideas, engage in discussion, and connect with others through the shared experience of Jewish learning.
Tapestry 2026 continues our community’s tradition of bringing world-class Jewish educators to Omaha to inspire, uplift, and connect us through the joy of study. Click here to download the schedule of events.
9:30-11:00 am
It’s not too late! Managing Regret
Studies show that people generally regret what they didn’t do in life more than what they did. Using Jewish wisdom, we’ll reflect on life’s big and small regrets, what we can do about them, and how to build a spiritual bucket list together.
Hosted by JFO & JFS Being a Good Ancestor Program
Register here
12:00-1:00 pm
A Conversation on Wonder
This session journeys from a second-century rabbinic text to the work of a Norwegian philosopher, exploring areas of contemporary Jewish practice that can feel lifeless. It offers an approach to modernity that is animated, vital, and rooted in a renewed sense of wonder.
Hosted by B’nai B’rith Breadbreakers
Email Gary Javitch at breadbreakersomaha@gmail.com to register.
9:30-10:30 am
Jewish Identity in the 21st Century
We’ll begin this interactive seminar thinking about the nature of identity generally and whether it is fluid or stable by considering the central factors that create “thick” and “thin” identities throughout our lives. We’ll ask where Judaism fits into this construction, especially with all its 21st-century challenges, and design our own personal elevator pitches for Jewish life today.
Hosted by B’nai Israel Living History Museum
Register here
2:00-3:00 pm
To Heal a Fractured World through Faith
Mining the concept of tikkun olam -the Jewish approach to social justice – through several important religious thinkers, we will discuss how faith can help us heal, maintain hope at times of despair, and inspire us to lean into the darkness to bring light. Fixing the world is not only about repairing its broken places but seeing our own leadership work as wider calling and mission.
Hosted by Tri Faith Initiative
Register here
6:00 pm
The Tower of Babel and the Promise of Diversity
This interactive seminar will present a close-reading of the Tower of Babel story in relationship with two famous pieces of art. The text provokes us to mine the need for self-protection, realize when it seals us off from faith, and understand the diversity that is necessary to meet today’s most difficult social challenges.
Hosted by Beth El Synagogue
Register here
12:00 pm
Lunch & Learn: Samson and the Enigma of Strength
Samson is a story of power and mission gone awry. We will look at the four fascinating chapters of his rise and fall as part of a larger, relevant conversation about the relationship between leaders and power and ponder together why in times of chaos, people gravitate to chaotic leaders.
Hosted by Temple Israel
6:30 pm
Awards Night & Annual Meeting
Dr. Brown’s topic: A Conversation on Courage
Community-wide event hosted by the JFO
Register here
11:30 am-1:00 pm
Lunch & Learn: A Jewish Approach to Friendship
Using Maimonides’ famous three levels of friendship, we will talk about what we seek in friends as we age, how to maintain and strengthen our friendships, and how to identify ethically inspiring friends.
Community-wide event hosted by the JFO
Register here
7:00 pm
Are We Hard-wired for Happiness? Judaism and the Rebbe on Mental Health
In this brief talk, we will look at one verse in Ecclesiastes (Kohelet) in relationship with one painting and discuss the small buzzing of criticism, self-doubt, and insecurity that can damage our own inner peace and steal our joy and what to do to bring it back.
Hosted by Chabad of Nebraska
Register here
11:30 am
Rabbi Sacks and the Rebbe on Happiness and Loneliness
Two incredible Jewish leaders understood that loneliness and mental health challenges were among the greatest problems of our generation and that Judaism presented meaningful responses to confront the problems of our time. Using teachings from them both, we will discuss how to flourish in today’s world.
Hosted by Beth Israel Synagogue
7:35 pm*
Where Hove All the Leaders Gone?
Using the only real Dr. Seuss-like chapter in the Torah, we will talk about bad leadership, good leadership, and what it takes to make meaningful and lasting change.
Hosted by Beth Israel Synagogue
*Please note the time change; this event was previously scheduled for 4 pm.
The Jewish F
ederation of Omaha proudly hosted renowned scholar, author, and co-president of the Shalom Hartman Institute, Dr. Yehuda Kurtzer, in the Omaha Jewish community for 2025’s Tapestry: A Celebration of Jewish Learning as the scholar-in-residence May 1–10 at various locations throughout the community.
During Dr. Kurtzer’s 10-day visit, he engaged with the full spectrum of Jewish life in our community. These events were hosted in collaboration with the following partners: BBYO, Beth El Synagogue, Beth Israel Synagogue, B’nai B’rith Bread Breakers, B’nai Israel Living History Synagogue, Chabad of Nebraska, Friedel Jewish Academy, Harris Center for Judaic Studies, Institute for Holocaust Education, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Family Service, Jewish Federation of Omaha, Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation, Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, Temple Israel, The Schwalb Center for Israel and Jewish Studies, and Tri-Faith Initiative.
Tapestry is an investment into strengthening our Omaha community’s Jewish literacy. Each year, The Jewish Federation of Omaha will bring a Jewish scholar to Omaha to collaborate with our congregations, JFO agencies, and partner organizations. Each host organization/agency will customize their own program during this ten-day period of learning. Host organizations/agencies will determine topic, mode of preferred learning experience, and setting that best serves the age group and interests of their participants. Dr. Yehuda Kurtzer engaged in a variety of sessions, in a variety of formats, determined by our host organizations/agencies.
Tapestry 2025 is generously supported by the following Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation Funds: Special Donor Advised Funds, Foundation Grants Committee, The Chesed Fund, Milton S. & Corinne N. Livingston Foundation Fund, Shirley & Leonard Goldstein Supporting Foundation, Albert & Eleanor Feldman Family Israel Foundation, Herbert Goldsten Fund, The Klutznick Custodial Fund, and personally by Rabbi Aryeh Azriel.
Their generous contributions help ensure this learning experience remains open and accessible to the entire community.
During the week of Tapestry, three of the learning sessions were recorded: the JCRC and Foundation Breakfast, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Lunch and Learn, and Yehuda’s sermon at Temple Israel Synagogue’s evening services. Find these below.
The Moral, The Political, and the Partisan: Jewish Community in a Partisan Age
American Jews and Judaism in 2025 (and Beyond!)
Loving Your Friends, Your Neighbors, and Your Enemies: On Community and Conflict
Dr. Kurtzer chose to record his weekly podcast about our Jewish community and his experience living and teaching in it for ten days, you can access it here: Jewish in the Heartland – Identity/Crisis Podcast
