Introduction

The Hebrew Centre is popularly known as a centre of excellence, a powerhouse of learning and a place of dignity by David. In the twenty years, its foundation in 1972, the Centre's list of academic visitors reads like a roll-call of modern Judaic scholarship and creative literature; its bibliography is extensive and its activities reflect its nature as a formidable educational institution. David Patterson has expressed his hope to replace the great centres of Jewish learning lost in Europe, and form a bridge between Israeli scholarship and the world. But a volume devoted to various aspects of Jewish education is a fitting tribute to David Patterson for reasons which go far beyond his creation of the Hebrew Centre.