2023BagelU

American Jewish Women & the Nuturing of New York Opera Culture - How did the equation shift from Jewish women relying on opera to advance their liminal subject positions to the local opera industry relying on them to stay afloat? This presentation by Dr Samantha M Cooper uncovered and traced the evolution of Jewish women’s opera activities throughout New York City.

Questions About Reconstructionism - KHN Members Abraham Leibson and David Stoller moderated as we reviewed selected questions from Kaplan’s book “Questions Jews Ask: Reconstructionist Answers,” discussed our feelings and thoughts, and read Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan’s answers and his reasoning. Please join us in this exciting group learning experience of Rabbi Kaplan’s ideas.

Chaim Grade -  The Lithuanian Yiddish writer Chaim Grade wrote poetry, novels, and memoirs from the time of World War I until his death in 1982, recreating life in Eastern Europe equal to the works of Isaac Bashevis Singer and Sholom Aleichem. His two most acclaimed works were The Agunah and The Yeshiva.

Black Fiddlers in the Orbit of Thomas Jefferson - Black Fiddlers in the Orbit of Thomas Jefferson is a story for us, indeed for all Americans, to learn about, discuss, and be enlightened by. Music historian, conductor, and former KHN member Lewis R. Baratz will shed light on the music and the ethical contradictions of a key founding father of the United States. The presentation will be done via Zoom, with slides and musical ensembles performed by Lewis' ensemble, La Fiocco.
VIDEO RECORDING NOT AVAILABLE

Rosh Hashana: Have a Roman Meal - We rang in Rosh Hashana by joining three generations of Popkin women as they traveled back in time to eat as our ancestors in the Roman ghettos did. They provided recipes and cooking demonstrations for traditional Roman-Jewish foods throughout history eaten to celebrate Rosh Hashana. The class, in-person and on Zoom was open to all Hebrew School students, parents, and congregants.
VIDEO RECORDING NOT AVAILABLE

Democracy in Israel: A Panel Discussion with three Israeli-Americans. Have we Reached the End of a Democratic and Secular Israel? Should American Jews Be Concerned? And what is the Connection to Philly? Our panelisits include Myla Kaplan, a corporate lawyer in the US, who lived in Israel for 30 years and her three children and six grandchildren there. She has devoted many hours as a volunteer translator and a member of the executive committee of USA for Israeli Democracy, a grass-roots group focused on US-based actions to support democracy in Israel. Danielle Gutman, a postdoctoral researcher at Penn, who was born in Israel and grew up there, she also initiated the #DearDantchik campaign to bring awareness to the local billionaire responsible for funding Kohelet, the group behind the creation of the policies being implemented in Israel. Sheryl Sitman, currently a resident of New Hope, Sheryl moved to Israel in 1993 where she worked in Sales and Marketing for numerous Israeli startup companies and global corporations. Two of her three children and a grandson live in Israel and she divides her time between New Hope and Tel Aviv.She is currently involved in the activities to bring attention to the involvement of Main Line (Philadelphia) money in undermining the very fabric of Israeli society.
For more info:
https://www.usa4israelidemocracy.org/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/219212530774374

Klezmer With the Mayer Brothers: Musicians Zach and Aaron Mayer led our community in a musical Interactive Concert Program focusing on Klezmer, the Eastern European Jewish party music that they played in their house from as early as they can remember. The event will include a mix of performance, storytelling, teaching, singing, and dancing.

US & the Holocaust - A Discussion:  Louise Levy lead an in-person only discussion  (No Zoom) of the PBS documentary - The US and the Holocaust. NO VIDEO AVAILABLE

Spiritual Musings of a Jewish Farmer:  KHN Member Judy Dornstreich, who has farmed and danced around the world engages in conversation with KHN member and poet David Stoller. For Dornstreich, the seeds of farming were planted while as an anthropologist with her husband while living with isolated stone-age people in New Guinea. Those seeds sprouted in Africa, were nutured in India, fed in England and then rooted in Perkasie. She has been exposed to many spiritual traditions which have cultivated her dancing with plants.

Walking Tour of Historical New Hope:  KHN Member and New Hope Historical Society Member Abrey Light took members on a tour of New Hope.  NO VIDEO AVAILABLE

Nahman of Brezlov The powerful insights of this Hasidic Master still live after more than two centuries and have survived to be potent today, as fresh, meaningful, and wise teachings for us in our own time.  Abraham Leibson leads our discussion.

Yom Hashoah - Jews of Shanghai, Surviving the Holocaust: One of the most extradorinary stories of the Holocaust is how 20,000 Jews were welcomed into China. For Yom Hashoah KHN Member Debra Brosan shares the story of her family's life in China after leaving Europe and her work to preserve and archive the artifacts of their story with the staff at Valpariso University.
(VIDEO NOT AVAILABLE)

Which Jew?  Over the course of history, our people have been split into different denominations and sub-communities. Who are these different people? What are their differences and where is their commonality? Please join us as Rabbinic Intern Josh Nelson leads us on an exploration of who calls themselves a Jew, here and around the world.

Artful Photographs of a Vanished World : KHN Member Bennett Povlow is our presenter. Several photographers have managed to record a lost world of Jewish communities in Europe before its destruction. This talk will focus on the work of Richard Scheuer and Roman Vishniac.

Mindfulness-Rooted Torah Text : Rabbi Lauren Tuchman, believed to be the first blind female rabbi in the rabbinate, presented a mindfulness-rooted text study that focuses on themes of disability and belonging. Connected to the Torah portion of the week and Bavli Taanit 20B.

Jews at the Forefront of Modern Art- Alex Katz: David Stoller's series continues with Alex Katz  as we will explore the evolution of his art over the eight decades he’s been painting; hat accounts for his extraordinary longevity and continued relevance as an artist and why his art is so unique and special in the annals of modern art. 

Last Kings of Shanghai: In a three-part series Debra Brosan leads a discussion of the book The Last Kings of Shanghai which details two Jewish dynasties in China.
(VIDEOS NOT AVAILABLE)

Written in the Stars - Jews & Astrology: Astrological symbols have been discovered in Israeli archeological sites, appear in ancient manuscripts and were featured in ancient synagogues still in use to this day. What is the history of this influence, which seems so at odds with the Torah’s strict prohibition against “worshiping the stars”? KHN Member Anne Pettit leads the class.

Divorce - Ancient & Modern Wisdom for Today:  A two-part conversation about being divorced and Jewish. We will explore both the ancient and modern conversations on a topic impacting so many of us. The phenomenon of divorce is not going to disappear, so let us begin writing a new chapter, without shame, of what Jewish families can look like.
VIDEO UNAVAILABLE 

Which Israel?:  Join us for a guided discussion examining what each of us means by the word Israel so that we might learn how to better ask and answer the question: Which Israel?

Down With the Crown (Part 4):  A 4-part series examining the Tanakh's conflicting views of the ancient Israeli monarchy.

Down With the Crown (Part 3):  A 4-part series examining the Tanakh's conflicting views of the ancient Israeli monarchy.

Down With the Crown (Part 2):  A 4-part series examining the Tanakh's conflicting views of the ancient Israeli monarchy.

Down With the Crown (Part 1):  A 4-part series examining the Tanakh's conflicting views of the ancient Israeli monarchy.

Jews at the Forefront of Modern Art: Miriam Schapiro: David Stoller tells us about groundbreaking, influential and under-appreciated, artist Miriam Schapiro.