Mensch Adventures
December 20 @ 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Sunday afternoon, in-person, socially-distant, outdoor adventures for the sake of building empathy, integrity, kindness, and civic-mindedness. During our monthly adventures, we will focus on building our awareness of contemporary social challenges and Torah’s power to help us be better thinkers, feelers, and doers. Students will need to wear masks at all times and we ask that you bring your own kosher-style snacks and water bottles. This is a program organized out of Beth El for 4th-8th graders. It is open to all children in the community. Contact Margaret if you are interested in participating or would like more information (mnorman@templebet-el.net).
Past, Present, Future:
The Jefferson County Memorial Project
December 20 @ 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
This program is free, but we ask that you consider supporting JCMP by participating in their Holiday Hygiene Drive, up through 12/16, or sending in a financial contribution.
Hygiene Drive: https://jeffersoncountymemorial.com/drive/
To Donate: https://jeffersoncountymemorial.com/donate/
The Jefferson County Memorial Project is a grassroots coalition focused on documenting victims of racial terror lynchings in Jefferson County, educating the public, placing markers at the sites of these events and advocating for racial justice in the present day. Joi Brown is a founding core coalition member and current director of JCMP.
In this conversation, we’ll focus on the connections between past, present and future; slavery, convict leasing, and mass incarceration, as well as JCMP’s important work in the Birmingham community. Join us to learn more, including how you can get involved. Register Here:
This conversation is part of our ongoing programming series Tirdof: Civil Rights Past and Present and is presented in partnership with the Jewish Community Relations Council. Reach out to mnorman@templebeth-el.net with questions. We’ve heard many of you express a desire for social connection and are expanding our virtual programming to include small group discussions. On select programs, we’ll invite you to stay on the Zoom immediately following, for 15-20 minutes of discussion and kibitzing in small group break out rooms. Think of this as the time after the program where you’d usually linger and chat!
American Red Cross Blood Drive
December 22 @ 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Since March, COVID-19 has completely changed our way of life and impacted us in ways that we will never forget. Many corporations are now work-from-home and schools are teaching virtually. Due to factors like these, the blood supply in our nation and in our own community has taken a major hit. To help combat this, we will be teaming up with the American Red Cross to host a blood drive here at Temple on December 22nd from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
Additionally, the Red Cross will be testing all donors for COVID-19 antibodies! If you would like participate and donate blood, you can schedule your appointment to do so by clicking here.
Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese Food with YIVO
December 22 @ 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
For many Ashkenazi Jews in the United States, Christmastime sparks memories of egg rolls and General Tso’s chicken. How did the affinity for Chinese food amongst many Jews begin? Trace this delicious history from the turn-of-the-century Lower East Side to today’s take-out lo mein with Andrew Coe, author of Chop Suey: A Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States.
At the end of this form there is a link to register for the program through YIVO, which you need to do in order to receive Zoom information.
Participants who register by 12/16 will receive a free delivery of themed snacks! All participants will also receive the link to an optional Zoom room following the program, hosted by Beth El, for discussion and noshing.
Presented by YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
“The New Jewish Canon”:
A Conversation about Contemporary Judaism
December 22 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
The late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries have been a period of mass production and proliferation of Jewish ideas, and have witnessed major changes in Jewish life and stimulated major debates. Join this class to talk about the book, “The New Jewish Canon,” which came out this year in July. This book offers a conceptual roadmap to make sense of some of this rapid change. The New Jewish Canon is an entry point for the Jewish intellectual and communal zeitgeist of the contemporary period and the recent past, canonizing our most important ideas and debates of the past two generations; and just as importantly, stimulating debate and scholarship about what is yet to come. Join Rebbetzin Bethany with your lunch on zoom to talk about some of these debates. Register here for the zoom link.
JewCurious?
December 23 @ 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Are you JewCurious? Have you heard that Judaism is about asking questions? Questions are the start of a great conversation. I would say, Judaism is about a great conversation. Come learn more about what that conversation sounds like by joining this JewCurious Class. This class is for everyone looking to get a broad overview of Judaism. This 101 class lasts for 20 weeks and is open to anyone who is curious. We’ll explore the major narratives, history, practices, theology and values of Judaism. You can expect that the learning will happen with curiosity and open-mindedness and respect for one another’s boundaries and beliefs. Taught by Bethany Slater from Temple Beth El. To register: click here!
Collat Jewish Family Services Bereavement Group
The meetings will be led by Gail Schuster, and the group will determine the frequency and meeting times.
For more information and to register for the Zoom meeting, please contact Gail Schuster at gail@cjfs.org or at 205-879-3438.
Financial Assistance Available
for Jewish Community Members
Thanks to a grant from the Greatest Needs Fund of the Birmingham Jewish Federation’s COVID Relief Campaign, Collat Jewish Family Services is offering financial assistance to Jewish community members who are facing financial insecurity because of job loss, caring for family or other issues. Confidential assistance is available to members of the Birmingham Jewish community who need help with rent or mortgage payments, utilities, prescription costs or other needs. To learn more, please email CJFS Clinical Director Marcy Morgenbesser LICSW, marcy@cjfsbham.org or call 205.879.3438.
