Enter the Pardes: An Introduction to Early Jewish Mysticism
A Lunch & Learn Series
Eastside Jewish Commons
2420 NE Sandy Boulevard
Portland, OR 97232-2784
1st Session: Thursday, March 12, 2026
2nd Session: Thursday, March 19, 2026
3rd Session: Thursday, March 26, 2026
4th Session: Thursday, April 16, 2026
5th Session: Thursday, April 23, 2026
Sessions will take place from 12 PM - 1:30 PM.
Kosher lunch will be provided.
Across Jewish history, Jews have asked daring questions: Can a human encounter the divine directly? Is spiritual experience accessible to all? Are there religious or psychological dangers to the mystical quest?
To explore answers given to these questions, this lunch & learn series turns to one of Judaism’s most mysterious and compelling stories: the Four Who Entered the Pardes. It tells of four rabbis who set out on a spiritual journey beyond ordinary understanding. What happened to them became a lasting Jewish meditation on mystical devotion, danger, wisdom, and restraint. We’ll use this legend to map a wider history of Jewish mysticism in Late Antiquity, one that touches on how early Jews imagined God, angels, ecstatic experience, and the boundaries of the self. Along the way, we’ll see how the Pardes story shaped later Jewish mystical traditions and why it still speaks to modern spiritual seekers.
Parking: Consider carpooling or other forms of transportation as parking is tight.