The period of Sefirat ha-omer between Pesach and Shavuot is associated in rabbinic lore with Rabbi Akiva, and specifically the death of his students in a plague. We will study aggadot about the the master teacher Rabbi Akiva himself – his humble beginnings, his family, his intellectual and emotional power, and his tragic end.
April 29, 2020: The rock-headed Rabbi: Rabbi Akiva’s beginnings
May 6, 2020: Rabbi Akiva the comforter
May 13, 2020: This is Torah and this is it’s reward? Rabbi Akiva’s end