Scholar-in-Residence 2026 with Rabbi Danny Nevins: Torah & Technology
May 8-10, 2026
Register Here

Congregation Neveh Shalom and the Suher Family would be honored to have you join us for:
The 9th Annual Yoni Suher (z”l) Scholar-in-Residence

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

Friday, May 8, 7:30pm* | Dinner and Talk
Don’t Delegate Your Soul
Can You Outsource the Soul? Artificial intelligence can write, analyze, recommend, and decide. As machines begin to perform tasks that once defined human judgment and creativity, Jewish tradition invites a deeper question: what, exactly, belongs to us alone? Drawing on classical Torah sources and contemporary technological dilemmas, this session explores the boundary between assistance and abdication. Technology can extend human ability. It cannot replace human responsibility.

*Following the 6:15pm Kabbalat Shabbat Service

Saturday, May 9, 7:00pm | Dessert and Talk
What Is “Natural”? Torah, Biotechnology, and the Future of Life
From gene editing to lab-grown meat, modern biotechnology is reshaping the boundaries between species, bodies, and even the definition of food itself. As science gains the ability to modify DNA and grow meat without animals, long-standing assumptions about what is “natural” begin to shift.

Drawing on classical sources and contemporary halakhic debate, this session explores how Jewish law responds when the categories it relies on – animal and non-animal, natural and artificial, permitted and forbidden – become less clear. When life can be engineered and food can be grown, the questions extend far beyond what is on the plate. They touch on how Torah understands creation, human intervention, and the limits of innovation.

Sunday, May 10, 9:30 AM | Mother’s Day Brunch and Talk
When Does Life End? Torah, Medicine, and the Definition of Death

If a person’s heart is still beating, are they alive? What if a machine is breathing for them, but they will never breathe on their own again?

Modern medicine can sustain the body long after the brain has ceased to function, forcing us to confront a question that Jewish tradition has wrestled with for centuries: when, exactly, does life end?

Drawing on classical halakhic sources and contemporary medical realities, this session explores the deeply contested boundary between life and death. From ancient debates about the “breath of life” to modern dilemmas around brain death and organ donation, we will examine how Jewish law navigates one of the most urgent and ethically charged questions of our time—and what it demands of us when a life hangs in the balance.

Complimentary food or meals are provided at each talk with RSVP.

This event, including all meals, is underwritten by the Stan and Ethel Katz Briller Jewish Education Fund of the Oregon Jewish Community Foundation and the Yoni Suher Fund of Congregation Neveh Shalom.