The Charlotte Jewish News - March 2015 - Page 26
Relational Judaism Weekend: Dr. Ron Wolfson Returns
“Judaism is about relationship
- with others, with God, with the
tradition itself,” points out Rabbi
David Wolpe of Sinai Temple, Los
Angeles. Rabbi Wolpe enthusias-
tieally shares, “There is no more
sure-footed guide to the relation
ships in our lives than Ron Wolf-
son, teaeher extraordinaire.”
Temple Israel and Temple Beth El
have joined forees to bring Dr.
Ron Wolfson baek to Charlotte, so
that many more people in our
Charlotte eommunity may benefit
direetly from Dr. Wolfson’s teaeh-
ing in his upeoming visit, the
weekend of Friday, Mareh 27
through Saturday, Mareh 28.
Motivated to help Jewish or
ganizations aeross the eountry to
address deelining membership
and ill attended programs. Dr.
Wolfson authored the game-
ehanging book. Relational Ju
daism: Using the Power of
Relationships to Transform the
Jewish Community. Wolfson ap
plies the best thinking from the
Dr. Ron Wolfson
eorporate and nonprofit worlds,
lending seholarship that is metie-
ulously researehed and peppered
with real life examples, to outline
a new paradigm for ereating a vi
brant Jewish eommunity.
“Ron Wolfson is a dynamie and
engaging seholar, who weaves a
vision filled with hope for the fu
ture of Jewish eommunal life
in the United States. Flis vision is
Temple Beth El: A Hub
for Unique Communities
Engaged in Jewish Living
By Cantor Mary Thomas
The synagogue is a beit t’filah
- a house of prayer, a beit midrash
- a house of study, and a beit k’-
nesset - a house of gathering. At
Temple Beth El we have dynamie
serviees and learning opportuni
ties for all ages. We are a plaee of
eonneetion for many.
The Temple Beth El eommu
nity has ereated one of the most
sueeessful youth engagement pro
grams in the eountry. Yet, sueeess
is not without ehallenges. Syna
gogues throughout the eountry
faee the struggle of a “earpool eul-
ture,” where students are dropped
off and parents rarely enter the
synagogue for their own enrieh-
ment and spiritual development.
When kids are served so well, par
ents may - subeonseiously or not
- foeus their Jewish involvement
and partieipation on their ehildren,
and not themselves. Oftentimes,
this is based out of neeessity: kids’
sehedules are ehallenging, there is
an ineredible amount of driving to
and fro, and work is demanding.
When do you find time to buy
groeeries, go to the gym, or have
the oeeasional date night, never
mind the synagogue and Jewish
living.
We hope to get ahead of this
national trend of disaffiliation by
strengthening Temple Beth El as a
beit k’nesset - not just a house of
gathering, but a hub for building
unique, small eommunities en
gaged in Jewish Living. Through
strong lay partnerships, we are
building networks of Jewish Liv
ing Groups. These groups are
small eommunities within Temple
Beth El united by interest, affinity,
or life eireumstanee.
Club Sandwieh: Our first Jew
ish Living Group is Club Sand
wieh, eomprised of members
earing for family members in mul
tiple generations, sueh as aging
parents and teens still living at
home. Club Sandwieh has been
eontagious and exeiting,” says
Rabbi Murray Ezring of Temple
Israel. “Communal religious life is
all about relationships. Our love
for one another; our support for
one another draw us eloser to ex-
perieneing the Divine on earth.”
Temple Israel and Temple Beth
El invites all Jews, affiliated and
unaffiliated, young and old, lay
leaders and staff, from all over the
Charlotte area to attend this up
eoming speeial Shabbat weekend,
absolutely free of eharge and ere
ated to benefit the Charlotte Jew
ish eommunity at large. You are
invited to engage in a eonversa-
tion with Dr. Wolfson that will
transform your thinking about the
future of your Jewish life and of
Jewish organizations. The follow
ing events are open to the publie:
Friday, Mareh 27 - Temple
Beth El
Community Shabbat Serviees,
7 PM - Blessing and Kisses: the
Power of Jewish Family Life. This
leeture is sponsored in part by the
Sadie Levin Seholar-in-Residenee
program in memory of the mother
of Norm Levin, Temple Beth El’s
Flonorary Life President.
Relational
Judaism
Using ttio Power of
RelaHonships to Transform
ihe Jewish Community
temp)e Israel
judaiitnUxiitejliit
Dr. Pon Wolfson
ip
Saturday, Mareh 28 - Temple
Israel
Shabbat Serviees, 9:30 AM -
Building Good Tents: Envisioning
the Relational Synagogue of the
21st Century.
Saturday, Mareh 28 - Sam
Lemer Center at Shalom Park
(Building A)
After serviees at both temples,
the Jewish eommunity will eome
together for a speeial Kiddush in
TEMPLE
BETH EL
the Sam Lemer Center of Shalom
Park. Immediately after Kiddush,
Dr. Wolfson will present. Beyond
Maxwell Flouse: Flow to Flave the
Greatest Seder Ever.
For more information about
these events, you may eontaet the
Clergy Offiee of Temple Israel at
704-362-2796 or Temple Beth El
at 704-366-1948.^
meeting sinee Oetober 2014 and
has observed holidays, havdalah,
and has engaged in study while
deepening their interpersonal rela
tionships.
Tiles and Tribulations:
Launehed in February, the Tiles
and Tribulations Mah Jongg Jew
ish Living Group is an intergener-
ational mix of Mah Jongg players
from noviee to expert who explore
Jewish wisdom as they study their
tiles. Women (and men) of all gen
erations spent a Shabbat together:
eating, praying, exploring the
game, and getting to know one an
other. In Mareh, Tiles and Tribu
lations eontinues to support the
noviees through extra praetiee ses
sions at Whole Foods while build
ing ongoing Mah Jongg groups
who will play and build Jewish
eontent into the eommunities built
around their games.
Bourbon and Banter: The Bour
bon and Banter Jewish Living
Group meets for the first time on
Mareh 7 for havdalah, bourbon,
and Jewish learning. Bourbon and
Banter will ereate eommunity
around good Bourbon and great
Jewish ideas. RSVP to attend by
Mareh 4 at www.beth-el.eom.
Other groups in development
inelude an Outdoor Aetivities
Group, whieh should also launeh
in Mareh, Single Women in their
50s and 60s, and more. All you
need to start a Jewish Living
Group is a passion, two dedieated
lay leaders, and a willingness to
weleome Jewish perspeetive and
eontent into that aetivity.
Temple Beth El will eontinue to
grow as a plaee of prayer, study,
aetion, gathering, but also as a
foeal point for a renewed engage
ment with daily Jewish life. Please
eontaet CantorMary@beth-el.eom
for more information about the ex
isting Jewish Living Groups or if
you are interested in forming one
of your own. ^
Dan Nichols Returns to Charlotte
Temple Beth El weleomes Dan
Niehols as we eelebrate our Jew
ish eommunity and seeular eduea-
tors on Arthur Tirsun Teaeher
Appreeiation and Edueation
Shabbat.
We hope you will join us on
Saturday, Mareh 14 at 11 AM at
Temple Beth El in the Blumenthal
Sanetuary
Temple Beth El is exeited to
announee the return of beloved
singer-songwriter, Dan Niehols.
Dan Niehols is a singular talent in
the world of Jewish musie. Fie is
one of the most dynamie, influen
tial, and beloved Jewish musi-
eians in North Ameriea. Dan’s
melodies have beeome an integral
part of the spiritual and liturgieal
experienee of eountless individu
als and Jewish eommunities, in
eluding ours.
Dan will be joining our elergy
to lead a magnifieent, musieal
Shabbat morning eongregational
serviee that will honor our Jewish
and eommunity edueators. Fie will
be joined by the TBE Teen Voeal
Ensemble, Teen Band, Youth
Choir, and Religious Sehool Song
Leaders. Everyone is weleome to
attend.
Temple Beth El is proud to
honor our dedieated Jewish edu
eators and area seeular teaehers.
This Shabbat serviee is dedieated
to Arthur Tirsun, a eareer edueator
who lived what he taught. Ju
daism was his life and he had the
rare gift of being able to impart
his Judaie wisdom, passion, and
dedieation to our students. All of
the teaehers at Temple Beth El
Religious Sehool possess those
same attributes. Please join us to
say thank you to our beloved
teaehers and the faeulties of the
Charlotte Jewish Presehool, the
Consolidated Flebrew High
Sehool, Tikvah Charlotte, and the
Levine Sklut Judaie Library, as
well as our area seeular teaehers.
The publie is weleome to join the
eelebration.
If you would like to honor a
Jewish edueator, please eonsider
making a eontribution to the Tem
ple Beth El Arthur Tirsun Eduea-
tional Shabbat and Religious
Sehool Fund. ^
IIP
TEMPLE
BETH EL
March Madness at Temple Kol Ami
Mareh Madness has eome to
Temple Kol Ami. No, we don’t
mean basketball. We mean all the
amazing events that are planned
for Mareh at TKA. We start off the
month with a Purim Carnival on
Mareh 1 for our amazing Reli
gious Sehool students. Then on
Mareh 6, these awesome kids will
entertain us with a Purim Sehpiel
based on Dr. Seuss at Friday night
Shabbat serviee. Finally, the
weekend of Mareh 20-22, Kol
Ami weleomes Rabbi Bruee Aft
of the Institute of Southern Jewish
Learning for a Shabbaton. Rabbi
Aft is eoming to us from Northern
Virginia, and will lead the eongre-
gation in a traditional Friday night
serviee and a Saturday morning
Tot Shabbat. Other plans for the
Shabbaton inelude a eongrega
tional bruneh, Torah study, Hav
dalah get-together, and spending
time with the Religious Sehool
kids. We are exeited to have the
“Rabbi on the Road” join our
eommunity for a weekend of spir
ituality and learning.
Temple Kol Ami serves the
Jewish population of York
County, SC and the surrounding
areas. We are a warm and wel-
eoming eongregation for Jews
from all walks of life and level of
observanee. Shabbat serviees are
held the first and third Friday
nights of eaeh month at the His-
torie Sanetuary of Unity Presbyte
rian Chureh, 303 Tom Hall Street,
Fort Mill, SC. For more informa
tion about Temple Kol Ami, eheek
out our website www.templeko-
lamise.org. We would love to see
you one Friday night in the near
future. ^