Jerry Friedman
Toronto
I am a semi-retired psychiatrist with a passionate interest in Biblical texts, Jewish history and the natural history of the land of Israel. I presented three years ago at Limmud, when I examined the link between Israelite and bird migration through the Sinai wilderness, and explored how it impacted the Jewish imagination and experience over the centuries.
In terms of history, I am particularly interested in the period of antiquity when the Jews returned from Babylon to Judea, when the issues facing out ancient nation were very much akin to those of present-day Israel and the diaspora: security, political alliances, economic disparity, intermarriage, religious authority and the need for renewal.