‘A Taste of the World to Come’

Abstract This paper explores the use of utopian language by interviewees talking about their experiences at Limmud Festival, an annual residential conference focused on a wide variety of Jewish learning, held over Christmas, and run by volunteers. Such language is closely linked to Limmud’s role as an experimental, cross-denominational ‘counter-community’ that plays a central role in the Jewish identity and practice of many participants, serving as a laboratory, showcase, and refuge.