Bet Aviv Lunch and Learn

Rabbi Yohanan and Resh Lakish, a teacher and a retired gladiator, were known to be the best Havruta (Aramaic for ‘study partners’) in the Talmud, yet their relationship ended in tragedy. The tale begins with their first encounter in the Jordan River – a sexually charged meeting of two disparate cultures and two intense men, which turns into a deeply transformative moment. It story continues with the day it all came apart – never to be mended. Through the figures of R. Yohanan, Resh Lakish, and Resh Lakish’s wife, learners are compelled explore the following questions: What does it mean to be a man? Where does power lie in this world? Who is the ideal study partner – the combatant or the supporter? What happens whenthe tutee surpasses the mentor? And can transformation truly occur within us?