Monthly Shabbat Meetings

One Friday or Saturday evening a month, we offer either a Shabbat service (which includes humanistic, secular blessings over candles, challah and wine) and/or a cultural program of some kind. These include potluck dinners, discussions and guest speakers. Topics of discussions have included "Righting Wrongs", (focusing on war and justice in different national contexts); the origins of the Jewish Sabbath and its meaning to Humanistic Jews; an audio-visual overview of secular Jewish history; Jewish humor; new member orientations and more.

Note: For information on other holiday celebrations, please see our main holidays page.

Saturday May 1, 2010, 5:00pm at Lifelong.

Baruch Spinoza, is the Society for Humanistic Judaism's Role Model of the Year for 2009/2010. His ex-communication nearly 400 years ago has been rescinded by the SHJ and in "Judaism in a Secular Age: An Anthology of Secular Humanistic Jewish Thought", Rabbi Sherwin Wine asks if Spinoza was the first Humanistic Jew.

Learn more about Spinoza and his times with the Kol Haverim Study Group. Members Susan Sandman, Mark Silverman, Deirdre Silverman, Joyce Frank, and Brian Eden have been studying this outspoken rebel for several months, and have found much fascinating material to explore.

We hope you will join us to glean the most provocative of our studies and to enjoy a dish to pass supper and a brief havdalah ceremony.

Childcare will be provided.

If possible, please RSVP to Brian Eden with childcare needs and dish to pass info. If not possible, just come anyway!

We will have short presentations followed by Q & A.

5:00 - Arrival and schmoozing
5:15 - Havdalah ceremony
5:30 - Dish to pass supper
6:15 - A Consideration of Spinoza
7:00 - Dessert