Dr. Chana Friedman

Dr. Chana Friedman holds a master’s degree in Midrashic Literature and a doctoral degree in Talmud and Rabbinic Thought. Her master’s thesis, titled “Opening with a Question: The World of the Public Sermon,” was written under the guidance of Prof. Avigdor Shinan at the Hebrew University in 1998. Her doctoral dissertation, titled “Laws of Mourning and Their Significance according to the Babylonian Talmud, Mo’ed Katan and Parallel Texts” (Hebrew University, 2008), was written under the supervision of Prof. Moshe Halbertal and Prof. Shlomo Naeh.
Over the years, she has taught in various adult study centers, including Midreshet Lindenbaum, the Hevruta Beit Midrash at the Hebrew University, Itim – at Tel Aviv University, “Alma,” “Kolot,” and “Safra”—a Beit Midrash for male and female soldiers. Starting in 2014, she founded and served as principal of the Pelech High School for girls in Tel Aviv for 10 years?. This year, she will be joining the faculty of the school for basic Judaic studies at Bar Ilan University for the first time.
Dr. Friedman’s main areas of research and teaching focus on the thought of the Sages (Chazal) as reflected in the Talmud and Midrashic literature. She also explores various questions related to the philosophy of halakha and its responses to changing realities and their respective challenges.
Dr. Friedman resides in the center of Tel Aviv with her family and is a founding member and leader of the Yachad community, which opens its doors to the LGBTQ+ community and the diverse Tel Aviv community. She holds the title of “Morat Halacha” (teacher of Jewish law) within the framework of Beit Morasha and is a member of the Rabbinical Organization of Beit Hillel.