Students of Torah, Teachers of Torah Visiting CBI

Posted on June 19th, 2014 in

As we draw near to the Holiday of Shavuot, the time of the giving of the Torah, we are pleased to welcome a number of guest students and teachers of Torah, who will be sharing some of their own teachings with our community during their visit to our community. On Shavuot (June 3-5), our community […]

Passover Thoughts in The Times of Israel

Posted on February 17th, 2014 in Israel, Passover

In advance of Passover, I published an essay in The Times of Israel: In the past six months, Israel bid farewell to four towering archetypal leaders. One was wise, one was rebellious, one was simple, and one did not know how to ask (but did know how to sing) The passing of Rav Ovadia Yosef, […]

This Week at CBI:

Weekday Services June 8-12

AM & PM Services at CBI

Sun 8:00 am • M-F 6:30 am

Sun-Th: 6:45 pm

We welcome Abe Schacter-Gampel, a 1^st year student at YCT Rabbinical School. Abe has visited CBI on several other occasions in the past as a Kevah Teaching Fellow and was deeply taken by our community’s welcoming spirit and love of Torah. This summer, he will serve as a community educator at the Genesis program at Brandeis University. He will be offering a class on Shabbat as well as on Tuesday night.

Friday Evening, June 6th

Mincha & Kabbalat Shabbat @ CBI………………………… 7:00 pm

Northside Minyan…………………………………………………. 7:00 pm

1209 Shattuck Ave. (east side of the street, past Oak Park, near Eunice)

Candle Lighting…………………………………………………….. 8:11 pm

Saturday, June 7th

Morning Service……………………………………………….. 9:15 am

Torah Reader: Glenn Massarano

Haftorah Reader: Zac Johnson

Educational Programming ……………………………… 11:00 am

Yeladim: Miriam Schwartz

Talmidim A: Ma’ayan Rabinovich

Shul Club: Orli Leiman & Renana Villian

Sermon by Jen Franco……………………………………… 11:30 am

Text Study w/Abe Schacter-Gampel…………………… 7:00 pm

Topic: What did Bnei Yisrael hear at Mt. Sinai?

Mincha…………………………………………………………….. 7:55 pm

Ma’ariv, Havdalah & Shabbat ends after…………….. 9:16 pm

KIDDUSH SPONSORS

R. Zac Johnson & Jennifer Franco

Teen Events

End of the year & Goodbye party—Teens Camping trip

Thursday-Friday, June 19-20

Big Basin Redwoods State Park

For anyone graduating 6th-12th grade

Please RSVP by June 6 (510-219-0275, maayanbd@gmail.com)

Looking forward to seeing you Elishav and Ma’ayan

Beth Israel Classes

SUNDAY

Sunday Morning Talmud Class

A class structured to appeal to Talmud students of all levels, from beginners to more experienced. We will continue our studies of Masechet Shabbes; come check it out for a morning, no commitment necessary. On hiatus.

Sunday, 9:00-10:00 a.m.

MONDAY

Women’s Dance Nights at CBI! Come dance to a blend of world music, jazz, klezmer, hip hop and more. No moves to remember, no cost either. Just a chance to let loose and get some good exercise in a fun way!

2nd & 4th Mondays @ 8:00 pm (May 12)

TUESDAY

Text study with Abe Schacter-Gampel— 8 pm:

Topic: Ashrei – Understanding Psalm 145 and Its Literary Structure

WEDNESDAY

Jewish Writings of Emmanuel Levinas: The Levinas Study Group meets at 8 pm at the Schweig home to discuss various essays of the Jewish philosopher Emmanuel Levinas. No background necessary. The class is facilitated by our resident scholar, Muni Schweig at his home.

Muni Schweig – 1st, 2nd and 4th Wednesdays 8:00 p.m.

THURSDAY

Mishmar – Learners’ Night: Join a Beit Misrash atmosphere for a weekly night of learning at CBI. We will do our best to match you up with a chevrutah (study partner) or chavurah (a group of learners) for some free wheelin’, meaningful and personal text seeking and learning.

Thursdays, 8:00 – 10:00 p.m.

FRIDAY

Talmudic Wisdom: Join us for a weekly class that explores key sugyot (talmudic units) that discuss major Jewish questions of practice and thought.

R. Yonatan Cohen – Fridays, 9:00 a.m.

EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS

In Beth Israel

CBI SISTERHOOD

Book Group: We will meet on Sunday, June 8, at 10:30 a.m. to discuss My Promised Land: The Triumph and Tragedy of Israel by Ari Shavit. The books are in the office at CBI.

Students of Torah, Teachers of Torah

Visiting CBI

On Shabbat Chukat (June 27-28), we will welcome R. Michael Hattin as our Shabbat Shalem Scholar-in-Residence. R. Hattin is a master teacher of Tanakh at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem and serves as the Director of the Beit Midrash for the Pardes Center for Jewish Educators. R. Hattin is the author of “Passages: Text and Transformation in the Parasha“, published by Urim Publications in 2012 and the forthcoming “Joshua: The Challenge of the Promised Land” to be published by Koren Publishers in 2014. He has served as scholar-in-residence in many communities in North America and Europe and lives in Alon Shevut with his Rivka and their five children. A schedule of topics will be included in forthcoming Summer edition of Chailights.

Topics:

“Seasons of the Soul” * “Falling-Water” * “Excavating the Temple Ideal”

Finally, on Shabbat Pinchas (July 11-12),we will welcome back R. Aaron Leibowitz. During his childhood as the “Rabbi’s Son” in Beth Israel, Aaron Leibowitz would have sworn the one thing he would never be was a Rabbi. Today he is not only a Rabbi, but trains and nurtures new Rabbis as the founder and head of “Sulam Yaakov Threshold”, a leadership training program coupled with a co-working space and accelerator for entrepreneurship in Jewish Education. He is currently running an alternative community based Kashrut initiative which has been featured in Israeli and international press, and he is the secretary general of the Yerushalmim party in city council which he is slated to represent as a Jerusalem City Councilman in 2016. Rabbi Aaron lives in Nachlaot with his wife, Miriam, and their five children, who will be joining him on this visit. A schedule of topics will be included in forthcoming Summer edition of Chailights.

Topics:

Can I trust you? Kashrut, Social Dynamics, and Jewish Unity * Jerusalem – Nations Capitol or City of God? * Under Your Father’s Shadow – the Midrash on Rabbi Eliezer the Great
SCRIP: Thinking of an end of year your gift for teachers? Think SCRIP! We have scrip for many retail stores, including Afikomen, REI, Barnes & Noble, Amazon. Order by first thing Monday morning from Naomi at nstamper@sbcglobal.net. Also, Order at shopwithscrip.com or email Naomi Stamper nstamper@sbcglobal.net, Ruth Wittman rhwitt72@aol.com or Sara Schulman sara@math.berkeley.edu

Homeless Shelter: Our next dinner will be on June 25. It’s not too early to sign up. We will need one or more volunteers to head this effort because I won’t be available at that time. You can sign up at the link provided in the Daf Hashavuah online. Shabbat Shalom

Donate your car/boat/vehicle to Beth Israel/Midrasha. Full tax write off. Beth Israel/Midrasha share proceeds from sale. Contact David: 510-849-0961 or Midrasha, Diane: 510-843-4667.

In the Community

JCRC Leadership By Example 2014, celebrating our East Bay Community Champions. Please join the East Bay JCRC in celebrating our honorees and our critically important work in pursuit of a just society and secure Jewish future:

Academic Visionary Award

Prof. Kenneth A. Bamberger

Community Relations Leadership Award

Mark Schickman

Featuring Guest Speaker

Joshua Safran, author of the memoir “Free Spirit”

Also honoring East Bay JCRC Volunteers of the Year

Michael Nye & Sheila Yudenfreund

Sunday, June 8, 2014, 4 pm. The Magnes, 2121 Allston Way, Berkeley

Sponsorship Opportunities: $180-$1,080. Individual tickets: $72. Wine and hors d’oeuvres. Kosher dietary laws observed.

Please contact Myrna David at myrna@jfed.org or 510-318-6417. Reply by June 2, 2014 to be listed in the event program.

Do you love to sing? From June 9-11, join Lehrhaus Judaica’s Prayer and Music Intensive with Rabbi Dorothy Richman, Ba’al Tefilah Joey Weisenberg, and Rabbi David Kasher for three days of singing and exploring the connections between Jewish music and prayer. Space is limited.

Israel Focus
For your interest, information, protest, or counter-protest
Israel Focus is designed to inform our members about a broad range of local area events concerning Israel. It is expected that you will find events that you would support and others that you would not, yet we trust that they will all inform. Beth Israel does not necessarily endorse any particular event.

J Street National Summit Opening Night, June 7, 7PM: Leading to Peace: An Inside View of Mideast Diplomacy

With US ambassador Daniel Kurtzer and Israeli ambassador Gabrielle Shalev @ Congregation Emanuel, 2 Lake St. San Francisco. Free. RSVP: jstreet.org/sfsummit

We invite you to submit announcements for inclusion in Israel Focus to the office at office@cbiberkeley.org. Announcements will be edited for length and content (to comply with the Announce List Guidelines.