CNS Adult Education Catalog: Winter 2013!

CNS Adult Education Catalog: Winter 2013! Shalom!   Welcome to another edition of Ha-Machberet*- The Notebook - the newsletter of Congregation Netivot Shalom's Adult Education Committee.  Ha-Machberet will keep you posted about the many adult educational programs at Netivot Shalom.  We are sending our quarterly newsletter to people who have expressed an interest in adult directed educational and enrichment programs at our synagogue.   NOTE: THE NETIVOT SHALOM CONGREGATION IS NOT AUTOMATICALLY ON THIS LIST.  IF YOU WISH TO BE PLACED ON THE ADULT EDUCATION MAILING LIST PLEASE E-MAIL CNSADULTPROGRAMS@NETIVOTSHALOM.ORG WITH YOUR NAME AND E-MAIL ADDRESS. Please forward these newsletters on to your friends and ask them to send an email to cnsadultprograms@netivotshalom.org to have their names added to our mailing list.  We hope to see you at shul - and especially at one of our events!   Sincerely, The CNS Adult Education Committee On-Going Weekly Classes for Adults at CNS La'asok - with Rabbis Bochner and Creditor Wednesday's at 1 pm in the Library Study the weekly Torah portion with insights from ancient midrashim and contemporary thinkers. The discussion will be facilitated by either Rabbi Bochner or Rabbi Creditor . There is no charge for this on-going class, but a donation to the Adult Ed Fund would be appreciated.   Intermediate Talmud Class with Rabbi Shalom Bochner Thursdays at 5:45 in the Library Come and learn the origins of the Siddur through our weekly journey through Masechet Berachot- Tractate Blessings. Comfort with reading Hebrew is preferred.  Learn the teachings and humor of our sages. It's got everything - including the kitchen sink!  And we generally debate with each other in the spirit of the sages! There is no charge for this on-going class, but a donation to the Adult Ed Fund would be appreciated.   Shabbat Torah Study 9:00 am, Shabbat Mornings in the Library Read, discuss, and debate the week's Parasha.  We use Etz Chayim as our text.  We often have professional teachers lead the discussion, but just as often skilled volunteers from our congregation are our leaders. There is no charge for this on-going year-long class, but a donation to the Adult Ed Fund can help continue this and other free classes.  See you next Shabbat at Torah Study!   After Kiddush Classes and Discussions In the Library. . ."after Kiddush" each Shabbat Each Shabbat, after Kiddush (at approximately 1:15 pm) a speaker presents a topic for discussion.  Often this venue is the place to hear visiting scholars, book reviews, developments in a field of inquiry like Biblical Archeology, or listen to poetry.   Upcoming Classes - February   FEBRUARY 9: SHABBAT DAY Netivot Shalom's Masorti Scholar-in-Residence: Rabbi Andy Sacks! Rabbi Sacks will deliver the Drasha during Shabbat morning services and will also present the after-kiddush learning.   Rabbi Andrew Sacks is the Director of the Rabbinical Assembly of Israel and the Religious Affairs Bureau. Ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary, and the only Masorti Mohel practicing in Israel, Rabbi Sacks is the author of Masorti Matters, a provocative online column for the Jerusalem Post.   RELIGIOUS VERSE OF MANY NATIONS with RABBI JONATHAN OMER-MAN Four Tuesdays: 7:30 PM-9:00 PM: February 5, 12, 19 and 26. This class is limited to 16 students; pre-registration is required. There will be no drop-ins. Students must commit to all four sessions. To register e-mail office@netivotshalom.org $10 per session donation to Adult Ed requested (no one turned away for lack of funds.) I have always felt that a good poem is unsurpassed in its ability to explore the yearnings of the human heart, and this is especially the case when it comes to the life of the spirit. In this series we will look at some fine religious verse written in a variety of languages, and from disparate, mostly mystical traditions.   HOW TO SAY BIRKAT HA'MAZON with  RABBI MENACHEM CREDITOR Wednesday: February 6  7:30 PM - 9:00 PM What is the real meaning of our "Grace After Meals?" How and where did it begin? Are you comfortable saying it? Leading it? Perhaps you never learned how. Here is your chance. Join Rabbi Creditor as he gives a two-session workshop on saying Birkat ha'Mazon.   THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: MONTHLY CLASSES RELATING TO  JEWISH PRACTICES AROUND DEATH, BURIAL AND MOURNING Varying Evenings, once monthly Presentations and discussion on aspects of Jewish Practice in Dying, Death, Burial and the Chevra Kadisha. Presenters will be from all areas concerned with practice.  Sponsored by the CNS Chevra Kadisha   JEWS AND CREMATION: A CONTINUING DISCUSSION With RABBI MENACHEM CREDITOR TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13: 7:30-9:00 PM Join the ongoing discussion about cremation, including some background on the history of this "taboo" and why we practice as we do. You do not have had to attend the first session to benefit from this one.     Upcoming Classes - March   Sunday morning Minyan and learning!  ONE BAY - ONE BOOK What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank By Nathan Englander Sunday, March 17: 9:30 Minyan: Program at 10:30 Join us for a discussion with  Rabbi Menachem Creditor as we focus on Nathan Englander's tale "Sister Hills," from his anthology What We Talk About When We Talk About Ann Frank. Copies of What we talk about when we talk about Ann Frank are available in  Netivot Shalom's Library. One Bay One Book is a program created by BJE to connect a diverse cross section of participants in shared discussions and events, stimulated by a selected book and its themes. The book for this inaugural year is Nathan Englander's Award Winning What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank. One Bay One Book events are free and everyone is welcome to atend.     YESHIVAT LEV PESACH   Two Nights - Three Opportunities for Learning  How to Lead Your Own Seder with Harry and Judy Radousky Monday, March 18: 7:30-9:00 PM   Ready to lead your very first (or 2nd or 3rd) Seder but panicking at the thought? Perhaps you've lead Seders but want to brush up on your "technique." Join Judy and Harry as they walk you through the steps of the Seder and offer suggestions and ideas about how to make your Seder your most rewarding yet.   How to Add meaning to your Seder with Rabbi Shalom Bochner Tuesday, March 19: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM   Are you starting to become bored with your Seder - "Same Old Same Old?" Want to put more zest into the Seder, not to mention wowing your family and friends with your new insights and analyses of what the Seder is really about. Join Rabbi Bochner for an evening of learning and discovery.   This is the Haggadah we use.  What do you use?  With David Stein   Tuesday, March 19: 8:15 PM - 9:15 PM   Sidurim may vary within a Jewish stream of ritual tradition, but Haggadot can vary from household to household.  The worlds occupied by some Haggadot  can be so different from what we may be accustomed to that we may find it hard to imagine a Seder using them.  In our short workshop we will dig into several Haggadot to discover the world the compiler had in mind when they were composed. Previews of Coming Attractions   SCHOLAR IN RESIDENCE: MARSHA EDELMAN MAY 3-4 SAVE THE DATE FOR THIS MUSICAL WEEKEND WITH THE FOREMOST AUTHORITY ON JEWISH MUSIC   V'ZOT YISRAEL   CHUG IVRIT Sundays: 12:00-1:30 PM - January 20, February 3 and 17, March 3 and 17.   The goal of the Chug Ivrit is to strengthen the ability of attendees to converse in Hebrew.   If you are able to read Hebrew somewhat fluently, have some exposure to Hebrew conversation, and want to become more fluent, this is THE place to be.  We are using as a study tool, the monthly publication "The Jerusalem Post Ivrit".  Their articles are categorized based on difficulty with one, two or three stars.  Attendees are encouraged to subscribe to this publication via the Jerusalem Post.  Copies of articles we will be studying will be available at the session, but that limits the ability of participants to study at home and get the full benefit of the publication.  Attendees will be split into two levels:  The "One Star" level is for people who can read Hebrew and who have had some conversational experience.  The "Two  Star" level will be for people who have a basic Hebrew vocabulary and are able to carry on a basic multi-sentence conversation.  If you are not already fluent in Hebrew conversation, this program will be too advanced for you; but you are welcome to participate if you wish.  There is no charge for Chug Ivrit.   ISRAELI SPEAKER SERIES First Sunday of the month, 10:15-11:45  CNS Library, light refreshments will be available January 6.Our hope is not yet lost: how  performance art illuminates Israeli conflicts.    Stav Palti-Negev, M.A., Performance Studies, New York University February 3. A tale of a forest - the Yatir afforestation in the Negev desert - and how the anthroposphere controls its existence and resilience to climate change.   Naama Raz-Yaseef, postdoctoral scholar, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, UC Berkeley March 3.  The Contribution of the Biblical Scrolls from the Judaean Desert to the Study of the Hebrew Bible.  Professor Zipora Talshir, Ben Gurion University,  Department of Bible, Archaeology and  Ancient Near East   V'ZOT YISRAEL BOOK GROUP Second Tuesday of every other month: 7:30-9:00 PM at CNS   Tuesday January 8,  Sayed Kashua's, Second Person Singular, the third and latest novel by the creator of the Israeli TV series Arab Labor.  Tragicomedy composed of intertwined stories tracing the lives of two Israeli-Arab protagonists.   Also in January, V'zot Yisrael's winter film festival will conclude on January 20 with two episodes of Arab Labor -- it will be interesting to compare Kashua's screenplays with this novel.    March 12,    A Strange Death.   Hillel Halkin's beautifully written and wisely confused account of the local history of the town he lives in, Zichron Yaakov, takes us back to the earliest days of Jewish settlement in Ottoman Palestine.  To get on the book group mailing list, contact us at  vezotyisrael@netivotshalom.org     Support Us The Adult Education Fund Netivot Shalom, from its founding in 1989, has had a policy of providing most of its Adult programming at no-charge.  Providing adult educational programming was a prime motivation for establishing our synagogue. Because some of our teachers are professionals and need to be paid for their services, we charge tuition.  However, people unable to pay the tuition are never turned away.  We make up the difference needed by accessing our Adult Education Fund. In addition, we use the fund to help develop programs and pay honoraria to visiting scholars.    Please consider a tax deductible contribution to the Adult Ed Fund the next time to come to a no-charge event as an expression of thanks to the synagogue.  Donation envelopes are available outside the office door.  Mark your donation as for the Adult Education Fund.  Thank you.

President Obama Delivers His Second Inaugural Address

At a park on MLK day, watching little black and little white girls and boys play together. Taking it in, amazed and moved. #keepdreaming

At a park on MLK day, watching little black and little white girls and boys play together. Taking it in, amazed and moved. #keepdreaming

A Prayer in Honor of Martin Luther King Day

A Prayer in Honor of Martin Luther King Day

Adapted by Rabbi Menachem Creditor from the original prayer written by Rabbi Lilly Kaufman for the Rabbinical Assembly in 2011

(the original is available at http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/story/prayer-honor-martin-luther-king-day?tp=205)

 

Dear Lord,

We know Dr. King would have faced hard facts today,

and he would have made sure we faced them right by his side.

He would know the number of children

going hungry in America this very minute.

He would know the number of our dead,

killed on soil far from home in war

and by gun violence in our country.

He would have had a thing or two to say about that.

Dr. King, your servant,

would speak truth about the astounding costs

of financial corruption, of institutionalized inequality;

he would have forced us to see the costs of "free trade"

and he would have kept our eyes on 27 million people today

still cursed to live in slavery.

He would have seen beyond the numbers,

to the faces of people.

He would be preaching now

a determined, measured, poetic, prophetic outrage.

He would be teaching by example

our civic duty of compassion,

the obligations of citizenship,

and decrying the grave danger of cynicism.

He would challenge the damaging new notion

that money equals speech

and that corporations could be considered people

in a democracy.

In our democracy.

When he gave his life for peoplesʼ rights

of speech, and assembly, and the vote,

it was for people

who had no money to pay for speech.

They knew speech as an unalienable right,

and their wealth of spirit sufficed.

Dr. King had faith in a few great things:

one was our essential American dream.

Not a middle-class American dream,

or an upper-class, a working-poor,

or an impoverished-class American dream.

But the defining American dream

which lifts up those bowed down.

The abiding American dream

of liberty and justice for all.

Dr. King asked of God in 1964:

... grant that we will always reach out

for that which is high,

realizing that we are made for the stars,

created for the everlasting,

born for eternity.

And he taught us in 1967:

                Power at its best is love

implementing the demands of justice,

and justice at its best is power

correcting everything

that stands against love.

He would have believed and done all these great things, O Lord. But we have not lost our hope. Those dreams he dreamed are, and will always be, dreams worth dreaming. We lost our teacher so many years ago. But we have not lost his wisdom. We just need Your Help a little more this year, so that we can remember how to dream and how to act in Dr. King's spirit.

And so we pray:

May we learn, Dear Lord, to reach again for that which is high.

May we be blessed to pursue justice.

May we remember the power of our convictions to change the world.

And may we be blessed to stand - now and for eternity - with overflowing love.

Amen.

This Saturday Night: PJL Havdalah at Netivot Shalom with Maggidah Liora Brosbe!

Come join us this Saturday, January 26th for PJL Havdalah at Netivot Shalom with Maggidah Liora Brosbe! Wear your pj's and join in the fun!We will begin our evening with Havdalah at 7pm, followed by story time with Liora. Activities, snack and family book time to follow! We will also be collecting new and gently used blankets and pajamas for local families in need. Location: Netivot Shalom, 1316 University Avenue, Berkeley. Please contact Lauren Kindorf with questions: preschool@netivotshalom.org. 

Co-sponsors: Netivot Shalom. PJ Library and the Jewish Federation of the East Bay.

See y'all tomorrow morning at 7:30 am at the DoubleTree at the marina! -- http://www.berkeleymlkjrday.com/

2013 Second Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Awards Breakfast: 'Beyond the Dream...Beloved Community'

The 2nd Annual Breakfast commemorating Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will  held on January 21, 2013 at the DoubleTree Hotel, Berkeley Marina, attended by faith, civic, and community leaders.

The theme is “Beloved Community” which will focus on securing a hopeful and successful future for our youth and to promote peace, non-violence, justice, beloved and healthy community.

January 21, 2013
7:30am to 9:30am
DoubleTree Hotel

200 Marina Boulevard

Berkeley, CA

All are welcome! We encourage participation of young leaders in our community.

Purchase Tickets

See Y'all at 3pm! @CNSBerkeley Music Festival Opens Today!

Congregation Netivot Shalom 1316 University Avenue Berkeley, California 94702