 Tuesday, August 31
Get ready for 5771! Spend an evening in study to prepare your heart and mind for the upcoming holidays.
7:00 pm, Exploring the Music of the High Holidays
Cantorial Soloist Diane Weil guides you through the liturgy, making connections between words and music.
8:00 pm, "Why Did They Choose That One?"
Rabbi Michael Zedek discusses the Biblical selections for the Days of Awe. |
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 Taking God Seriously:
An Exploration of God Ideas and Concepts
A series of classes taught by Rabbi Michael Zedek on Sunday mornings at 10:00 am, beginning October 10. What makes sense? What can we know? How about atheism, agnosticism, and Judaism -- can they fit together? The class will include a look at some ancient and contemporary texts on the nature of deity.
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 Do the letters in the prayerbook look like mysterious squiggles? Do you mumble along, because you are sure you are unable to reproduce those sounds (especially the ones in the back of the throat)? Do your knees quake at the thought of doing a Torah Blessing on the bimah? These conditions and many more in the category of "torahfied" are curable, and it's easier than you might imagine. Marcey Rosembaum teaches Hebrew to adults on Tuesday afternoons while Hebrew School is in session. The only requirements are:
1.) Show up; and
2.) Bring a copy of "Aleph Isn't Tough"
(available at Amazon, Rosenblum's, etc.).
There is no charge for Emanuel members; non-members pay $100. Class will run between 4:30 and 6:00 pm, starting Tuesday, September 14, and if there is interest for more advanced Hebrew Marcey can make adjustments. Questions or clarification? Just send an e-mail to Marcey at: marceyrosenbaum@gmail.com
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Seminars on Sundays. The Adult Education Committee sponsors the Seminars on Sundays (SOS) series during the school year. Speakers will include our clergy, congregants, local scholars and community leaders. Contact the Emanuel office for dates and topics, or check the upcoming event page or the current Emanuel Bulletin online.
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Emanuel Congregation is proud to be a community sponsor of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School, widely regarded as the finest program for adult Jewish education in the world. Through our participation with the Lakeview Consortium of the Community Foundation for Jewish Education, this course is available to Emanuel members at a special, Consortium Member rate. Registration has now started, and space is limited. We urge all Emanuel members to take advantage of this outstanding educational opportunity. Please click here for further details.
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A variety of Hebrew classes for adults are offered during the school year, including beginning and intermediate Prayerbook Hebrew. These classes introduce grammar and vocabulary, with the goal of understanding the liturgy of the prayerbook. Knowledge of the Hebrew aleph-bet is required.
The courses are free of charge to members of Emanuel and Or Chadash Congregations, with a fee for the textbook, Prayerbook Hebrew the Easy Way. There is a nominal charge for non-members. To register for either class, please send an email to info@emanuelcong.org or call the Emanuel office.
Rabbi Zedek's Advanced Hebrew class meets most Saturday mornings at 9:30 am in the library. This program is for those with some knowledge of Hebrew.
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November 5-7, 2010
Join others to investigate Membership, Social Action, and congregational collaboration at the November 5-7 URJ Central Disctrict Forum in Chicago. Three tracks with three experts will help congregants move their programs forward! Plus, be a part of engaging Torah study sessions and special workshops on Leadership Development, Israel and Lifelong Learning, and enjoy keynote speakers, entertainment and Shabbat celebration with friends from across North America. --more--
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Would you like to read Torah at a Saturday morning service? If you know your Alef-Bet, our Congregational Cantor would like to help you reach your goal. Please contact Congregational Cantor Shelly Drucker Friedman at cantorfriedman@emanuelcong.org if you are interested.
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This program was announced by Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie, President of the UAHC in 1998, to challenge all Reform Jews to read at least four books of Jewish substance a year. The Union selects additional volumes each year and has prepared study guides and suggestions for discussion. Study guides are available for the following books from the UAHC. Order these books from Amazon.com and benefit Emanuel! Emanuel will receive referral fees of 15% of the amount you spend when you purchase any of the following recommended books by clicking on their titles. So many wonderful texts have been selected, that they can be found here.
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Yaakov Katz: Possibilities for Peace
Friday, October 8
After the 6:30 Share-Shabbat Service and Dinner.
Childcare will be available during the lecture.
Yaakov Katz is the military correspondent and defense analyst for The Jerusalem Post, and the Israel correspondent for the London-based Jane’s Defence Weekly. Mr. Katz spent January 2009 with the IDF along Israel’s border with the Gaza Strip, leading the paper’s coverage of Israel’s war against Hamas. Mr. Katz writes extensively on the Palestinian conflict as well as the military’s stance on Iran’s nuclear program and Israel’s options in face of what is being described as the greatest existential threat in Israeli history.
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 Friday, October 29
8:00 pm
After his diagnosis and treatment for cancer in 2004-2005, Rabbi Douglas Kohn edited a book on Judaism and cancer, published in 2008 by URJ Press. Titled Life, Faith and Cancer: Jewish Journeys through Diagnosis, Treatment and Recovery, the book includes stories and teachings of Rabbi Kohn and eighteen other Jewish religious leaders who also have, or have had, cancer. For two years he has traveled widely to speak on the themes of the book, and to bring a voice of support to the Jewish cancer community. Previously rabbi of Hoffman Estate’s Beth Tikvah Congregation, Rabbi Kohn became the fifth Rabbi of the 150 year-old Congregation Emanu El in Redlands, California, in 2001. Rabbi Kohn is a contributing author of a new textbook, World Religions for Healthcare Professionals (Routledge Press, 2009).
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 Jewish Views of Afterlife
Two sessions, team-taught by Rabbi Michael Zedek and Rabbi Aaron Petuchowski of Temple Sholom, examining Jewish teachings about what happens after we die.
Sunday, November 21
12:15 pm
Temple Sholom of Chicago, 3480 N. Lake Shore Drive, Bring your lunch.
Tuesday, November 30
7:30 pm
Emanuel Congregation, 5959 N. Sheridan Road
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Introduction to Judaism Course hosted by Emanuel Congregation
An Introduction to Judaism course, sponsored by the Chicago Association of Reform Rabbis and coordinated by the Union for Reform Judaism, is regularly hosted by Emanuel and other local congregations. The classes cover a wide range of topics including:
Practice and Observance • Beliefs
Creating a Jewish Home • Life Cycle Observances
Synagogue and Prayer • History • Shabbat
Basic Hebrew • Holidays & Festivals • Choosing Judaism
For further information or to receive a registration form, please contact the URJ Office, 847-239-6990.
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Those who wish to develop a deeper understanding of Torah have the opportunity to study with our rabbis. Classes meet both Saturday and Sunday mornings, and Tuesday afternoons with Rabbi Michael Zedek and Rabbi Emeritus Herman Schaalman.
Torah Study with Rabbi Emeritus Herman E. Schaalman
Most Saturday mornings, 9:30-11:00 a.m.
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with Rabbi Herman Schaalman. Discuss the latest news and views of happenings in the Jewish world. Meets once a month, generally the third Monday of the month. Coffee at 7:30 p.m., lecture at 8:00 p.m. Call the Emanuel office at 773-561-5173 for scheduled dates.
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Lunch and Learn in the Loop is a monthly session with our rabbis at office locations in the downtown area. Bring your own lunch and study Jewish texts. The group meets at 12:00 noon at an office downtown. Please contact Rabbi Zedek for details (email RabbiZedek@emanuelcong.org or call 773-561-5173).
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Generally meets the 3rd Saturday of each month, for time and location, contact the Emanuel office at 773-561-5173.
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Several weekends a year Emanuel hosts well-known Jewish scholars and speakers such as Dr. Ellen Frankel, author of "The Five Books of Miriam," Joan Peters, author of "From Time Immemorial: The Origins of the Arab-Jewish Conflict Over Palestine," and Rabbi Uri Regev, Executive Director of the Israel Religious Action Center, the leading advocacy group in Israel promoting religious pluralism, social justice and human equality.
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Senior Rabbi Michael Zedek