While we cannot be together physically, the importance of community and staying connected is more important than ever. 
Mon
March 1
Challah Midrash Corner
Kay Friedman baked this week's Challah Midrash ... since it’s Purim, she baked a delicious looking Challah-tashen! See more on our Challah Midrash instagram. You too can sign up to bake Challah for a particular week by emailing Karen Isaacson.
Missed Friday's D'var Torah?
Rewatch (or catch up on) Rabbi London's D'var Torah, from this past Friday, February 26.
7:30 pm
Movie with Mark: The Elephant Man (1980).
David Lynch established himself as a commercial filmmaker (though not for long) with this spellbinding black-and-white historical drama about Joseph (though John in the movie) Merrick, who struggles with severe physical disabilities and mistreatment. Nominated for eight Academy Awards, including best picture, director and actor (John Hurt). Also starring Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft and John Gielgud and co-produced by none other than Mel Brooks.
Zoom Link - Ph: 312-626-6799- Meeting ID: 819 9140 7053 / Passcode: 1225
Tues
March 2
11:30 am
Daily Meditation
Click here to join the meditation room from Institute for Jewish Spirituality.
7:30 pm
Orot Live Zoom Meditation
In times of chaos, we can all try to cultivate a consciousness of more kindness, more generosity, more compassion, more calm, so we can bring these attributes, these middot into the world through our actions. Join Orot Center for Jewish Learning for these Tuesday evening meditations and sits.

At your Leisure
Prepare for March 4 by reading Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, by Isabel Wilkerson for the ongoing Book Club Discussion starting Thursday, March 4th. See below for more details on where to purchase your own copy.
Wed
March 3
11:30 am
Daily Meditation
Click here to join the meditation room from Institute for Jewish Spirituality.
At your Leisure...
Watch this year's Purim Spiel!
Purim by Zoom didn’t slow down our amazing Spielers from creating yet another extraordinary celebration and Megillah reading! Special appreciation to our fearless leaders: Susan Forte, Barb Wertico, Klaus Georg, and Beth Reinstein as well as the cast and Megillah readers for a night to be remembered. Worship will never be the same when you’re asked to “(r)ise if you’re able.” If you missed it, check out the recording. It’s not too late to save the date for next year’s Purim Spiel – March 16, 2022!

Start reading Apeirogon by Colum McCann for March 22, to prepare for the book discussion with Rabbi London. Apeirogon is a work of historical fiction based on the real life events and the relationship between Bassam Aramin, a Palestinian Muslim, and Rami Elhanan, an Israeli Jew. See the coming soon section below for more of Rabbi London's reflections.
Thurs
March 4
10:00 am
Qikong with Netiva Caftori
There are so many moving parts in our day to day lives. Our very own Netiva Caftori, invites us to experience the healing practice of Qikong with her. Qikong is a millennia-old system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation used for the purposes of health and spirituality. Beginners are encouraged to try out this session.

11:30 am
Daily Meditation
Click here to join the meditation room from Institute for Jewish Spirituality.

7:30 pm
Caste – An On-Going Conversation
Isabel Wilkerson’s book, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, provides many opportunities for conversation within the Beth Emet community. This in-depth look at social structure in communities provides various entry points into the conversation. Wilkerson writes that caste systems require the dehumanization of groups in order to function. She studies the experiences of 3 distinct groups – The Dalits (referred to as Untouchables) in India, Jews in Nazi Germany and Europe and American Blacks.
We invite you to join with us in an exploration and conversation about this book. Because of the size and depth of the work, we will be structuring numerous sessions. Taurean Webb will be our keynote address that can help set context for smaller group Zoom discussions. Taurean J. Webb, a long time friend of Beth Emet, is the Director of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience (CBE) and Instructor of religion and race at Garrett-Evangelical Theological.
There will be 3 additional sessions going forward in April, May and June. These will each look at distinct themes of the book.
Books can be purchased at Bookends and Beginnings in Evanston.
Zoom Link- Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 869 1888 9554 / Password: 1224
Fri
March 5
A Close Look at Torah with Rabbi London- Cancelled This Week

10:00 am
Shabbat Singing with Cantor Cotler
Everyone is welcome. Perfect for kids up to age 6.
Zoom Link Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 825 2802 4744 / Passcode: 671592
11:00 am
Arab-Jews Before and After 1948 in Israel with Maayan Hilel
Though Arab and Jew are still perceived as mutually exclusive, more and more Israeli Jewish intellectuals, scholars, and activists from Arab countries have come to define themselves as Arab-Jews. We will examine identity and culture, and discuss linguistic, social, and intellectual connections between Arab and Jewish societies in Israel before and after 1948.
Member fee $25 or included in Friday package; non-member fee $35.

6:15 pm
Z’oneg
Login to services a few minutes early to wish everyone a Shabbat Shalom.  As we continue to find new ways to connect, stay a few minutes after services to say hello – just like we would do in the lobby following services! 
Zoom Link Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 853 5684 6772 / Passcode: 1224
6:30 pm
Kabbalat Shabbat Service-Refugee Shabbat
Ph: 312-626-6799 -Meeting ID: 853 5684 6772
Passcode: 1224
Sat
March 6
9:30 am
Kahal Shabbat Morning Service
Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 813 2237 5514/ Passcode: 1224
Sun
March 7
9:00 am
Weekday Minyan
Zoom Link Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 883 0113 9619 / Passcode: 075031

10:00 am
Office Hours with Karen Isaacson

4:00 pm
Illinois Jewish Assembly for Refugees 
Rabbi Debra Newman-Kamin will offer a welcome message, and then Rabbi Bruce Elder will moderate a panel discussion with HIAS' Melanie Nezer, RefugeeOne's Melineh Kano, and a refugee couple named Winniefred Akrello and Celestine Mugisha. After the panel, participants will join breakout rooms where they can hear from representatives of refugee organizations that provide both advocacy and support for refugees. 
This event is apart of HIAS' Refugee Shabbat Weekend. Register for this event here.
Mon
March 8
11:30 am
Daily Meditation
Click here to join the meditation room from Institute for Jewish Spirituality.

7:00 pm
Beth Emet Annual Meeting and Taste of Beth Emet
The Annual Meeting is a time set aside each year (this year virtually), for our members to hear from Beth Emet's President, Treasurer, Foundation president and clergy on the state of the congregation. Complying with our by-laws, we show accountability for finances, communicate our year's accomplishments and challenges, and share plans for our synagogue's future activities. We will also elect new board members, and express gratitude to those who have completed their term on the board. See slate of Officers and Board of Trustees for the 2021-22 year. 

Following the Annual Meeting, we will feature a "Taste of Beth Emet", a virtual opportunity to experience aspects of what makes our congregation so special. From a Taste of Music with Cantor Cotler in the (virtual) Cantor’s Study, to a Taste of Well-Being with Rabbi London in the (virtual) Sanctuary, to a Taste of Middot with Rabbi Memis-Foler & Marci Dickman in the (virtual) Weiner Room, to a Taste of Office Hours with Karen Isaacson & Bekki Kaplan in the (virtual) Lobby. Experience Beth Emet and our fabulous new spaces (virtually)! 

Advanced registration is not required, but we'd love to know if you are planning zoom in. Please RSVP and submit your questions in advance.
Zoom Link -Ph: 312-626-6799 - Meeting ID: 829 7951 3190/ Passcode: 1224
Tues
March 9
11:30 am
Daily Meditation
Click here to join the meditation room from Institute for Jewish Spirituality.
7:30 pm
Orot Live Zoom Meditation
In times of chaos, we can all try to cultivate a consciousness of more kindness, more generosity, more compassion, more calm, so we can bring these attributes, these middot into the world through our actions. Join Orot Center for Jewish Learning for these Tuesday evening meditations and sits.
Events or links may change on occasion - check out the calendar on the homepage of bethemet.org for the most up to date information!
- Coming Soon-
Wednesday, March 10 at 6:30 pm *Please Note the New Time*
Soul Stitchers - Virtual Knitting Circle
Know how to knit and/or crochet? As a tribute to Nikki Zarefsky z"l, join us for an hour (on zoom) of knitting and connecting as we create shawls to warm people during services and/or healing shawls that will bring warmth to those in need in a hospital, home or other settings. Newcomers are welcome and encouraged to join! Please send us an email with any questions.
Zoom Link - Ph: 312-626-6799 / Meeting ID: 811 8533 4972 / Passcode: 1224
Wednesday, March 10 at 7:30 pm
Current Politics with Dr. David Zarefsky
A continuing lecture-discussion class on contemporary public issues of interest to Jews as citizens. We will focus primarily on United States national and international policy related to economic, diplomatic, and military issues, including relations with Israel and other nations. Special attention will be given to the policy and political issues facing the Biden administration.

Sunday, March 14 at 1:00 pm
Kaleidoscope – A program on Cultural Diversity in Israel
Beth Emet joins Kaleidoscope, an Israeli educational organization dedicated to promoting appreciation for diversity, in inviting you to connect to Israel through a different lens. We will reflect on the challenges of multiculturalism, prejudice and diversity in Israel and at home here in the US. We will be guided through this experience by Kaleidoscope’s director and founder and by its facilitators of different cultures – Rasia Feru, of the Druze community, Eihab Kadah, a Muslim citizen, and Yisraela Baruch, a citizen of Ethiopian origin. We will have an opportunity to meet each through their stories – their histories, cultures, religions, day-to-day life experiences, and their experiences of acceptance and discrimination as members of Israel’s minority populations. Please join us as we explore our own biases and discuss diversity, bigotry, and majority/minority relations within Israel and within our own communities – and share ideas about how to deal with them.
Wednesday, March 17 at 7:30 pm
A Critical Reading of Torah as Jews Trying to Understand Slavery with Rabbi Joseph Edelheit 
Rabbi Edelheit was with us during Yom Kippur, and is back to teach us again! This Pesach the bitter herbs will immediately remind us of the past ten months of American grief, anger, and reflection provoked by the murder of George Floyd. The challenge that we all face from America's original sin, racism, will be sparked as we read our own origin story in the Haggadah. In preparation to observe Pesach, we will study the issue of 'slavery' as read in the Torah and search for guidance in the struggles we face today.
No fee for members; non-member fee $25 Register here.

Thursday, March 18 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, March 21 at 10:30 am
Living & Giving
Hear from Financial experts, David Herpe, Jeff Mackevich, Shari Reiches, and Adam Stock-Prawer on topics of estate planning, tax efficient ways of giving, IRA Beneficiary Strategies, and more about Beth Emet’s Dor L’Dor (planned giving program).
Monday, March 22 at 7:30 pm
Book Discussion on the Novel Apeirogon by Colum McCann, with Rabbi London
An Apeirogon is a polygon with an infinite number of sides, an apt metaphor for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Apeirogon is a work of historical fiction based on the real life events and the relationship between Bassam Aramin, a Palestinian Muslim, and Rami Elhanan, an Israeli Jew. Aramin co-founded the activist group Combatants for Peace which Elhanan joined after his son Elik brought him to a meeting. Both Bassam and Rami also have had daughters killed in the violence of the conflict and speak around the world about their experiences as bereaved fathers for The Parents Circle-Families Forum, a grassroots organization of Palestinian and Israeli families who have lost immediate family members due to the conflict. Rabbi London loved the book and is looking forward to discussing it with members of Beth Emet.
Sunday, April 18-Monday, April 19
J Street’s 2021 National Virtual Conference
J Street's conference is a major, landmark gathering for pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans and the American Jewish community and pro-diplomacy progressives across the country. At the dawn of a new day for our country, this event will send a clear message about the principles and policies that American leaders must embrace to revitalize the pursuit of peace and justice in the Middle East and to promote democracy and equality at home and abroad.
Previous speakers have included President Joe Biden, Senator Bernie Sanders, Ambassador Susan Rice, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Secretary of State John Kerry, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and more. Learn more and register here. Tickets start at just $50; use the code BethEmetEvanston2021 for 20% off! Contact Karen Isaacson for more information. 
- Additional Ideas & Resources -
BE Connected is an opportunity for groups with similar interests to come together as well as opportunities for conversation around various topics. What better way to engage with the Beth Emet community, try something new, and connect when we have a bit more time on our hands? Given our new reality, this initiative will start virtually, but we hope that this will continue once life returns to normal. 
 
Each week you will receive a dedicated email with a listing of opportunities for the next two weeks. If you do not have access to a web camera for a video call, we will include phone numbers as well. And if you have an idea as we expand the reach of BE Connected, contact Marti Netler.
 
We look forward to seeing you very soon.
If you'd like to unsubscribe, please do not hit the unsubscribe button below. Please contact us.

To find prior content, search communications@bethemet.org in your mailbox.