Contact office@shaarzahav.org to sponsor Oneg or Flowers for Shabbat.

Friday Night Services for Vayeshev

Decemeber 8th at 7:45pm

Hybrid: On Zoom and In-Person

Chanukah Shabbat

Led by Cantor Bernstein and Ora Prochovnick

Drash by Rabbi Copeland

Register Here for Zoom Service

Meeting ID: 886 7131 3838

Saturday Morning Service:

Decemeber 9th at 10:00am

Hybrid: On Zoom and In-Person

Join the Zoom Meeting. Meeting ID: 365 434 855 and Passcode: 068575.

To join by phone for either service, dial +1 669 900 9128 or find your local number.

Chanukah

Shabbat Chanukah -- Light, Strength, & Joy

This Friday, December 8th at 6pm

6pm Hybrid teaching "Judith our Chanukah Hero" by Robin Cohn with a light nosh

6:30pm In-person dinner for Kids & Families 0-teens and Drag Story Time

7:15pm Set up chanukiot/menorahs in sanctuary

7:30pm Hybrid Communal Chanukah Candle Lighting & Songs -- bring your chanukiah to shul or screen!

7:45pm Shabbat Service

Register here for the in-person 6:30pm family dinner

Online Nightly Candle Lighting

December 7-15 (excluding December 8th), 6pm, on Zoom

Sha'ar Zahav will light candles together online starting December 7th to December 14th (excluding Shabbat on December 8th). Help make our Zoom nights even brighter by leading the lighting, sharing a song or telling a short story. 

Sign up here for leading a Candle Lighting

Zoom link for Nightly Candle Lightings

Castro Menorah Lighting

December 11th, 6pm, in-person

Jane Warner Plaza at Castro, Market & 17th Street

The Castro Menorah lighting is a fun family event complete with music, singing, dancing, and jelly donuts! Spin a giant dreidel and light your own chanukiah along with our jumbo menorah! Hosted by Congregation Sha’ar Zahav and Castro Merchants Association and the Castro Community Benefit district. No registration required, come and enjoy.

Social Action Committee

Monday, December 11th, 8:00pm

Hybrid (in-person and on Zoom)

Join SAC at Chanukah candle lighting in The Castro at 6:00pm, then join the hybrid SAC meeting at Sha'ar Zahav at 8:00pm. Walk together from The Castro to 290 Dolores St. (or ride, please contact Nancy Wecker at 415-420-3550). Want to join us? Come to our next meeting or contact Nancy Wecker or Neil Young.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Fried Night Shabbat

Friday, December 15, after Shabbat at Sha'ar Zahav

Celebrate the end of Chanukah with Sha’ar Zahav young adult community, the Kaf Lameds (ages 20s-30s). Come to enjoy an evening of fried foods, friends, and community. All are welcome! Please contact Emily Ornelas-Dorian.

Community Get Together!

Jewish Life in Uganda

with Rabbi Gershom Sizomu

Thursday, December 7th at 2pm

Congregation Sherith Israel

(2266 California St, San Francisco)

Sha'ar Zahav and Congregation Sherith Israel are joining together for music and an opportunity to meet Rabbi Gershom Sizomu as we learn about Jewish life in Uganda. Rabbi Sizomu is the spirtual leader of the Moses Synagogue, which he built with the Abayudaya community of rural Eastern Uganda during their Kibbutz movement in the 1980s. Held at Congregation Sherith Israel.

For more information, click here

Let's talk about it: The intersection between Antisemitism and Racism

Thursday, December 14, 6:10pm, Hybrid

6pm: Online Candle Lighting

Chanukah, our celebration of religious freedom, is a great time to gain understanding about how Antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism are interconnected today and what we can do about it.

Rabbi Julie Saxe-Taller was the Lead Organizer for the California Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC-CA), the statewide network of congregations organizing for justice for the past five years, from 2018-2023. Rabbi Saxe-Taller is passionate about bringing the spiritual, creative and justice-seeking elements of Judaism together.

Register for in-person here

Register for Zoom here

Together in Heartbreak: A Members Gathering About Israel and Gaza 

Friday, December 15, 6pm, Hybrid

Join a listening space to talk about the war in Israel and Gaza, led by Rachel Nilson Ralston.

This is a members only space.

Register for in-person here

Register for Zoom here

Bereavement Spiritual Support Group in Formation

Date Change! Wednesdays, 12-1:30pm, Jan 17th-March 6th by Zoom

The group is for anyone who is grieving the death of a human being. All types of loss are welcome. Many of our readings will center LGBTQ grief experiences to reflect our community, but all genders and family relationships are welcome. No Jewish knowledge or identification is required. Group size is limited to eight participants and an intake conversation is required pre-registration.

For more information or to register for an intake conversation email Rabbi Copeland

Led by Rabbi Elliot Kukla (he/they)

The Disability and Accessibility Committee welcomes Rabbi Julia Watts Belser to our community for two very special events on January 21, 2024 and January 28, 2024! Join us for both events or either.

Loving Our Own Bones

A Virtual Author Event with Rabbi Julia Watts Belser and Maggid Eli Ramer

Sunday, January 21, 1:00-2:00pm, on Zoom only

Please welcome Rabbi Julia Watts Belser, in conversation with Maggid Eli Ramer, as they discuss her new book, Loving Our Own Bones. Expect a spirited discussion as they fiercely interpret Biblical texts and reflect together about living in a largely ableist world. How would it feel to hear the Torah of Moses told in his own disabled voice? How would it change us to honor disability both as an ordinary part of the fabric of our lives—and as a potent catalyst for queer spiritual imagination?

Register for Loving Our Own Bones here

Disability, Social Justice, and Climate Change

Sunday, January 28, 1:00-2:30pm, on Zoom only

Disability communities face heightened risks amidst climate crisis—even as we also have potent insights for navigating climate disruption, for living with and adapting to a changing world. In this session, Rabbi Julia Watts Belser will reflect on key insights emerging from Disability and Climate Change: A Public Archive Project, an initiative she leads to showcase the wisdom of disabled activists, artists, and first responders grappling with climate change. Together, we’ll bring that testimony into conversation with ancient Jewish texts about crisis and catastrophe to sharpen our thinking about structural inequality and reckon with ableism, racism, classism, and anti-queer and trans violence. We’ll also examine disability wisdom for community care and collective survival—and consider how Jewish text and practice might help us work to build a world where we all find shelter from the storm.

Register for Disability, Social Justice and Climate Change here

Toy Drive

Join the Beit Sefer B’Mitzvah Chavurah in supporting Ukrainian refugee families and children this holiday season. Click this link to donate a toy for a child in need. 

If you would like to make a donation outside of Amazon, contact Irina Klay or if you have other questions contact Shelli Fein.

Blanket Drive - Blankets for the Homeless

A project of the Social Action Committee

There is a bin in the lobby at 290 Dolores to collect new and lightly used blankets to be distributed to the homeless by The Gubbio Project. Drop by and drop off some blankets. We will be collecting through the end of the year. Thank you.

Recurring Gatherings and Meetings

SZ Book Group

When the Angels Left the Old Country, by Sacha Lamb

Tuesday, January 9, 7:00-8:00 pm on Zoom

Imagine an angel and a demon, centuries-old friends from a small shtetl. Send them on a journey in early 20^th century America, where they and their companions face ghosts, murderers, Ellis Island indignities, and exploitative factory owners – but also unexpected love and self-discovery. A queer Jewish immigration story! Everyone welcome.  

Join the Meeting:  Zoom link

12-Step Meetings by and for SZ Members

Weekly on Thursdays

5:00-6:00pm on Zoom

Join CSZ's 12-step group at our new time for some pre-High Holiday reflection in the spirit of recovery! Meetings are open to everyone in our wider SZ community (and the Bay Area Jewish recovery community), and we welcome folks who are members of any 12-step fellowship (AA, NA, Alanon, CMA, etc.). Join us this Thursday at 5pm and use this zoom link. Questions? Email Erika Katske.

Kaf-Lamed Monthly Gathering

Don't go to Shabbat alone!

Join Sha'ar Zahav's young adult group (The Kaf Lameds) for a monthly gathering at Shabbat Services in person! Perfect for those who've ever felt intimidated to go to Shabbat in person services alone. Or perfect for those who just want a few buddies to join on Friday night services! This is a monthly gathering, where we'll do "Shabbat Together" the 3rd Friday of each month.

Contact Emily Ornelas-Dorian.

L'Havin: Understanding Israel and Its Neighbors

4th Monday of the month, 6:00-7:00pm on Zoom

L'Havin: Understanding Israel and Its Neighbors is a Sha'ar Zahav working group that provides our members and community friends with support, knowledge, and dialogue skills that deepen our relationship with the land and peoples of Israel and Palestine, and to advance understanding and healing within our Jewish community. You do not need to come with any previous knowledge of the topics we may discuss or with any set viewpoints. In fact, we encourage all to come with open ears and a learner’s mindset.

For more information, contact Rachel Nilson-Ralston.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Climate Action Committee

2nd Monday of the month, 5:00-6:30pm on Zoom

The CAC gathers monthly to support and educate ourselves and our community on climate issues, including climate grief, policy advocacy, and personal and community strategies to address the urgent crises of climate change and climate justice. 

Contact Deborah Levy.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Disability and Accessibility Committee

If you identify as disabled, are exploring that identity, or have a loved one with a disability and are interested in joining the Disability and Accessibility Committee, please reach out to Eliana Smithstein for more information. If you are interested in learning more about disability and how you can become a better ally, stay tuned for educational events to come!

Remember When

1st Wednesday of the Month

 6:45-8:00pm

Hitch a ride on the wayback wagon for a trip down memory lane. Let’s reminisce about the 40’s thru the 70’s together! Different topics each month. We will gather on the first Wednesday of every month. Email Marv Lehrman.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Weekly Torah Study Group

Weekly on Wednesday

8:30-9:30am

Rabbi Copeland and lay leaders lead discussions about the weekly Torah reading. Drop-ins welcome, no experience with Torah nessecary!

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Mussar Discussion Group

Bi-weekly on Thursdays

7:00-8:00pm

Mussar is a very practical and flexible spiritual discipline to help you balance soul-traits (Middah/Middot) such as Humility, Loving-Kindness, Generosity, and Silence. Drop-ins are always welcome! Contact Mark Pressler.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Meditation Chavurah

1st and 3rd Saturday of the month

10:30am-Noon

Everyone is welcome. And you will not regret it! A typical session includes a short and longer silent sit, with chanting, movement, and a short teaching. The group meets on the first and third Saturday of every month.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Hiking Chavurah

2nd Saturday of the month, 9:50am

Join other Sha’ar Zahavniks on monthly urban hikes – mostly in SF but we sometimes venture farther afield. This is a great way to get to know other SZ members while exploring the city and beyond. The hikes usually last about two hours. Email Karen Schiller and Ellen Murland.

Weekday Morning Prayer

Weekly on Tuesdays

8:30-9:00am

Songs and prayers to set our hearts and minds! This service takes place every Tuesday morning, and is led by community lay leaders and Cantor Bernstein. Contact Cantor Bernstein.

Join the Meeting: Zoom link

Deborah Levy 12/10

Cindy Icke 12/10

Ro'e Zaid 12/11

Paul Bendix 12/12

Yuridia Yisraeli 12/12

While we strive for all our events to be mixed-access, this is not always possible. Some events are only in-person, and some are Zoom only. If you have any questions about a particular event, please contact the office, or the contact listed for the event.

Programs at Sha’ar Zahav are supported by the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment Fund, the Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus Initiative for Immigrant and Refugee Justice of the Religious Action Center, the National Center to Encourage Judaism and the generous support of our members. Toda rabba!

You are receiving this email because you expressed interest in Sha'ar Zahav. Be sure to add office@shaarzahav.org to your (email) contacts list so that our communications land in your inbox! All our events take place at Sha'ar Zahav 290 Dolores Street, unless noted otherwise. To unsubscribe, please click on the "Unsubscribe" link at the bottom of this email.