Biblical Responses to Ancient Challenges
2024-03-20 19:30 - 21:00, 2024-03-27 19:30 - 21:00, 2024-04-03 19:30 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Reisman Hall, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Minyan Ma’or is proud to announced its second class, “Biblical Responses to Ancient Challenges” with Hebrew College Vice President Dr. Susie Tanchel, starting Feb. 28.
In this course we will explore select biblical texts that discuss issues that continue to be relevant today. While many parts of life have shifted since biblical times, elements of the human condition have remained the same. Like our ancestors before us, for example, we need to take innovate in certain moments, to balance responsibility with authenticity, to get buy-in for ideas, and to respond to tragedy. Through studying the biblical sources, we will discover both the places of great resonance, and the places of disconnect, with our current times. No prior knowledge of biblical Hebrew is required. Please bring an open mind and heart to our discussions.
Classes will be recorded.
The cost is $120.Venmo @Sanford-Remz to pay.
Register Here→
About Dr. Susie Tanchel
Dr. Susie Tanchel is the Vice President of Community Education, overseeing four main areas at the College: Adult Learning, Teen learning, the Miller Center for Interreligious Learning & Leadership work, and professional development for rabbis and educators.
She has worked in K-12 pluralistic Jewish education for more than 25 years – briefly at Prozdor, then at Gann Academy, and mostly recently at Boston’s Jewish Community Day School (JCDS). In 1997, she was a founding faculty at Gann and became Associate Head of School in 2006. She became the Head of JCDS in 2011, and just concluded her tenure there this summer.
Questions? Contact Minyan Ma’or Learning Coordinator Sandy Remz

Learn to Read Torah: You Too Can Cantillate!
2024-09-16 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-09-23 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-10-07 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-10-21 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-10-28 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-11-04 18:15 - 19:15, 2024-11-18 18:15 - 19:15 | Gann Chapel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Anyone can read Torah. These sessions will focus on practical skills, in addition to learning the history behind the mystery!
Class Dates: 9/16, 9/23, 10/7,10/21, 10/28, 11/4, 11/18, 11/25
Register Here→

Psalms with Sid
2024-11-02 12:45 - 14:00, 2024-11-09 12:45 - 14:00, 2024-11-16 12:45 - 14:00, 2024-11-23 12:45 - 14:00, 2024-11-30 12:45 - 14:00 | Slater Conference Room, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Join us in Slater after Kiddush for a series of educational discussions on psalms. Sessions will be led by Sid Kadish. Stop by once, or come for all six!
Session Dates: November 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Join us on ZOOM!

Navigating Healthcare in Boston
2025-01-14 18:30 - 19:15 | Gann Chapel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Despite the extraordinarily robust healthcare ecosystem in Boston navigating the system as a patient requires understanding the complexities of the local healthcare companies, insurance coverage limitations, identifying and retaining primary care and the best ways of communicating with clinical providers. Dr. Howard Heller will share his perspective of the most critical issues gained from 33 years of experience caring for patients in Boston/Cambridge as a primary care doctor, as a specialist and also as a patient.

The Choreography of Davening Explained
2025-01-18 12:30 - 14:00 | Reisman Hall, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Minyan Ma’or warmly welcomes all to join as Yair Listokin explains some Shabbat davening practices during lunch this Shabbat. For example, why do some stand during kaddish? What’s the three steps back and forth all about at the beginning and end of an Amidah? LOTS more will be explained!
We look forward to this educational session!

You, Too, Can Cantillate: High Holy Day Edition
2025-03-03 18:00 - 19:15, 2025-03-10 18:00 - 19:15, 2025-03-17 18:00 - 19:15 | In Person – Temple Emanuel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
There is a rich history to Torah Cantillation melody spanning the globe. One of the variations is the way in which we chant on the High Holy Days. This class is for those that already have a working knowledge of trope. To join the class, register here (link here) We look forward to finding a reading for you on Rosh HaShana or Yom Kippur in 5786!
Register Here→

Meet Today’s Technion Students...Tomorrow’s Israeli Innovators and Entrepreneurs
2025-03-05 19:30 - 21:00 | In Person – Temple Emanuel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Who will create the scientific and technological breakthroughs that will shape Israel and our world in the years to come? Who else but Technion students? Meet Yaniv Slor Futterman, an undergraduate student of electrical and computer engineering who is working to leverage computational systems to improve the treatment of cancer. He will be joined by fellow undergraduate Nikol Seleznev, whose studies combine her passion for engineering with a desire to improve lives through innovative healthcare solutions. You’ll be inspired by their soaring aspirations and personal journeys. Join Temple Emanuel’s Israel Action Committee, in partnership with Boston’s Technion Speaker Series, for a conversation with these talented Technion students, the Berger Visiting Fellows. There will be light kosher refreshments served.
Register→

The Synagogues of Dorchester, Roxbury, and Mattapan
2025-03-19 18:00 - 19:30 | Benjamin Vestry, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Join us to learn the history of the many synagogues that have existed in Dorchester, Roxbury, and Mattapan throughout the last 150 years.
Dorchester and Roxbury native Jeffrey Calish will discuss the Jewish population and migration trends that drove the boom and bust of these local congregations, and how the buildings they inhabited continue to serve their communities to this day.

Minyan Ma’or Lunch & Learn with Passover Scholar-in-Residence-Rabbi Mishael Zion
2025-04-05 12:30 - 14:00 | Reisman Hall, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Rabbi Mishael Zion will lead an interactive discussion on Wicked: 20th Century Lessons from the Art of the Wicked Child at Minyan Ma’or’s Lunch & Learn in Reisman Hall following Ma’or’s service, which starts at 9:30 a.m.
Wicked: 20th Century Lessons from the Art of the Wicked Child
Forget the food, family and texts – Passover night is the night of Jewish Art, with the generations of artistic renditions of the Four Children and illuminated Haggadot serving a central role in the Passover experience. Taking an in-depth look at the Art of the four children, and specifically on the wicked child in 20th century art, provides a powerful re-telling of modern Jewish stories, ideas and politics in an accessible and surprising way.
About Rabbi Mishael Zion
Rabbi Mishael Zion comes from a Haggadah-filled home: he is co-author of A Night to Remember: The Haggadah of Contemporary Voices (2007) and The Israeli Haggadah (2024), together with his father Noam Zion, who is the author of A Different Night: The Family Participation Haggadah (Hartman, 1997). Mishael was ordained by Yeshivat Chovevei Torah in New York, has served as co-Director and rabbi of the Bro nfman Fellowships, and founded the Mandel Program for Leadership in Jewish Culture for Israeli Arts, Culture and Media leaders. He is also leader of the Klausner Minyan in Talpiot, Jerusalem, the neighborhood he was born in and in where his wife Elana, and their four daughters, live.

Mishael Zion's Seder Survival Kit: How to turn your Passover table into a Night to Remember
2025-04-06 09:30 - 10:45 | Adelson Community Hall, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
A Seder workshop from the home that brought you “A Different Night” and “A Night to Remember”, for parents, grandparents, Seder hosts and participants. We’ll delve into the educational goals the rabbis set for this special night, and see how the structure of the seder helps unlock the creativity of the night. Loads of ideas, suggestions and creative options for any Seder. Walk-ins welcome!
Join us in-person or via livestream!
Register→
Rabbi Mishael Zion comes from a Haggadah-filled home: he is co-author of A Night to Remember: The Haggadah of Contemporary Voices (2007) and The Israeli Haggadah (2024), together with his father Noam Zion, who is the author of A Different Night: The Family Participation Haggadah (Hartman, 1997). Mishael was ordained by Yeshivat Chovevei Torah in New York, has served as co-Director and rabbi of the Bronfman Fellowships, and founded the Mandel Program for Leadership in Jewish Culture for Israeli Arts, Culture and Media leaders. He is also leader of the Klausner Minyan in Talpiot, Jerusalem, the neighborhood he was born in and in where his wife Elana, and their four daughters, live.

Yom HaShoah Annual Commemoration
2025-04-24 19:00 - 20:00 | Rabbi Samuel Chiel Sanctuary, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Please join us for our annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration. In addition to our yearly rituals, we are privileged to welcome Sabine von Mering for a special talk titled “Pastors, Spies, Assassins: Is this a “Bonhoeffer Moment”?. In this talk, Professor von Mering will tell the story of her grandfather, who in 1934 became a member of the “Confessing Church”, an organization of Protestant pastors co-founded by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In that context she will discuss the controversy around the recent film “Bonhoeffer. Pastor, Spy, Assassin” (2024), produced and heavily promoted by Christian Nationalists, and consider the lessons to be drawn for the present moment.
We will also be blessed with a special video from our beloved Rabbi Michelle and Hazzan Elias direct from Poland as they are leading our members on a March of the Living journey. We are with them in spirit on this most solemn and inspirational day and wish them safe travels.
About The Speaker
Sabine von Mering is Professor of German and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Director of the Center for German and European Studies at Brandeis University. She holds a Ph.D. in German Studies from the University of California, Davis. Together with Monika Hübscher, she co-edited Antisemitism on Social Media (Routledge, 2022). The updated German translation, Antisemitismus in den Sozialen Medien was published with Verlag Barbara Budrich in May 2024). Previous co-edited volumes include Right-Wing Radicalism Today: Perspectives from Europe and the US (2013) and Russian-Jewish Emigrants After the Cold War: Perspectives from Germany, Israel, Canada, and the United States (2006). She also co-edited The Routledge Handbook of Grassroots Climate Activism (2025) and is currently working on the connection between climate denial and right-wing extremism. Since the beginning of the pandemic she has been hosting the popular CGES Online Webinar series.

Micah Goodman: Global Chaos - The Forces Undermining the World Order
2025-05-05 20:00 - 21:00 | Rabbi Samuel Chiel Sanctuary, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Our Temple Emanuel Hartman Learning Initiative continues with Dr. Micah Goodman, who will join us in person from Israel.
We all get, every day, that we are living in no ordinary time. That we are living in historically tumultuous times. In America. The world. The financial markets. Universities. Alliances that are upturned. America’s role in the international order since World War II upturned. In Israel. Its government under a cloud of investigations and mistrust. The moral and reputational challenges to its war with Hamas that will not end, with Hamas damaged but not gone, and with our hostages still held captive.
But why?
Why is there this world-wide international tumult? What are its origins? What, if anything, can we do to ameliorate it? Most of us work on creating a counterworld of decency and dignity in our own dalet amot, the four cubits of our local existence. But can any of us make the problem of this global chaos better at its roots? Or not?
On Monday night, May 5, from 8:00 to 9:00 pm, in the Rabbi Samuel Chiel Sanctuary, we will wrap up our year of in person Hartman learning at Temple Emanuel with a visit from our friend and teacher, thought leader and public intellectual Micah Goodman who will be here from Israel to speak about the chaos now afflicting the lands we love and the world in which we live.
Watch a Recording Here→
Upcoming Hartman Learning Programs:
June 25 – July 2, 2025 – TE-Hartman 2025 Trip to Israel. Let us know here you’d like to learn more!
June 24 – July 1, 2026 – TE-Hartman 2026 Trip to Israel. Let us know here you’d like to learn more!
Look for recordings of all our online sessions and selected lectures of Hartman scholars at Temple Emanuel here.
Watch for updated details on this program and all Hartman learning opportunities in our weekly Friday midday Hartman @ Home email.

Hebrew for Travelers
2025-05-11 20:00 - 21:00, 2025-06-08 20:00 - 21:00 | In Person – Temple Emanuel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Essential Phrases for Your Israel Journey
Led by Sigalit Davis
Location: Temple Emanuel, Room 24/25
Duration: 1 hour per session
Free, No Prerequisites Required!
Planning a trip to Israel? Whether you’re joining a mission or traveling independently, this practical and engaging three-session course will equip you with essential Hebrew phrases to navigate your journey with confidence.
You’ll learn everyday expressions to use at:
– Airport security and flight check-in
– Ben Gurion Airport arrivals
– Hotels and accommodations
– Touring and getting around
– Common slang and useful phrases
Session Dates:
Sunday, May 11 | 8:00 – 9:00 PM
Sunday, June 8 | 8:00 – 9:00 PM
Thursday, June 12 | 8:00 – 9:00 PM
No prior Hebrew knowledge is needed—just bring your enthusiasm and get ready to immerse yourself in the language of travel!
Register→

What Does It Mean To Be Pro-Israel in 2025? Conversation with Rabbi Wes Gardenswartz and Adina Vogel-Ayalon, J Street Chief Of Staff
2025-05-12 20:00 - 21:30 | Gann Chapel, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Adina Vogel Ayalon – an Israeli citizen who has lived and raised a family in Israel and worked for decades toward building peaceful relations between Israelis and Palestinians – and Rabbi Wes Gardenswartz are uniquely positioned to unpack some of the difficult questions facing our communities today, including:

How can American Jews most effectively advocate to bring about the return of the hostages, sideline Hamas and promote a peaceful and safe future for Israeli and Palestinian families alike?
What constitutes anti-semitism on campus and how can we best combat it?
How should our community encourage the US government to address Iran’s nuclear ambitions and support of terrorism throughout the region?
How would the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel affect Israel’s security?

Registration has graciously been provided by J Street.
Register→

Antisemitism in US Healthcare: Is History Repeating Itself?
2025-05-22 18:30 - 19:30 | Rabbi Samuel Chiel Sanctuary, 385 Ward Street, Newton, MA, 02459, United States
Dr. Poznansky and Dr. Park are founders and co-chairs of the newly formed Jewish Employee Resource Group (ERG) at Mass General Brigham. They took the initiative to organize the ERG in response to the growing antisemitism in the healthcare profession and recognized the need for Jewish doctors, staff and faculty to be supported. They are dedicated to fostering community, culture, and support for the Jewish and Jewish affiliated community in healthcare in the face of growing antisemitism in healthcare and in the US in general. They will explain the challenges in healthcare today, why there is a need for an employee resource group, how they created one and what you can do as a patient, carer in a hospital or center of healthcare or in your workplace.
Register→
About the Speakers
Mark C Poznansky, MD, PhD, is a Professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, an attending physician in infectious diseases medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and Director of the Vaccine and Immunotherapy Center at MGH. He holds a doctoral degree Cambridge University and a medical degree from University of Edinburgh. His clinical subspecialization includes the treatment of infection in immune-compromised patients. The Poznansky laboratory works at the interface between scientific discovery and medical product development, discovering novel immune processes, defining their molecular mechanisms and exploring their relevance to the development of vaccines and immunotherapies for cancer, infectious diseases and type I diabetes. Dr. Poznansky is also the co-founder of Harvard Medical School – Kalaniyot which sets as its mission to foster academic relations between Israeli academic medical centers and HMS here in Boston. He also serves on the Board of the newly formed American Jewish Medical Association.
Elyse R Park, PhD, MPH is a Professor of Psychiatry and Medicine at MGH/Harvard Medical School and Director of Health Promotion and Resiliency Intervention Research (HPRIR) Center. She is a clinical health psychologist and health services researcher who designs interventions to improve health-related behaviors among cancer survivors and populations at risk for cancer and chronic disease. Her research focuses on developing and implementing behavioral interventions to enhance resiliency, decrease tobacco use, and improve access to healthcare. Her work is funded by the National Institute of Health and several foundations. Clinically, she treats cancer survivors. She founded the MGH Division of Clinical Research’s Qualitative Mixed Methods Research Unit and directs behavioral research at the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine.
Moderated by Michelle S. Robinson, Senior Rabbi
Rabbi Michelle Robinson was ordained in 1999 as part of the first graduating class of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies. Since then, she has been blessed to call Temple Emanuel home. She loves community building, sharing the joy of traditional text study, and facilitating personal connections to the beauty of prayer. Rabbi Robinson has also spent three years and many summers learning and traveling in Israel, where she was blessed to meet her husband, Mike. Together they are the proud parents of four children who remind them of God’s blessings every day.
