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Jun 21, 2010

This Shabbat! CNS Scholar in Residence - Rabbi Steven Greenberg!

This Shabbat! CNS Scholar in Residence - Rabbi Steven Greenberg!
Scholar-in-Residence Shabbat at Congregation Netivot Shalom 
with Rabbi Steven Greenberg - June 25 & 26, 2010


Rabbi Steven Greenberg is Director of the CLAL Diversity Project and a Senior Teaching Fellow at CLAL (National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership). Steve is the first openly gay Orthodox rabbi and a founder of the Jerusalem Open House, the Holy City's GLBT community center.  He appeared in Trembling Before G-d, a documentary about gay and lesbian Orthodox Jews and in 2001 joined the film maker, Sandi Simcha DuBowski in carrying the film across the globe as a tool for dialogue and community organization.  In 2004 he finished a decade long project, a book entitled, Wrestling with God and Men: Homosexuality in the Jewish Tradition, which explores biblical, rabbinic, medieval and contemporary Jewish responses to same-sex relationships (University of Wisconsin Press.) In 2005 the book was a awarded the Koret Jewish Book Award for Philosophy and Thought.   Recently, Steve was in a new documentary on Christianity and Homosexuality entitled: For the Bible Tells Me So.  He is also the scholar in residence for two cutting edge organizations, Hazon, a Jewish Environmental organization, and Keshet, an organization dedicated to GLBT inclusion in the larger Jewish community.

Friday, June 25, 6:30 pm
Rabbi Greenberg will lead a lively Carlebach-style Kabbalat Shabbat (7:00 pm) followed by Shabbat Dinner (by Reservation*)  *Reservations for Shabbat Dinner on Friday night - space is limited and reservations are required. Please email Rachel at office@netivotshalom.org to reserve and follow-up with your payment by check to Congregation Netivot Shalom and mark it for Scholar-in-Residence Shabbat Dinner (if you prefer to pay-online use the Make a Donation Quick Link - $6.00 for Adults and $3.00 for children over age 2. If you wish to bring young children to the Dinner and plan to stay for the teaching, please email adultprograms@netivotshalom.org before June 16 so childcare can be arranged.

8:30 pm Learning with Rabbi Greenberg, "Listen to the Planet!: A Study of the Shma that Puts the Earth at the Center"-We are asked to recite twice daily two paragraphs from Deuteronomy and one from the book  of  Numbers. Together this central liturgical recitation is understood as a form of re-covenanting, an affirmation rather than a prayer.  Surprisingly, in both clear and subtler ways, the Shma grounds the Jewish covenant with God in the earth and our relationship to it. We will study the original text together in order to mine its deep environmental wisdoms.

Saturday, June 26, 1:15 pm - After Kiddush Program: "Homosexuality and Halachah" 
Two Orthodox responses to homosexuality presently offered by trusted Halachic authorities could ground policies of welcome for gay and lesbian members. One is thirty years old, the other was only put forward recently.  Recently, the Conservative Movement's Rabbinical Assembly produced much bolder responses on the same questions.  We will explore the various responses and consider what each says about the issue at hand and how they shed light on the Halachic process itself. This should lead to a lively discussion that you won't want to miss.






---
Rabbi Menachem Creditor
-- www.netivotshalom.org
-- www.shefanetwork.org
-- menachemcreditor.org

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