SPRING 2016 CBI TALKS
Table of Contents 3 Speaker Series 5 Film Series 7 Music 9 Dance 9 Books 10 Adult Learning
INTRODUCTION... CBI Talks brings a variety of educational and informative programs to our community. It encompasses our Speaker Series, the Nagle Family Jewish Film Festival, adult and spiritual learning opportunities, as well as cultural programs involving music, theater, dance, and more. CBI Talks offers opportunities for all ages. Register or purchase tickets by visiting www.cbiboca.org/community/cbi-talks or contact our office at 561.241.8118. If you would like to be a sponsor of CBI Talks, please contact Pam DiGiacomo, Director of Development, at pam.digiacomo@cbiboca.org or 561.241.8118. CBI Talks is open to all. Please feel free to invite your friends! We hope to see you at our exciting programs this year and, most importantly, enjoy!
Speaker Series
Congregation B’nai Israel presents its 3rd Annual Speaker Series. We encourage you to join us at each incredible event.
Friday, January 29 | 7:30PM Robert Tanen “Never Again? Diagnosing the Long Shadow of History Through Contemporary Manifestations” Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary As we commemorate the 71st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, can we say that we have truly given justice to the phrase Never Again? The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is utilizing the lessons of the past to alert the national conscience, influence policy makers, and stimulate world-wide action to confront and work to halt acts of genocide or related crimes against humanity. Join us at Shabbat services and learn how the Museum is deploying its unique voice to sound the alarm on the possible manifestations of modern day genocide through the recent launch of its groundbreaking Early Warning Project. Robert Tanen is the Associate Director for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Southeast Regional Office.
Tuesday, February 23 | 7:00PM Gary Kenzer from HonestReporting “Pictures Paint A Thousand Words” Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary A picture can be very powerful — conveying information, emotion, and details of a situation in a quick fashion. Pictures, like words, can also be taken out of context, easily misleading the reader from getting the truth on news as it relates to how Israel is portrayed to the public. According to Gary Kenzer, “We want to see Israel treated exactly the same as any country in the world, which is ‘innocent until proven guilty,’ and not the other way around.” Join us as we discuss this subject by looking at actual examples and learn how to evaluate the power of picture and see through what is being portrayed. $18 Members and Students with ID $25 Non-Members Purchase tickets at login.cbiboca.org/garykenzer
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Wednesday, April 13 | 7:00PM An American Couple Who Defied the Nazis: “Righteous Among Us: Two Who Defied the Nazis” Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary In 1939, Waitstill and Martha Sharp left the safety of their home in Wellesley, Massachusetts and flew to war-torn Europe. In Nazi-occupied Prague and Paris, in the grim detention camps of Vichy, France, and on hidden trails through the Pyrénées, they risked their lives to help feed, shelter, and rescue thousands of refugees, including anti-Nazi dissidents and Jews. Through moving film clips and an interactive discussion, join Rabbi Robert Silvers, Artemis Joukowsky, the grandson of the Sharps, and a panel of United States Holocaust Memorial Museum experts as we explore questions such as: • Why did this Unitarian minister and his social worker wife undertake such a demanding mission? • How did they help those in need, and what are their legacies today? Free Admission Co-sponsored by the Nagle Family Jewish Film Festival and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
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The Nagle Family Jewish Film Festival Wednesday, February 10 | 7:00PM Beneath the Helmet Running time 80 minutes. Hosted by Matthew Weisbaum, Producer, and the Managing Director of Jerusalem University. Beneath the Helmet: From High School to the Home Front is a coming-of-age story which follows the journey of five Israeli high school graduates who are drafted into the army to defend their country. At the age of 18, away from their homes, families and friends these young individuals undergo a demanding, inspiring journey, revealing the core of who they are and who they want to be.
This film illustrates how these young men and women are defending not only their homes, but also the values of peace, equality, opportunity, democracy, religious tolerance and women’s rights. The lessons they learn along the way are lessons that can be appreciated, understood and internalized by the film’s main target audience.
Wednesday, March 16 | 7:00PM Fill the Void Running time 90 minutes. Hosted by Rabbi Marci Bloch Fill the Void tells the story of an Orthodox Hassidic family from Tel Aviv. Eighteen-year-old Shira is the youngest daughter of the family. She is about to be married off to a promising young man of the same age and background. It is a dream-come-true, and Shira feels prepared and excited.
On Purim, her twenty-eight-year-old sister, Esther, dies while giving birth to her first child. The pain and grief that overwhelm the family postpone Shira’s promised match. Everything changes when an offer is proposed to match Yochay – the late Esther‘s husband – to a widow from Belgium. Yochay feels it‘s too early, although he realizes that sooner or later he must seriously consider getting married again. When the girls’ mother finds out that Yochay may leave the country with her only grandchild, she proposes a match between Shira and the widower. Shira will have to choose between her heart’s wish and her family duty.
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All films take place on Wednesdays at 7:00 PM in the VIP Cocktail Lounge with popcorn and treats accompanying each film.
Wednesday, April 13 | 7:00PM An American Couple Who Defied the Nazis Details on page 4
Wednesday, May 4 | 7:00PM Fateless Running time 140 minutes. Hosted by Laurence Nagle One young man’s devastating voyage through the Holocaust sets the stage for this powerful drama. Gyorgy “Gyurka” Koves is a 14-year-old Jewish boy living in Hungary when the Nazi pogroms begin sweeping through the country. Gyura’s father has his business taken away from him not long before he’s taken away to a concentration camp, and as he’s led away, Gyura agrees to his father’s request to look after his stepmother while he’s gone. However, Gyurka takes a bus rather than the train to work the following morning, believing it to be safer, but before it can reach its destination, police stop the vehicle and take the Jewish passengers into custody.
Gyurka is sent to Auschwitz, but is later transferred to Buchenwald, and finally to Zeitz; at each stop the teenager is witness to greater and greater horrors, as different varieties of torture and violence are introduced with each passing day, until his emotions begin to wear away. When American troops finally liberate Zeitz, Gyurka has been shocked into a placid serenity, and when he returns to the wreckage that is Budapest, his ravaged body and ghostly calm go mostly overlooked by the other survivors attempting to rebuild. This film was adapted from a novel by Imre Kertesz, a Nobel Prize-winning author who is himself a survivor of the Nazi death camps.
There is no cost for members and a $10 fee per film for non-members. The Film Festival is generously sponsored by the Nagle Family.
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Music
Explore the world of music with Congregation B’nai Israel.
Sun. February 21, 2016 | 3:00PM 8th Annual Stephen Dubov z”l Memorial Concert From Broadway to Bima! Temple Beth El of Boca Raton, Schaefer Family Campus 333 SW 4th Avenue, Boca Raton, Fl 33432 Featuring Cantor David Katz from Temple Or Elohim in Jericho, NY, Cantorial Soloist Neil Michaels from Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan, with accompaniment by Dr. Alan Mason from Temple Israel of Miami. These cantorial greats have performed in nationa tours of Broadway shows, at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, at the Julliard School and even in the original stage version of The Rocky Horror Picture Show! They will recreate their greatest performances from Broadway classics to contemporary hits to the Jewish music we all love. Also featuring cantorial performances by Stephanie Shore, Sarah Freudenberger, Lori Shapiro, and Michelle Auslander Cohen. Reserved Benefactor Seats $100 Preferred Admission $36 General Admission $18 Student Admission $10
Purchase tickets online at www.cbiboca.org or call 561.241.8118.
Musical Shabbats Friday, January 22 | 7:30PM | Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary Shabbat Shira with the Cantor’s Chantors & B’nai’s Big Beat Band Friday, February 19 |6:00PM | Pollock Family Courtyard Family Shabbat Under the Stars Featuring CBI’s BISY (B’nai Israel Senior Youth) and Club 678. They will be joined by members of the Youth Band.
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Saturday, March 12 | Doors Open at 7:00PM Neshama Carlebach & Josh Nelson Live in Concert Come Rock with CBI at Our Biggest Fundraiser of the Year! Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary One of the most popular performers and composers in modern Jewish music, Josh Nelson has been bringing his powerful message of hope, unity and spirituality to concert stages and worship services across the globe. Josh is a gifted multi-instrumentalist and songwriter who was recently hailed by Time Magazine as a “star of the New Jewish Music.” Josh is the music director for the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) Biennial Convention. Neshama Carlebach began singing with her father Shlomo Carlebach when she was 15 years old. Like her father, Neshama’s talent and charisma captivate and endear her to people of all ages, faiths and backgrounds. She has performed and taught in cities worldwide, has sung on the Broadway stage, and has sold more than one million records.
The couple’s musical stylings transcend the genre of traditional Jewish music and have catapulted them into mainstream and Broadway stardom. Premium Reserved Including Dessert Reception $150 Premium Reserved $100 Reserved $65 General Admission $36 Student Admission $20 (Student ID required for admission) Purchase tickets online at www.cbiboca.org or call 561.241.8118.
Friday, March 18 | 5:30PM | Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary Purim Shpiel
Sing along with the clergy, senior staff, president, and choir in CBI’s Annual Purim Extravaganza.
Friday, April 15 | 7:30PM | Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary Boomer’s Shabbat
Dress in your best tie-dye and sing along to the top tunes of the 60s & 70s and with the Cantor’s Chantors and B’nai’s Big Beat Band.
Friday, May 20 | 7:30PM | Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary Musical Shabbat with CBI’s Youth Band
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Dance Wednesday, March 2, 2016 | 7:00PM Rehvital Dance Ensemble “From Genesis Until Forever” New this year to CBI Talks, Congregation B’nai Israel offers a dance ensemble not to be missed! Join us for an evening of lights, music, dance, and fun! Cohen/Friedkin Sanctuary Congregation B’nai Israel is fortunate to welcome the highly acclaimed Rehvital Dance Ensemble, founded by Rehvital Pienica Zevulunov in 1995, which has become the representative dance group for the Israeli city of Petach Tikva. The company has toured throughout Israel and world-wide, and has performed at international festivals, theaters, and Israeli Independence Day celebrations. $20 Members, $25 Non-members Purchase tickets online at login.cbiboca.org/dance or call 561.241.8118.
Books The Adult Book Club meets monthly to enjoy lively and intellectual discussions about current books. It’s fun, casual, and filled with great people. The book club is open to all so invite your friends. We hope to see you there!
Wednesday, February 24 | 7:00PM Henna House by Nomi Eve
An evocative and stirring novel about a young woman living in the fascinating and rarely portrayed community of Yemenite Jews of the mid-twentieth century. Nomi Eve’s vivid saga begins in Yemen in 1920, when Adela Damari’s parents desperately seek a future husband for their young daughter. After passage of the Orphan’s Decree, any unbetrothed Jewish child left orphaned will be instantly adopted by the local Muslim community. With her parents’ health failing, and no spousal prospects in sight, Adela’s situation looks dire until her uncle arrives from a faraway city, bringing with him a cousin and aunt who introduce Adela to the powerful rituals of henna tattooing. Contact Janet Kleinman at kleiwrite@bellsouth.net or 561.499.6784.
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Adult Learning CBI offers inspiring lectures and thought-provoking classes by noted guests and our clergy and insightful adult religious education opportunities with knowledgeable faculty. The programs below are offered this spring. Watch for our new schedule of classes for the fall!
Women’s Torah Commentary Tuesdays, 11:15 AM to 12:45 PM, Room 305
Join Rabbi Marci R. Bloch as you study the weekly Torah Portions with a fantastic group of intelligent women. Learn how these texts relate to our own personal journeys in a stimulating and challenging class that will have you looking at the Torah with a whole new perspective. No cost to members, $10 to non-members
Introduction to Judaism Thursday nights, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM
This foundational class will cover lifecycles, customs, traditions, and a history of our people and our faith, especially for those considering conversion. Instructors are CBI’s Rabbi Robert A. Silvers and Rabbi David Englander of B’nai Torah Congregation. Contact Natalie Matus at natalie@cbiboca.org or 561.241.8118.
Special Event Jewish Humor: From Russia with Laughs with Dr. Leonard Berkowitz Tuesday, March 8, 2016, 10:00 AM, Joel S. Nadel Boardroom
A funny thing happened on the way to America—we brought our humor with us. As Jews immigrated to America from Eastern Europe in the late19th and early 20th centuries, they brought their traditional stories and jokes. At first, the stories retained their original form (some even their original Yiddish!) but as time went on, Jewish humor in America evolved and took some of its character from its new environment. Dr. Berkowitz will explore some of these stories and how Jewish humor developed in America in the last century. Dr. Leonard Berkowitz was brought up in Coral Gables, Florida. He received his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Duke University in 1967 and his MA and PhD in philosophy from Johns Hopkins University. He taught philosophy at Penn State University for 39 years. Dr. Berkowitz received several major awards during his career at Penn State, including a University-wide teaching award. In York, Pennsylvania, he served as president of Temple Beth Israel, Jewish Family Services of York and United Jewish Community of York. $10 per person Purchase tickets online at login.cbiboca.org/berkowitz or call 561.241.8118.
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CBI TALKS 2015-2016
Congregation B’nai Israel 2200 Yamato Road, Boca Raton, FL 33431 For more information, visit www.cbiboca.org/community/cbi-talks or contact our office at 561.241.8118.