Registration now open for Fall 2024 Adult Education Courses!
We are delighted to announce our new and ongoing Adult Education courses! Registration information has been sent to all current members and to the Friends of CSR mailing list. If you did not receive the registration email or if you are not on one of our mailing lists and would like to register, please let us know here.
All courses are led by highly qualified CSR members and are held via Zoom. Most of our classes meet once a month; the Torah Study meets weekly. Our fall 2024 semester runs from mid-August through January. The Spring 2025 semester will begin in February 2025. Non-members are welcome as space permits; a donation to the Congregation is requested. Below is general information about each class being offered this semester; just scroll down for more info.
1. Standing Again at Sinai and Womyn’s Circle: ongoing, the 4th Wednesday of each month, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. Continues the study of the book Standing Again at Sinai and includes the popular womyn’s circle. Led by Salkana Schindler.
2. Weekly Torah Study (BESHT): a weekly Torah study using the commentary attributed to the Baal Shem Tov (BESHT), called Sefer Baal Shem Tov Al HaTorah. This is a holy sefer that Rabbi Monty was studying; the weekly Torah Study is in his honor and all donations from this class will be dedicated to our Mitzvah Fund (which he started and felt passionately about). Led by Ya’akov Love.
3. Taylor Book Club: ongoing, the 3rd Thursday of each month, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. The Taylor Book Club has been meeting for 10 years. After picking a Jewish-themed book, typically about history, participants discuss various points of the chapter(s) of the month. Led by Sandra Litwin.
Additional Information:
We request a $18- donation for each course from members and a $36- donation from non-members. CSR does not turn anyone away for financial reasons, so please donate according to your means.
Non-members are welcome as space permits.
Each instructor sets the minimum and maximum registration requirements for their course. Registration information has been sent to all current members and to the non-members on our Friends of CSR mailing list. If you did not receive the registration email or if you are not on one of our mailing lists and would like information, please let us know here.
Standing Again at Sinai (II) / Womyn’s Circle
| Title | Standing Again at Sinai and Womyn’s Circle |
| Leader(s) | Salkana Schindler |
| Meeting time and place | Last Wednesday of each month, 6:30-8:00 pm, via Zoom |
| Cost / books needed / other logistics | Standing Again at Sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective by Judith Plaskow |
| Description |
We will continue the study of Standing Again at Sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective by Judith Plaskow “a feminist critique of Judaism as a patriarchal tradition and an exploration of the increasing involvement of women in naming and shaping Jewish tradition.” The class alternates sessions which focus on discussing the book (Aug 29, Oct. 24 & Dec. 26), with experiential sessions or Womyn’s Circles (Sept. 26, 2024, Nov. 21, 2024 & Jan. 30, 2025). Men are welcome to attend the class portion, but not the Womyn’s Circles.
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Weekly Torah Study (BESHT)
| Title | Weekly Torah Study (BESHT) |
| Leader(s) | Ya’akov Love |
| Meeting time and place | Mondays, 7-8 pm, via Zoom |
| Cost / books needed / other logistics |
An English translation is available in 2 volumes: Baal Shem Tov: Genesis, Exodus (vol 1), Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy (vol 2): Mystical Stories on the Weekly Torah Portion, translated by Rabbi Eliezer Shore. Baal Shem Tov Genesis Exodus ($15) https://a.co/d/eSqgWxM Baal Shem Tov Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy ($10) https://a.co/d/ikDpzfO The text is also available online here: https://www.sefaria.org/Ba’al_Shem_Tov%2C_Bereshit.1.1?lang=bi&with=all
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| Description |
A weekly Torah study using the commentary attributed to the Baal Shem Tov (BESHT), called Sefer Baal Shem Tov Al HaTorah. This is a holy sefer that Rabbi Monty was studying; the weekly Torah Study is in his honor and all donations from this class will be dedicated to our Mitzvah Fund (which he started and felt passionately about). Note that registration does not mean you are obligated to attend every week or for the full hour (if you’re interested in studying the text feel free to register and study / attend as you are able). Led by Ya’akov Love. |
Taylor Book Study Group
| Title | The Taylor Book Club |
| Leader(s) | Rotates among participants |
| Meeting time and place | 3rd Thursday of each month, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 pm, via Zoom |
| Starting/Ending dates | Ongoing |
| Cost / books needed / other logistics | This fall we will study and discuss The Aleppo Codex: In Pursuit of One of the World’s Most Coveted, Sacred, and Mysterious Books by Matti Friedman. Winner of the 2014 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature. A point of clarification: this author wrote another book with a similar title. The one we will be reading has a blue cover. |
| Description | After picking a Jewish themed book, typically about history, participants discuss various points of the chapter(s) that have been read. Often times participants try to connect the historical points to modern life. |
The whole family was involved with the general planning and on the big day, the Bat Mitzvah took over the service both as rabbi and song leader, issuing all the directions to the assembly, and sharing her thoughts through both a Dvar Torah and a speech. The Bat Mitzvah was then invited to share her speech with the rest of the Shalom Rav congregation through our newsletter and to lead a Torah Service at which her official Bat Mitzvah Certificate was presented.
Our Shabbat Morning Torah Services are an integral part of our Shalom Rav Bar and Bat Mitzvah educational system. This is where the student hears the prayers, gets instruction about the structure of a Shabbat Service, and becomes familiar with the order of the service including the Reading from the Torah. We encourage our students to lead as soon as they are ready. If there are enough Bnei Mitzvah students, we create a special “Bnei Mitzvah Service” just for this purpose.