Monday nights at Tifereth Israel

7701 16th Street (and Juniper Street) NW, Washington, DC

Exploring the Kabbalah: Discovering the Spiritual Meaning of Jewish Practice and Ritual

Mondays May 2, 9, 16, 23
Tifereth Israel 7701 16th Street (and Juniper Street) NW, Washington, DC
7-8:15PM

Learn the essence of Judaism and the path to spiritual meaning in this introductory class to the rich Jewish mystical tradition. Kabbalah seeks answers to the mystery of God, the challenge of dealing with evil, the purpose of Jewish rituals and the meaning of Jewish prayer. We will cover the basic concepts, the symbolism, the lost meaning of Jewish holiday and Shabbat observance, and basic texts.

Dr. Jay McCrensky, MBA, PhD. is President of Marketshare, a Management Investment Banking and Strategic
Partnering Advisory. Jay completed his PhD. in Jewish Studies and Kabbalah this year at Baltimore Hebrew

University. He has taught Kabbalah for more than 30 years at numerous local groups and congregations and has led kabbalistic seders for Passover and Tu B’shvat. He is the author of two books on Kabbalah: Understanding Evil: Insights from Kabbalah and Receiving Holiness: Understanding Judaism through Kabbalah. On the more earthly plane, Jay is an investment banker and the director of Machaya Klezmer Band.

JSC and Tifereth Israel members $55; non-members $75

Weekday Amidah: A Gateway for Transitions

Mondays May 16, and 23
Tifereth Israel 7701 16th Street (and Juniper Street) NW, Washington, DC
7-8:15PM

The Amidah (the standing prayer) is said in nearly every Jewish prayer service--daily, Shabbat and
holidays--but many struggle with its meaning. We will read this amazing prayer in English and Hebrew and
will ponder, meditate, chant, sing, and share our experiences of a few of the prayer's nineteen themes that
affect our daily lives, including families, a higher Power, holiness, repentance, forgiveness, healing and jus-
tice. These and more provide us opportunities to experience our freedom and peace. We will use colored
pencils, crayons, pencil, pen, and paper, and maybe movement as well, to augment the prayer and make it
our own. (The instructor has written her own weekday Amidah). Interested students may join a follow-up
group to explore our transition through all nineteen gateways.

Andrea Foster is a rabbinical student with Alliance for Jewish Renewal, a shaliach tzibbur (service
leader) and a Jewish educator. For more info go to her website: www.yoninatorahseed.com.

JSC and Tifereth Israel members $25; non-members $35

Music and Healing

Monday June 6
Tifereth Israel 7701 16th Street (and Juniper Street) NW, Washington, DC
7-8:15PM

Come learn contemporary, folk and traditional songs that can help you through times of need and comfort. And learn how to incorporate them into daily prayer or meditation practice. The instructor will bring her guitar and song sheets.

Andrea Foster is a rabbinical student with Alliance for Jewish Renewal, a shaliach tzibbur (service
leader) and a Jewish educator. For more info go to her website: www.yoninatorahseed.com.

Each session: JSC and Tifereth Israel members $15; non-members $20 Page

Tuesday nights at the National Museum of American Jewish Military History

1811 R Street, NW, Washington, DC—2 blocks from Dupont Circle N metro

Sacred Fragrances of the Tanach

Tuesday May 17
1811 R Street, NW, Washington, DC
7-9PM

"…I will betake me to the mount of myrrh, to the hill of frankincense…" – The Song of Songs 4:6

From Exodus to Psalms to the Song of Songs, the Jewish Bible is infused with tantalizing fragrances of incense, aromatic offerings, and spices. The holy anointing oils of Exodus, frankincense of the Leviticus, and aloes, myrrh, and spikenard of The Song of Songs offer clues to how our ancestors interacted with their environment and the many ways they found to connect with the sacred.

Come to this engaging, experiential class to find out: What was the significance of fragrant herbs and spices in Biblical times? What exactly constituted the holy anointing oils? Why does the Bible refer to them as the "oils of gladness"? What has modern science learned about their multiple qualities, from spiritual, to antibiotic to antiseptic and anti-cancerous? And, most important: What did they actually smell like?

You will never read the Bible in the same way again!

(*For persons sensitive to smells: In this class we will be using 100% natural, organic, therapeutic-grade essential oils. These typically produce no negative side-effects, even in those allergic to pollen or synthetic fragrances. However, please make the decision that's best for you.)

Izabella Tabarovsky is a Healing Touch practitioner, clinical aromatherapist, and life path / career path
coach. She is on staff at the Washington Cancer Institute and is a founding partner at Soapstone Integrative
Health Associates. She teaches frequently on the subjects of holistic health and wellness. For more informa-
tion, please visit www.izabellatabarovsky.com.

JSC and JWV members $25; non-members $30
(This fee includes $5 to cover cost of materials.)

Wednesday nights at Adas Israel, 2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC—

1 block from Cleveland Park metro

Lost Tribes: All Kinds of Jews

Wednesday April 27
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
7:00-8:15PM

The great variety of Jewish communities—many of them with varying traditions—have often been inaccu-
rately been described as involving Lost Tribes.

Very few are lost—many have been there all along. But Tudor Parfitt of the School of Oriental and African
Studies, the leading expert on them, calls them tribes of Jews trying to be found. The session will consider on
the basis of various Indian, Russian, and African examples who has been considered a Jew and how and
where.

Dr. Thomas Timberg is an economist and writer who has lived in many parts of the world - and has been
involved with Jewish communities in all of them. He has published and written particularly about Indian Jews
but in recent years been involved with African, former Soviet, and other South Asian communities. He is a
member of Am HaTorah Congregation in Bethesda, MD.

JSC and Adas Israel members $15; non-members $20

Three Classic Midrashim: Talmud as Hypertext

Wednesdays May 11, 18, 25
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
7:00-8:15PM

In this course we will read three classic midrashim from the Talmud, and analyze their literary, political, psychological, and social implications. (“Midrash” is the ancient Jewish practice of illuminating texts by creative storytelling.) In the process, we will uncover their lasting impacts on Jewish thought and literature, and their prescient understanding of the human condition. The three midrashim are: The Oven of Achnai, Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, The Four Who Entered Pardaes (the garden, paradise).

Stephen Berer, a newcomer to DC, is a writer of poetry, focusing on the existential and spiritual issues of
Jewish identity in the world today. He has taught Jewish Studies in a Jewish day school, and worked as an in-
vestment analyst, developing econometric models to forecast market indices. His poetry and illuminations can
be found at: http://www.shivvetee.com and http://shivvetee.blogspot.com.

3 sessions: JSC and Adas Israel members $40; non-members $55

Jews of Nashville

Wednesday June 15
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
7-8:15PM

Believe it--there are Jews in Nashville, Tennessee. This Jewish community that began with just one congre-
gation in the mid-1850s is now a thriving community of 7,500 people in the heart of the Bible Belt. In fact,
the first Jewish child in Music City, USA was born in 1795. Wendy will describe the history of this commu-
nity, highlight significant time periods such as its involvement in the civil rights movement (including the role
of her own childhood rabbi), and give you a sense of what's happening in Nashville today.

Wendy Kamenshine, who is a native of Nashville, is the Senior Ombudsman at the Department of Home-
land Security's Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman's Office.

JSCand Adas Israel members $15; non-members $20

Challah-Baking as a Spiritual Practice

Have you ever wanted to experience the aroma of homemade challah in your kitchen on Erev Shabbat or Yom Tov? Baking your own challah is a special way to bring the spirituality of Shabbat into your home. Longtime home-baking challah enthusiast Susan Finston will teach this one session workshop with tips on braiding and baking challah and adding that special Shabbat feeling. Join her to start your own tradition of baking challah at home!

Susan Finston has been baking challah for friends and family since the early 1980's. Over the last 30
years she has baked or carried homemade challah to overseas destinations including Ahmedabad,
Beijing, Manila, Bhutan and many more. She is the founder and principal of Finston Consulting, LLC.

JSC and Adas members $20; non-members $25

Foods of Israel Today

Wednesdays May 25 and June 1
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
7:00-8:30PM

Israeli food today abounds in freshness, variety and flavor combinations rarely found elsewhere. When Laurie Moskowitz's family moved to Israel for six months, she chronicled their discovery of the Israeli kosher food scene--shopping, cooking and eating--in her blog chocolateandkalamataolives.com. In these two sessions, Laurie will offer a smorgasbord of ways to spice up your table, Israeli-style, and follow up with some hands-on experiments.

Laurie Moskowitz is an Adas Israel member, an enthusiastic professional at-home chef and a political
consultant.

JSC and Adas members $40; non-members $50

Islam and Politics in Arab Countries

Wednesdays May 4, 11
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
7:00-8:15 p.m.

Stalling political reforms has resulted in turmoil in the Arab Street and regime change in some countries. The issue is whether Islam help or hinder democratic transformation.

Naiem Sherbiny is the senior representative in the U.S. of the Cairo-based Ibn Khaldun Center for Development, and a board member of Library of Alexandria Foundation. Formerly a senior economist at the World Bank, he has taught at Berkeley, Wisconsin, Harvard, Georgetown, and American University at Cairo.

JSC and Adas members $30; non-members $40

Savoring the Psalms

Wednesdays May 11, 18, 25 (4th session date tbd)
2850 Quebec St NW, Washington, DC
8:30-9:40PM

The Book of Psalms always comes as a surprise on first reading--and even more on deeper acquaintance. We will dip into various Psalms as the interests of the class move us--untangling metaphors, comparing translations, tracing the meanings of the words over time. We will read mostly in English, with a look at the Hebrew depending on class preferences.

Amy Schwartz, a journalist, has taught many Study Center classes on poetry. She is Vice President
for education and youth at Adas Israel.

JSC and Adas members $55; non-members $75

Co-sponsored with the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington

Walking Tour of Jewish Sites in Arlington National Cemetery

Sunday, May 1, 11:00 AM --2:00 PM

Tour sites related to Jewish history and military heroes, including the Confederate Memorial
by Sir Moses Ezekiel. This tour includes a bit of walking.

Led by Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington Board members Les Bergen and Ernie Marcus.
Meet outside the Visitor Center.

JHSGW members $15; $20 non-members $20

Register at: www.jhsgw.org
or call: (202) 789-0900

Afterwards join the Jewish War Veterans after the tour for a memorial service to Maj. Gen. Orde Wingate, a British officer who assisted in the creation of the State of Israel.

Co-sponsored with the National Museum of American Jewish Military History

Family Stories: Sons, Fathers and Zaydes

Sunday June 5, 2011, 2pm-4pm

National Museum of American Jewish Military History
1811 R Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009 (202) 265-6280
(two blocks from Dupont Circle North metro)

Are you a photographer, an artist, a filmmaker? A writer or storyteller? A stand-up comedian, dancer, or singer? Always wanted to try one of these? Come show off your talents! On June 5, as part of the DuPont Kalorama Museums Consortium Walk Weekend, the NMAJMH and the Jewish Study Center will devote this special afternoon to some of the most important men in our lives. We invite you to portray your beloved male relatives through a skit, scrapbook, video, song and dance routine, or what ever your imagination can conjure. To submit your piece and reserve a 10-15 minute time slot, call or email Mary Westley, Assistant Administrator of the NMAJMH at mwestley@jwv.org / 202 265-6280 and to discuss any video or audio equipment needs for that day.

Invite family and friends to join us on June 5, 2011. The entries will be photographed and placed on our websites and mentioned in our news media. This event is open to the public and admission is free.

Guided tours of the museum exhibits, including our homage to the Fallen Heroes of Iraq and Afghanistan will be available for exploring for adults from 1pm-5pm as well as treasure hunts for the kids, reading age and up.

Do you have an idea for a class? Contact the Study Center to make class suggestions.

Hebrew Classes:
For other levels of biblical and prayerbook Hebrew, contact Adas Israel Congregation for community classes.