The Jewish Vote: Torah, Civic Duty & the 2020 Election
October 21 & 28, 2020
October 21: facilitated by Rabbi Steven Abraham & Rabbi Deana Berezin
October 28: facilitated by Rabbi Deana Berezin & Rabbi Yoni Dreyer
Community Panel discussion:
Election Debrief: Where do We Go from Here?
November 4, 2020 | 7:00 - 8:00 pm
Featuring: Rabbi Steven Abraham, Cantor Joanna Alexander & Rabbi Duni Blotner
Moderator: Jennie Gates Beckman
In God's Image: Jewish Views on Race, Diversity & Justice
November 11 | Facilitated by: Cantor Joanna Alexander and Rabbi Mendel Katzman
November 18 | Facilitated by: Cantor Joanna Alexander and Rabbi Brian Stoller
The Future is Now: Re-Imagining Judaism for a Post-Pandemic World – Part I
December 2 & 9, 2020
Facilitated by: Rabbi Brian Stoller and Rabbi Steven Abraham
Community Panel discussion:
Digital Judaism?: Tradition, Change & the Next Rabbinic Revolution
December 16, 2020 | 7:00 - 8:00 pm
Featuring: Rabbi Ari Dembitzer, Rabbi Mendel Katzman, Hazzan Michael Krausman, Rabbi Brian Stoller
Moderator: Jennie Gates Beckman
Judaism & Glass Ceiling: Challenges Facing Modern Women & Families
January 6: Rabbi Deana Berezin, Rabbi Ari Dembitzer
January 13: Rabbi Deana Berezin, Rebbetzin Shani Katzman
January 20: Cantor Joanna Alexander, Rabbi Ari Dembitzer
One People, Many Voices: How Are the Various Denominations of Judaism Different?
Facilitated by: Hazzan Michael Krausman & Rabbi Brian Stoller
January 27 | The Story of the Different Streams of Judaism: where they came from, what they believe, how they’ve changed
February 3 | Prayer: liturgy, ideology, and practice
February 10 | Revelation and Halakhah: different beliefs about where the Torah came from and how to apply it today
Community Panel discussion:
Why We Love Judaism...and Why You Should, Too
February 17, 2021 | 7:00 - 8:00 pm
People find their connection to Judaism on many different paths.
This topic will allow the panelists to focus on the idea that you don’t
have to be a rabbi to love Judaism. Those presenting all came from
different places and are now trying to guide others on their Jewish
journey – join us!
Featuring:
Rabbi Steven Abraham
Rabbi Yoni Dreyer
Rabbi Mendel Katzman
Rabbi Brian Stoller
Moderator: Jennie Gates Beckman
The Promised Land?: Jewish Pluralism & Power in the State of Israel
February 24 | INTRODUCTION, Facilitated by: Rabbi Steven Abraham & Cantor Joanna Alexander
The following three sessions will be structured so that each
of the clergy has the opportunity to discuss how their
movement/denomination understands religious pluralism through the lens
of a number of topics. What topics, you might ask? Well we certainly do
not anticipate that all of these will be covered, but just to give you
an idea of what might be explored:
Marriage/Divorce
– Who is a Jew? – Aliyah – Burial – Kotel (mixed space & women’s
participation) – Army Service _ Public health vs ritual (pandemic
policies and practice) – Mikveh – LGBTQ+ – Jewish Education - Public
funding of Religious Institutions – Sephardi vs Ashkenazi – Who can
officiate? – Democracy(Civil) vs Religious
March 3 | Facilitated by: Rabbi Ari Dembitzer, an Orthodox Perspective
March 10 | Facilitated by: Rabbi Deana Berezin, a Reform Perspective
March 17 | Facilitated by: Rabbi Steven Abraham, a Conservative Perspective
Community Panel discussion:
The Never-Ending Story: Slavery, Freedom & the Meaning of Pesach in the Modern World
March 24, 2021 | 7:00 - 8:00 pm
In the Exodus story, which Jews are commanded to tell their
children every year on Passover, the Jews were redeemed physically from
slavery. While Pesach is “z’man heyruteinu,” the season of our freedom,
it is also a festival that speaks of spiritual redemption. Jews were
freed from mental as well as physical slavery. It was as a physically
and spiritually free people that the Jewish nation prepared to receive
the Torah on Mount Sinai.
Join
a selection of our community’s clergy this evening for an interactive
discussion with Jennie Gates Beckman on how these themes of physical
& spiritual freedom relate to the state of our community today!
FEATURING:
Cantor Joanna Alexander
Rabbi Mendel Katzman
Hazzan Michael Krausman
Moderator: Jennie Gates Beckman