Links of the Week: Opinion pieces by SZ members! Eliana S. writes about welcoming disabled Jews in our communities, and Paul Bendix speaks about passenger trains and America's soul.

Are you a Sha'ar Zahav member? We are looking for your opinions! Please fill out this 15 min survey to help us begin to reimagine our community together.

Register Here. Meeting ID: 452 290 988.

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.

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. Everyone is welcome! Questions? Please email Marv Lehrman.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

There is still time to join this new group! Brought to you by the Hineni Caring Community, and led by a Licensed Clinical Social Worker from the Family Caregiver Alliance, this group is open to members who are caring for older adults or adults with disabilities. There is a participant fee but anyone who needs assistance will be aided. If you have any questions, please contact Rabbi Mychal Copeland.

For Members Only. Five Monthly Meetings: $125. Learn More and Register.

Let's work together at Sha'ar Zahav's Gathertown, set up by Rebbetzin Kirsti Copeland. We'll be in the virtual space on Wednesdays from 10am-12pm for the month of March. Want to join? Have questions? Please email Sara Beroff.

Join Virtually: Sha'ar Zahav Gathertown

We are thinking of re-launching the theatre/movie chavurah!

As we cannot meet in person, the idea is to watch a movie or play that’s being streamed, and to engage afterwards in discussion via Zoom. Interested? Please email Yvette Adida. Once we have an initial list of names, we will meet to discuss and move forward with frequency, dates, genres etc.

An artful video adaptation of Sholem Asch’s ground-breaking 1906 play, in English! Surrounded by controversy (the first Broadway production was closed down for portraying unconventional Jewish characters and the first lesbian kiss on Broadway), this play was the inspiration for the award-winning Broadway show, Indecent.

We Are Reading "The Book of V." by Anna Solomon and Discussing it on April 22

We are reading "The Book of V." by Anna Solomon as part of the One Bay One Book project of the Jewish Community Library. Let's read and discuss this new novel, rooted in the Book of Esther, where three characters’ stories in different time periods overlap and ultimately collide. Perfect to start reading during Purim!

A limited number of books will be available on loan starting on March 22. If you'd like to borrow a copy, please email Liliana Peliks.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

The election is over, so we are all finished? NO! Voter suppression hasn't ended. Join the Social Action Committee, the John Lewis Voter Engagement Group and the Racial Equity Group as we welcome Andrea Miller to speak at Sha'ar Zahav!

Andrea is one of the founding board members of the Center for Common Ground, and the driving force of its Reclaim our Vote Campaign. She will discuss new voting rights advocacy initiatives and how we may become involved. This is a unique opportunity to hear from her and ask her questions in an "intimate Zoom setting."

Open to All! Register for Free Here

A Passover-themed virtual vigil with Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, Or Shalom and Congregation Sha’ar Zahav to stand with those directly impacted by the prison system, mass incarceration, U.S. immigration systems and laws, and U.S. foreign and domestic policies that damage people’s lives. Rabbi Copeland and other local leaders will be speaking. Join us!

For More Information, Contact Nancy Wecker

Zoom with us to get an update on SZ’s solar panels, discuss plans for 2021 and the upcoming federal Farm Bill. New people and new ideas welcome!

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Adult B’Mitzvah Program

Many of us did not become B’Mitzvah as children and feel like it might be time to make that connection. Our Adult B’mitzvah Program (ABP) is a monthly group educational program, which runs for approximately 8 – 12 months. In the ABP you will learn about the history of the ritual and explore what it means to become an adult B’mitzvah. You will have practical classes in giving a D’var Torah, reading/chanting from the Torah, leading services, and learning the prayer service.

There will also be sessions on the who, what, and why of prayer, different perspectives of G-d, everyday spirituality and much more. The process culminates in either an individual or group B’mitzvah on a Saturday morning at Sha’ar Zahav.

Contact the coordinator Mark Pressler to let us know you are interested or would like to hear more!

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! For more information, contact Mark Pressler.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Study the weekly Torah portion with Rabbi Copeland and lay leaders. For the first half hour, we’ll talk, learn and share thoughts about the portion. In the second half, we will practice our Hebrew reading skills in a compassionate environment! Join for either or both parts of the study.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Golan Moskowitz will share with us the evolution of Maurice Sendak’s artistic vision and its appeal for American, Jewish, and queer audiences. The talk will show how Sendak’s multiple perspectives as a gay, Holocaust-conscious, American-born son of Yiddish-speaking Polish immigrants informed his life and work, changed the face of children’s literature.

Learn More and Register. Reply to this email and we will waive the $15 fee for Non-members.

During this time of immense loss and grief, we are holding regular Kaddish Memory Circles to support each other. Rabbi Mychal Copeland, Ora Prochovnick and Martin Tannenbaum will alternate leading these circles twice a month.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Drop in for a joyful hour of free art-making and connection. Everyone is welcome! The group meets every Thursday. For more information, contact Paisha Rochlin, Barbara Cymrot or AJ Turpen Fried.

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You are invited to a twice-a-month Shabbat morning exploration of yoga and Judaism that integrates mind, body, and spirit. Stuart Dick and Rabbi Mychal Copeland will alternate leading the first and third Saturday of every month.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

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.

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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. For more information, contact Cantor Bernstein.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Traditional models, such as CCRCs (continuing care retirement communities) are changing and becoming more expensive, rendering them out of reach for most of us Boomers. Join us to learn about innovation in housing, from intergenerational living to community housing with affinity groups. Facilitated by Paisha Rochlin. Please feel free to email her with any questions.

Open to All! Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Presented by the Trans Gender Non-Conforming Group, this panel is an accompaniment to the Trans Jews are Here conference by CBST. We will speak about inclusion in the synagogue, a guide to pronouns and how to use them, and will lead breakout rooms for discussion. Questions? Please contact Martin Rawlings-Fein.

Join the Zoom Meeting: Zoom link

Nuestra América: My Family in the Vertigo of Translation, Presented by Claudio Lomnitz

In "Nuestra América," Claudio Lomnitz traces his family’s experiences across Romania, Peru, Colombia, Israel, California, Mexico, Chile, and beyond. A narrative of exile and immigration that transcends genre to reveal the complex and subtle connections between South American radical movements and Jewish emancipation and exile in the early 20th century. Purchase the book from Afikomen Judaica.

Hebrew Free Loan is here for every individual, family, or small business owner in the community who needs assistance. Since March, they have disbursed roughly $8 million in interest-free loans, but they know the need is greater. Find out if you apply!

Contact sharonh@shaarzahav.org to sponsor a Shabbat

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, San Francisco Humanities, and the National Center to Encourage Judaism.

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