The Biblical injunction to "teach your children" extends to
young and old
alike, according to Jewish tradition.
In fact, the medieval scholar, Maimonides, called "the advancement of
learning, the Highest Commandment."
"The Highest Commandment," takes a look at several dynamic individuals
who have overcome great obstacles in their desire to fully explore Judaism's rich heritage, rituals and sacred texts.
Viewers will meet: a thirteen-year-old boy pursuing post-bar mitzvah study at JTS's Ivry Prozdor Supplemental High School; an eighty-nine-year-old woman and her Torah study group from the Cambridge House in New York preparing for and celebrating a communal b'not mitzvah, an honor they were all denied
as girls;
a deaf woman, determined to convey to her hearing children a deep love and appreciation of their heritage, demonstrating her unique work as a Jewish educator.
From "Mitzvah Clowns" in wigs and large red noses who learn how to fulfill
the commandment of bikkur holim (visiting the sick), to another group that incorporates Torah study with yoga or meditation, to those more traditionally inclined shown poring over texts or attending a lecture, "The Highest Commandment" also details the wide range of programs available to anyone seeking continuing Jewish education.
In one of the program's most affecting segments,
members of Uganda's Abayudaya tribe, who have embraced Judaism for more than three generations, are shown crowded into a tiny, one-room schoolhouse
learning the Shema and other Jewish prayers from their spiritual leader, Gershom Sizumo.
Throughout the program, the leading rabbis and Jewish educators of our day comment on the current efforts being made to create, support and advance Jewish learning all around the world.
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